Texas Republicans rocked by lies and bribery

Texas Republicans are rarely short on words and never apologetic, but that changed today with an email and a two-word subject line from the Speaker of the Texas House:

"I'm sorry."

That's what Republican Dennis Bonnen sent as his latest response to a legislative scandal that has been brewing over the past few weeks. The story has had many twists and turns but it can be simmered down to three points:

1. The lie
At the end of the legislative session in May, the Speaker issued a stern warning to members who planned on campaigning against incumbents of either Party, stating that anyone who crossed that line would "suffer consequences." Clearly, he didn't mean it, because...

2. The turncoat
He then met with a right-wing Tea-Party aligned organization called Empower Texans, and reportedly gave them a list of legislators to target in the next election, including primary challenges to Republican incumbents.

3. The bribe
Bonnen then reportedly offered a favor: press credentials for the next legislative session in exchange for targeting incumbent Republicans.

And Empower Texans says they have it all on tape.

Apart from the fact that this is not the first time Republicans have been rumored to have an improper act on tape, it is the first time in a while that we've seen this kind of intra-party fighting among Republicans.

The Speaker hasn't been doing a good job defending his position, and today his email doesn't seem to lessen any criticism. The Speaker's email went on to state: