Moe Lane

(Via Instapundit) Contra Michael Barone (who I both like and respect), there’s a simpler answer to the question of why Speaker Pelosi hasn’t cut Charlie Rangel loose yet: by Democratic standards, he’s not particularly corrupt. We are after all talking about a political party whose collective inability to pay their taxes became the first national political joke of 2009.

That being said, Barone’s point that Rangel’s replacement would be problematical for the Democrats is well-taken. Just imagine Pete Stark as Ways & Means Chair, for example. It’d be like Christmas had come early.

Moe Lane

*The albatross was only a problem after they shot it, remember?

Crossposted to RedState.

I understand why Glenn Reynolds is suspicious, but I think this primary challenge of Charlie Rangel by former campaign director Vincent Morgan is legitimate.  To begin with, the possibility was first reported about a month and a half ago, and that article notes an important detail about NY-15:

Someday, whether it be 2010 or 2012 or 3012, Charlie Rangel will not be the congressman from Harlem. There may not in fact be another African-American congressman from Manhattan, since a huge influx of white and Hispanic residents have moved into the borough in recent years.

Redistricting is set for the 2012 elections, and if Rangel is still around, political observers say, how his district’s lines move will give a clear message about the seat’s future. If the district moves northward into the Bronx, it will, first of all, no longer be the only district to be entirely in Manhattan, and, secondly, show that Rangel and his allies intend for the seat to remain African-American. If the district moves to the south, it would favor a white candidate and mean that black political power has effectively switched to the outer boroughs. If the district stays the same, then New York will likely send the first Dominican-American to Congress.

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Nobody has much use for an equivocator. From the Politico’s article on Rangel’s ever-so-slowly increased isolation from House Democrats

Also on Wednesday night, Rep. Kendrick Meek, D-Fla., who is running for the Senate, chose not to sign a Black Caucus letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., in support of Rangel.

Meek told POLITICO that his vote to refer the Rangel matter to the ethics panel was enough of a statement of his position.

“I’m not on every letter that the Black Caucus puts out,” Meek said. “I didn’t feel that it was something I had to break my neck on.”

This could have been Meek’s moment to shine. It was a chance for him to do something that might have caused a splash outside of his district; something that would have given him a couple of days’ worth of press for the novelty… and opportunities to fix his rather anemic poll standings right now. But no: he went for the ’safe’ choice of not signing the letter, then downplaying it with a, well, meek murmur when the situation called for a loud roar.

This is the problem with inheriting your seat from your mother: it doesn’t teach you proper electoral instincts.  Which is precisely what I like to see in candidates from political parties that aren’t mine.

Moe Lane

Crossposted to RedState.

How very… interesting, Congresswoman.

Do tell.

“Many members” of Congress suffer from the same disclosure issues as Rep. Charles Rangel (D.N.Y.), one of his allies said Wednesday.

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) downplayed the seriousness of allegations against Rangel that he failed to disclose sources of income and pay taxes on some properties, saying that many lawmakers suffer from innocent lapses in judgment when filing mandatory financial disclosure forms.

“I want to tell you, there are many members who, if you go back over all of their records, over all of the years, you’re going to find that there were disclosures that were not made,” Waters said during an appearance on MSNBC Wednesday morning.

No, really: do tell. Just give us a second to get a couple of witnesses, some recording equipment, and an officer of the court or two.  We’ll be needing names, dates, time of day, and of course any and all accomplices to these… disclosures that were not made.  It’ll be a thing, and I know just the person to run it, too.

Seriously, why is Rep. Waters left alone to wander through the halls of Congress without supervision?  Have the Democrats lost all semblance of professional pride?

Moe Lane

Crossposted to RedState.

(Via Texans for Sarah Palin) But it’s tax hikes for the wealthy (540 billion over 10 years), so that’s all right, right? At least, it’s tax hikes for the wealthy today. And what gets redefined as ‘wealthy’…

Key House Democrats decided Friday to raise taxes on the wealthy to help pay for health care legislation, capping an up-and-down week for President Barack Obama’s top domestic priority.

[snip]

Democrats on the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee agreed to a new surtax that would start with households making $350,000 a year and begin in 2011, said the committee’s chairman, Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y.

…well, that’s up to Charlie Rangel.

Have a nice morning!

Moe Lane

Crossposted to RedState.

(Via @vermontaigne) Three of them.  Need I add that Charlie Rangel is currently under investigation by that committee?

Charlie’s “angels” on the committee include Congressmen Ben Chandler of Kentucky, G.K. Butterfield of North Carolina and Peter Welch of Vermont. All have received donations from Rangel.

Two of them – Chandler (KY-06, R+9*) & Butterfield (NC-01, D+9) – are apparently keeping it, too.  Considering that Rep. Rangel has given money to 119 Congressmen since the ethics probe began last year, you could almost not blame them.  Or almost not blame Rangel for acting as if he was above the laws that he writes:

Congressman Rangel has been arrogant in refusing to discuss how, as the man who writes this country’s tax laws, he failed to report over $1 million in outside income and $3 million in business transactions as required by the House, lapses under investigation by the House Ethics Committee.

“I recognize that all of you have an obligation to ask questions knowing that there’s none of you smart enough to frame it in such a way that I’m going to respond,” Rangel said.

Almost.  But trust me, Charlie: the GOP takes back the House in 2010, we’re going to find it really easy to make you respond to the question.

Moe Lane

*Ben Chandler has already acquired a Republican challenger: Matt Lockett.

Crossposted to RedState.

Taxes not paid, income not reported, assets not declared… but Madame Speaker doesn’t want to remove him as chair of Ways and Means.  What is it going to take?  The FBI buying Rangel a freezer?

Via Instapundit, who is probably as embarrassed for the country as I am right now.

Crossposted to RedState.

You just have to go out there and tell them about it (H/T: Instapundit):

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