| christian grantham | |||
| Christian Grantham was a student activist in the late 90s and later a consultant to domestic policy forums for the Clinton Administration as well as events for HRC and GLAAD. | |||
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April 13, 2005
Well, now, this should give the Republican Party some comfort. Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay has a plan to avoid responsibility to ethics rules and the law, and it's a doozy. Blame Democrats. The ethically challenged and admonsihed Republican Party leader, currently under multiple investigations, even went as far as to suggest anyone interested in ethics in government has a "Democratic agenda." Why, thanks, Tom!
Giving a preview of the approach he is likely to take when he appears before reporters this afternoon, DeLay dismissed questions about his travel and his relationships with lobbyists as "the Democratic agenda."Attendees said DeLay, in extremely brief remarks, told the senators that, if asked about his predicament, they should blame Democrats and their lack of an agenda. The attendees said DeLay thanked Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) for supportive comments on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday. Santorum had said that DeLay is "very effective in leading the House," but he also noted that the Texas lawmaker needs to "lay out what he did and why he did it."
[DeLay Seeks GOP Senators' Support - Washington Post - 04-13-05]
filed under: Scandal
April 12, 2005
As conservative Republican Party leadership and its evangelical base circle around Tom DeLay, they have a question for us to ponder: "Isn't this how Jesus would run America?"
From unanimous decisions by both Republicans and Democrats, DeLay was admonished for ethical lapses not once, not twice, but three times. Several of his colleagues were indicted on felony charges in Texas for criminal activity. DeLay is currently under multiple investigations.
Let's all pay very close attention to those defending DeLay's style of governance. The American people have had it with corruption.
At a party conclave last week, Weldon and others spoke in support of their leader. But one participant who has clashed with DeLay, Rep. Joel Hefley, R-Colo., says reaction was mixed. “No one wants to come out openly and attack him,” says Hefley, who was removed as Ethics Committee chairman after the panel admonished DeLay. House leaders said it was because his term was up; Hefley called it “a purge.”Another sign that DeLay's allies are worried: Some of them recently convened a summit to plan his defense. “We're going to do whatever is necessary to back him. He's not going to be left out to dry,” says Paul Weyrich, a veteran conservative activist who attended the meeting.
DeLay has been admonished more by the House Ethics Committee than any sitting member of Congress.
Last year, the bipartisan panel — the only House committee with equal numbers of Republicans and Democrats — unanimously criticized DeLay for three things. It said a golf fundraiser with executives of an energy company created the appearance that he was giving donors special access. It said he improperly tried to have the Federal Aviation Administration find Texas legislators who were hiding in Oklahoma to thwart action on his plan to redraw the state's congressional districts. And it said he promised a retiring House Republican he would endorse the man's son to succeed him if he voted for Bush's Medicare drug plan.
In 1999, the committee warned DeLay after he threatened the Electronic Industries Alliance, a trade group, for hiring a former Democratic congressman as its president. And it cautioned him in 1997 about creating the impression that campaign contributions would bring “official action or access.”
In addition, two investigations — one in Texas, the other in Washington — are targeting close DeLay allies.
Texas prosecutor Ronnie Earle has indicted three DeLay associates for fundraising activity involving Texans for a Republican Majority, an offshoot of DeLay's national political action committee, and hasn't ruled out indicting DeLay. Earle accuses the Texans of using illegal corporate donations to engineer a GOP takeover of the Legislature.
The Justice Department, the Interior Department, the IRS and two Senate committees are also investigating two former DeLay associates, lobbyists Jack Abramoff and Michael Scanlon, who billed Indian tribes $82 million. At hearings last fall, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said that Abramoff and Scanlon worked behind the scenes to close a tribe's casino, then offered their services to help save it.
In recent weeks, foreign trips taken by DeLay and paid for by private interests have come under scrutiny. Three of the trips, to Britain, Moscow and the Pacific Mariana Islands, involved Abramoff. A fourth, to South Korea, was financed by a group registered with the Justice Department as a foreign agent and barred from paying for lawmakers' travel. DeLay says he believed the trips were underwritten by legitimate educational organizations.
When Congress convened in January, House Republican leaders rewrote the chamber's rules to make it harder to initiate an ethics investigation. Hefley, ousted at the same time, said it "could not have been handled worse."
[Despite ethics flap, few in GOP publicly criticizing influential House leader - USA Today - 04-12-05]
filed under: Scandal
April 11, 2005
"Men, it has been well said, think in herds; it will be seen that they go mad in herds, while they only recover their senses slowly, and one by one."
[Extraordinary Popular Delusions And The Madness Of Crowds by By Charles MacKay - 1841]
Rick Santorum, the No. 3 Republican in the Senate, said Sunday that DeLay needs to explain his conduct."I think he has to come forward and lay out what he did and why he did it and let the people then judge for themselves," Santorum said on ABC's This Week. "But from everything I've heard, again, from the comments and responding to those, is everything he's done was according to the law."
But Rep. Chris Shays, R-Conn., calling for Delay to step down as majority leader, told the Associated Press, "Tom's conduct is hurting the Republican Party, is hurting this Republican majority and it is hurting any Republican who is up for re-election."
