AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - Former U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay - once one of the most powerful and feared Republicans in Congress - was convicted Wednesday on charges he illegally funneled corporate money to Texas candidates in 2002.

Jurors deliberated for 19 hours before returning guilty verdicts against DeLay on charges of money laundering and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He faces up to life in prison on the money laundering charge.

After the verdicts were read, DeLay hugged his daughter, Danielle, and his wife, Christine. His lead attorney, Dick DeGuerin, said they planned to appeal the verdict.

“This is an abuse of power. It’s a miscarriage of justice, and I still maintain that I am innocent. The criminalization of politics undermines our very system and I’m very disappointed in the outcome,” DeLay told reporters outside the courtroom. He remains free on bond, and his sentencing was tentatively set to begin on Dec. 20.

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Jury convicts Tom DeLay in money laundering trial

You might be innocent Tom, but a jury of your peers doesn’t seem to think so. A jury of your peers in a Republican state too. That’s not a good thing, especially after you and your lawyers had 5 years to prepare your defense.

For quite a long time I was known for taking a neutral stand on DeLay and the accusations against him. I often said, ‘wait until it goes to trial, if he’s found innocent, leave him alone and let him get on with his life, but if he’s found guilty, hang him…’

He was found guilty — Hang him!

And in other news:

Sarah Palin: ‘We gotta stand with our North Korean allies’

Oops, she did it again.

Sarah Palin made her latest verbal gaffe on Wednesday, claiming North Korea is one of America’s allies on Glenn Beck’s radio show when asked how she’d handle the recent escalation between the two Koreas.

“This speaks to a bigger picture here that certainly scares me in terms of our national security policy,” the former vice presidential candidate said on Wednesday. “But obviously we’ve gotta stand with our North Korean allies.”

The host corrected her. “South Korea,” Beck said.

“Eh, yeah. And we’re also bound by prudence to stand with our South Korean allies, yes,” Palin responded.

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Sarah Palin: ‘We gotta stand with our North Korean allies’

OK, let’s ALL be very sure in our response to this, I don’t want anyone to make a hypocrite of themselves.

When Barack Hussein Obama made his classic gaffe about visiting all 57 states, I was all over it on the blog, as were nearly every other blogger in the Conservative world. We lambasted Obama severely for that misspeak. And indeed, it was a misspeak, a faux pas, a brain fart, call it what you will, he said it, it was a screw up and WE ALL HAMMERED HIM!

We all said the man had no business being president. Many based their opinion of that solely on the 57 states remark.

OK, in the spirit of fair and balanced; Sarah Palin quite likely misspoke when she said ‘our ally North Korea’. I’m sure she knew better. I am positive she knows better now. But she made the speaking error. And indeed she did, in all probability, misspeak, make a faux pas, have a brain fart, call it what you will, but she said it and it was a screw up.

Do I think Obama saying something about there being 57 states was a disqualifier? No, but it was an indication that we needed to scrutinize him more.

When Obama admitted that he was a Muslim, Barack Hussein Obama — My Muslim Faith – Proven, was that a disqualifier? Apparently not. But, he, and his staff, as well as the interviewer and the entire left side of America said it was a ‘misspeak’, nothing more. Nothing to see here, move along.

The thing is, a candidate, an elected official, the president, every blogger, all public speakers are responsible for their words and their accuracy with those words. If I make a spelling or grammatical error in a post, my email fills up rapidly, and I’m not even a candidate.

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CIUDAD MIER, Mexico — Shell casings carpet the road outside a bullet-riddled subdivision on the outskirts of this colonial town on the Rio Grande Valley, abandoned by most of the 6,000 inhabitants following a nine-month battle by warring drug cartels.

Nobody lives in the 65 one-story white houses across the border from Roma, Texas, except the abandoned pets that roam the streets of the Casas Geo development. Like 90 percent of those who once lived in Mier, they have fled to a shelter in the nearby city of Miguel Aleman, Mexico’s first such haven for people displaced by drug violence.

While Mexicans increasingly have fled border towns up and down the Rio Grande Valley, Ciudad Mier is the most dramatic example so far of the increasing ferocity of war between rival drug cartels, and the government’s failure to fight back.

The state and federal governments say it’s safe to go back and that people are returning. One official even invited tourists to return. The scenes witnessed by The Associated Press say something else.

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Residents flee town hit by Mexico drug war

Take a very close look at this story America. This is on the U.S. and Mexican border. Not hundreds of miles into interior Mexico. It’s right on OUR border. For those not familiar with Texas, Roma is 52 miles N.W. of McAllen, Texas. McAllen being a major city along the Rio Grande.

WAR rages along our border. Do you think the U.S. government gives a DAMN? Do you believe that Barack Hussein Obama gives a DAMN? Do you believe that Texas governor Rick Perry gives a DAMN?

If you do believe it, you would be wrong.

The U.S. government is doing all it can to ignore this WAR that is taking place mere YARDS from American cities and towns, and American citizens.

Barack Hussein Obama doesn’t give a DAMN. He is more concerned with the downfall of America and the TSA’s grab and grope program, and the ramifications it will have on his plans for re-election.

Rick Perry? He’s a lot of talk. That’s it. Perry makes it sound real good, ‘We need troops on the border, and I confronted Obama with it…’

That is a damned LIE. Perry handed some papers to an Obama aide, Perry himself had less than a minute to speak to Obama. He didn’t ‘confront’ Obama about anything.

Let me put it this way, IF Perry wanted to put Texas National Guard troops on the border, all he has to do is give the order. Perry is, after all, the commander of the Texas National Guard. Here’s the real story; Perry can do it, but he won’t, because he doesn’t want the state of Texas to have to pay for it. He wants the troops placed under FEDERAL orders, that way, their cost is picked up by the Department of Defense.

With Perry, it’s all about the money, and…the votes.

Perry doesn’t want to anger the Hispanic voters of Texas. He needs and wants their votes and support. Perry, regardless of his hollow words, is exploring a run for the White House, making waves is not a part of his game plan.

There are some that say I am an evil racist and a bigot because of my beliefs regarding American security and the way I believe it needs to be brought about. Frankly, I don’t care what those people think about me. If I did, I would stop posting my opinions over and over.

I truly feel sorry for the working people of Mexico. I mean that sincerely. But the maladies that they and their nation suffer are not brought on by anything that we have any control over.

Mexico is a scab on the ass of humanity. It is a nation long past it’s prime. It is a nation in the firm control of cartels. If it were Afghanistan or Iraq their tyrants would be called war lords.

The United States can’t police the world, we shouldn’t even try.

What is happening in Mexico is the problem of no one but the Mexican people. Some believe that America needs to go in and fix Mexico. Governor Perry supports sending troops to Mexico and this, The Coming War Between The United States And Mexico.

It’s a rare occasion when I disagree with my wonderful friend Longstreet. He is a wise man, but his idea about war with Mexico, the reason for that war, if it were to come about, and it’s method of conduct, are a bit different from mine.

Stem the flow of ILLEGALS into this nation. On that we agree. Round up and deport every last ILLEGAL in the USA. On that we agree.

Seal the border. On that we also agree.

Longstreet then believes that we will be forced to invade Mexico to restore order in that nation. He believes that is the only way for rule of law to ever be instituted in that worthless dung heap.

That is where we differ in opinion.

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