Shocked And Stunned, Are We?

Posted by on . 2 comments.

(1)
The Los Angeles Times describes the conviction of Sen. Ted Stevens as “a stunning verdict”. Really? This is the clown who was caught on tape with the guy who bribed him, who confessed to bribing him, and who testified against him, discussing their wrongdoing in pretty frank terms:

The jury also heard telephone conversations, secretly recorded by the FBI, including one in which Stevens openly discussed the possibility that he and Allen “might have to serve a little time in jail.”

The funny thing is that the last quotation is from the same LAT story which calls the verdict stunning.

(2)
Stevens, of course, has vowed to appeal, and to “fight this unjust verdict with every ounce of energy I have” and to continue to campaign for reelection. No big surprise there (unless the LAT was shocked?)

At the national level, the Republican Party seems to have decided to distance itself from Stevens:

“Ted Stevens served his constituents for over 40 years, and I am disappointed to see his career end in disgrace,” said Sen. John Ensign of Nevada, who heads the Senate Republicans’ campaign committee. “Sen. Stevens had his day in court and the jury found he violated the public’s trust — as a result he is properly being held accountable. This is a reminder that no one is above the law.”

But the funny thing is that state Republican Party officials have chosen to whole-heartedly support Stevens:

State Republican Party officials said they would urge Stevens to stay the course and attempt to win reelection.

Not just stand by him with token statements of support but urge him to stay the course.

Here’s the hilarious statement the Alaska GOP put out:

“The majority of Alaskans are conservative, they have strong family values and very strong faith in their convictions,” said Alaska GOP spokesman McHugh Pierre, “and if those voters want a like-minded person representing them in the U.S. Senate, they need to vote for Sen. Ted Stevens.”

Alaskans have very strong faith in their conviction; the Alaska state GOP has very strong faith in their convicted. (And, of course, nothing screams family values like bribery and corruption.)