Two Wrongs Make a Right: Dem Steny Hoyer "Blasts Republican 'Hypocrisy'" on Pork-Barrel Spending.

(Link below to story from today's Politico.com). Hoyer, the House Majority leader (previous picture with Pelosi above), today spoke in opposition to a republican effort to push a floor vote on a resolution that would declare that earmarks should be banned. Before giving some lip service to his contention that eliminating earmarks would "cede too much authority to the White House," Hoyer first rolled out his primary talking point, i.e. classic democrat/republican "two wrongs make a right" rhethoric. That is, politicians in both these parties absolutely love to ignore or pay scant attention to the substance of the issue, and instead rely on an implied "hey, you guys did it and so we can too" justification through cries of "HYPOCRISY!"

Of course, if one is able to divorce oneself from party loyalties for just one second of one's life (assuming you have any party loyalties), it is undeniable that such an argument is absolutely mindless and anti-intellectual. In short, it's third-grade stuff. Like the third-grader at recess who sees a classmate throwing a rock at a passing car and then tries to justify doing the same thing by spouting, "little Willie was doing it too!" It's so completely frustrating for me to watch these politicians in both parties get away with this silliness on a daily basis -- most often without anyone in the entire media spectrum so much as batting an eye. Although, it does make it fun to be an Independent, because every time a progressive or a conservative tries to hit me with a "yeah, but you guys did it too" blast, I simply ask: Precisely what "guys" are you referring to?

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0410/36204.html