One of Them

Senator Craig is quoted in a recent politico article (that’s in desperate need of copy editting) as comparing the FBI to the Gestapo:

Showing solidarity with one of his more embattled colleagues, Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho) said the FBI was “a bit Gestapo like” in how it handled the search of Sen. Ted Stevens’ (R-Alaska) home earlier this week.

“When the FBI was offered a key and invited into the home, they chose publicize it to make sure the media was there first and they broke in. That is gamesmanship. That makes senators very, very angry when they attempt to cooperate when for reason they are caught in these webs and yet they are denied that for the sake of the jduciary’s publicity. That is wrong.

Craid added: “So there is a story there and it ought to be written instead of breaking into the homes of senators. Has the Justice Departmentt(sic) gone awry? Has the FBI decded they need more publicity than they need information?…”

“I was told by Senator Stevens that he was informed by the FBI that they wantedt(sic) to go into his home,” Craig said. “And he said, “Fine, we will send a key.’ They [the FBI] said we had ways to get in, and then all the media was there to watch them get in because they had to manufacture a key to get in, then the story was a raid, instead of an invited entry for the prupose of looking for evdidence(sic) That is a significantly different thing.”

“How did you know to be there at the time it happens?” Craig asked reporters, noting that TV crews were at Stevens’ home to film the search.

First of all, raising the specter of Nazi Germany over the raid of one of America’s most powerful lawmakers is bad taste and offensive. Mark my words, he’ll be forced to eat this particular phrase by the anti-defamation league in days. It’s all bad taste to compare law enforcement to Nazis, when they’re doing an anti-corruption investigation. Are they show boating a bit? You bet.

Secondly, this impassioned defense shows that Senator Craig doesn’t get it. Senator Stevens represents the worst of the Senate: a tenured, corrupt anti-reform pork-barrel politician who thought so little of his office that he didn’t take care to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest. Stevens has been in this game nearly 40 years. Had he been more careful, there would have been no need to search the house. Whether, it was a raid or the FBI was offered the key is largely irrelevant to the bigger issue.

This is Senator Craig’s biggest weakness. After 28 years in Washington, he’s one of them. He’s a Senator, a member of the club. He doesn’t understsand the country is fed up with corruption in Washington, fed up with pork, fed up with members of Congress getting sweetheart deals for themselves.

This doesn’t mean he’s a bad man. I’ve found him to be a fairly pleasant gentlemen in our encounters, however brief. He’s also the type of guy who will fight for Idaho ranches and our resource industry. I don’t question that he’s well-intentioned. I’m sure his defense comes from a great sense of loyalty, however misplaced. While he’s a great singer (a Singing Senators Alum), he’s tone deaf to the larger political picture of how Americans and Idahoans view the august body he serves in and the need to clean house.

It’s a case for term limits. We should send politicians home before they become so enamored with the institution and allow fresh blood to come up there. It’s hard to deal with someone whose been your co-worker for 18 years. What may be admirable loyalty in the private sector is bullheaded refusal to deal with corruption in Congress.

Now, I have no doubt the LaRocco campaign will make hey about this (if they’re paying attention) but the fact is that LaRocco has his own problems and was defeated under an ethical cloud in 1994. In addition to this, he’s against term limits, period. So he’ll just be another member of the club. Whatever, I think of Craig, there’s no way I’ll vote for LaRocco.

Some people might be annoyed that I made this post because it’d “help the Democrats.” I quote that great Republican Rutherford Hayes, “He who serves his country best, serves his party best.” I calls them like I see them.