[GOP colleagues pressuring DeLay - Arizona Republic - 04-11-05]
filed under: Scandal
April 10, 2005
Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay is stepping up his rhetoric and assault on the judiciary and the democratic balance of power. Last week, I watched live on C-SPAN a 3 hour forum titled "Confronting the Jucidical War on Faith." In that extraordinary three hours, Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and other conservatives launched blistering and inflammatory rhetoric calling for everything from dismantling our democratic balance of power to out-right thuggish police intimidation and imprisonment of the judiciary.
If you want to see the level of disdain for our country's Democracy today's conservative movement has stooped to, you owe it to yourself to watch "Confronting the Jucidical War on Faith." If you value Democracy in America, you owe it to yourself to arm yourself with their own words.
Republicans have chosen as their leader in the United States House of Representatives a man who is not only ethically challenged, but who is about to launch in the party's name a firey war on America's judiciary with any available means.
Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay is preparing to imprison judges. He is entertaining legislation to circumvent impeachment procedures and use police to forcibly remove judges from their jobs and offices. He is prepared to shepherd radical nominations to the judiciary with inflammatory anti-constitutional views. He is preparing to dismantle the balance of power in America with your permission, the permission of the silent, the permission of the apathetic and worst of all, the permission of the entire Republican Party.
Don't take my word for it. Read a couple of sections of the forum I transcribed featuring Michael Schwartz, Chief of Staff to Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK), echoing some of DeLay's previous comments. Here, Schwartz finds the jurisdiction of the courts to measure Congress against the nation's highest law simply too much to swallow. Perhaps he would prefer a dictatorship?
The Supreme Court is an inheritantly anti-majoritarian institution as long as it purports to be able to grade the papers of Congress and to be able to grade the papers of the legislatures. And, as an anti-majoritarian institution, and I don't think all anti-majoritarianism is necessarily wrong, but over the long haul, it is counter to the very basis of this Republic, which is not soverignty of judges, but soveriengty of the people. And until we can restore the sovereinty of the people, it is a sick and sad joke to claim that we have a constitution here.
[Confronting the Jusidical War on Faith - CSPAN - 04-07-05]
Here, Schwartz proposes to scrap the entire impeachment process for the President having the power to simply call the police to forcibly remove judges that violate Republican defined "good behavior." The arrogance and thuggish rhetoric of Republicans has never seen such appauling lows.
There is an easier way. Uh, because, uh, Impeachment requires, afterall, a two-thirds vote in the Senate after a trial. And, and what, uh, what, uh, uh, Professor Berger wrote harkens back to discussions, uh, in, uh the first Congress, even, at the time the first jucidicary act was written, uh, where it was proposed that Congress establish, by law, a set of standards of judicial good behavior. And those standards could include things, like, uh, obeying the text of the Constitution and being, uh, faithful to their oath and other things that, uh, I think it would be hard to pin down any of the current incumbents, uh, and find them guilty of. Uh, and uh, and I, I think that would be a much easier way, uh, to, uh, to, uh, to focus the attention of judges on, uh, on, uh, doing their job, instead of, uh, instead of doing someone else's job, namely the legislature's job. Because, if we have a clear standard, and if it is breached, then the judges term has simply come to an end, and the President gives him a call and says clean out your desk, uh, the, uh, the capitol police will be in to help you, uh, find your way home. Uh, that's the end of it. We don't need any trials. We don't need any impeachment. We don't need the politics of that. If a judge violates a clear established standard of good behavior in the law, then he can be removed by the President.
[Confronting the Jusidical War on Faith - CSPAN - 04-07-05]
filed under: Republican Fire Oaths
, Scandal
April 04, 2005
I'm glad Vice President Dick Cheney said DeLay's jihad against the judiciary is not appropriate. While DeLay continues his vulgar and inappropriate threats against the balance of power and disgraceful pandering to the party's evangelical base, some of his Republican colleagues have gone as far as threaten the judiciary with imprisonment for upholding the "sacred institution of marriage" in Michael Schiavo's right to honor his wife's dying wishes in Florida.
There are just some things a little more sacred than marriage for Tom DeLay, namely using Terri Schiavo as political cover from media attention on DeLay's ethical lapses and criminal investigations into corruption.
If Cheney and other Republicans didn't realize, DeLay could care less about what is and isn't appropriate behavior for Republicans in Congress. Why should they ever believe this man has the party's best interests in mind? With multiple admonishments and current investigations into inappropriate and felonious behavior, DeLay is putting the wrong face on our nation's leadership.
If Republicans are looking for leadership that acts more appropriately, maybe it's time for Tom DeLay to step aside as the Republican House Majority Leader.
Vice President Cheney says he opposes revenge against judges for their refusal to prolong the life of the late Terri Schiavo, although he did not criticize House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) for declaring that they will "answer for their behavior."Cheney was asked about the issue on Friday by the editorial board of the New York Post. He said twice that he had not seen DeLay's remarks, but the vice president said he would "have problems" with the idea of retribution against the courts. "I don't think that's appropriate," he said. "I may disagree with decisions made by judges in any one particular case. But I don't think there would be much support for the proposition that because a judge hands down a decision we don't like, that somehow we ought to go out -- there's a reason why judges get lifetime appointments."
