Despite his reemergence as a Fox News commentator, I didn’t think I would ever again have the pleasure of writing about Zell Miller again; after all, retired politicians are usually not worth commenting on, even if they resemble Emperor Palpatine and once (almost) challenged Hardball’s Chris Matthews to a duel. Even the release of Miller’s latest book—entitled “A Deficit of Decency”, complete with forward by Sean Hannity—didn’t spark any interest in writing about the former Democratic Senator-turned-Republican attack dog.

But sometimes fate takes an interesting turn. Such as Zell Miller, one of our country’s self-appointed guardians of decency and morality, being accused of taking about $80,000 in taxpayer money he wasn’t entitled to.

When this nationally famous figure left the governor’s office in 1999, he pocketed more than $60,000 in taxpayer funds earmarked for entertainment and other expenses at the Governor’s Mansion, WSB-TV investigative reporter Dale Cardwell revealed last week.

Miller also picked up a check for more than $20,000 for “unused leave”-a sum to which he was not entitled as a constitutional officer, Cardwell also reported.

Now that’s (pardon the pun) rich. Miller’s explanation? It wasn’t technically illegal for him to take the entertainment funds from the Governor’s mansion, and no one told him not to do it. This is kind of like getting a fancy hotel room and walking off with the television and bedsheets because the instructions not to weren’t posted in the room service menu. Very classy.

While the initial joke would be to say that Miller’s transformation into a Republican is now complete, I’ll be fair and note that corruption isn’t limited to either party, despite the best efforts of people like Tom DeLay or “Duke” Cunningham. However, if this story somehow gets more attention, don’t be surprised to see Miller being held up by his Republican buddies and the toadies at Fox News as a “typical Democrat”—this despite his constant and steady water-carrying for the Bush Administration’s policies.

Final words, fittengly enough, go to Zell Miller himself:

In his latest volume, “Deficit of Decency,” Miller advises his readers: “Is it decent? is the right question. It’s one all of us know and can answer, law degree or not. Is it decent? demands not wordy responses or over-educated legal beagles to interpret it, but simple truth, which doesn’t need many words and doesn’t lean into the technical.”

That about says it. Too bad the practice doesn’t quite follow the prose.