America's only native criminal class

Criminals in Congress? SHOCKING! Mark Twain once quipped that “Congress is America’s only native criminal class.” It must be something about spoiled pampered bureaucrats, living large on John Q. Public’s dime and certain in their knowledge of what’s best for everyone else and surrounded by other spoiled pampered bureaucrats, living large on John Q. Public’s dime and certain in their knowledge of what’s best for everyone else, that leads them to the belief that they are above the law.

One can almost hear William Jefferson, “why I’m the most important man in the world. Ask the other most important men in the world here. How dare you come into my House office looking for evidence that I may also be the most corrupt.” It is natural for criminals caught with a hand in the cookie jar, a mouth full cookie, crumbs everywhere, a glass of milk crumbs at the bottom, face covered in chocolate to claim that they had not been snitching cookies. We expect that.

What we do not expect is the Speaker of the House to be upset at the FBI for seizing the empty cookie jar, the crumb laden milk, and snapping the perp’s chocolate covered face for their mug shot. Denny Hastert, as a professional courtesy – one criminal to another - I suppose, was outraged that, after several requests for cooperation, the Justice Department would walk into Mr. Jefferson’s House office pursuant to a federally issued warrant and collect evidence of criminal activity. Why the nerve! If America’s only native criminal class is not safe in their own House offices, where can they go to conduct their criminal activity without fear of the FBI snooping around?

Most Washington scandals are esoteric to the point that Joe six packs’ eyes glaze over at the details. Well unfortunately for Mr. Hastert this is not such a scandal. The FBI has Mr. Jefferson on video tape taking $100,000 from an FBI informant. Everybody, apparently but Hastert, gets it. Now Hastert sounds like an 8 year old hiding a sash of candy from Mom in his room, when Mom gets next to the hiding spot the youngster blurts out, “don’t look in there.”

Just who the hell does Hastert think he and the rest of the criminals on capital hill are? Well it seems to me Hastert and the other blow hard bloviators are making a case that they are above the law. Too bad for Denny that everyone in America has this one figured out. I wonder how Denny will artfully back away from this one. “Why, did I say that this was a violation of the separation of powers? That is not at all what I meant. I meant that the FBI had the powers to separate Mr. Jefferson from the evidence of criminal activity hidden in his House office.”