[Cheney Opposes Retribution Against Schiavo Judges - Washington Post - 04-04-05]
Yeah, that reason is to protect the balance of power from enemies of our Democracy like Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.
filed under: Scandal
March 27, 2005
The Republican House Majority Leader knows a thing or two about acts of barbarism. He and his family erred on the side of death when they pulled the plug on their 65 year old father. It's a decision made by hundreds of families without cameras, judges and politicians every day in America.
But when it comes to your family's lawful right to make these private and difficult life decisions, Republicans and their chosen leader in the U.S. House of Representatives, Tom DeLay, would rather play God.
And DeLay is among the strongest advocates of keeping the woman, who doctors say has been in a persistent vegetative state for 15 years, connected to her feeding tube. DeLay has denounced Schiavo's husband, as well as judges, for committing what he calls "an act of barbarism" in removing the tube.In 1988, however, there was no such fiery rhetoric as the congressman quietly joined the sad family consensus to let his father die.
"There was no point to even really talking about it," Maxine DeLay, the congressman's 81-year-old widowed mother, recalled in an interview last week. "There was no way [Charles] wanted to live like that. Tom knew — we all knew — his father wouldn't have wanted to live that way."
[DeLay's Own Tragic Crossroads - L.A. Times - 03-27-05]
filed under: Moral Majority
, Scandal
March 19, 2005
Of course Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay won't give up on Terri Schiavo. Issueing a subpeona for her lifeless body to be displayed before the United States Congress is just his latest desperate attempt to suck the oxygen out of increasing media focus on multiple investigations into his ethically admonished felonious activities. Who else among Congressional Republican leadership needs a dying woman's body as a foil to take the heat for the party's ethical lapses more than the Republican Party's chosen House leader?
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, said that he and other Republican members of Congress would continue to work through the weekend to come up with a bill to force doctors to reinsert Terri Schiavo's feeding tube.After a heated legal and political battle, the brain-damaged woman's feeding tube was removed Friday afternoon, despite a last-ditch effort by Congress to prevent it.
On Friday, House Republicans took the extraordinary step of subpoenaing Terri Schiavo to testify before a Congressional committee, but a Florida judge refused that order. Then late Friday, a House committee filed an emergency request with the U.S. Supreme Court, asking justices to reinsert Schiavo's feeding tube while the committee files appeals.
The Supreme Court denied that appeal without comment, and in a statement issued Saturday, DeLay called the court's decision a "moral and legal tragedy."
[DeLay Says He's Not Giving Up Schiavo Fight - ABCNews - 03-19-05]
Terri Schiavo and her husband's right within what Tom DeLay calls the "sacred institution of marriage" is of no consequence when a scurrilous politician like DeLay needs cover. The arrogance with which the Republican controlled Congress is handling this deeply personal issue is a clear sign of the entire party's disdain for the law, the judicial system sworn to uphold it, and the democratic balance of power.
filed under: Moral Majority
, Scandal
March 16, 2005
Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay has a way with words. His classic response to the light of day shining on his scurrilous behavior is to deny, deny, deny. Rather than respond to his lapse in ethics that continue beyond unanimously bipartisan admonishments by the United States House of Representatives, DeLay portrays himself as the perfect example of today's Republican Party values, morals and ethics. This is the Republican Party's idea of a leader, and DeLay's actions speak volumes about the party's vision for America.
Speaking at a weekly session with reporters, DeLay alternated between attacks on the news media and attacks on Democrats. "With all the partisan politics of personal destruction that the Democrats have announced and have carried through on, I have yet to be found breaking any House rules," he said. "It is very unfortunate that the Democrats have no agenda. All they can do is try to tear down the House and burn it down in order to gain power."
[DeLay Defends Trip and Vote, Attacks Critics - Washington Post - 03-16-05]
What's very unfortunate is listening to a politician justify unethical behavior in arrogant afronts to the rule of law. (via StakeHolder)
U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's federal leadership political fund apparently coordinated with a Texas committee to deliver $23,000 in contributions to Texas House candidates, according to documents filed in a civil lawsuit.The documents draw DeLay's Americans for a Republican Majority deeper into the ongoing controversy over whether Texans for a Republican Majority illegally used corporate money to help finance the GOP takeover of the Texas House in 2002. Republicans contend the money was spent legally.
DeLay, R-Sugar Land, and his aides have maintained that TRMPAC had nothing to do with his leadership political committee, ARMPAC, though some of his associates worked for both. But the new documents show a working relationship between the groups.
[DeLay's ARMPAC linked to Texas group - Houston Chronicle - 03-16-05]
filed under: Scandal
March 15, 2005
Nancy Pelosi says
Washington, D.C. -- House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement today on the privileged resolution on ethics that she introduced on the House floor. The resolution asked the Speaker to create a bipartisan task force to make recommendations to restore public confidence in the ethics process. The Republicans moved to table, or kill the resolution, without debate. Only one Republican, Rep. Joel Hefley of Colorado, former Chairman of the Ethics Committee who was purged from the committee this year, joined all Democrats in voting against the motion to table. Below is Pelosi's statement:"Today, the Republicans dealt a blow to the ethical standards of the House by voting to declare their allegiance to the ethical standards of Tom DeLay.
