The Audacious "Charity" Of Harry

Don Surber has a very nice post today on why everyone hates the media, based on an ABC story on the Harry Reid/Rush Limbaugh letter affair. But if there's a "why everyone hates someone" story to be told here, I think it's more about politicians than the media.

I'm a late-comer to this story because a very busy work week was keeping me from the news. Early in the week, Incredible Daughter #1 sent me a link to a story about some letter Rush Limbaugh was auctioning, but I didn't have time to even click the link. I heard a squib or two during the week, and finally last night learned that the letter appeared likely to sell for over $2 million and Rush would match it for a $4-million-plus contribution to the Marine Corps-Law Enforcement Foundation.

Being me, I immediately went onto Harry Reid's web site to see what he had to say about it. Nothing. But little did I know that the little man from Searchlight was talking on the Senate floor, about what his ignominy had spurred. Of course, he wasn't exactly positioning himself that way:

When I spoke to [Limbaugh's syndicator] Mark May[s], he and I thought this probably wouldn't make much money, a letter, written by Democrat Senators, complaining about something. This morning, the bid is more than two million for this. We've watched it during the week. It keeps going up, and up, and up. There's only a little bit of time left on it, but it certainly is going to be more than two million. ...

I don't know what we could do more important than helping to ensure that children of our fallen soldiers and police officers who have fallen in the line of duty have the opportunity for their children to have a good education.

"We?!" The only "we" Harry belongs to is the "we" that includes Hillary Clinton that backed a heavy-handed attempt by people elected to protect Constitutional freedoms to strip those freedoms from someone who's free speech they happen to disagree with.

It shouldn't surprise us that the leader of the Senate would try to claim some credit as a spawner of this drive, since politicians are super-glue for credit and Teflon for criticism. If Harry truly felt there is nothing more important to do than to help the kids of fallen police and military personnel, then he might have gone to his 41 co-signers of the letter, most of them rich, and put together another match, that would have raised the tally to over $6 million.

But politicians are quicker with their words than they are with their money, and there is consequently no third leg to this stool. Why should Harry and his buds pay a penny when they can steal credit and keep the cash? The next thing you know, he'll be talking about how he raised $4 million for the Foundation ... hoping that we're all as stupid as he thinks we are.

Also utterly damning of politicians is the fact that Harry was able to get 42 of the Senate's 51 Dem Sens to sign the letter, signing on to heavy-handed government pressure on free speech. I wonder about the other nine -- are they hanging desperately on to some scruples, or were they just not available?

I would be proud if any of my daughters decided to serve in the military or in law enforcement, but I would be deeply saddened if they decided to go into politics. What a sad state that is for the world's beacon of Democracy.

hat-tip: memeorandum