CullmanTimes.com - Cullman, Alabama

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April 11, 2009

TIMES EDITORIAL: Watching Sen. Little closely

When we found out Sen. Zeb Little was arrested Friday night for driving under the influence of alcohol, we felt the same way a lot of his constituents did — totally, sickeningly betrayed.

Here was a man we elected to represent us in the state legislature, someone we hoped would keep the best interests of the public in mind. Instead, we find out he endangered the lives of the very people he’s supposed to represent.

This reckless decision to drink and drive makes us question the decisions he’s making as majority leader in the state senate. If he’s making stupid, selfish decisions on the highway, he could very well be making stupid, selfish decisions in Montgomery.

Whether we think he’s fit to continue to serve in the senate depends largely on where he goes from here.

Will he go to court and plead guilty, contritely apologizing for his deplorable actions as he did in an interview with The Cullman Times on Monday? Will he serve the same sentence as any ordinary person who commits a crime? Or will he try to get off the hook?

There’s no doubt that Sen. Little is among the state’s elite. A successful attorney and one of the most powerful people in Alabama politics, we could see how he might be seduced by the idea that he is somehow special and not subject to the rules that apply to everyone else. He may choose to follow the path of history’s slimy politicians who use their influence to get special treatment.

We hope that’s not the case.

So far, Sen. Little has responded as well as we could expect anyone in his situation to do. He has admitted his mistakes, sought help for his alcohol problem and pledged to stop drinking. He didn’t try to weasel his way out of the situation and hide from the public, hoping it would all blow over. He’s being remarkably honest and candid about this embarrassing issue, saying he’s willing to take whatever consequences come his way.

But is he really?

Some great leaders have fallen because they couldn’t control their personal vices. Others learned from their mistakes and overcame these weaknesses to accomplish even greater things in the future.

We don’t know which category Sen. Little falls into.

But we do know the people of Cullman County have a lot of legitimate questions about whether he is still fit to serve.

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