"This resolution, however, was not about the Majority Leader personally, but about the ethics rules that have been gutted to protect him. Until now, there had always been a strong bipartisan effort on the Ethics Committee to uphold a high ethical standard in the House. But this year, the ethics rules were written solely by the Republican leadership, to protect one Member.
"That is unacceptable and Democrats will not take part in a fraudelent ethics process. We must restore the integrity of the ethics process and regain the confidence of the American people."
[Pelosi: 'Today, Republicans Dealt a Blow to Ethical Standards of the House' - 03-15-05]
filed under: Scandal
March 15, 2005
Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's notoriously scurrilous behavior was unanimously admonished by Republicans and Democrats on the House Ethics Committee on three separate occasions. DeLay's colleagues in Texas have been indicted for felonious criminal behavior in illegal fundraising schemes, and his role is being investigated. In Washington, DeLay's colleagues are being investigated for purchasing votes with free trips abroad.
Despite this, Republican leadership in Washington continues to support Tom DeLay as their House Majority Leader. According to the Republican Party, no one but Tom DeLay best represents their brand of ruthless plundering that is fast becoming the hallmark of today's Republican Party. But some in the Republican Party have had it and are waking up to DeLay's threat to their party and our democracy.
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) has dismissed questions about his ethics as partisan attacks, but revelations last week about his overseas travel and ties to lobbyists under investigation have emboldened Democrats and provoked worry among Republicans.With some members increasingly concerned that DeLay had left himself vulnerable to attack, several Republican aides and lobbyists said for the first time that they are worried about whether he will survive and what the consequences could be for the party's image.
[DeLay Ethics Allegations Now Cause of GOP Concern - Washington Post - 03-14-05]
Privately, some Republican lawmakers were much less supportive of Mr. DeLay, with one saying that if the steady drone of accusations persists, Mr. DeLay will be in trouble and could be forced to surrender his post. "I don't know if it is tomorrow or next year, but it is inevitable," said one lawmaker who would not be named for fear of antagonizing the leadership.Mr. DeLay is facing legal problems on two fronts. In Texas, a local grand jury has indicted two of his political associates on charges involving illegal campaign contributions. In Washington, the Justice Department and a Senate committee are investigating whether a group of Republican lobbyists close to Mr. DeLay provided overseas trips and other gifts to lawmakers to influence legislation.
[From DeLay's Colleagues, Strong, if Wary, Support - New York Times - 03-15-05]
filed under: Scandal
March 13, 2005
Here is the face of today's Republican Party that is carving up America at a wholesale rate to the highest bidder. Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay is raising money... for his defense against impending charges over his involvement in felonious crimimal behavior in Texas. As you give money to help out DeLay and his corporate colleagues, don't forget to set a little aside for the Republican Party agenda, whatever that is. (via Americablog)
Among the corporate donors to the defense fund is Bacardi U.S.A., the Florida-based rum maker, which has also been indicted in the Texas investigation, and Reliant Energy, another major contributor to a Texas political action committee formed by Mr. DeLay that is the focus of the criminal inquiry. Groups seeking an overhaul of Congressional ethics rules have long complained that companies might seek the favor of powerful lawmakers by contributing to their legal defense funds.While the disclosure forms show that the defense fund has raised nearly $1 million since its establishment in 2000 and that Mr. DeLay is continuing to pick up generous donations from House Republicans and corporate executives, the documents also suggest that the majority leader's fund-raising efforts could soon be outpaced by ballooning legal bills.
[As DeLay's Woes Mount, So Does Money - New York Times - 03-13-05]
Also read: The Case Against DeLay & TRMPAC
filed under: Scandal
March 09, 2005
What is it with the Republican Party's love affair with an ethically admonished Republican House Majority Leader at the center of a criminal investigation? Is Tom DeLay's (R-TX) ability to raise money at the expense of United States House of Representative ethics rules and most likely the laws of the state of Texas more important than the rule of law to the party in control of the House, the Senate and the White House? The plain and simple answer is a resounding YES.
As I've been reporting for the past few months, the truth is slowly and methodically coming to light about Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's role in felonious criminal behavior in Texas. If DeLay and his fellow Republicans think DeLay's indicted colleagues are going to go to prison for this thug, they have their noses way too far up DeLay's pipeline.
The documents, which were entered into evidence last week in a related civil trial in Austin, the state capital, suggest that Mr. DeLay personally forwarded at least one large corporate check to the committee, Texans for a Republican Majority, and that he was in direct contact with lobbyists for some of the nation's largest companies on the committee's behalf.In an August 2002 document subpoenaed from the files of the indicted fund-raiser, Warren M. RoBold, Mr. RoBold asked for a list of 10 major donors to the committee, saying that "I would then decide from response who Tom DeLay" and others should call to help the committee in seeking a "large contribution."
