Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Oklahoma Republican Leader Coffee: 'I Made a Dumb Mistake'

Gotta love those ethically challenged Oklahoma Republicans.

Take Senate President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee who, until recently, had a tax lien filed against him. Although he's now paid the lien, such tax problems undermine the state GOP's contention that they are the "squeaky clean" Oklahoma politicans.

Remember former GOP leader Lance Cargill?

Here, for your reading pleasure, is the Coffee apology made this week to the Senate Republicans:
Well, the problem with dumb mistakes is that you have to answer for them. That is what I am here today to do. I made a dumb decision, and I went into caucus today to apologize for that and answer questions from members of my caucus.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

The "squeaky" part I will buy.

In fairness, politicians of both parties seem to have a terrible time with getting the tax bill paid.

It is true though that the Republicans come off worse, since part of their schtick is wrapping themselves in the flag and putting a halo over their heads.

Man of the West said...

Tulsan, I appreciate that your fair-minded remark.

Now, I have a few questions for Alt:

Gotta love those ethically challenged Oklahoma Republicans.

Do you love ethically-challenged Democrats just as much? Tim Geithner could certainly use a little love right now.

...such tax problems undermine the state GOP's contention that they are the "squeaky clean" Oklahoma politicans.

Do the appointment of someone with notorious tax problems to the head of the Treasury Department and the attempted appointments of several other people with such tax problems to high-profile positions in the Obama administration undermine any claim by that administration to be "squeaky clean?"

Or do they just not bother to claim being squeaky clean?

I guess that would make everything ok, wouldn't it?

Anonymous said...

If Geithner can actually get us out of this disaster, he can shack up with wallabies, order unlimited vitamin water (if that is his pleasure,) and get a personalized tax break for it as far as I'm concerned.

But I have doubts about Geithner's coziness with the Wall Street malefactors, and Nobel Prize winner Paul Krugman points out the weakness of his plan.

On the other hand, TPM notes today that Nouriel Roubini, the economist who predicted this specific collapse, is cautiously supportive. I hope he is right once more time.

Anonymous said...

The whole financial mess is best apprehended in non-ethical, non-moral terms.

It more closely resembles the battle against HIV or Ebola. These viruses can be combatted, but they constantly evolve new ways of evading any fixed set of tactics.

An excellent new article about how all this came about:

The Big Takeover

Excerpts:

"...it's AIG's rip-roaringly shitty business model writ almost inconceivably massive — to echo Geithner, a huge, complex global company attached to a very complicated investment bank/hedge fund that's been allowed to build up without adult supervision. How much of what kinds of crap is actually on our balance sheet, and what did we pay for it? When exactly will the rent come due, when will the money run out? Does anyone know what the hell is going on? And on the linear spectrum of capitalism to socialism, where exactly are we now? Is there a dictionary word that even describes what we are now? It would be funny, if it weren't such a nightmare.

The most galling thing about this financial crisis is that so many Wall Street types think they actually deserve not only their huge bonuses and lavish lifestyles but the awesome political power their own mistakes have left them in possession of. When challenged, they talk about how hard they work, the 90-hour weeks, the stress, the failed marriages, the hemorrhoids and gallstones they all get before they hit 40.

"But wait a minute," you say to them. "No one ever asked you to stay up all night eight days a week trying to get filthy rich shorting what's left of the American auto industry or selling $600 billion in toxic, irredeemable mortgages to ex-strippers on work release and Taco Bell clerks. Actually, come to think of it, why are we even giving taxpayer money to you people? Why are we not throwing your ass in jail instead?"

But before you even finish saying that, they're rolling their eyes, because You Don't Get It. These people were never about anything except turning money into money, in order to get more money; valueswise they're on par with crack addicts, or obsessive sexual deviants who burgle homes to steal panties. Yet these are the people in whose hands our entire political future now rests.

----

A classic, funny exposition:

The Sub-Prime Primer

Anonymous said...

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