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[videogamer]

Florida Republican Sen. Mel Martinez says an infamous unsigned memo passed around on Capitol Hill emphasizing the politics of the Terri Schiavo case originated in his office.

The memo - first reported by ABC News on March 18 and by The Washington Post and The Associated Press two days later - said the fight going on then over removing Schiavo's feeding tube "is a great political issue ... and a tough issue for Democrats."

"This is an important moral issue and the pro-life base will be excited that the Senate is debating this important issue," said the memo, which was described at the time as being circulated among Senate Republicans while legislation was being considered to place the Schiavo case under the jurisdiction of federal courts.

Martinez said in a written statement that he discovered Wednesday that the memo had been written by an aide in his office.

"It is with profound disappointment and regret that I learned today that a senior member of my staff was unilaterally responsible for this document," Martinez said.

He said he accepted the resignation of the staffer who drafted and circulated the memo. "This type of behavior and sentiment will not be tolerated in my office," he said.

Martinez did not identify the aide, but The Washington Post said he was the senator's legal counsel, Brian Darling.

http://staging.hosted.ap.org/dynami...ME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2005-04-07-10-01-22

Media Matters has a nice ownage of conservatives calling it Rathergate II:
http://mediamatters.org/items/200504070005

 

[kumanoki]

Who cares. She's dead already.

 

[Incognito]

Pretty good stuff. :lol :lol Man, I fucking hate Powerline and their incredibly inept authors. You just fucking KNEW they wanted this to be RatherGateII(OMG WE NEED MORE ATTENTION!!!111).

 

[Diablos]

I can't stand to even look at Santorum. He's such a phony, it's so obvious.

 

[Pimpwerx]

"It is with profound disappointment and regret that I learned today that a senior member of my staff was unilaterally responsible for this document," Martinez said.

Wow, Mel didn't waste any time calling in The Fall Guy:

PEACE.

 

[Incognito]

Darling [the Schiavo memo's author] worked for the Alexander Strategy Group, a Washington-based corporate lobbying firm heavily connected to Rep. DeLay. Darling's clients included Universal Bearing, Inc., a company owned by the Hanwha Group, which has direct ties to the foreign agent that paid for Rep. DeLay's improper trip to Korea. The Korea-U.S. Exchange Council was created to promote Hanwha Group Chairman Seung Youn Kim, according to the New York Times.

The Alexander Strategy Group was formed by Rep. DeLay's former Chief of Staff Ed Buckham, who also introduced Rep. DeLay to corporate lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Former DeLay aide Jim Ellis, who was indicted for money laundering, was a consultant to ASG. Former DeLay staffer Tony Rudy, former DeLay PAC director Karl Gallant, and Rep. DeLay's spouse, Christine DeLay, all worked for ASG.

http://www.ourfuture.org/press/releases/index.cfm?pressReleaseID=111

:lol