RedState vs. House Republicans
by Erick Erickson (More by this author)
Posted: 05/18/2007
After the voters slaughtered House Republicans this past November, most people expected some period of introspection and house cleaning among the GOP. Having seen Duke Cunningham (R.-Ca.), Tom DeLay (R.-Tx), and Mark Foley (R.-Fl.) resign over various indictments and accusations, people thought the Grand Old Party had lost its way.
When campaigning to become Minority Leader, John Boehner appeared to recognize this problem. In his campaign manifesto he wrote, “In 1994 we made it clear we wouldn't tolerate such activity, and showed our differences with the Democrats, by changing our rules to deny prime leadership and committee positions from any Member who had been indicted. The problem is that this isn't good enough any more. Voters correctly expect more from us, and we should expect more from each other.”
That message gave comfort to House Republicans. It signaled that the John Boehner of 1994 was back and they could trust him to lead. The problem was John Boehner did not really mean what he wrote and was saying.
Last week, the House Republican Steering Committee met to replace John Doolittle (R.-Ca.) on the House Appropriations Committee. Having seen Duke Cunningham (R.-Ca.) leave Appropriations for a jail sentence, the House Republicans were faced with a second California Republican who might face jail. Compounding the problem, the ranking Republican on Appropriations, Jerry Lewis, another Californian, is under investigation by the FBI and is rumored to be headed rapidly toward criminal prosecution. Facing those challenges to Republican ethics, the Steering Committee considered appointing Joe Wilson (R.-Sc), Ken Calvert (R.-Ca.), and a few others.
Joe Wilson’s son is an Iraq War veteran. At a time when the Appropriations Committee is considering defunding the war, who better to put on Appropriations than a man whose son fought in Iraq? Instead, the Steering Committee chose Ken Calvert. Rep. Calvert is probably the worst possible choice.
In 1993, while a serving Congressman, Ken Calvert was arrested for ...
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