Cry Boy

Big blogs--especially TPM--have kept the Duke Cunningham story on the front burner, at least for me...but Jeff St. Clair has a nice, if long, story offering a little background gossip (before he became Cry Boy, Cunningham boasted he was the inspiration for the movie Top Gun; he also attended the notorious Tailhook conventions in the early 90's, acting as apologist for sexual assualt)...St. Clair follows up with both material on the congressman and "defense industry" practice, and concludes by taking out the garbage:

What Cunningham in his obduracy never realized was that he was just an interchangeable part, a legislative errand boy, fetching home pails of contracts every fall when the appropriations bills come due. No special talent required. Almost anyone could do it. In the end, the congressman was expendable, so that the Enterprise might endure forever. The Pentagon and its contractors and numberless parasites have many available to shoulder the Duke's duties.

After reading about Fly Boy turning into Cry Boy yesterday, I almost felt sorry for the guy--hey, going to prison can't be fun, especially for a 65 year old...but I quickly got over it after getting a more complete picture of the jerk.

Have fun at the Gray Bar Hotel, Congressman. I guess, on the brighter side, any number of your GOP colleagues will be joining you soon.