Time will tell (hopefully) whether there is any fire associated with this smoke. While much has been made of Earle being an "equal opportunity" prosecutor (more Dems in his crosshairs than Repubs), turns out they were virtually all political opponents or high-profile targets of opportunity. I have my doubts about the validity of the charges as they relate to DeLay.
As for McCain-Feingold, no amount of good intentions can make up for its fundamental flaw - politicians trying to regulate what, how & how much citizens can say about politicians simply abridges free speech, period. It was a bad idea turned into bad legislation and should be repealed. It failed in its alleged objective to boot. McCain shouldn't count on that bit of his resume helping his presidential chances.
I am a fan of Joe Leiberman & think he's a solid guy. Betcha soup to nuts that if you looked carefully, you'd find some fundraising irregularities (given the complexity of the laws involved, technical violations are easy & common) on the same order as those of which DeLay is accused. The press (& certainly, Mr. Earle) has no interest in embarrassing Joe, however - they're mainly interested in embarrassing Bush, even if they have to use surrogate targets to do it. DeLay's appearance & mannerisms put me off, but that's an irrational basis for judging his character. If he's guilty of anything, let the chips fall where they may & "Hear, Hear" Mr. Earle. I'll just wait awhile to start holding my breath.
Cheers,
Daiwa