The Tennessee Liberal

Sorry for the delay in posting this, but this story in yesterday's Times Free Press has to be a joke.

Surely the leaders of the black community in this state cannot be saying that the Tennessee Waltz operation was racist. And yet:

Sherman Matthews, with the Unity Group in Chattanooga, said that on the surface the investigation appears "one-sided." He said even one of the white legislators charged, state Sen. Ward Crutchfield, D-Chattanooga, has a strong connection to the black community.

Mr. Matthews, a longtime friend of Hamilton County Commissioner William Cotton, the latest to be charged, said he worries that any black officials forced out of office will be replaced by less effective leaders.

"I’m concerned there’s a movement across the state, not to get rid of black leadership, but to get rid of outspoken black leaders and replace them with people who aren’t as outspoken," Mr. Matthews said.

How utterly ridiculous this guy sounds. How utterly blinded he is to how much people like William Cotton and Charles Love were stabbing him in the back.

It is sad to be forced to point out that someone who is accepting bribes from white people to pass bills that only affect white people is probably not spending their time standing up for the black community or being "effective leaders" - Crutchfield included.

Ron Walters, director of the University of Maryland’s African American Leadership Institute, opposes the use of sting operations in general. He said they can be used for political purposes.

"This is one way to keep black political power off balance," Mr. Walters said.

The time seems appropriate to look at the acts that were committed here. This was not a case of subtle misuse of influence or political patronage. The accused were not enticed into giving away jobs or throwing out parking tickets. They were offered cold, hard cash to pass laws that would be to the detriment of the community. And they took the money. These people, Democrats and Republicans, black and white, abdicated all responsibility to their constituents in exchange for cash.

I can't speak for the black community, but I don't see a defensible position here. This isn't about race, it is about an abuse of power. It's the same as Dick Cheney leaking the name of a spy just because he could, and it is the same as Tom DeLay launderign money because he wanted to. In every case, the people need to take out the trash.