Corrupt Republicans Have Gotta Go

This morning’s Wall Street Journal has the absolute right idea about the Jack Abramoff scandal. In an editorial entitled Banish the Abramoff Republicans, the Journal makes three important points.

1) This is a sleazy scandal but anyone who claims it is historic doesn’t know their congressional history very well.

2) The key is not to pass lobby reform. Lobby reform just reduces the people’s right to petition their government and insulates congress from blame.

3) Excommunicate those Republicans tied up in the Abramoff scandal. This crop of Republicans was elected to reduce the power of government and end the corruption. Only by returning to that mission can the Republicans hold on to their voters.

Yep. The old saying “power corrupts” is certainly apt. Delay and his bunch were supposed to be reducing the power of government. Instead they’ve gotten high on it. The only difference between the Delay Republicans and the Jim Wright Democrats is who’s getting the kickbacks.

The Democrats were too comfortable with their own corruption back in the early nineties. The Republicans would be wise not the make the same mistake barely ten years later.