Presiding over this mutual forgiveness society is Bob Brady, Fattah's longtime congressional colleague and the city's Democratic Party boss. Having endorsed Fattah's bid for reelection even as his trial loomed, Brady was hardly going to change his mind just because his fellow congressman was convicted of stealing public money, unable to vote under House rules, and probably headed to prison. Rather, he opted for the tried trope of regarding the consequences of Fattah's willful crimes as a freak tragedy akin to a tornado or terminal disease. "It's a shame to have something like this happen," Brady told the Inquirer.