] Politics is dirty business, and rarely so much as in the
] area of patronage: appointments to sought-after federal
] jobs in general, and to the federal bench in particular.
] So it should be little surprise that, with so much at
] stake, one political party would want to use the
] insecurity inherent in computerized databases to its
] political advantage.
]
]
] What is surprising, however, is that, caught with their
] hand in the cookie jar, Senate Republicans employed the
] tactic of blaming the victim: they said, in essence, It's
] your fault that we got and used your information. If
] successful, this tactic does not bode well for the
] government's ability to prosecute computer crimes, and to
] protect critical infrastructures.