Congress' Most Corrupt Republicans Demanding Their Share Of The Spoils

[Donnachaidh]

http://downwithtyranny.blogspot.com/2010/11/congress-most-corrupt-republicans.html

Not all the most embarrassing congressional Republicans are freshmen teabaggers like Florida sociopaths Allen West, Daniel Webster, Steve Southerland and Sandy Adams. Some have been in the House for decades-- like Big Oil's favorite shill Joe Barton, first elected to represent the Dallas suburbs in 1984, and Jerry Lewis, the prototype of congressional corruption who has been the congressman from the Inland Empire since 1978. And each of these two is seeking demanding exemptions from the rule that term limits chairmen of House committees.

Miraculously, Lewis has managed to avoid the same fate as his partner in crime Duke Cunningham, primarily due to the intervention of Karl Rove, who engineered the removal of two consecutive U.S. Attorneys investigating Lewis' myriad bribery scandals. It is widely known Inside-the-Beltway that Cunningham was just sloppy small potatoes compared to the systematically corrupt Lewis. But Cunningham is rotting in prison and Lewis... is demanding his position back as head of the House Appropriations Committee, the fount of incredible opportunities for congressmen with larceny foremost on their minds. Tea Party activists-- or at least organizations claiming that mantle-- are growling at Boehner to not grant Lewis (or Barton) the waivers they'd need to take up their old chairmanships.

“Term limits exist to prevent individual members from centralizing power and undermining the principles of republican government and the Republican Party,” said Club for Growth President Chris Chocola. “Waiving the limits and breaking their own rules before the new Congress is even sworn in will send a clear and depressing signal that House Republicans still don’t ‘get it.’”

Lewis is seeking a waiver to serve another term atop the spending panel but faces stiff competition not only from GOPs leadership-- which has sent signals that it is averse to circumventing term limits-- but also other lawmakers seeking the gavel.

More at the link ---