The LuLac Edition #746, Mar. 3rd, 2009

PHOTO INDEX: A TARGET REPRESENTING THE LETTER GOING OUT TO LOCAL ATTORNEYS FROM THE FEDS, FORMER CONGRESSMAN PAT TOOMEY AND RUSH LIMBAUGH.

READY..AIM...FIRE

We understand the Feds have sent Target letters to a few local Attorneys making them aware that they are the "target" of an investigation in the probe of the Luzerne County Judiciary. Those letters reportedly say they will be questioned about information they may have about corruption within the Luzerne County legal system. WBRE TV's I-Team also learned that at least one district justice from Luzerne County has been questioned by federal agents. This report tells us that this probe is far from over and will continue for a while. In the meantime, more arrests will be forthcoming.

TOOMEY PONDERS

Former Congressman Pat Toomey has told newspapers he is reconsidering another run for the U.S. Senate seat held by Arlen Specter. Pat Toomey nearly beat Specter in Pennsylvania's 2004 GOP primary. Now, Toomey, president of the anti-tax Club for Growth, says he's weighing another run against Specter. Toomey says in a statement that he thinks that government bailouts are taking the country on a dangerously wrong path. Specter beat Toomey in the primary by about 17,000 votes out of more than a million cast, to then win a fifth term. Toomey has also been weighing a run at the Governor's office in 2010. Toomey may have a good shot in the Republican Senate primary but whether he can transfer that popularity into a general election run in a middle of the road state like Pennsylvania is another matter altogether.

RUSH

Rush Limbaugh is not only a popular and entertaining radio commentator but also a lightening rod for the Republican party. The latest dust up comes after Limbaugh's long speech at the CPAC convention this past weekend. On Saturday night on CNN, GOP Chair Michael Steele called Rush Limbaugh a mere "entertainer" with an "incendiary" talk show. After Limbaugh took off on him on Monday afternoon, Steele apologized. The apology has led to a debate whether Limbaugh is the defacto spokesman of a party on the brink or whether politicos can regain their grip on the GOP. This infighting between a top party official and a conservative opinion leader who claims to have an audience of 20 million developed into a distracting episode for a party struggling to compete with a popular president and find its voice as the opposition party. Limbaugh has always been an entertainer that has poked fun at the homeless, the poor and the Democrats. A lot of it has been over the line and in poor taste but it has been taken for what it is: a radio show. Limbaugh's remarks on how he won't apologize for hoping the Obama administration fails has taken him from court jester to policy pronouncer. And to the chagrin of most moderate Republicans, the Dems have taken notice. As a matter of fact this weekend, a labor-liberal coalition will air about $100,000 in ads on national cable television and in Washington markets in an effort to shackle the GOP to Limbaugh, whose commentary does not follow the GOP party line. Going to the extreme has never been a willing strategy for the Consaervative wing of the Republican party. The fight started by Limbaugh will aid him in his audience building and name recognition but do nothing for the GOP in terms of finding its voice.