Martinez: Turncoat?

Something's rotten in Denmark:

WASHINGTON — A one-page unsigned memo that became part of the debate preceding Congress' vote ordering a federal court review of the Terri Schiavo case originated in Florida Republican Sen. Mel Martinez' office, Martinez said Wednesday.

The memo — first reported by ABC News on March 18 and by The Washington Post and The Associated Press two days later — said the fight over removing Schiavo's feeding tube "is a great political issue ... and a tough issue for Democrats."

"This is an important moral issue and the pro-life base will be excited that the Senate is debating this important issue," said the memo, which was described at the time as being circulated among Senate Republicans.

Martinez said in a written statement he discovered Wednesday that the memo had been written by an aide in his office. "It is with profound disappointment and regret that I learned today that a senior member of my staff was unilaterally responsible for this document," Martinez said.

He said he accepted the resignation of the staffer, whom he did not identify, who drafted and circulated the memo. "This type of behavior and sentiment will not be tolerated in my office," he said.

"Until this afternoon, I had never seen it and had no idea a copy of it had ever been in my possession," Martinez said of the document. He had previously denied knowing anything about the memo and condemned its sentiments.

The memo had been disavowed by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., and House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, both primary forces behind Congress passing the bill and sending it to President Bush on March 21.

Democrats had pounced on the document as evidence that Republicans were seeking a political advantage in the fight between Schiavo's husband and her parents over removing her feeding tube 15 years after she incurred severe brain damage that left her incapacitated.
...
Martinez, in his statement, said Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, had asked for background information on the bill ordering a federal court to review the Schiavo case.

He said he pulled a one-page document from his coat pocket and handed to Harkin. "Unbeknownst to me ... I had given him a copy of the now infamous memo."

He said Harkin had called him earlier Wednesday to say he believes the memo had been given to him by Martinez. The Florida senator said he then ordered an internal investigation in his office.

Allison Dobson, a spokeswoman for Harkin, said the Iowa Democrat had received the memo from Martinez in the days leading up to passage of the bill.

Martinez said he also had apologized to Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., who is up for re-election in 2006 and was cited in the memo because he had declined to become a sponsor of the bill.

Two, no three, questions:
1) If this was such a big deal to the Democrats, why, Why, WHY would Harkin NOT have outed Martinez as the source? He's got everything to gain by pointing fingers, right? (And when has Harkin ever shut up about anything, let alone something this big?)
2) What's Martinez up to, making the Republican Party leadership look like a bunch of conspiratorial liars?
3) What kind of idiot doesn't know what's in his own COAT POCKET? For the love of all that's holy! Did the little magic people put that in your coat? And do you honestly think we'll believe you when you say you didn't know what you were handing to Harkin?

Sounds like a Democrat buy-out, blackmail or power grabbing. In any case, it's rotten.

Update: As usual, Michelle Malkin has this one covered, too.