Many a time I’ve given a reporter a quote that didn’t look so good in print. So I felt for Rep. Melanie Wade Goodwin. The chair of the House committee on campaign finance law, she was expressing doubt about tougher penalties for crooked politicians in the N&O:

“We also want to make sure we don’t create felony penalties for everything so that we’ve got so many in prison for campaign finance violations that we don’t have room for people who commit violent crimes.”

I didn’t realize the problem of campaign finance violations was that serious.

Before long, violent criminals will begin filing federal complaints that their civil rights are being violated because they are forced to share cells with politicians.

I can hear their desperate pleas: “Please, warden, don’t make me spend another day in the cell with the Senator. He won’t stop talking, he insists on shaking my hand every hour and he’s stealing all my money and my soap. Please, put me in the hole or something. Anything to get me away from him.”

Clearly, this could be construed as cruel and unusual punishment.

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