Cornyn/Nichols '08

That's Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) and Atlanta rapist and judge killer Brian Nichols (?-GA), who apparently have a lot in common, to hear the Senator tell it:

SENATOR JOHN CORNYN: "I don't know if there is a cause-and-effect connection but we have seen some recent episodes of courthouse violence in this country. Certainly nothing new, but we seem to have run through a spate of courthouse violence recently that's been on the news and I wonder whether there may be some connection between the perception in some quarters on some occasions where judges are making political decisions yet are unaccountable to the public, that it builds up and builds up and builds up to the point where some people engage in - engage in violence.

This asshat actually thinks that Brian Nichols killed a judge, not because he wanted to escape his fate, but because he was mad about the Supreme Court's decision on the juvenile death penalty. He thinks the guy that killed Judge Lefkow's husband and mother in Illinois didn't do it for revenge, but because some other judge halfway across the country ruled in favor of Terri Schiavo.

This is grounds for resignation, without a doubt. Much like Tom DeLay did with his statement after Schiavo's death ("Those repsonsible will have to answer for their behavior"), Cornyn indirectly threatened federal judges that don't go along with the Republican program. That's a federal crime.

I guess Dukakis' error with Willie Horton was merely putting him on furlough. If he rationalized Horton's rape by linking it to public anger over "activist women" everything would have been okay.