Hubbard case has larger impact

Although the prospect had been talked about for months, the indictment of House Speaker Mike Hubbard this week still rumbled through the Alabama political landscape. Whatever the eventual outcome, a 23-count indictment of one of the state's most powerful political figures certainly captured a lot of attention.

An indictment is merely that, of course, and Hubbard is entitled to the same legal presumption of innocence as any other defendant in any other criminal case. The state bears the burden of proof.

However, there is no escaping the reality of nearly two dozen felony ethics charges being leveled against the individual most closely identified with the Republican takeover of the Legislature in 2010, a political conquest fueled in large part by unrelenting attacks on ethical lapses during the many decades of Democratic control and GOP support for a package of ethics reforms.

Since that time, one Republican legislator, Rep. Greg Wren of Montgomery, has resigned after pleading guilty in a case linked to Hubbard, and another GOP lawmaker, Rep. Barry Moore of Enterprise, goes on trial next week in a case in which Hubbard is also a figure.

To say the least, the indictment of the speaker does not help the party's credibility as a champion of ethical conduct in public office.

Even before the indictment, Hubbard repeatedly said the whole thing was politically motivated, a political witch hunt, although he never said who was doing the hunting. That's a significant question, given that Hubbard is one of the most influential figures in the political party that dominates every aspect of state government.

There's scarcely a Democrat in sight. In addition to supermajorities in the House and Senate, Republicans hold every constitutional office and every seat on every state appellate court. Who is Hubbard's politically motivated nemesis?

A jury will determine Hubbard's fate in court, and rightly so. However, there is already more than a little fallout from the case. To some, the indictment reinforces the jaded view that it doesn't matter whether a politician's name is followed by an R or a D, that they're all a bunch of crooks and the system is corrupt beyond cure.

We don't share that view, but we do understand it — and how it serves to distance people from their government and from the processes that establish it. Ultimately, that's an even greater concern than the misdeeds of persons entrusted with public office.