Another document is a printout of a July 2002 e-mail message to Mr. RoBold from a political ally of Mr. Delay, requesting a list of corporate lobbyists who would attend a fund-raising event for the committee, adding that "DeLay will want to see a list of attendees" and that the list should be available "on the ground in Austin for T.D. upon his arrival."
Under Texas law, corporations are barred from donating money to state political candidates. The Texas committee acknowledged receiving large corporate donations during the 2002 campaign but always insisted that the money was used for administrative costs, which is legal.
[Documents Suggest Bigger DeLay Role in Donations - New York Times - 03-09-05]
filed under: Scandal
January 04, 2005
I'm really happy with those Republicans who stood up to Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's arrogant attempt to lower ethical standards in Congress to suit his personal politics. When faced with the prospects of stories of indicted colleagues and felonious criminal conduct in Texas gaining more attention with dissenting Republicans, DeLay decided to join the Speaker of the House to keep the rule on indicted House leaders.
The story below says Delay expressed confidence he would not be indicted. I wonder how confident he was that his colleagues would escape indictment by a grand jury on felony charges? It is a matter of time before DeLay's direct involvement in felonious criminal activity 1) has him indicted on multiple felonies, 2) has him lose his Republican party leadership position in disgrace, 3) finds him in court defending criminal behavior, 4) finds him serving time in prison and/or paying fines and 5) has him smearing the Republican party for his own personal gain.
Is this the kind of man the Republican party wants to protect and have power within the party and in Congress? Bravo to those Republicans who said "no," and shame on those Republicans whose silence continues to give this political thug cover. Read the "Scandal" thread for a history of posts about Tom DeLay.
The sudden reversal came amid growing indications of dissension within the GOP. Just before House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert's office announced that the measures were being dropped, the chairman of the House ethics committee issued an unusual statement denouncing the leadership's plan.Rep. Joel Hefley (Colo.), who appeared on the verge of being forced out as chairman after his committee voted three times last year to admonish DeLay, issued a statement criticizing the proposed rule changes as highly partisan and not in the best interests of the House. "Ethics reform must be bipartisan and this package is not bipartisan," Hefley said in the statement after sending Republican colleagues a letter outlining his objections.
[GOP Abandons Ethics Changes - Washington Post - 01-04-05]
filed under: Scandal
January 03, 2005
Is it any surprise? Tomorrow, the Republican controlled House of Representatives will vote on rule changes to relax ethics. These pesky ethics are real barriers to today's Republican agenda.
Republican Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) was recently admonished a third time for trouble maintaining ethics. The rule changes will also make it easier for Rep. DeLay to retain his seat when he is indicted on felonious criminal conduct in Texas.
The proposed change would essentially negate a general rule of conduct that the ethics committee has often cited in admonishing lawmakers -- including Majority Leader Tom DeLay -- for bringing discredit on the House even if their behavior was not covered by a specific regulation. Backers of the rule, adopted three decades ago, say it is important because the House's conduct code cannot anticipate every instance of questionable behavior that might reflect poorly on the chamber.Republicans, returning to the Capitol on Tuesday after increasing their House majority by three seats in the Nov. 2 election, also want to relax a restriction on relatives of lawmakers accepting foreign and domestic trips from groups interested in legislation before the House.
A third proposed rule change would allow either party to stop the House ethics committee from investigating a complaint against a member
[House to Consider Relaxing Its Rules - Washington Post - 12-31-04]
filed under: Scandal
November 17, 2004
No one represents today's Republican party better than the Texas conservative and House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. But DeLay has a personal problem. House Rules bar indicted crooks from House leadership positions.
What's a Republican controlled Congress to do when Tom DeLay is indicted for felonious misappropriation of campaign funds? How about changing the rules of the game? The House rule was originally drafted in 1993 by Republicans, but that is of little consequence to today's Republican party desperately seeking to protect its criminally-minded leadership.
House Republicans proposed changing their rules last night to allow members indicted by state grand juries to remain in a leadership post, a move that would benefit Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) in case he is charged by a Texas grand jury that has indicted three of his political associates, according to GOP leaders.
[GOP Pushes Rule Change to Protect DeLay's Post - Washington post - 11-17-04]
also read: Stakeholder
filed under: Scandal
October 30, 2004
Factor this: What do Rush Limbaugh, Michael Jackson, and Bill O'Reilly have in common? They all prove it's not "wrongdoing" when you can afford it. Obviously the words "wrongdoing" and "afford" are the key.
"Hi, I'm Bill O'Reilly. Thanks for watching us tonight. Before we get to the "Talking Points Memo," I have something very important to tell you. All litigation has ceased in that case that has made me the object of media scorn from coast to coast. Today, lawyers issued a statement saying there was no wrongdoing in the case whatsoever by anyone. Obviously the words "no wrongdoing" are the key.
On a personal note, this matter has caused enormous pain, but I had to protect my family and I did. Some of the media hammered me relentlessly because, as you know, I'm a huge target, as is FOX News. All can I say to you is please, do not believe everything you hear and read.
The good news is that "Factor" viewers and listeners seemed to have given me the benefit of any doubt when some in the media did not. You guys looked out for me and I will never forget it. This brutal ordeal is now officially over and I will never speak of it again."
