Whose Turn To Pick Up The Soap?

This has been an exceptionally bad week for Republicans. First there is Bush, who is still trying to regain his footing after sleeping through Hurricane Katrina and its immediate aftermath.

Then late last week we learned that Senate majority leader and possible 2008 presidential candidate Bill Frist is being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission for possible insider trading. The problem is that he sold off his stock in a company his family founded shortly before its value plunged because of a poor earnings report.

It may sound serious, but it probably isn't. After all, Martha Stewart faced similar charges a while back, and she got through that unpleasantness in about six months or so.

But the clincher came yesterday, when House Majority Leader and top Bush ally Tom DeLay was finally been indicted by a Texas grand jury. While the indictment stems from efforts by DeLay to have Republicans seize control of the Texas state legislature, he has actually been dogged by ethics questions since 1997.

Unfortunately this is not an election year for Congress. Otherwise the Republicans would be kissing their majority in the House goodbye.