Who re-elects a senator caught with $90,000 of marked bills in his freezer--something he still has not denied and has yet to explain? Why, Louisianans, of course. Apparently the old joke is true--they really do have the best politicians money can buy.
Ernie has pointed out, and quite correctly, that this vote more or less shows the rest of the world that Louisiana doesn't really want any outside help. I think the tone of his post probably perfectly captures how a lot of people feel--MackenzieMom at the very least.
But it's really not about whether he's guilty or not. To remind everyone, he hasn't even been indicted. He has, though, been kicked off his committee. I can understand constituents want to give him the benefit of the doubt. I can also understand how black voters might not trust or believe the FBI--there are plenty of historical reasons for African Americans, especially in that area, to mistrust police. Hell, maybe this guy is a latter-day Jefferson Smith.
None of that matters. The big point is that after these accusations, Mr. Jefferson will be unable to get anything done in Washington. Even as a member of the majority party, even if he has friends and contacts, these charges make it nearly impossible for him to function. I can't quibble with the idea that maybe he served the area well up until the charges--I don't live there and I don't know. But this election shouldn't have been about past performance. It should have been about what will happen in the future, about finding someone who could really help the area recover. It's not a personal attack or a referrendum on his guilt, this vote about Mr. Jefferson, it's just an acknowledgement that when he goes back to Washington he'll be politically impotent.
What I don't think the voters appreciated is the fact that ethics were such an issue in this last election. Not so much in Louisiana, apparently, but many of the Democratic politicians stressed the corruption that has enveloped the Republicans in recent years. This means that Mr. Jefferson's own party will be extremely wary of him. Not only that, but if and when an indictment comes out of this whole investigation, they will have no choice but to turn on him and rip him to shreds. He'll become the token corrupt Democrat who will allow Democrats to show the world that they're hard on corruption no matter where it is found. They'll have to do it regardless of their personal feelings on the matter. It's a recipe for disaster that goes far beyond simply electing a politically useless man.
As I've heard children told when they are about to suffer their behavioral consequences (and I've thought to myself from time to time--just not on this scale), Louisianans made a poor choice.
Gee, what can I say but "Aw, hell." I don't want to write anything bad about poor old Louisiana, and yet this would seem to defy logic when one has my pasty cracker worldview. Since the money was in the fridge at least it was, uh, cold cash.