[Talking Points - Bill O'Reilly - 10-29-04]
[Bill O'Reilly? - Andrea Mackris's Complaint - 10-13-04]
filed under: Media
, Scandal
October 25, 2004
Traditionally, the week before the election, campaigns launch a final attack. Held back for months, at times, the "October Surprise" can often turn an election.
In 2000, George Bush's lead over Al Gore was eliminated when the DUI records were revealed and his campaign stumbled through their response. Conversely, when the Los Angeles Times launched its Gropensmear on Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2003, voters rallied to the man and elected him Governor.
Since voters and campaigns have come to expect an October Surprise, the impacts have been mitigated. Mickey Kaus attributes this, in part, to how fast the news cycle has become--any October Surprise launched after the Thursday before the election seems tacky, and any launched before that date loses its impact as the news cycle moves on.
Currently, there are two competing candidates for the October Surprise:
- George Bush's 1973 "community service" may not have been charitable; and,
- Kerry never met with members of the Security Council
Yawn. I guarantee neither of these is the "October Surprise" and if they are, well, they will not influence the election--unless they are part of a bigger story, like if George Bush was doing community service because he was caught in violation of Texas sodomy laws...but we trust Mike Rogers would have told us that by now!
filed under: Scandal
October 22, 2004
No one represents today's Republican party better than the Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. I defy any Republican to say otherwise. Not only were three of his colleagues recently indicted for felonious criminal behavior that may lead to the imprisonment of Tom DeLay himself, but he was also rebuked in an unprecedented week of findings by the House Ethics Committee of unethical behavior. That's what George W. Bush calls "leadership."
Now, Tom DeLay was serve a subpoena for yet more alleged criminal activity, this time improperly using government authority to keep tabs on Democratic lawmakers. DeLay added to the charges piling on him by preventing execution of civil process when he changed his schedule to avoid being served the papers, a misdemeanor under the Texas Penal Code.
Ronald Reagan must be very proud of the direction today's Republican leadership has taken our great nation. Today's Republicans take their cue from George W. Bush, who appreciates their silence and complicit approval of Tom DeLay as their preferred leader in Congress. Rest easy, Ronald Reagan. Your party is in good hands.
Burnam said in a statement yesterday that "I brought this lawsuit because no government official should be able to use government resources for partisan political purposes." He said that DeLay, who was in contact with Texas officials on the day of the hunt, "should be required to testify about his role in this matter."Besides demanding DeLay's deposition next week, the subpoena requests the surrender of any documents related to his communications about the matter on that day. But a spokesman for DeLay, Stuart Roy, denounced the subpoena as "a cheap publicity stunt on something that has no connection to Tom DeLay."
[Texas Democrat Seeks DeLay's Testimony - Washington Post - 10-22-04]
also read: Stakeholder
filed under: Scandal
October 11, 2004
So, Republican Pete Sessions had a little fun when he was young.
Democrats on Monday circulated old newspaper clippings of a 1974 college streaking stunt staged by hundreds of students — including then-18-year-old Pete Sessions — at Southwest Texas State University.The conservative Republican congressman — who wrote a column condemning Janet Jackson's nude display during her 2004 Super Bowl halftime performance — apparently bared his bottom with about 300 others in a stunt that ended with arrests and a clash with police. Newspapers were filled with nude photos and headlines like: "Dudes, Broads, Bare Bods."
Southwest Texas students were apparently trying to break a streaking record set by another university amid a nationwide college streaking craze.
[Texas Congressman Bares All, in 1974 Photo - AP - 10-11-04]
filed under: Scandal
October 10, 2004
Texas District Attorney Ronnie Earle must be slow roasting this turkey for one hell of a Thanksgiving Dinner.
The silence from Republicans, who feel Tom DeLay appropriately represents today's Republican party as House Majority Leader in the United States Congress, is almost as outstanding as their blind partisan lust for corporate interests over the interest of the American people. Fawning Republican gadflies are the last to consider the facts in a drunken circle-jerk of empty rhetoric, criminal behavior, and an unethical orgy of power worthy of an unprecedented three unanimous and bi-partisan Congressional rebukes.
Here is yet more accounts of DeLay's direct involvement in completely unrelated activities for which three of DeLay's colleagues have already been indicted on felony charges. I look forward to the somber court sketches as DeLay's colleagues attest under oath to their glowing accounts of how central Tom DeLay was to criminal activity that made them proud to be Republicans.
Though DeLay has maintained that he did nothing but raise money and serve as chairman of the committee's advisory board, Republican state Rep. Dianne Delisi of Temple, a fellow board member, gave DeLay more credit for his efforts.In a memo to Dallas businessman Boone Pickens making a pitch for support, Delisi wrote that DeLay "has been an ardent advocate for us by raising money, making phone calls, serving as a special guest at events and providing assistance with leading strategists." DeLay and Delisi did not return phone calls requesting comment.
[Austin Statesman - 10-10-04]Three DeLay associates have been indicted in a Texas criminal investigation into alleged laundering of corporate money to Texas legislative campaigns through TRMPAC, a committee DeLay founded. If Delay, who has not been interviewed in the case, is indicted, he must step down as leader, according to House rules.
