@rbreich
We knew he was dirty in his confirmation hearing. But his accuser was a black woman. The press sold it as a false and/or frivolous claim. Anita Hill told the truth.

@rbreich There should be one set of rules for all, but some are more equal than others.

@rbreich Regardless of where one stands politically, fairness in ethical standards across the board is paramount.

@rbreich I’d frame it as the reverse: Clarence Thomas should not be subject to fewer or less-stringent ethics rules than any entry-level Federal employee.

@rbreich it's not so bad being a radical lefty!

@rbreich I was a contractor to the government, and our ethics requirements were very, very rigorous.

@rbreich
I wish you were...
@LenaLia

@rbreich A fine point. I think we would be in a far better place if, at a minimum, the President, Congress, and the Supreme Court were all held to the same bribery, graft, and conflict of interest statutes, as well as standards of conduct, as the rank and file Executive Branch employee. There is always a great hue and cry about applying such standards where the potential for impeachment or expulsion, as prescribed by the Constitution, is available, but it doesn't serve us, and to set such procedures to the complete exclusion of actual defined standards is neither necessary, nor has it been followed strictly historically. Even if the standards were applied for adjudication within each branch by consensus, it would be an improvement over the current moral value deficit.

@rbreich
Agreed. The highest court held to the lowest, or no standards. It makes no sense, especially given the greed that is rampant among those who have the most.

@rbreich Alright: Radical Lefty!

@rbreich I also think that Congress should not get paid if there is a gov't shutdown. They have very little incentive to work if they keep getting paid. If they don't do their job, they should lose it.

@rbreich for fucks sake we are. With ethics staff not worth the price of a McDonald's milkshake either.

@rbreich Come on, Bob, everyone knows that authoritarians believe that the higher up the hierarchy you are, the less the rules should apply to you. Rules are for plebes, for suckers, for losers, not for rulers.

@rbreich at this point, "radical Lefty" is an honorific

@rbreich i was subject to far more stringent ethics rules than Clarence Thomas when i worked an entry level position shelving books at the public library.

@rbreich You radical lefty, you!