The Hiller Instinct: DiMasi indicted

And they're not just "cynics and critics"...they're citizens who have watched a parade of State House officials indicted and ultimately convicted of thinking they were above the law.

A rush to judgment against DiMasi may be unfair, but Beacon Hill can only blame itself for the lack of public confidence in how it does business.

After his indictment was announced, DiMasi's lawyer--perhaps by accident--revealed why state residents don't trust the State House.

"He has earned a living, and for that he is charged today,"  his attorney Thomas Kiley said.       

No, that is not what DiMasi is charged with!  He's accused of corruption, of abusing his office to make a better living than his salary and law practice would provide.

Making a living is legal. Rigging state contracts for personal profit isn't.

And when DiMasi's lawyer says:  "It isn't about the press, it isn't about the voters."

He's only half-right.  It isn't about the press, but it is about the voters because that's who gave DiMasi the power he may have abused, and it's the voters who always pay the price of political corruption.

Some people will call this shocking, but not me.

How can you be shocked when Beacon Hill electrocutes itself...again? 

I'm Andy Hiller, and that's instinct

(Copyright (c) 2009 Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)