A man's home ...

MANIFESTO

I don't know what it is about politicians and their domiciles, but they sure do like to sucker the public when it comes to home improvements. From Uncle Ted to Tricky Dick to Connecticut's former unctuous governor, too many holders of the public trust have failed that trust to the end of creature comforts.

Now it turns out that Hartford's mayor Eddie Perez isn't immune from this type of avarice.

On Tuesday, as Perez was arrested and charged with bribery, falsifying evidence, and conspiring to falsify evidence, he continued to say what he has long said—that he always intended to pay Costa for the kitchen and bathroom renovation work, and that his wife's health problems simply distracted him. There was no quid pro quo between the mayor and Costa, and there was no crime, Perez said.

This latest case is following a predictable pattern: denial upon investigation and justification upon being found guilty. It's unfortunate that this scenario is so frequent, but some politicians go into the arena with a Willie Sutton attitude. Thus will it ever be.