In his Thursday metro side column, the Post‘s David Harsanyi shines the light on a series of cases that give Coloradans plenty of reason to be cynical about politics. Maybe as cynical as one of my commenters, who after my post on Deanna Hanna’s more legally serious misdeeds implied that I was ignoring the Stengel affair because of party loyalties.
Memo to commenter: sorry for giving you an excuse to feed your cynicism. If you would care to respond to this post and reveal your identity, my respect for you will increase greatly.
Harsanyi’s lead case is indeed that of Republican House Minority Leader Joe Stengel, who charged taxpayers for 240 days of work last year, including a trip to Hawaii. Yesterday, five of Stengel’s constituents formally called for an Ethics Committee investigation. It may be time for such a course of action, though the danger exists that any action will be tainted by those striving for partisan political advantage.
Even so, the Republican representative from Arapahoe County needs to remain transparent and willing to accept the legitimate consequences that he may soon face – including the potential findings of an Ethics Committee. His admittedly “bad judgment” has been a distraction from the party’s agenda. Strong consideration should be given to replacing Stengel in his leadership post as a means to end the distraction, and to show the GOP has a higher standard of accountability to the taxpayer. At the least, the unprecedented billing of 240 days in one year looks bad, very bad. While technically legal under an ambiguous code, his actions erred on the wrong side of ethical judgment.
Stengel did the right thing by issuing a formal apology and returning 9 days’ pay from the Hawaii vacation and his study for the bar exam – though he may have waited too long to do so. Only time will tell if he has done enough.
Update: Developments are happening faster than anticipated. News reports indicate Stengel has resigned his minority leader post and called a special Republican caucus meeting to choose a replacement. Kudos to him for a tough decision. Speculation about the potential replacement begins – Bill Cadman, Al White, and Mike May have to be names in consideration – but we’ll see where it goes. Unlike the analysis from the other side, I think resigning now will be a help and not “a hit” to the GOP in the long run.
Now what are Democrats going to do about Senator Hanna?
Ben says
3/7/2006 at 11:52 am“Which is more than I can say for you and the RMA’s lengthy record of wingnut apologetics.” From someone so given to propaganda and so outside the mainstream of political thought, I take the phrase “wingnut apologetics” as a high compliment.
I am intrigued, however, that you would leave this comment on a post when I harshly criticized Joe Stengel. I’m sure you can find examples of “sins of omission” from me. What, that I haven’t written about Angie Paccione? Oh, wait, she’s a Democrat.
Or that I don’t have time to discuss every baseless attack your group makes against a Republican official? Some of us are paid propaganda hitmen by the moonbat Left – some of us blog for the love of it.
Our disagreements run much deeper than politics, I can assure you. For example, I believe that man is an innately fallen creature, and that any one of us is subject to corruption in the pursuit of power. That is why I respect the nation’s Founders who wisely constructed the Constitution and its institutions to offset man’s corrupting tendencies and to promote justice.
I support those leaders and officials I see as most likely to support the policies that preserve these institutions, and our liberties & responsibilities, rightly understood. No person is bigger than the cause or the country. When someone falls short of the standard, regardless of their ideology or affiliation, they should be held accountable according to the facts. They have the same rights to due process. We have the right to be represented by someone who respects our institutions not only in word, but also in deed.
Here is a question for you to consider:
A liberal Democrat U.S. Senator is caught in clear violation of a law and/or ethical standard. His vote is needed to uphold a filibuster of a Bush judicial nominee. His removal from office will lead to a special election that almost certainly will be filled by a Republican or by a Democrat who won’t support the filibuster. What do you do at ProgressNow? Food for thought…
Ben says
3/7/2006 at 5:13 pmI’m amused & flattered you find my humble little independent Web site so worthy of such extraordinary time and energy to comment. Your skill at spinning sophistries is impressive, among the better I’ve seen – not that that is something to admire. But we all have to do what we must to pay the bills.
Speaking of which, I don’t have the time or energy to deconstruct your manipulative rhetoric. I think we are each aware of the respective weaknesses of our political parties but the necessity of the two-party system, and have chosen to cast our lots on our respective sides.
Your willful economic ignorance is laughable, your selective use of information is disreputable, your simplistic descriptions are misleading, etc., etc., etc.
I’ve already wasted enough time. Just remember: there is always the hope of redemption, and it has nothing to do with politics.