[DeLay ethics rebuke steps up pressure on House 'Hammer' - Boston Globe - 10-10-04]
also read: StakeHolder
filed under: Scandal
October 10, 2004
Who would replace Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) if he's indicted on felony charges in Texas and sent to prison? The self-nominating, self-aggrandizing and self-righteous conservative Republican Rep. Zach Wamp (R-TN) has a great candidate in mind: ZACH WAMP.
Republican U-S Representative Zach Wamp says he's interested in a leadership position if House Majority Leader Tom DeLay is forced to resign amid ongoing ethics and legal controversies. The Chattanooga lawmaker says he doesn't want to run anyone out. Instead he says he's just preparing in case there's an opening.
[DeLay's ethics troubles have Wamp eyeing leadership slot - WVLT-TV - 10-09-04]
As the ethically challenged Tom DeLay slithers under the radar at public events, the swarming within the Republican Party begins.
DeLay is expected to keep a low profile during his Western Washington visit. He will take part in fund-raisers that aren't open to the general public or the press, Mathis said. Hastert is slated to attend a fund-raiser and appear at a public event.
[House leaders and Dunn come to Reichert's aid - Seattle Times - 10-09-04]"Without Tom DeLay it would be complete and total chaos," said one Republican strategist with close ties to the White House. "The House would descend into 'Lord of the Flies.' "
[After Ethics Rebukes, DeLay's Fortunes May Lie With His Party's - New York Times - 10-08-04]
also read: Upper Left, Stakeholder
filed under: Scandal
October 07, 2004
Tom DeLay's proximity to spending time in prison as a convicted felon draws nearer. The Houston Chronicle reports an August 2002 email has surfaced showing DeLay's direct involvement in activities three of his Republican colleagues were indicted for recently.
DeLay's third unanimous admonishment by the bi-partisan House Ethics Committee puts a face like none other on the unprecedented corruption and arrogant unethical behavior of Republican leadership in the United States House of Representatives.
TRMPAC fund-raiser Susan Lilly, in an e-mail to the director of Tauzin's political committee, said she had been asked to try to set up a TRMPAC fund-raiser with Tauzin. Lilly said the request had come from Jim Ellis, director of DeLay's Americans for a Republican Majority."Congressman DeLay and others founded TRMPAC to help elect conservative Republicans members to the Texas state Legislature," Lilly wrote in the e-mail. "This election cycle represents a tremendous opportunity for Republicans to finally seize control and elect a Republican speaker of the Texas House.
"To that end, Congressman DeLay is extremely committed to TRMPAC and suggested that we contact Congressman Tauzin to enlist his support for our organization," Lilly wrote.
[PAC memo links DeLay to fund-raiser - Houston Chronicle - 10-06-04]
Stakeholder has a very good summary of DeLay's trail of unethical behavior.
filed under: Scandal
October 06, 2004
For the second time in six days, the United States House Ethics Committee unanimously rebuked House Republican Majority Leader Tom "the Hammer" DeLay. Questionable ethics and bold-faced defiance of the facts is the face of today's Republican Party. Browse the SCANDAL thread for the string of posts describing Tom DeLay's Republican Party.
"For years, Democrats have hurled relentless personal attacks at me, hoping to tie my hands and smear my name. All have fallen short, not because of insufficient venom, but because of insufficient merit."BS TRANSLATOR: "If Texas District Attorney Ronnie Earle charges me with felonius criminal activity soon, I may go to prison!"
[Ethics Panel Rebukes DeLay Twice in a Week - AP - 10-06-04]
also read: Stakeholder
filed under: Scandal
October 06, 2004
Does today's Republican Party continue to believe Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay represents their values? Do those values include improper horse-trading for votes? Do those values include the impending weight of felonious scandal surounding DeLay in Texas? Do these values include amending the United States Constitution to deny gays equal marriage rights?
Conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch suggests Tom DeLay spare America and the Republican Party his taudry political descent and resign immediately. If DeLay would like to linger like a garden skunk, maybe it's time for an independent outside counsel.
Judicial Watch, the conservative public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, today called on Rep. Tom DeLay to step down as House Majority Leader in the wake of the bipartisan House Ethics Committee’s recent findings that he acted improperly in attempting to win a vote from Rep. Nick Smith in exchange for endorsing Smith’s son in a congressional primary. It is the second time that DeLay has been chastised by the ethics panel....
“Frankly, the ethics report was too kind to Mr. DeLay and the other House members implicated in the controversy. Mr. DeLay’s actions in trying to trade a political endorsement for a vote were inappropriate and unacceptable, and given this grave ethical lapse, he should step down as Majority Leader. The Republican Party should not countenance its leadership violating House rules and standards of ethical behavior,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.
[House Majority Leader Should Step Down Over Ethics Lapse, Says Judicial Watch - Judicial Watch - 10-06-04]
filed under: Scandal
October 04, 2004
If you can follow the bouncing ball in this political mess, you could win whoopee cushions, vampire teeth, and rabbit's feet key chains Dan Krcmar tried to sell from his Navy Pier vendor's cart. Here is just a slice of the pie.
