November 22, 2005
"Hello, Bernie Goldberg?"
Let's see how many blatant instances of anti-Tom-DeLay bias we can find in this one short article....
Judge puts off ruling on Delay dismissal
Nov 22, 2005
By Jeff Franks
Title's innocuous enough. Let's look at the first paragraph.
AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - Attorneys for U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay sought the immediate dismissal of conspiracy and money laundering charges against the once-powerful Republican on Tuesday, but a Texas judge said he would not rule for two weeks in the case that has derailed DeLay's political career.
Wow. So the case didn't just impede DeLay's career, or put it on hold, or even jeopardize it... it derailed it! What a train wreck. How can Tom DeLay ever recover from such a mortal blow?
Judge Pat Priest, new to the case after DeLay complained the previous judge was too close to the Democratic Party, also said he was unlikely to hold a trial before year's end if he did not throw out the indictments.
What a whiner that DeLay must be. Of course, the chief judge in Austin did actually agree with DeLay's complaint, but we don't need to get into that much detail, do we?
"This is not the only thing on my plate," he said.
...He said, wagging a finger in DeLay's face. Actually, I suspect the only finger-wagging here is by Mr. Franks.
In the nearly three-hour hearing on DeLay's case, his attorney, Dick DeGuerin, repeated assertions that DeLay had broken no laws and the indictment against him was flawed because of legal technicalities.
Yes. Technicalities such as "no crime occurred and no crime is charged," which is what DeGuerin actually argued.
The charges are part of a widening political scandal around DeLay, who has been accused of several ethical violations in recent years and whose former top aide and press secretary, Michael Scanlon, pleaded guilty on Monday to conspiracy to bribe public officials in a separate case in Washington.
Scanlon, after leaving DeLay's staff in 2000, was a partner with lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who is being investigated for bilking American Indian tribes of millions of dollars for legislative help with their gambling casinos.
Say, where there's smoke... there's usually a lot of hot air. I love that Scanlon angle: the guy leaves DeLay, then gets in trouble -- and that's part of Tom DeLay's "widening political scandal." Never before have I seen a more artful use of guilt by disassociation.
Whew, is there a single point in these two paragraphs that is in any way germaine to this case? Oh, wait, here's something substantial:
Abramoff is also being probed for treating politicians, including DeLay, to lavish trips and perks that may have violated ethics rules in the House of Representatives.
"Politicians" including members of both political parties. But that's a minor quibble compared to the urgent necessity of singling DeLay out as particularly corrupt.
DeLay's Texans for a Republican Majority political action committee helped Republicans win control of the Texas Legislature for the first time since the post-Civil War Reconstruction era. Under DeLay's guidance, the legislature then redrew congressional districts to increase the number of Republicans elected to Congress from Texas.
Waiter! A little context, please? Prior to the redistricting, Texas, one of the Reddest states in the Union, actually had a congressional delegation that was majority Democratic, due to gerrymandering. The district boundaries were so ludicrous that they more or less resembled a plate of spaghetti (which reminds me, I'd better start fixing dinner). Thanks to Tom DeLay, the Republican voters of Texas are now represented by a majority Republican delegation to Congress. Quelle dommage!
This might well be a new bias record, even in the difficult Reuters division. Keep up the good work, Mr. Franks. If you ever want to make the jump to CNN, I understand they're still looking for a replacement for Eason Jordan.
Hatched by Dafydd on this day, November 22, 2005, at the time of 8:55 PM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this hissing: http://biglizards.net/mt3.36/earendiltrack.cgi/254
Comments
The following hissed in response by: Bill Faith
I've linked from Holiday Quick Hits
The above hissed in response by: Bill Faith at November 23, 2005 10:39 PM
The following hissed in response by: Uncle Smrgol
Hi dafydd,
How come the little bar graph over on the other side doesn't show the Civil War? Might be even more instructive.
UncleSmrgol
The above hissed in response by: Uncle Smrgol at November 24, 2005 12:58 AM
The following hissed in response by: Dafydd ab Hugh
UncleSmrgol:
It was a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.
Dafydd
The above hissed in response by: Dafydd ab Hugh at November 24, 2005 2:28 AM
Post a comment
Thanks for hissing in, . Now you can slither in with a comment, o wise. (sign out)
(If you haven't hissed a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Hang loose; don't shed your skin!)© 2005-2009 by Dafydd ab Hugh - All Rights Reserved