What part of this surprises any of you?

We have a tax cheat writing our tax laws. That's right ... Charlie Rangel is a tax evader. A tax cheat. And yet the Democrats successfully killed a resolution that would have removed him as Chairman of the House Ways and Means committee. Remember, only Republicans can be corrupt. Democrats? Theirs is a culture of caring ... right?

For those of you who are government educated - all tax bill originate in the House. Charlie Rangel is the chairman of the committee in charge of drafting tax legislation. While writing the tax laws that govern you this clown has done a good job of avoiding the law for his personal finances. Here are just some examples:

1) Failure to report over $1 million in outside income and $3 million in business transactions as required by the House,

2) Failure to disclose at least $650,000 in assets he had previously failed to list on his House financial disclosure forms,

3) Failure to disclose to the IRS or on his financial disclosure forms $75,000 in rental income for a beach villa in the Dominican Republic,

4) Violation of state laws by claiming three primary residences and breaking New York City regulations by maintaining four rent-controlled apartments,

5) Violation of House rules by using congressional letterhead to solicit donations for an education center bearing his name at City College of New York, and

6) Delinquency in paying his property taxes on two New Jersey parcels and failure to report the sale of a $1.3 million brownstone.

This is a man who clearly believes that he's part of some special class - perhaps a class of one - that to which the laws of this country simply do not apply. All that, and all the arrogance you would ever need.

We also have brain-dead members of Congress who came to his defense. Maxine Waters says that "many members" of Congress suffer from the same issues as Charlie Rangel. What affliction is that? The inability to follow the law? We get punished for that stuff ... why not Rangel? The Republicans want to remove the guy as chairman, but the Democrats vote against it. Now THAT is transparency. THAT is change you can believe in!

By the way, if you want to know what good Charlie Rangel is doing in Congress, just check out the $3 million earmark he snuck into a bill for a city college, which has an academic department created by and named after Charlie Rangel!