Over at HotAir.com, Ed Morrissey takes a look at the corrupt Ted Stevens (R-AK) and what ramifications it could have on the Republican party.

How will this affect the election overall? Strangely, I don’t think it will have much affect at all outside of Alaska, where the Democrats may well win both the Senate and the House seats this year. With William Jefferson remaining in Congress, the Democrats have no real footing to use this against the Republicans. And that may be the biggest scandal of all — that corruption in both parties serves to protect everyone.

The sad truth is, Morrissey is correct. The reason corruption in both parties serves to protect everyone is because the American people allow it to be this way. We have become such a apathetic nation that we no longer demand our elected leaders display honesty and integrity, to the contrary we have grown to accept the fact that whom ever we cast our vote for will most likely be corrupt to a certain degree.

This is justified in partisan circles by pointing the finger at the other guy. When the news first broke on Ted Stevens, many Republicans countered by pointing out the corruption of William Jefferson. When Jefferson was caught with his hand in the cookie jar, many Democrats made references to Mark Foley. It is this need to justify the actions of fellow party members by pointing out the faults of the opposing party that has allowed corruption to grow in Washington. The unwritten rule seems to be, it is OK to be corrupt, as long as you are less corrupt than the other guy.

Until the American people, wether Democrat or Republican, demand better from our elected leaders by exercising their right to vote the bad ones out of office, we will continue to see the likes of Ted Stevens and William Jefferson representing us in Congress.

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Congress, Features, Politics