Profiles in purging--finding the strength to ban the bothersome

According to the Washington Post, Dennis Hastert has purged the House Ethics Committee of those bothersome folks who investigated Tom DeLay and resisted weakening ethics rules.

In reference to the ousting of Rep. Joel Hefley, (R-Co.), the chairman of the committee, Hastert’s spokesman reportedly said, "It wasn't really removing him. It was more like relieving him of his duty. The speaker doesn't like to have people who are such talented legislators like him have to spend so much time on ethics."

But don’t worry. The speaker didn’t just get rid of Hefley, he also replaced two other bothersome Republican committee members, Reps. Kenny Hulshof (R-Mo.) and Steven C. LaTourette (R-Ohio), with Reps. Lamar S. Smith (R-Tex.) and Tom Cole (R-Okla.). The Post editorial states that both of these men contributed generously to Mr. DeLay's legal defense fund.

The immoral of the story is: Don't waste your time and talent on ethics.