EDITORIAL:Rare straight talk from Washington

Say what you will about Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, but even if you disagree with him more often than not, you have to at least admit he’s not afraid to speak his mind. And in these days of political polarization, it’s refreshing to still have an elected leader you can count on to tell you how he sees things and not just parrot party talking points.

Last week, Rohrabacher reared back and delivered one of his patented one-two verbal punches right straight to the guts of the White House. It’s not what you’d expect in proudly Republican Orange County, where President Bush enjoyed lop-sided support in the past two elections.

But there was Rohrabacher calling on President Bush to fire his attorney general, Alberto Gonzales, and even saying the president ought to be impeached if two recently convicted Border Patrol agents are killed in prison.

We may not always agree with Rohrabacher, but we surely appreciate his independent nature and the courage he shows to speak his mind.

Remember last year when most Republicans were treating disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff the way Superman handles kryptonite? Rohrabacher put his neck out to stick up for his friend, even writing a note to the judge asking for leniency. He didn’t excuse the man’s criminal actions, but he offered this in a Los Angeles Times interview, “The last thing I’m going to do is kick a friend when they’re down.”

While you might argue that Rohrabacher is kicking Bush while he’s down — an easy way to score political points at the expense of a lame-duck president, which is practically an Olympic sport in D.C. — the fact is that most congressional Republicans wouldn’t step forward to call for Gonzales’ dismissal over the firing of the eight U.S. attorneys. Most of them, in fact, weren’t reluctant to criticize Gonzales or the president — they just wouldn’t do so on the record, another Olympic sport in Washington.

Good for Rohrabacher for having the courage of his convictions. It’s nice to know what your congressman really thinks. Let’s hope his colleagues are inspired by his leadership.