Jefferson search was the horse's head on the bed for Congress.

[Skidmore]

I was just thinking about what was gained by * and the corrupt GOP. First, they took out a Dem congressperson and maybe open a seat up to steal. Second, there is a veiled threat here, I believe, to Congress. If anyone has been thinking about actually exercising oversight or turning evidence on Abramoff, then they are having second thoughts right now. Congress has done this to themselves. Between the willingness to overlook the egregious crimes of the executive and to rubberstamp all executive proposals as well as their own hubris and greed, they have made the legislative branch a joke. The people have no voice.

[kentuck]

1. a veiled threat ?

If you try to investigate, you will find yourself under investigation?

[Skidmore]

3. Yes. The evidence against Jefferson was pretty specific. So

why didn't they just arrest him? They had him on film taking a bribe. What this search did was tell Congress that they have no place to be safe within the law--they have no power.

[AndyTiedye]

14. It Would Be. They're Running Stings Against Every Democrat in DC

[Virginia Dare]

2. Totally agree...

which is why Hastert and others were freaking. I don't think it was an act. This administration gets bolder by the day with their abuse of power. There is no doubt in my mind they've collected quite a bit of usable blackmail on most of them, both sides of the aisle.

[spanone]

4. This is why republicans are outraged along with dems.

This is a constitutional crisis that I'm sure will be forgotten in a few days.
But another erosion of the balance of powers by the evil Dick Cheney and the ever complicit Gonzales.

[in_cog_ni_to]

5. The GOP would never investigate the cabal though. They haven't yet and

have had over 6+ years to do so. They have NO INTENTIONS of ever investigating these people. My theory is: They're covering their own asses and set the whole thing up. It will go to the SCOTUS, the RW court will rule the search illegal (because this was all pre-planned with the GOP) and their offices will NEVER BE SEARCHED. Perfect little ploy. Our Governemnt is gone. It's corrupt to the core.

[Norquist Nemesis]

6. Agreed. The Hastert/Frist reaction is smacks of hypocrisy

in so many ways, IMO. All of a sudden (when it affects them) they are concerned about the over reach by the Executive Branch. Where is that, "If you're not doing anything wrong, there's nothing to worry about" response for all things done by Bush?

Could it be an attempt to show separate identity and backbone standing up to the President? These same people have been silent for five and a half years while putting the Constitution through a K-Tel Slicer Dicer.

[MallRat]

7. By extension, does that mean that Alberto Gonzales...

...ruined one of Woltz International's brightest stars? ;-)

WOLTZ: She was beautiful; she was young, she was innocent. She was the greatest piece of ass I ever had, and I had'em all over the world! And then Johnny Fontane comes along with his olive-oil voice, and guinea charm. And she runs off. She threw it all away just to make me look ridiculous! And a man in my position can't afford to be made to look ridiculous! Now you get the hell outta here! And if that gumbah tries any rough stuff, you tell him I ain't no band leader!

TOM: Thank you for the dinner and a very pleasant evening. If your car could take me to the airport; Mr. Corleone is a man who insists on hearing bad news immediately.

[theboss]

8. Or Jefferson is just a scumbag

Either/or.

[Skidmore]

9. How about also?

A duplicitous executive and a corrupt congressman of any stripe are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Both can be true.

[JPZenger]

11. Congressional Offices Should not be a safe house for hiding bribes

Congress should not be above the law. Their offices should be subject to the same search procedures as any office - based upon a court order and probable cause. The GOP only cares about their own privacy - they don't care about the warrantless physical searches that are reportedly occurring to other people.

[treestar]

10. The sheeple have the option of throwing all the SOBs out in the

next election. They always have had that. They are not trapped by television. They can turn it off and try to find out what is really happening.

The sheeple act helpless and this is what they get.

They had better wake up fast.

[democrat_patriot]

12. This keeps "CORRUPT DEMS" on front page

I think repubs outrage is fake.

[AndyTiedye]

13. See How Quickly The Judiciary Committee Bent Over for Hayden