Gary Miller on the Past & Future Gary Miller

"It's beyond my comprehension why he's running again... I've been hoping that Jay would take the moral high ground and move on with his life."

So who said that about Jay Kim, the Republican Congressman who sought reelection in 1998 after being convicted of violating campaign finance law? Oh, only some guy named GARY MILLER who was running against Kim in the Republican primary. Yes, apparently back then Gary Miller was interested in taking "the moral high ground". Back then, Gary Miller wanted to rid the Republicans of a "poster boy" of corruption that Democrats could use against the party.

So why exactly did Jay Kim get into all that trouble? From the CNN archives:

Kim, a three-term California Republican, was sentenced to one year of probation and two months of "home detention" after pleading guilty in August 1997 to 10 misdemeanor counts of accepting about $250,000 in illegal campaign contributions during his first campaign for the House in 1992. [...]

Federal prosecutors had asked the judge to impose a jail sentence, contending that Kim's case "represents the largest amount of criminal campaign violations ever committed by a member of Congress." But Kim, the first Korean-American in Congress, asked for leniency, saying that, "In my enthusiasm of running for Congress, I neglected the very important mechanics of my campaign finances and broke the law."

Kim has refused to resign and remains undeterred in seeking a fourth term. His spokesman said March 10 that the congressman considers the sentence passed by U.S. District Court Judge Richard A. Paez to be no bar to his continued service and no hindrance to his re-election campaign.

Now who does this sound like? Why does this nasty situation sound eerily familiar? Come on now, it's not too hard to remember this gem from The San Bernardino Sun:

Of all the company's political connections, its relationship with Miller - who declined to be interviewed for this story - has come under particular scrutiny over the past year.

The relationship dates back more than 30 years, to when Miller was a young developer. In recent years, he and Lewis have connected on a number of business deals:

The company entered into a business partnership with Miller in July 2004, with the congressman investing between $1million and $5million in a Lewis-owned, 70-acre housing and retail development in Diamond Bar that had just been approved by the City Council.

That same year, Lewis officials sold Miller several parcels in Fontana and Rancho Cucamonga, allowing him to shield millions in profits from an earlier land sale from potential capital-gains taxes. The company loaned him $7.5million for the sale.

Meanwhile, the company's top executives have donated $22,150 to the congressman's campaigns since 1999. (In that time, Miller has received a total of more than $2.3 million in contributions from individuals and political committees.)

Oh yeah, that's why. Look who's the "poster boy" of Republican corruption now. Look who's lost the "moral high ground" now... Oh wait, did this guy ever have the moral high ground?!

Maybe Gary Miller needs to remember his own advice... And take it! It's beyond all our comprehension why he's running again. And yes, we've all been hoping that Gary would take the moral high ground and move on with his life. And perhaps Gary should talk with dday about some great ideas for Gary to move on with his life. ; )