Two Dozen'll Do Ya
Florida Today considers the recent indictment of Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA) along with the brewing legal trouble two dozen (two dozen??), members or former members, of Congress and the huge chunks of campaign cash they're diverting to legal fees and wonders why faster progress isn't being made by Democratic leadership towards ethics overhauls for Congress.A run through of the scandal sheets illustrates the editorials central contention: "the number of incidences of possible corruption and large amounts being spent on attorneys show how dark a shadow the questionable behavior of elected officials has cast over Washington" against which pale the laws passed thus far to address the growing influence of money in politics.Either Congress has to get serious about changing -- and Sens. Durbin and Specter have the Fair Elections Now Act all ready to go -- or some enterprising cynic is going to start selling corruption insurance to our nation's lawmakers.