Five felony indictments:
A grand jury has indicted a political action committee formed by U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and a Texas business group in connection with 2002 legislative campaign contributions.
The five felony indictments against the two groups were made public Thursday. Neither DeLay nor any individuals with the business group has been charged with any wrongdoing.
The charge against Texans for a Republican Majority alleged the committee illegally accepted a political contribution of $100,000 from the Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care.
Four indictments against the Texas Association of Business include charges of unlawful political advertising, unlawful contributions to a political committee and unlawful expenditures such as those to a graphics company and political candidates.
IN my eyes, that is about as unclear a report as is possible. Can a PAC be indicted? I thought you could only indict people. Who are they going to jaiul/fine if found guilty? And so on.
Paul L.
Oh Goody, I can use the ppGaz test/standard in reverse.
I’m too busy with my electron microscope, trying to find any relevance to this story in the first place.
Thousands of people are dead along the Gulf of Mexico, many due to government inaction. Even Justice Rehnquist’s death and funeral held less importance than this.
From the Berger Sentenced thread
Replace liberals/democrats with conservatives/republicans
https://balloon-juice.com/?p=5551#comment-71340
https://balloon-juice.com/?p=5551#comment-71353
https://balloon-juice.com/?p=5551#comment-71364
Rusty Shackleford
Who are they going to jaiul/fine if found guilty? And so on.
I propose the fine and jail DeLay.
Steve
You can indict a corporation; think of Arthur Andersen.
capelza
Well Paul L, when Tancredo decides that federal funding should stop for the Sugarland district because of the corruption and a “select bipartisan” committee is set up, he should be sure to include Snady Berger..no more federal funding for him either!
demimondian
(I hate building demo machines. It’s dull and boring, and it involves waiting interminably.)
There are legal options which can be taken against a corporate individual when it is found to have violated a criminal statute. In the extreme, the corporate entity can be dissolved and its assets repossessed [sp?]. In addition, the directors can be forbidden from holding a position of responsibility with a public corporation for a period of time. (That latter is a serious punishment. It means that the directors need to be individual proprietors, which exposes their personal assets to risk in the case of bankruptcy. Ouch!)
Paul L.
I am sorry. I have no clue what you are talking about.
I am trying to determine if they will let me get away with same arguments they used against the Sandy Berger story.
I am showing that their arguments are meaningless or they only apply them to one side.
And no it is comparing not Apples and Oranges.
Shygetz
Another example of the stupidity of corporations as individuals. Somebody broke the law, but they put themselves at no risk personally because they had the good sense to incorporate first. Maybe that was the theory behind Murder Inc.
Steve
Incorporation protects you from most civil liability, but it sure isn’t some kind of blanket protection against criminal responsibility. Why the individuals haven’t been charged here, I have no idea, but it’s not like an officer of a corporation can’t ever be charged with white-collar crime.
Paul L.
capelza, found what you were talking about.
Is Tom Delay the mayor of the Sugarland district or the governor of Texas?
Are we sending federal disaster aid to the Sugarland district?
Tom Delay may be corrupt. I await the results of the investigation. If he were incompetent as house whip, you liberals would not want his head so much if he was.
As in the case of Howard Dean, he is incompetent as Head of the DNC and most conservatives/republicans are happy he is there.
Incompetent and corrupt sounds more like Sandy Berger. No federal disaster aid for him without a “bipartisan select committee”.
capelza
Damn it, Paul L, I was joking. Though if Tancredo wants to withhold money because of corruption, I think Delay’s district would qualify. Are any of Nagin’s or Blanco’s PACs, etc under indictment? I don’t know, but certainly Delays circle down there is. It just struck me as funny.
As for competence, being a fabulous fundraiser and bacon bringer doesn’t neccessarily mean he is competent to govern. I certainly in no way feel represented by him. Though I’m sure that you would feel the same way about Ron Wyden (my senator along with Gordon Smith, who I have no particular dislike for either). Are they under indictment, are their PACs under indictment? Are they incompetent?
Is Dean under indictment? Did I miss that? His competence is yet to be seen. I’m sure that if Tancredo could, he love to replace Howard Dean. :P
And why no words about Haley “it was only a cat 1 storm” Barbour?