From: "Rich Gauszka" 


"Richard B."  wrote in message
news:selnj11ltcicjhpatsf569clsa1i10b9ag{at}4ax.com...
> On Wed, 28 Sep 2005 22:11:14 -0400, "Rich Gauszka"
>  wrote:
>
>>The partisan DA has prosecuted 3 times more Democrats for violating
>>fundraising rules in Texas.
>
> There's a reason for that I believe.
>
> - Richard 

It's as useful as the 'Earle of Injustice' referral on the Texas GOP
website. Now the GOP claims they were not complaining about the numbers but
Earle's 'zeal' in prosecuting. A rather inane charge against a prosecutor.
From my point of view it would have been better for Texas to rewrite a 100
year old law against corporate contributions than go through this mess but
hey - it's a Texas thing

http://www.dailytexanonline.com/media/paper410/news/2004/09/27/Opinion/Viewpoin
t.Gop.Defense.SelfDefeating-731849.shtml

In Texas, you don't mess with the GOP, unless you're ready for a
knock-down, drag-out, mudslinging fight to the political death. And it
doesn't matter if they're wrong - if you call them out, you're going down.

At least that's the message party leaders convey each time a Republican is
legally suspect, and last week was no different.

As a Travis County grand jury indicted three Texan consultants for a
Republican Majority Political Action Committee, GOP spinsters once again
cried partisan foul on District Attorney Ronnie Earle, a Democrat. U.S.
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land, claimed Earle's announcement
of the indictments, so close to the November elections, proved his intent
to harm GOP candidates.

Note, however, the Republicans aren't arguing that Earle is making up the
facts behind his investigation, but simply that his party identity
motivated his search.

The "Earle of Injustice" (as he is referred to on the Texas GOP
Web site) didn't fabricate the fact that Texas House Speaker Tom Craddick,
R-Midland, accepted a $100,000 corporate check. Craddick's lawyer, Roy
Minton, admitted his client accepted the money and told the Austin
American-Statesman, "If they are going to decide that's a crime, they
ought to be indicting 15,000 or 20,000 people."

Craddick was not indicted, but by Minton's logic, he should be.

After all, John Colyandro, former executive director of TRMPAC, was
indicted for accepting the same check.

But even if Earle's party-leanings really mattered in this investigation,
the Republican Party of Texas, for all of its denouncements of partisan
intent, has dealt its fair share in attacking his office.

Republicans have complained of Earle's apparent GOP bloodthirst for years,
claiming he will stop at nothing to soil the party. But in his 27-year
career in Travis County, Earle has investigated 15 elected officials - 11
Democrats and four Republicans.

Texas GOP spokesman Ted Royer told the Texan last spring that numbers don't
show anything; rather, it's the "zeal with which [Earle] goes after
Republicans."

In a defiant stand against such "partisan favoritism" last May,
Texas Republican Party Chairwoman Tina Benkiser called for jurisdiction,
and the
$1 million in state funding that goes with it, to be withdrawn from Earle's
Public Integrity Unit. The measure, which was passed by the party's
executive committee, called for the power to investigate illegal activities
by public officials to shift to the state's attorney general.

Currently, Republican Greg Abbott is Texas' attorney general, and, if
state-wide voting trends continue, his office will likely remain under GOP
control for quite some time.

Not only are Republicans yet to come up with any arguments that Earle's
investigation is - in fact - inaccurate, they are painting themselves
hypocrites. And throwing boomerang mud is no way to dirty your opposition.

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