By all accounts, Congress is rattled following lobbyist Jack Abramoff's recent guilty plea to corruption charges. The nervousness is justified -- as is the angst and anger of Americans who have lost trust in Congress, particularly its Republican members.

Absolute power can breed arrogance, and the GOP has been the only game in Washington for five years. For that reason, the scandals and missteps that have squandered the party's political capital should be no surprise -- but they also should have been avoided.

Real or perceived, scandals have damaged the effectiveness of Republicans. A recent poll by CNN and USA Today showed 44 percent of Americans think Democrats would lead the country in a better direction, with 40 percent favoring Republicans; in February 50 percent said Republicans would do better. It's not that Democrats are untouched by the Abramoff case -- several key Democrats have received contributions from the lobbyist's clients -- but the party in power has proved an easier target and Democrats have not been shy about hammering the GOP on numerous corruption charges.

Whether or not the Abramoff scandal is as far-reaching as the lobbyist claims, it still shows the GOP has failed in one key area: avoiding even the appearance of impropriety. Their involvement with Abramoff isn't the first mark against Republicans in Washington -- questions and accusations have dogged the likes of Tom DeLay and Karl Rove; then there are the bribes accepted by California Rep. Randy Cunningham. Even allowing for some rhetorical excesses on the part of Democrats hungry to recapture their share of power in Washington, the GOP's image has taken a well-deserved hit as the party's integrity has been called into question.

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That Abramoff began his rise to prominence in 1994 (the same year the GOP took control of the House) says as much about his influence as anything else. It's another fact that feeds the claim that Abramoff could sell -- or at least thought he could sell -- Republican influence to his clients. And it feeds Americans' justifiable disdain for politicians -- Republican and Democrat -- who seem more often to act in their self interests than in the interests of their constituents.

According to a New York Times report, Abramoff helped to direct more than $1.5 million in campaign contributions to hundreds of officials -- more than half of them Republicans. Though it's difficult to prove a link between the gifts and any representative's actions on the House floor or in back rooms, the claims certainly sully Congress' reputation.

At best the GOP became too casual about the power it had built and lost sight of pitfalls that come with that power. At worst, members of the party were blinded by favors and cash that was shoved their way by Abramoff and other lobbyists.

Either way, Congress, and that certainly includes Republicans caught up in this scandal, needs to be purged of any hint of corruption. Americans must be able to trust their government, and right now that's a difficult proposition.