Red State Issues Important Action Alert

...over Republicans' failure to make ethics a priority. He wants the "scalp" of Congressman Ken Calvert.

When John Doolittle had to step down from the House Appropriations Committee because of a corruption investigation, the House GOP gave the nod to Calvert.

In 2005, Calvert and a partner paid $550,000 for 4.3 acres of land. Calvert then used his earmarking powers to secure $8 million in funds for an interstate exchange on the property. He then sold the property for about $1 million.

Also in 2005, a business partner of Calvert's bought additional land that Calvert's earmarks benefited. When the property was sold, a firm financially connected to Calvert received a commission for the sale.

In 2006, Calvert engaged in other shady land deals. The list goes.

He wants you to call congressmen and have Calvert removed from the committee.

Sounds like a plan.

The oddness of an Important Action Alert and Pretty Vicious Rant coming from the right, though, highlights the difference in ambition and emphasis between the dextrosphere and sinistrosphere. We attack the media, by and large, and our (very quixotic) mission is to displace it; they attack Republicans and also insufficiently progressive Democrats, and their mission -- far more acheivable, and in fact largely acheived -- is to displace the establishment of the Democratic Party itself.

Their plan is better. But I have to say I find it unappealing to become political operatives and actor as the left blogosphere has. It feels cheap and trivial and a little childish.

But it does get results.* We're never going to significantly change the house organ of the Democratic Party that we know as the liberal media -- they've had a long history of ignoring public criticism, even as they hemmorage money and market-share -- but a political party is far more responsive.

* I don't think the leftist hijacking of the Democratic Party is good for that party's health; sure, they won back the Congress, but largely on the back of conservative Democrats and just slightly aided by the Republicans' corruption, incompetence, and lack of principle. Whether it would be any different were the restive right to stage a coup, I don't know. But it seems stuff like this -- removing an earmark-crazy shady Taxman for the Liberal Welfare State from an appropriations committee seems like both good politics and good policy.

posted by Ace at 02:23 PM

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