2009: A Good Year To Be Red

2009 is already starting out to be a good year to be "red." In IL, Gov. Blago continues to make a spectacle of himself and the Democrats by trying (in vain) to be the head of state. The impeachment proceedings roll on with the Lt. Governor, Pat Quinn, openly hoping that Blago will be removed by Feb. 12th -- honest Abe's 200th birthday.

We can only hope.

In NM, Bill Richardson is facing his own "pay to play" scandal and did the appropriate thing: he withdrew his name for Secretary of Commerce and handed the incoming administration its first embarrassing moment. A federal grand jury is investigating how a California company that contributed to Richardson's political activities won a lucrative New Mexico state contract. Seems that Republicans are not the only ones who can goof up vetting.

Then there's the ongoing saga of Charlie ("Ethics are for schmucks") Rangel. The latest ethical lapse he's accused of swirls around how he sought a donation for a public service center built in his honor from a firm with business before his committee. The House ethics committee continues to struggle with Charlie's ideas of what is and is not proper behavior for a Congressperson.

The Clinton's are back in the news, too. The NY Times reports: "An upstate New York developer donated $100,000 to former President Bill Clinton’s foundation in November 2004, around the same time that Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton helped secure millions of dollars in federal assistance for the businessman’s mall project. Mrs. Clinton helped enact legislation allowing the developer, Robert J. Congel, to use tax-exempt bonds to help finance the construction of the Destiny USA entertainment and shopping complex, an expansion of the Carousel Center in Syracuse. Mrs. Clinton also helped secure a provision in a highway bill that set aside $5 million for Destiny USA roadway construction. The bill with the tax-free bonds provision became law in October 2004, weeks before the donation, and the highway bill with the set-aside became law in August 2005, about nine months after the donation."

Incredibly coincidental timing as always with the Clintons.

Meanwhile, Fox News is reporting that Sen. Harry Reid was active in attempting to influence Gov. Blagojevich's Senate seat selection. It is reported that Reid made it clear he did NOT want Jesse Jackson, Jr. in the vacant seat. The phone call (one and only one) took place on Dec. 3 -- six days before Blago was arrested. As usual, Reid is at a loss to explain his actions or why he was so concerned about keeping Jackson, Jr. out of the Senate.

NY's governor is juggling the difficult decision of which caretaker to appoint to Hillary's soon-to-be-open Senate seat: her husband or Caroline ("I'm entitled by birth") Kennedy. Either way, NY loses.

Roland ("I'm not electable to any office") Burris is heading to Washington to claim his Senate seat. Rather than drag this out for months with Senate inquiries and lawsuits, Reid and the Senate Democrats should just seat him. Roland ("We are the junior Senator from IL") Burris (his quote, not mine BTW) is an empty suit and quite capable of fulfilling the only task for which he is imminently qualified: keeping a seat warm for a couple of years. Yes, he will go down in defeat in 2010, but the people of IL have suffered with a part-time junior Senator for most of the last 4 years. At least Burris has the desire to show up for work on a regular basis.

Finally, but not laughably, it appears Al Franken is headed to the Senate. As if that institution were not already enough of a joke, the good people of MN saw fit to share Franken with the entire country. Maybe Reid can find a committee position worthy of Mr. Franken's immeasurable talents -- something along the lines of chairman of the sub-committee on waste disposal. Franken has outstanding qualifications in that area.

It's going to be a very good year to be "red."