Krcmar's name first came to light early last year when the Chicago Sun-Times reported that Republican businessman Roger "The Hog" Stanley had planned to use a photograph of Krcmar with a Costa Rican prostitute to force Krcmar to run against state Rep. Anne Zickus, a Palos Hill Republican, in 2000.Krcmar reportedly had gone on one of Stanley's now-infamous trips to Costa Rica for fishing and cavorting with young prostitutes.
Stanley never had to use the photograph because Krcmar volunteered to make the run. Stanley wanted Zickus to have some political competition, so she would use Stanley's political direct mail services.
Krcmar was running as a Democrat in the race when he got the rigged cart deal from Fawell at Navy Pier.
[Fawell traded Pier goodie for satellite dish - Chicago Sun-Times - 10-04-04]
filed under: Scandal
October 03, 2004
Kim Alexander of the California Voter Foundation wonders why the county would hire someone who played a role in their acquisition of uncertified equipment.
Deborah Seiler, a sales representative for the beleaguered voting company, was hired a week ago and started Monday in Solano County, northeast of San Francisco in California's wine country. The position puts her second in command of elections in the county, under the registrar of voters.Today's the Day. The move raises eyebrows because Seiler played a role in a recent scandal involving Diebold and the county. As the Diebold sales rep, Seiler sold Solano County nearly 1,200 touch-screen machines that were not federally tested or state certified. When the state banned the machines because of Diebold's business practices, the county had to find a replacement for the machines and pay Diebold more than $400,000 to get out of its contract.
[Diebold Rep Now Runs Elections - Wired - 09-30-04]
filed under: Scandal
October 01, 2004
Tom DeLay has some nerve. I wonder how he expects to engage in the disgraceful politics he promises below if he's convicted of felonies and serving time in prison. I know criminals in prison often direct people via remote control on the outside, but who on Earth would take up Tom DeLay's dirty work of soiling the United States Constitution but more crooks and thugs?
DeLay said the issue is far from dead. "We will come back and come back until this is passed," he said. DeLay said the proposed amendment would be re-introduced in the new Congress next year."Marriage must be protected - for the good of our children, our communities, and our country"
[DeLay Vows To Bring Back Gay Marriage Amendment - 365gay.com - 10-01-04]
filed under: Scandal
October 01, 2004
Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) is the face of today's Republican leadership. DeLay also happens to have some trouble with ethics, morals and succumbing to his scurilous nature as a misguided Texas conservative.
Yesterday, those closest to DeLay were indicted for potentially felonious activities in Texas. It is a matter of time before those slime balls accept a deal to point out who the real felon is. Who knows. Maybe that felon is the same Republican that wasted America's time yesterday seeking to pass a disgraceful amendment to the United States Constitution to deny equal marriage rights to gay and lesbian Americans. Maybe the real felon in Texas is the same man admonished by the United States House of Representatives yesterday for improper behavior.
After a six-month investigation, the committee concluded that DeLay had told Rep. Nick Smith (R-Mich.) he would endorse the congressional bid of Smith's son if the congressman gave GOP leaders a much-needed vote in a contentious pre-dawn roll call on Nov. 22.
"This conduct could support a finding that . . . DeLay violated House rules," the committee said in its 62-page report. ". . . It is improper for a member to offer or link support for the personal interests of another member as part of a quid pro quo to achieve a legislative goal."
[Ethics Panel Rebukes DeLay - Washington Post - 10-01-04]
filed under: Scandal
September 30, 2004
President Bush can thank Rep. Tom Delay (R-TX) for helping take away three votes for President Bush in the state of Texas. Today's indictments of DeLay's close colleagues are the latest dominoes to fall around DeLay's crumbling grip on a clear conscience. If Texas justice is truly swift, maybe Tom Delay will be the fourth convicted felon in an illegal, power-hungry money laundering scheme.
The three defendants might want to take the advice of Gregg Cox and "suggest to investigators that they were hardly acting on their own personal whims."
That should not offer much comfort to DeLay. The three defendants so far include DeLay aide Jim Ellis, his chief Austin liaison in the long-running re-redistricting battle at the Capitol last year (although he then briefly attempted to evade legal action by claiming he's a stranger to Texas). Ellis is accused of the first-degree felony of money laundering in connection with $190,000 in corporate ("soft") TRMPAC funds that were contributed to the Republican National Committee and then apparently returned to Texas legislative campaigns as individual ("hard") money donations.The TRMPAC executive director, John Colyandro, a former assistant to George W. Bush political advisor Karl Rove, is also accused of money laundering, as well as 13 counts of unlawfully accepting corporate contributions.
Warren RoBold, a national GOP fundraiser who solicited money for TRMPAC from several of the indicted corporations, is facing nine third-degree felony charges of "making and accepting" prohibited corporate contributions. It doesn't seem too far a stretch to speculate that, faced with potential punishments ranging from heavy fines to imprisonment (a first-degree felony, said Cox, "is punishable by five to 95 years or life in prison"), Ellis, Colyandro, and RoBold may want to suggest to investigators that they were hardly acting on their own personal whims.
[TRMPAC Indictments Come Down, 'More Work' Remains - Austin Chronicle - 09-30-04]
filed under: Scandal