PARTISAN SCREAM MACHINE

Rep. Duke Cunningham announced yesterday he was stepping down from his spot in the House of Representatives as a representative to the San Diego area. Nancy Pelosi called this announcement nothing more than further proof of the Republican 'culture of corruption.' Obviously the Republicans aren't doing real hot right now. Jack Abramoff, Tom DeLay, Libby, Bob Ney, Bill Frist... the list goes on.

But the truth is, this is probably the worst political move the sitting Democrats could make. Are we really to believe that the Democrats aren't getting the same perks as Repubs? I'm not going to give factual evidence, but I will assure you that it is out there. The money flows both ways. Both Repubs and Dems are getting buttered up all over Washington. I saw it for an entire summer. Lobbyists roam free showering parties on members and their staff in hopes that they can gain some access to the inner-offices. Members and staff are taking lobbyist-sponsored trips all over the country and world, doing more golfing and sun bathing than business-related affairs. It's all over the place.

The last person I need to hear telling me about corrupt politicians is a senior member herself. If the Democrats really wanted to open up this can, they are in for a rude surprise when they have ethics violations cracking down on themselves. The best bet is for fresh faces on both sides of the ailse AND FROM THE LIBERTARIANS. The only people that can hope to have a major impact on a debate over corruption on Capitol Hill are young (or non-career) fresh faces. This is also to emphasize the fact that the Dems still don't have an agenda and are once again choosing to bash Republicans instead of working on legislation and proving something to American voters.