Ahern appointed them but can't find it in his heart to remove them. His numerous defenders say that he's often a victim of guilt by association. After all, Ahern was the Taoiseach who defied common sense and common knowledge to appoint Ray Burke to the Cabinet in 1997 and did his best to keep him there even when the evidence of his unsuitability was overwhelming. And, one by one, the members of Ahern's Cabinet creep from cover to say how sad it is that Lawlor should find himself in Mountjoy. One or two of them whisper agreement with the strong, clear voice of Mr Justice Smyth.
None speaks up in forthright condemnation.
Now, before their eyes and the eyes of the people, a member of the Oireachtas who has long been a party colleague of the Taoiseach and his Ministers is found to have deliberately refused to co-operate with a tribunal set up by the Oireachtas to examine and report on matters of public importance. The non-compliance was not unintentional . That he did so as a citizen is a disgrace. That he did so as a public representative is a scandal . . . This was Mr Justice Smyth's conclusion.