AMERICAblog reports on the GOP’s latest shameless hackery:

House Republicans, at the bidding of the Bush White House, are upset that House Democrats are voting on contempt citations for Harriet Miers and Josh Bolton today. So the House GOP members are disrupting proceedings in the House today, calling for “protest votes” and the like that eat up 15 minutes of the day at a time. Well, they just called one such protest vote in the middle of recently-deceased Democratic Congressman Tom Lantos’ memorial service, which they certainly knew was taking place. This is akin to forcing people to leave a wake on purpose. The House Republicans and the White House couldn’t wait for Lantos’ service to be finished before forcing everyone back to the House floor to vote for something silly. They intentionally disrupted a dead man’s memorial service for political gain.

Tom Lantos was a hero–after the Nazis invaded his homland of Hungary, he risked his life by joining the resistance movement.  Lantos was a self-described “American by choice” who  spent 27 years serving the people of this great nation as the only holocaust survivor in Congress.  He leaves behind a wife, two daughters and 17 grandchildren.

For the GOP to disrupt Lantos’ memorial service with angry partisan hackery is more than shameful. Once again, the GOP shows us that they’re willing to do anything to score cheap political points. Have they no shame? Have they no decency?

Of course, we know the answers to those questions–the right wing isn’t above attacking the dead if it gets them what they want.  After Lantos’ death, right-wing talking head Michael Weiner–the third most listened-to radio host in America–had this to say about him:

“You’re not supposed to talk badly about the dead. I generally wouldn’t do it. But in the case of Tom Lantos, I’ll make an exception. I think he was one of the most — he was a scoundrel. And I’ll tell you why I detested Tom Lantos. The man survived the Holocaust of World War II and used it as a weapon the rest of his life.”

I wonder if Weiner feels the same way about John McCain’s stint as a POW in Vietnam.  What’s worse–shameless ridicule of human suffering or shameless partisan ridicule of human suffering?

It’s clear, though, that compassionate conservatism is dead.  It has long since been replaced with extreme hyperpartisanship, where the GOP is willing to smear anyone and everyone–including American heroes like Tom Lantos–to get ahead.  It’s sad, it’s shameful, and it’s just one more example of how low the Republican Party has sunk.