I haven't posted anything political in a while - mostly because I've been tired of it all, but also because all of you except Chuck have complained about my pedantry.

But this one is too weird to pass up:

This morning, I heard on NPR and read in the Austin local paper that the Republicans are planning to keep the House of Representatives shut down for the ENTIRE month of January while Tom Delay seeks to be acquitted on felony charges of money laundering and return to his post as majority leader. House rules dictate that a member under indictment cannot retain a leadership post.

What this means is that the Republicans are shutting down Government for a man thrice admonished by the ethics committee in the past two years, for a man who has been indicted on two charges of money laundering, for a man who is also tied up in the blossoming Abramoff scandal that will likely lead to three or four more Repubican indictments in the next year. And they're shutting down Government rather than operate without him as majority leader because he holds all the power and purse strings.

Thank you, Republicans!

If Pelosi and company don't make hay out of this from January through October, they don't deserve to take back the House.