Capitol Punishment

Jack Abramoff's political confession, "Capitol Punishment," promises to provide a respite from daily reports of government corruption, civil liberties violations, abuses of power, constitution shredding, mad power grabs, cover-up, phoniness and lies emanating from the current White House. 

He sounds like a one-of-a-kind guy: "a power-lifting, football playing, Orthodox Jewish, right wing Republican opera buff.  You know the type."

It's good to know that his ordeal didn't rob him of his sense of humor.

Abramoff was exhibit A-Z in the museum of corrupt Washington types: homo-lobbyist.  What makes that laughable is the suggestion that any one person sits at the apex of a dung hill.  

Apparently, lobbyists either no longer exist, or are all angels.  If that sounds doubtful, what is certain is that K Street no longer produces shrieking headlines and pharisaical garment rending now that President Obama, rather than President Bush, holds the reigns of power.

Coverage is all see-no-evil... these days, despite trillion dollar giveaways to cronies, pals and constituents.

Noman knows little more about Abramoff than his name, but has gleaned from the Introduction that Senator John McCain figures prominently in his degradation; his dad was a business associate of Arnold Palmer; he got into Brandeis University at the behest of Sugar Ray Robinson; and he got his start in politics as president of its Republican club, which he parlayed into two terms as President of the College Republican National Committee.

In other words, he has family connections, and the heart of a pol.

What everyone knows is that his name was dragged daily through the mud--along with those of Donald Rumsfeld and Congressman Mark Foley--during the 2006 midterm election year.  Noman tuned out the noise, which appeared to be a transparent media campaign to return Democrats to Congressional dominance.

We can thank those media hound dogs for Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and $5 trillion worth of debt.

Whatever sins Abramoff was guilty of, the most grievous of them is likely to be that he was a Republican.  Making a convenient whipping boy is not a sin.

None of this is meant to insinuate that Abramoff's behavior was not eggregious, or wasn't deserving of a come uppence.  Noman just doubts that his exploits were worthy of the wall-to-wall coverage they received, which even turned into a propaganda piece starring Hollywood Lefty, Kevin Spacey.

Jack might chuckle at the irony that his own political demise led to the production of a movie, the watching of which is likely tantamount to capital punishment.