Where Do We Get Our Arrogance From?

The following being an excerpt from the indictment of Mr. Noe in Federal Court:

...The Purpose of the Conspiracy
The purpose of the conspiracy was for defendant THOMAS W. NOE to make prohibited campaign contributions totaling $45,400 to Bush-Cheney '04, Inc. without being detected by the FEC or the public.

The Manner and Means of the Conspiracy
It was a part of the conspiracy that defendant THOMAS W. NOE, in order to fulfill a written pledge to raise $50,000 for the campaign at the fundraiser, used $45,400 of his funds to make campaign contributions over and above the legal limits and concealed the true source of the contributions by making the contributions in the names of other individuals, known as "conduits." It was a part of the conspiracy that NOE requested that each conduit contribute money to Bush-Cheney '04, Inc. in his or her own name and attend the fundraiser. It was a part of the conspiracy that NOE would recruit other individuals, referred to herein as "super-conduits," who would not only act as conduits but would also recruit additional conduits and pass finds from NOE to those additional conduits. It was a part of the conspiracy that before and after the fundraising event, NOE provided funds from his National City Bank account for 24 conduits and super-conduits as an advance on or reimbursement for their contributions; all but one of the conduits and super-conduits contributed the maximum permissible amount, with some adding small amounts of their own money to NOE's...

Remember, this is an indictment. Mr. Noe has not been convicted of the above charges.

Most who know me know that I vote democrat so I'll disclose that up-front. I am a self-admitted centrist democrat, both fiscally and socially, and realize our country has a lot of diversity and challenges that should be addressed from leaders that can see both sides of an argument. Like Clinton, who I once ran as a delegate for, I truly believe we need to keep both ends of our political spectrum in sight so that our ship does not sail too far to one end, taking all of us over the edge with it.

I can't help but wonder if the democrats would be as blatant with their hold on power though? Maybe I'm looking at history with rose-colored glasses and a short memory. This state was once controlled by Dem's for almost 14 years. I don't ever recall such subversive behavior to achieve a political end. And this from the party of family values? Have we ever witnessed such a colossal demonstration of greed, arrogance and subversion before? On a state or federal level?

Can the hope for a new, rebuilt democratic party in Ohio only lay at the footstep of the dysfunction that the republicans are responsible for? Is there any way democrats can create a new direction and vision for leadership that goes beyond just maintaining power? Can it happen with the current democratic leadership ranks?