Is anyone really surprised that the Democrats, now safely ensconsed in power, are turning their back on the promises they made about ethical reform back in the fall? It amazes me that anyone could be, yet I assume that some people must be, as I recall various left-wing bloggers talking about how important it was to get Democrats in office in order to stop Republican corruption. And maybe some of them are expressing their surprise or disappointment in print, but I've yet to see any of them.
This shouldn't surprise anyone. Corruption was a great issue to run on, but like term limits there was no way Congress was going to pass any meaningful ethics reform no matter who is in charge. I do not generally subscribe to a view of America that sees the country as stratified into classes, but it is reasonable to argue that there are at least two classes in America: the governing class and the rest of us. Whether it is traveling the roads at speeds that would get the average citizen tossed in jail or receiving a slap on the wrist for crimes that would rate far worse were the perpetrator not connected to the right people, there is little question that the governing class considers itself too important to be tied down by the rules they're too happy to impose on the rest of us.
Nor is it a surprise this news isn't being mentioned much by those who claimed the Democrats would do a better job with ethics reform than Republicans. It is the rare person who is willing to admit when they have erred; take a look at how many pro-war blogs are talking about General Petraeus' letter to the troops about torture to see the same phenomon from the other side of the fence.
Update: Kudos to Kevin Drum, who tells the Democratic leadership to "show some spine. If Democrats want people to believe that there's really a difference between the two parties, then show them there's a difference." Amen.