Demagogue

Isn't this an interesting leak from a private, GOP-only meeting?

House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, hoping to hold support among fellow Republicans, urged GOP senators Tuesday to blame Democrats if asked about his ethics controversy and accused the news media of twisting supportive comments so they sounded like criticism.

Officials said DeLay recommended that senators respond to questions by saying Democrats have no agenda other than partisanship, and are attacking him to prevent Republicans from accomplishing their legislative program. One Republican said the Texan referred to a "mammoth operation" funded by Democratic supporters and designed to destroy him as a symbol of the Republican majority.
...
The officials who described DeLay's brief remarks noted that the session, a regularly scheduled weekly lunch, was held under rules of secrecy. Dan Allen, DeLay's spokesman, declined comment.

Well, someone is a little bitter...

One senior Republican spoke sympathetically of DeLay after the closed-door meeting.

"I hope he survives, and I hope he will stay in there and do his job," said Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss.

"The power of prayer is the only thing that will sustain you" in the circumstance DeLay is in, Lott added, and he spoke disparagingly of any Republicans who fail to stand by the Texan.

"That's the problem, you know, Republicans eat their own. ... Democrats stand by their own until hell freezes over," said Lott, who was ousted as Senate majority leader two years ago after making controversial race-based comments at a birthday party for the late Strom Thurmond.

I have to admit, it's amusing that the GOP is trying to paint the Dems as powerful and out for blood, putting together a covert campaign to frame DeLay and take him out to hurt the GOP. But all this time the GOP has been telling me something different, that the GOP is the party of "real men" and the Democrats are the "girlie man" party. What gives? Are Dems scary and tough or feckless and whimpy? Are GOP the aggressors or are they victims?

Really, if the Dems had anything to do with taking DeLay out, good for them. But we all know they didn't. It's just too damn obvious that DeLay placed the noose around his own neck. Frankly Dems are setting their sights on DeLay very late in the game, the man has been plagued by ethical "issues" for years. It would actually be fair to call the Dems whimpy for only getting out-in-front about DeLay when it was safe to do so.