WILLisms.com: FLASHBACK: Ronnie Earle & Tom DeLay.

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FLASHBACK: Ronnie Earle & Tom DeLay.

U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay has been indicted (.pdf) by Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle. Roy Blunt of Missouri will take over as Majority Leader as DeLay steps down, pursuant to the GOP caucus rules.

Note in this flashback post: Earle is a very liberal partisan hack.

A few things to keep in mind:

1. Texas has an odd system, where the Travis County (very liberal Austin) District Attorney has jurisdiction over the entire system of state politics.

2. Former Congressman and ethics violator Chris Bell (D), who plans to run for Governor, is salivating about this. He intends to run as the "anti-DeLay" next year. That's sour grapes. Same with Martin Frost. Same with all of the folks thrust out of power due to redistricting. They feel like they are entitled to power, even though the public has rejected their ideas. They are wrong.

3. Some folks, meanwhile, argue that Earle indicted more Democrats than Republicans in his career. Well, Texas used to be a one-party state. And it was a one-party Democrat-controlled state. So of course he indicted Democrats back in the day.

4. Earle also indicted Republican Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison in a disgraceful bit of partisan hackery. Those charges were eventually thrown out, and Earle was disgraced and embarrassed.

5. Read the flashback post linked above, but don't forget about Ronnie Earle's "dollars for dismissals" business.

6. Let's not forget what this is really about. It's about sour grapes. It's about Tom DeLay's profound effectiveness at winning elections and winning legislative victories. It's about the shift of power in Texas from the Democrats to the Republicans. It's about the advancement of the conservative movement.

And let's remember that Democrats mangled the Congressional districts for many decades. Although Republicans won every single statewide race in Texas, by huge margins, year after year, Democrats still controlled the state delegation to Congress, 17-13. That was blatant gerrymandering. Tom DeLay helped un-gerrymander those districts so the delegation would reflect the will of Texas voters.

Does anyone remember when the Texas Democrats ran away to Oklahoma? That's what this is about. They ran away to prevent a quorum on entirely necessary redistricting. Democrats are desperate to regain the power they have lost in Texas over the past decade. Democrats just can't accept that Texans have rejected their ideas.

Think about it for a second.

Had Bush v. Gore gone to the House of Representatives (which votes by state delegation in such a situation) in 2000 due to continued gridlock, Texas would have voted for Gore. Texas would have gone for Al Gore! All because the Democrats drew the districts to eliminate Republican representation in Congress.

The actual charges focus on relatively silly fundraising violations, and the minutiae of them will quickly bore people, after an initial media-driven anti-DeLay, anti-GOP hullabaloo/hatchet job.

And it seems like DeLay is being punished, politically, for merely being indicted by a partisan prosector for something that may or may not be legitimate.

Thus, there was almost an incentive for Earle to hand down an indictment, any indictment, on this, the last day of this Grand Jury's term. Because even a poor indictment on a relatively routine campaign finance violation (or "conspiracy" to commit a campaign finance violation, not even the actual violation itself) would lead to DeLay having to step down as Majority Leader. That's just one part of why this seems so fishy.

The weirdest thing about all of this nonsense is that Republicans would have won those seats in the state legislature with or without those relatively meager amounts of (allegedly illegal) campaign money.

But let's keep this in perspective. The criminal justice system should not be a place to wage political battles. But this is certainly what we're seeing today.

Posted by Will Franklin · 28 September 2005 12:22 PM

Comments

This has all the signs of Radical left wing hate monger attached to it! The MSM is really drooling all over this story... They have been out to get Tom Delay on anything possible! If this is not dirty PARTISAN POLITICS at work I don't know what is??? Tom Delay is a strong leader and they are out for blood and guts!...

Posted by: Zsa Zsa at September 28, 2005 12:33 PM

I doubt these people have ever thought of ethics?

Posted by: Zsa Zsa at September 28, 2005 12:39 PM

Great post!

Posted by: Dale M. at September 28, 2005 01:44 PM

You have this pegged, squarely.
My only real gripe is that you have to know that the mud slide was going to come, so why do anything that could be considered "questionable?"

I doubt that DeLay did this, but if he did I hope he gets hammered for it for one reason: That will become the standard of how you look at ALL of these elected officials. I bet a lot will fail that level of scruitny.

BTW, I still don't miss Frost. He was a jerk.

Posted by: Rob B. at September 28, 2005 01:59 PM

"indicted by a partisan prosector for something that may or may not be legitimate."

This is the bottom line: If it's not legitimate -- or even if it is legitimate, but DeLay beats it -- the Reeps will come out ahead because of it. You know how that will play. He's had to step aside officially, but it doesn't really represent a disruption of the leadership structure, and if he gets to reclaim his post it'll be seen as a glorious vindication.

On the other hand, if it is legitimate, does it matter if it's partisan? Which it may well be, though I'm not so convinced. Like you pointed out, Earle went after Dems when the Dems were in charge. Now the Reeps are in charge, and he's going after Reeps. Isn't that how it should be?

Posted by: catastrophile at September 28, 2005 03:03 PM

DeLay has been admonished more by the House Ethics Committee than any sitting member of Congress in history.

Then today, he’s indicted by a grand jury for a very serious charge. So why support DeLay? Why support someone with so many ethical question marks?!?

Is it because us Democrats are conspiring to destroy a Republican agenda? Please. Give me a break.

This indictment is more about the bad politics of Tom DeLay. Oh sure, question Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle’s motives. Earle is reported to have prosecuted more democrats than republicans. So spin it baby. Spin it to make DeLay look like the good guy and Earle as the bad guy... and lets see what really happens in the end.

Posted by: Steven D. Rivas at September 28, 2005 03:40 PM

DeLay has been admonished more by the House Ethics Committee than any sitting member of Congress in history.

Then today, he’s indicted by a grand jury for a very serious charge. So why support DeLay? Why support someone with so many ethical question marks?!?

Is it because us Democrats are conspiring to destroy a Republican agenda? Please. Give me a break.

Posted by: Steven D. Rivas at September 28, 2005 03:40 PM

Steven, that line about DeLay being admonished more than any other member in history is complete and utter BS.

Democrat Chris Bell himself has been admonished more than DeLay by the Ethics Committee, and more harshly.

And you're right, we will see what happens in the end. That's why this is only an indictment, not a conviction.

Posted by: Will Franklin at September 28, 2005 03:46 PM

Ronnie Earle is a schmuck!...

Posted by: Zsa Zsa at September 29, 2005 06:07 AM