http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002527573_earle29.html?syndication=rss&source=seattletimes.xml&items=132Prosecutor has drawn wrath of Dems, too
-----------------------
By Scott Gold
Los Angeles Times
-----------------------
HOUSTON — In the 1980s, Jim Mattox was the attorney general of Texas and one of the most powerful figures in the state — mentioned as a future governor and, maybe, more. Today, he is a real-estate lawyer.
A turning point came in 1983, when the district attorney in Austin, Ronnie Earle, indicted Mattox on bribery charges. He was acquitted, but the damage was done. Mattox had spent $300,000 on attorneys. His political career began to peter out.
"Ronnie Earle had visions of grandeur," said Mattox, now 62. "He was using it as a steppingstone."
(snip)
Just one hitch: While Earle is a Democrat, so were 12 of the 15 politicians he has indicted over the years, including Mattox. Even Mattox said yesterday that Earle long has targeted people from both parties, roiling the halls of power in Austin — and now Washington — at every turn.
(snip)
Earle recently said that being called partisan by DeLay was akin to "being called ugly by a frog." At a Democratic fund raiser in May, he called DeLay a "bully." And he has said that ambition and outrage over what he sees as an illegal fund-raising scheme devised by DeLay and his associates prompted him to postpone his retirement in order to prosecute the case.
(snip)
complete story:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002527573_earle29.html?syndication=rss&source=seattletimes.xml&items=132