By now you’ve probably heard that House Republicans changed a rule that would’ve removed Tom DeLay from his post as Majority Leader in the event that he received an indictment from a Texas grand jury. It’s a great move. If only Ron Artest had thought of it, he could’ve spent Saturday morning changing the NBA prohibition against running into the stands and pummeling a fan to “running into the stands and killing a fan.” He’d be playing tomorrow night in Indianapolis.

What you may not know is that this isn’t a new thing for DeLay. I did some research and found that he’s used this tactic before:

- In 1967, as a member of the Baylor University student council, DeLay managed to redefine “plagiarism” as “the exact copying of someone else’s work, beginning to end, spelling and punctuation included.” His senior thesis, “The Consttitution of the United States; of America” is still considered to be one of the finest pieces of political writing ever to be penned by a Baylor undergrad.

- You’d think that running over a homeless man outside Austin and dragging his body into a ditch might have spelled doom for young Delay’s career in 1979. Fortunately, his position in the Texas State House allowed him to temporarily revert the state Constitution’s interpretation of “human” to its pre-1870 definition - “land-owner.” [The “DeLay Defense” is still a potent tool in Texas courts and has prompted many safety-minded poor people to purchase 1″ parcels of land near Amarillo as a precaution.]

- During a period of marital strife in the mid-80’s, DeLay and his wife Christine reluctantly decided to experiment with an “open marriage” for a time. But in the fine print Tom cannily made the arrangement “retroactive to 1974.” When subsequent revelations hit the press (notably his liaisons with various constituents, lobbyists, and “The Great Fort Bend Hot Tub Party of ‘81″), Tom was in the clear.

It’s important to keep in mind here that all of DeLay’s actions were technically legal. Justice, after all, is never subverted. It’s just DeLayed.