No way, DeLay

Looks like The Hammer can't catch a break. A Texas court denied DeLay's request to throw out the criminal money laundring charges and also denied him the opportunity to have a "quick" trial, no doubt stemming from Jack Abramoff's recent guilty plea and questions about just how close the DeLay/Abramoff relationship was.

Faced with a possible life in prison sentence if convicted, it's no wonder DeLay is trying to get these charges thrown out of court. Kudos to the Texas court (man, I never thought I'd say that) for holding fast. Perhaps this is the tipping point in terms of exposing the systemic corruption that's going on in our legislature. It's also a moment of truth for the Republican party, according to the Washington Post (emphasis mine):

[T]here is a more fundamental question that the Abramoff mess, and the DeLay departure, ought to prompt House leaders to ask themselves -- or that voters may ask, and answer, for them: What is the purpose of the Republican majority? Is it simply, as some of the leadership's behavior would suggest, to amass, cement and retain power by whatever means necessary? Or, as Republicans claimed when they came to power a decade ago, do they stand for something: a different method of doing business, a belief in limited government, commitment to spending restraint? If there is a role for the Republican machine other than self-perpetuation, it's awfully hard to discern right now. That, as much as anything, ought to be what the upcoming leadership elections are about.

If anything, this just goes to prove that the current lesson learned from what I've seen in today's GOP is of a failure to effectively lead this country. More often than not, it seems to me that the Republican Party exists because of an almost gluttonous appetite for domination: They have everything - control of all three branches of government; unlimited [ill-gotten] wealth; and undue influence in the media, corporate structure, the healthcare and biotech industries, religion. It's almost as if the party is this huge monster, feeding on everything it can get its hands on. Binging to the point of unmitigated excess.

Hopefully, until now. It's time to purge.

(Photo credit: Fun with DeLay's mug shot found here.)