Take That

It's getting a little ridiculous down in Texas. First, Tom DeLay's lawyers demanded that the presiding judge in his money-laundering trial be removed from the case because he's made political donations to Democratic-leaning causes and candidates in the past. And the courts go along with it. So the DA, Ronnie Earle, fights fire with fire:

In an unprecedented move, Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle, a Democrat, forced a Republican presiding judge from naming a new trial judge in the conspiracy case against U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land.

Taking a page from the playbook of DeLay's lawyers, Earle filed a motion Thursday arguing that Judge B.B. Schraub, R-Seguin, and presiding judge for the 3rd Administrative Judicial Region, should step aside because of campaign donations he made to Republican candidates. The candidates included Gov. Rick Perry, who was a central player in DeLay's 2003 attempt to redraw Texas congressional districts.

Within three hours, Schraub stepped aside, asking Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Wallace B. Jefferson, a Republican, to name a trial judge for the DeLay case. Perry appointed Jefferson to the court in 2001 and promoted to chief justice last year.

I think Earle's move was pretty funny, but I don't see where this is getting anybody. Two wrongs don't necessarily make a right, and just as DeLay was wrong to assume an elected judge with a history of impartiality would take personal THIS ONE CASE, Earle fell prey to the same beliefs. In a legal setting, I don't think who you've given money to over the course of your lifetime has any bearing on your ability to interpret the law, and if it does, you ought to be impeached.

Based on Earle's statements in court (where he directly claimed he was taking this step because of the DeLay motion), I think he gets this:

Saying he was using the same rationale employed by DeLay's lawyers, Earle wrote that Schraub, like Perkins, is a fair and impartial judge with a "sterling reputation" of honesty and integrity. But Earle wrote that's "unfortunately no longer the standard in our state for the judiciary." He argued that Schraub could be personally biased for DeLay and against Earle because of his political donations.

But that didn't make it right to do, for either side. I cannot believe the judge ruled in favor of the original DeLay motion (which kind of forced his hand to do the same on the Earle motion, it was the same argument). The lawyers for the Congressman have succeeded in putting a political cast on what looks to me like a clear case of laundering corporate money from Texas through the RNC and back into the local races. It increases the chances he'll get off, as well.

Lawyers exist to defend their client, so fine. But enough with this notion that absolutely nobody can be an impartial judge anymore. On both sides.