"Former lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who was sentenced last week to four years in prison for his involvement in a far-reaching Washington political corruption scandal, wants us all to feel sorry for him. He calls himself “a broken man” and a victim of the system that spawned his misdeeds.

Mr. Abramoff, who already has served two years of a sentence for a separate case in Florida, seemingly doesn’t understand why he should go to prison for his corruption convictions. Clearly, in his view, the penalties that attach to such misdeeds elsewhere in the country ought not to apply to those caught up in a political system that is rife with corruption. And in too many instances, they haven’t.

Mr. Abramoff’s sentence could have been as much as 11 years for conspiring to defraud the United States, corrupting public officials and defrauding his clients. So the fact is that he got a break. "

Get the Story:
Editorial: No pity for Abramoff (The Mount Desert Islander 9/19)

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