double standards for Republican senators

I just noticed that Senators Coleman and McCain are demanding that Senator Craig resign. Eh.

David Vitter has admitted to the same crime essentially, except he still seems to be hetero and the governor of Idaho is Republican. Butch Otter will appoint another Republican to replace Craig, but if Vitter resigned, Blanco would likely have picked a Democrat. It's a safe bet to throw Craig under the bus.

McCain says:

But my opinion is that when you plead guilty to a crime, then you shouldn’t serve. And that’s not a moral stand. That’s not a holier than thou. It’s just a factual situation. I don’t try to judge people. but in this case, it’s clear that it was disgraceful.

Again, Vitter admitted soliciting a prostitute. He confessed to a crime. That's guilt.

Yeah, they are so principled.

one of Vitter's prostitutes seems to be a Congressional staffer

Your Right Hand Thief has a couple of links that say that one of the prostitutes that Palfrey secured for David Vitter was also a congressional staffer... for a committee that Vitter belongs to no less.

That's an odd wrinkle. So which committee was it?

(Originally i screwed up, putting his current committee assignments as a senator. I don't feel like looking for his old assignments in the House, as i have better things to do.)

It would tickle me to death if she turned out to be a staffer for Small Business though.

political gain & Vitter

So Jindal says regarding the Vitter nonsense:

“This is a matter for the senator to address, and it is our hope that this is not used by others for their own political gain.”

Really? You hope that, eh?

Jindal, you sanctimonious, deceitful little shit...

The Republican party used Katrina and the destruction of New Orleans for their own political gain. Jindal stood by twiddling his thumbs while Bush and Cheney let the city drown. People died for their inaction in their attempt to punish non-Republican voters., and shame the elected Democratic officials of Louisiana (who admittedly didn't do themselves any favors either.)

If the Democratic party does not take advantage of of the fact that Vitter cannot keep from cramming his penis into every hooker in between New Orleans and DC, then they have completely failed.

It's been bugging me a lot that some Democrats are saying that we have bigger issues to worry about, as if i don't know that. Their highminded arrogance has them unable to grasp that the reason why the White House is now in the position to ignore Congressional subpoenas is because, right or wrong, they fought every single battle that they could, because no matter how incompetent they are regarding foreign policy and other matters, they understood that every scrap of power they accumulated was going to pay off in shielding them later.

Vitter's fall is not just hubris

It's not so much fun to blog when one misses a day of work, only to find that if he would have been there in the first place, he'd still be slammed. Being on a computer is not too much fun right now, even if it feels like there's a lot to blog about...

...books, books, and more books. I'm reading some great stuff right now.

However, i want to note something about Vitter. Just because I want him to resign because he is a sanctimonious hypocrite, and hope that a Democrat is named as his replacement, diminishing the power of that weasel Lieberman doesn't mean that I think all of this is a happy accident, a fortuitous comeuppance.

Someone out there mentioned that Vitter voted against Bush's pet immigration bill. I now suspect that the DC Madam is just another pawn in the game, not a random wrinkle. There is a reason why no other lawmakers have turned up on her lists. Vitter is a good target to put the rest of the Republicans in DC back in line. He's not up for reelection until 2010. Jindal is still probably a shoe-in as governor, even with Vitter weighing him down. Louisiana is relatively forgiving about indiscretions, no matter how outrageous. Even if the rumor about Vitter having a diaper fetish turns out to be true, it probably would get shrugged off.

I'd wager Rove has blackmail material on most of DC. Rove and Abramoff are tight, and Vitter is an Abramoff man. Vitter's venality was revealed just to warn everyone else to toe the line when the White House demands it. The DC Madam would not have been able to reveal anything without her chain being loosed.

Yes, i'm full of paranoid theories.

more revelations on Vitter

Your Right Hand Thief is all over them, and the best one might be the rumors of Vitter having a diaper fetish. I find it hard to believe, but it's hilarious. After nothing comes of Scooter Libby being convicted of a federal crime, it gives me a nice chuckle to see a morally self-righteous local boy go down in flames.

It might seem like a minor scandal... and it is. However, if Vitter has to resign in shame, Blanco can name his replacement, and it probably will be a Democrat. If this highly unlikely scenario occurs, we could finally tell Joe Lieberman to go Cheney himself.

Vitter has a long history with prostitutes

Lemme get it out of the way... i would support the legalization of prostitution if done properly. Although i've known a handful of people that did it for a quick dollar and the thrill of doing something taboo/illegal, most of the prostitutes that i've been aware of live very marginal lives, and don't need any more persecution than what life has already thrown their way.

But Vitter? Ha ha ha... That sanctimonious sack of shit has been caught with his pants down again.

Yeah, it's common knowledge that he solicits the services of hookers. Every time the rumor creeps up, he denies it as the work of his political enemies. He refuse to accept responsibility for his own actions, and continues to beat the drum on "morality" issues.

I just started reading this blog last week, and it has a good overview on his past. This Daily Kos thread has some links too, including one to a Salon story that also links him to a "secret alliance" with David Duke.

Bob Livingston went down during the Clinton era. Now Vitter gets caught (although now he's a senator... people have noted that certain media sources say this DC Madam incident happened before he was a senator, but neglect to mention that Vitter was in Congress.) I am eager for Jindal to get his comeuppance for his smarmy "morality."