Democratic strategist James Carville has had some long-standing problems with the blogosphere. I have never attacked him to date and I have even defended some of his comments and actions to my friends and colleagues. However, I was just reading through the sentencing letters sent on Scooter Libby’s behalf to Judge Reggie Walton and I’m pretty appalled to see one of the letters is sent by Carville and his wife, Mary Matalin.
James Carville is not an elected official and he is free to support anyone who he would like, but Libby is a convicted criminal and he should not have the support of Democrats who are working to clean up government and hold Bush and Cheney accountable for their illegal and unethical activity in regards to Valerie Plame and the Iraq War.
This just shows that when you live in Washington, D.C. for too long, you forget who you are and you lose touch with reality. Sure, Libby might be a nice guy, but he was convicted of a crime and he deserves to pay his debt to society.
The bottom line is that James Carville should not be lending his support to a criminal. Oh, and Rep. William Jefferson should resign immediately!
State Sen. Derrick Shepherd, D-Marrero, announced on Monday that he will challenge incumbent U.S. Rep. William Jefferson, D-New Orleans, for the Second Congressional District seat in the Nov. 7 primary.
Shepherd, a 36-year-old lawyer, cited an ongoing federal investigation of Jefferson as one of the reasons to run, saying residents in Orleans and Jefferson parishes that the district include need to have a representative focused on post-Katrina needs.
“Congressman Bill Jefferson has become so ensnarled in scandal that he has lost the ability to deal effectively with the crisis,” Shepherd said.
“The needs of nearly one million people are more important than the desires of any single individual, including Bill Jefferson.”
Jefferson has not been charged with a crime as part of a probe looking into allegations that he engaged in a bribery scheme to promote projects in West Africa. He has said he did not commit any crime and that he will seek a ninth term for the seat he has held since 1990.
Shepherd, who represents areas in both the east and west banks of Orleans and Jefferson parishes, said residents are “in a desperate struggle” to get federal aide and services to rebuild.
“I know what must be done and I will be single-minded in the battle to get the federal aid we need to rebuild,” he said.
A former prosecutor in New Orleans and Jefferson Parish, Shepherd worked in Jefferson’s campaign before being elected to represent the 87th District in the state House in 2004. He was elected to the state Senate’s 3rd District seat last year.
President Bush personally ordered the Justice Department today to seal records seized from the Capitol Hill office of a Democratic congressman, marking a remarkable intervention by the nation’s chief executive into an ongoing criminal probe of alleged corruption.
The order culminates an escalating constitutional confrontation between the Justice Department and the House of Representatives, where lawmakers have demanded that the FBI return items seized during a Saturday night raid of the office of Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.).
In a six-paragraph statement, Bush said he issued the order to give the Justice Department and angry lawmakers more time to work out an agreement about how to resolve the conflict.
Here’s my favorite part:
“Those who violate the law–including a member of Congress–should and will be held to account,” Bush said.
Something very strange is going on on Capitol Hill.
