Democrats around the nation are giddy about the prospects of retaking at least one House of Congress after this November's midterm election. With President Bush's approval rating hovering around 30% and his Rubber Stamp Congress running away from him on immigration and other issues, they have legitimate reasons to feel good about themselves.
However, if they want to give voters a real alternative to the Culture of Corruption they have pinned upon the Republicans, they need to clean up their own house as well. Congressman William Jefferson, a Democrat from Louisiana, is in big trouble after video cameras caught him bribing an FBI informant with $100,000 for getting his children a cut of a communications company's deal for work in Africa. Democrats can hardly afford members like this if they want to claim that they are the ones to bring high ethical standards and morals back to Washington.
If Howard Dean is half the leader he claims to be, he will call on Congressman Jefferson to resign and draft another Democrat to run for his seat. Normally, I would wait for all of the facts to come out before taking such a position (and declare that we are all innocent until proven guilty), however, there should be a higher standard for those we elect to represent us in government and videotaped evidence is not something that can be disputed on factual grounds.
Will Dean do it? Hard to say, normally I would say no but he is one of the most unpredictable voices in politics today and may surprise those of us looking for honesty and transparency in government.