How To Spot A Corporate Bootlick

The opening segment of today's Topic A With Tina Brown had Brown's panel of guests
opining about the release of Martha Stewart from prison. Wendy Murphy, a former prosecutor now at the New England School of Law said, "I'm a Martha fan. I think this was outrageous. O.J. Simpson walks free, she goes to prison, it's so absurd. I am so happy that she's got a bump, her stock is up." Ed Hayes, a criminal defense attorney, rose significantly in my estimation when he said, "What she did was very wrong. She was on the board of directors of the New York Stock Exchange and lied to the people that were seeking to enforce the rules of the New York Stock Exchange.

Murphy said, "It should matter to us that other people do it and don't get prosecuted. It was somebody we don't like." Murphy said that if it was Oprah, Cosby or anybody that looked like Jimmy Stweart, they would have gotten away with it. Later, she said that Stewart entering prison early was a selfless act. Hayes rolled his eyes heavenward and said, smiling, "Selfless? C'mon. Oh, Wendy."

Sigh. Poor Martha Stewart. Poor defenseless Martha Stewart, with hundreds of millions of dollars with which to buy excellent legal representation. Murphy never questioned the validity of the charges against Stewart. What's Murphy's argument? That prosecution is selective? It is. So what. Because some people escape prosecution, does that mean we shouldn't prosecute anyone? Or just anyone rich and famous?

Murphy aligns herself with the rich because that's where she's coming from. Maybe she hopes that someone in the right place will view her cheerleading for Martha Stewart and will make her a corporate job offer. Then again, maybe she already has one.