Columnists questioning beef plant prosecution

Two of the state's more veteran, more well respected journalists have both opined on the timing of the guilty pleas in the beef plant saga. And while both take a different approach to the issue, both seem to agree that the feds need to either announce more indictments or close the case.

From Tim Kalich in the Greenwood Commonwealth:

Musgrove, though, was at most a minor player in the mess.

Yet the efforts to link him publicly to the corruption scandal — using the combined power of the federal prosecutors and a Republican state auditor — have intensified since Musgrove announced his intentions to challenge Wicker for the Senate seat.

The conspiracy theorists see a pattern. They cite the unrelated bribery convictions of Democratic former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman and Mississippi trial lawyer Paul Minor, a major donor to Democratic candidates, as earlier proof that political affiliation is determining who gets investigated and prosecuted by the Justice Department. That allegation is being looked at by congressional panels even while both convictions are on appeal.

...

Still, the federal government’s help in slandering Musgrove less than 90 days before the election has a suspicious feel to it.

Now from Bobby Harrison of the Daily Journal in Tupelo:

Make no mistake about it - any public official who took a bribe or profited illegally from Mississippi Beef Processors should be prosecuted.

But by the same token, federal prosecutors have an obligation not to use their office to try to influence an election.

In other states, fired U.S. attorneys have said that is exactly what they were asked to do.

Federal prosecutors in the Northern District of Mississippi should want to avoid even the appearance of impropriety. If they have a case against a public official – particularly Musgrove, who is in the middle of a heated campaign – they should proceed with due haste. If they don't, they should admit it.

My guess is that the feds are in no hurry to officially close the case, though the likelihood of future indictments seems relatively low.

No, the feds will most likely leave the case open as a dark cloud to hang over Musgrove's campaign, which is a shame. Considering that Musgrove has done nothing wrong -- has not been accused of doing anything wrong -- then the United States Justice Department should want to make clear the innocence of a public official.

Of course, we're talking about the Bush Justice Department and a Democratic public official. So, nah, they're in no hurry.