special treatment

The fact remains that, if you are well-connected, you can pretty much get away with stuff that would result in some serious consequences for most people.

So, a few months after the election, Sandy Berger, certainly a well-connected Washington insider, is going to have to take a little tap on the back of his hand for the theft and destruction of classified documents.

The loss of his security clearance for theee years is meaningless since, as a John Kerry advisor during the election, it is unlikely he is going to be considered for a goverement position during the remainder of the Bush administration. As far as the $10,000 fine, it is a pittance to him.

The event in question occured in 2003 but did not become publically known until the midst of the election campaign a year later. In fact, this matter looks like something that would have just have been swept under the rug in normal times. In this case, one has to suspect that Berger's up-front participation in the Kerry campaign during a time he knew he was under criminal investigation was probably was led to the issue being publicized and what ultimately led to his little punishment. Perhaps he can ask Teresa Heinz-Kerry to reimburse him for the fine and legal costs he incurred due to her husband's campaign.