Scandal Scorecard: We try harder...

I've been frustrated by the increasing lead that the Administration has taken over the Republican Congress on the Upper Left Scandal Scorecard. Surely among all those GOP Congresscritters there must be a few more miscreants, right?

And I'm sure there are, but it only took one to swell the scorecard this week. Thanks to the DCCC oppo shop, I've added a couple items that have belonged here for awhile, Tom DeLay's cynical misuse of a children's charity as a front to bring lobbyists and legislators together and his orders to the Treasury Department to cough up some anti-Kerry propaganda (and it's a two-fer, since the Treasury folks in question work for the Executive Branch!).

So, I make the effort, and the effort brought the list to 28 reasons it's time to change the party in power...

Executive Branch:

1. Cheney's secret Energy Task Force

2. Ashcroft's illegal campaign contributions in 2000

3. Boeing I - the $23 billion tanker lease deal

4. Boeing II - the $1.3 billion surveillance aircraft boondoggle

5. Bush-Cheney 2000's failure to report $14 million spent on "recount" activities

6. Haliburton in Iraq

7. Haliburton in Nigeria

8. The Valerie Plame outing

9. Withholding information about the Medicare bill costs

10. Daniel Montgomery, Director of the ATSB, accepting illegal gifts from airlines.

11. John Korsmo, FHFB chair and his wife Michelle, a DOL official, illegal political fundraising

12. The suspension of Parks Police Chief Teresa Chambers in violation of Title 5 whistleblower protections.

13. The Iraqi National Congress' use of government funds to lobby for war.

14. Misuse of the Secret Service and other security to shield the President and Vice President from dissent on the campaign trail.

15. Abuse of the Presidential Records Act, to shield Reagan, Bush I and Bush II from scrutiny, and leaking information about Clinton pardons.

16. DOJ and Interior blocking the investigation of oil leases that cheated American Indian nations.

17. Charges by John Dean that Bush knowingly violated the terms of the Iraq war resolution

18. Diversion of $700 million in Afghan war funds to preparations for Iraq invasion

19. Failure to account for $40 billion in 9/11 emergency response funds

20. Use of IRS web site to disseminate political messages from RNC press releases

Congress:

21. Senate Judiciary Committee computer theft.

22. The Nick Smith bribe

23. Tom DeLay's illegal Texas legislative contributions.

24. Tom DeLay's bogus “Celebrations for Children” charity, used as a front for
political receptions.

25. Tom DeLay's abuse of Treasury Department personnel for political puposes by ordering a a partisan analysis of John Kerry’s tax plan.

26. Bill Frist's financial stake in a medical malpractice insurer, while pushing malpractice "reform" in the Senate.

27. Rep. Henry Bonilla's American Dream PAC, which has contributed less than 9% of its funds to the minority candidates it was chartered to assist.

28. The NRCC's illegal transfer of $500,000 in soft money to ineligible recipients during the 1999 primary season.