THE REGISTER'S EDITORIALS

A shot from the lip

Polk County's top Republican, Larry Disney, fired an errant shot from the
hip this week that should pose serious questions regarding his leadership.

Disney said that contractor John Gillotti of Des Moines, convicted on drug
and childendangerment charges, would be in jail if he were a Republican.
Well, he is a Republican, and has been registered Republican for close to
10 years. Forced to admit his error, Disney declined to retract and instead
pressed his charge beyond the point that it might be forgiven as an
indiscretion born of partisan fervor. Gillotti got kidglove treatment, he
said, because he's a southsider. "Obviously he's connected with the
southside political machine," said Disney, and regardless of political
party, "If you're connected, you get favorable treatment." Why is it so
obvious? Gillotti was arrested Feb. 16 when police said he spent 1 1/2
hours in a bar while his two young children were outside in a truck, a
search of which turned up 26 bags of marijuana and pornographic literature.
Many people were upset that he was given a deferred judgment on reduced
charges. But coming from a highranking political figure, the contention
that local law enforcement is governed by "connections" to a "political
machine" requires either substantiation or apology. Disney has offered
neither. Is this the sort of leadership that county Republicans are
comfortable with?