Smokescreen

Republican National Committee Chair Reince Priebus has written to the Department of Justice, asking them to investigate President Obama for "apparent criminal behavior."

The alleged crime?'

The DNC filmed a fund-raising ad in the Map Room of the White House and sent it out to supporters. Well, it's true that there is a law against using government property for political purposes -- others have gotten in trouble for making fund-raising calls from their official congressional offices.

Perhaps Mr. Priebus is not aware that the Map Room is not in the West Wing, where the government offices are, but in the Executive Mansion where the President and his family live. It is actually inside their living quarters.

True, it is government property. But both Presidents Bill Clinton and George Bush filmed ads in the executive mansion, and both concluded that using the residence spaces does not violate that law.

That makes sense. If this is illegal, then a president can't makes political calls from anywhere in the White House, East Wing, West Wing, Rose Garden, roof top, gym. So where is he to go? Secret Service won't let him walk along Pennsylvania while making calls, I'm sure. Lafayette Square? Ride around in a secret service car? That's government property too.

Criminal behavior? Come on, Reince. Lighten up. We all know that your party is losing big in the debt ceiling negotiations, and you're just trying to create a smoke screen. But you can do better than this. Or . . . well, maybe you can't.

Ralph