Redstate

By Repair Man Jack Posted in Congress — Comments (1) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »

Cross-Posted At: THE MINORITY REPORT.

When Carl Hiaasen writes mystery novels about The Everglades, the villains always seem to be caricatures of conservative businessmen who lie to humble, liberal public servants in order to pave over the precious wetlands. Regrettably, GOP Congressman Don Young offers the spirited and sometimes acerbically partisan Hiaasen the chance to write some scathing non-fiction. It seems Congressman Young has come under Federal investigation for earmarking $10 Mil in road construction money to a Florida real estate mogul in return for a campaign contribution.

As the theme song from COPS tunes up in the background, the liberal McClatchy Newspapers perform their sack dance in the end zone. Given Congressman Young’s atrocious behavior, who can blame them for rubbing the noses of conservatives everywhere in the dog manure left behind by Congressman Young’s atrocious behavior. Don Young provides the GOP’s efforts to take over the congress in 2008 all the same assistance that Quarterback Michael Vick gave the Atlanta Falcons with their 2007 football season.

A Justice Department corruption task force is investigating whether Alaska Congressman Don Young took campaign cash in return for securing $10 million for construction of a proposed Florida highway ramp that would give a windfall to a local real estate developer, a source familiar with the inquiry said Friday.

The controversial funding, which was to pay for a study of the potential highway interchange abutting environmentally sensitive land, was slipped into a massive 2005 Transportation Department bill, congressional aides say.

Unlike the felonious Mr. Vick, Congressman Young hasn’t pled guilty yet. He still claims no harm was done and no foul committed. If this were $10 Mil of Mr. Young’s personal finances, I’d buy off on his pathetic posturing. Instead, I find the explanation put forth by Congressman Young’s lackey both risible and disingenuous.

Young was approached by leaders at Florida Gulf Coast University, which wanted the interchange for better access, said Young’s chief of staff, Mike Anderson. School officials also wanted it to serve as a demonstration project for a sophisticated transportation hub that could be monitored with cameras during hurricane evacuations.

“It’s captured in three words: Hurricane evacuation route,” Anderson said.

But if the community doesn’t want it, Anderson said, Young believes they’re free to give the money back.

"There’s nothing nefarious here. If they want to return the money back to DOT, they can do that,” Anderson said.

Like the aforementioned Mr. Vick, who took the street name “Ron Mexico”, after “Dirk Diggler” and “Chest Rockwell” were already trademarked, Don Young isn’t apologetic in any way, shape or form. Like Michael Vick, he just sends the help out to offer up some pabulum for the press. Mr. Vick’s lackey/attorney, Billy Martin offered the following mea culpa on behalf of Senor Mexico.

"Mr. Vick has agreed to enter a plea of guilty to those charges and to accept full responsibility for his actions and the mistakes he has made," Martin said in a statement. "Michael wishes to apologize again to everyone who has been hurt by this matter."

If the statements of Congressman Young’s spokesman and of Michael Vick’s attorney have anything in common, it’s that both indicate a profound lack of any sincerity or respect for their intended audiences. If both Mr. Vick and Congressman Young were law-abiding citizens, this would not be anything more than an annoyance. A disrespectful jerk that does his job well and keeps his conduct legal is merely obnoxious; not evil.

However, both of these two men have failed to meet that standard in any way, shape or form. They both laugh at consequences and consider themselves bullet proof. Both men believe that a different set of physical laws applies to their individual universe. Each man has fallen into the philosophical trap of believing in The Nietzschean Superman.

It’s when a Michael Vick or a Don Young believes they are beyond both good and evil, that they really can become a time bomb. The rest of society hates this attitude, and rightfully so. I may admire Michael Vick’s perfect spiral and I may appreciate the fact that Congressman Young won’t be voting for Nancy Pelosi, the next time the House elects a speaker, but I don’t want either man to be rewarded for their behavior.

It’s that desire on the part of me and any other same human being to see both Vick and Young grounded from the stratosphere by the consequences of their aberrant misdeeds that make them potentially lethal to any organizations or causes that are linked to their names. This is why I hope that the GOP in Alaska will strongly back a primary challenge to Congressman Young. He deserves to lose his office, lose his swag and lose his Constitutional liberties. He profanes Conservatism with his disdain for moral restraint.

Nothing good can come from having Michael Vick as your quarterback. Nothing good can come from having Don Young as part of your party in Congress. The Atlanta Falcons just got rid of a serious problem. The House GOP still has one.