Sanctimonious Hypocrisy

There are few things that annoy and disgust me more than hypocrisy, especially when's linked--as it so often is--to sanctimoniousness. Case in point: Sen. Rick Santorum, the personification of both hypocrisy and sanctimoniousness. For years, Santorum was the Senate point man on the "K St. Project," the scheme to marry Washington lobbyists and the Republican Party (a match made in ......) Then, after "Duke" Cunningham got caught with both hands in the cookie jar and Jack Abramoff pleaded guilty, the Senator was suddenly born again, this time as his party's designated advocate for lobbying reform--or what the GOP tried to pass off as reform. (Did I mention that, like so many in his party, the Senator has NO shame?)

Now the latest in a line of questionable tactics is reported by the Philadelphia Daily News: Seems that over the past three years, Sen. Sanctimonious earmarked a cool quarter of a million taxpayer dollars to a conservative Philadelphia tax exempt group called the Urban Family Council. Then, a group of four organizations including the Council sets up an organization called the Pennsylvania Pastors Network, which holds a "training session" for pastors to get out the vote. (Guess which vote they want to get out.) Who should be the only office-holder to speak to the pastors but Sen. Sanctimonious, who's in a very tough re-election fight. Looks like our tax dollars are going to support his attempt to stay in the Senate. (A public interest group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington [CREW], has complained to the IRS about this apparent connection between tax-exempt religious groups and politics.)

Thanks to Paul Kiel at the TPM Daily Muckraker for pointing this story out.