Here's a little comic relief to start your day

[unhappycamper]

Some of Schmidt column copied
BY MALIA RULON


WASHINGTON - If Rep. Jean Schmidt's latest column on school bus safety looked familiar, there's a good reason why.

Six sentences from her column of last Tuesday appear to be cut and pasted in identical form from a column written in October 2005 by then-Ohio State Highway Patrol Col. Paul McClellan.

Lawmakers, including Schmidt, write and distribute weekly columns that some newspapers publish on the editorial pages. The columns also are listed on lawmaker Web sites.

~snip~

Asked about it, Schmidt chief of staff Barry Bennett called the notion of plagiarism "ridiculous."

~snip~

This isn't the first time Schmidt's column has come under fire. A year ago, Schmidt was caught sending out a column on a new Medicare prescription drug benefit that was nearly identical to one written by Rep. Deborah Pryce, R-Ohio.

Bennett defended Schmidt then too, saying House Republicans often provide sample columns to all lawmakers and it's common practice to use them verbatim.

[Swamp Rat]

1. More like, it's common for House Republicans to STEAL FROM OTHERS.