The Situation Worsens for DeLay

by Jonathan Singer, Sat Dec 31, 2005 at 04:22:35 AM EST

Just as news emerges that Jack Abramoff is nearing agreement with the Justice Department over a plea deal that could aide the investigation into more than a dozen lawmakers, The Washington Post's R. Jeffrey Smith does some heavy duty reporting on the relationship between Abramoff and the former House Majority Leader, Tom DeLay. Josh Marshall provides a good run down of the piece.

For five years in the late 1990s there was an outfit called the U.S. Family Network, a pretty classic astroturf operation and, like a number of them, pretty closely linked with Tom DeLay.

Only USFN did little or no public advocacy on behalf of conservative family issues or much of anything else. It seems to have been run pretty much as a piggy bank and money pass-through by and for a number of DeLay operators -- including Jack Abramoff and Ed Buckham.

The Marianas Island sweatshop folks chipped in half a million dollars;
the Choctaws chipped in a quarter million; and some shadowy Russian oil and gas interests (also Abramoff clients) ponied up a cool million dollars for USFN -- money laundered through a now-defunct British law firm. (The Russians apparently wanted to give DeLay a fancy car; but DeLay's folks suggested that might cause problems.)

Basically everybody who gave was getting something from DeLay; and USFN was the coin machine. As Smith puts it, rather prosaically, "records, other documents and interviews call into question the very purpose of the U.S. Family Network, which functioned mostly by collecting funds from domestic and foreign businesses whose interests coincided with DeLay's activities while he was serving as House majority whip from 1995 to 2002, and as majority leader from 2002 until the end of September. (italics added)"

While Tom DeLay has had some success in his money laundering trial in Austin, it's becoming increasingly unclear how he will be able to extricate himself from the wide ranging investigation of Jack Abramoff. The figures dug up by Smith in this Post article are probably only the tip of the iceberg. So will Tom DeLay survive through the 2006 midterm elections? If so, will he win reelection?

Tags: House 2006 (all tags)

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My answer to the first question...

No. However, if DeLay does make it to the midterms, I can't fathom him overcoming the strong campaign of former-Rep. Nick Lampson. What are your impressions?

by Jonathan Singer 2005-12-31 04:23AM | 0 recs

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Some success in Austin?

I'm not so sure. That's how the MSM painted it, but in fact -- and particularly given the extreme partisanship in TX these days with Ronnie Earle painted as a corrupt Dem and DeLay a hero for his redistricting efforts and, frankly, getting away with a lot of murder -- it's extraordinary to me that he's in as deep as he is here. My sense is that, among the more civilized Republicans, there is a certain joy in the possibility that DeLay... well, "comeuppance" is the word I've heard.

by Bean 2005-12-31 05:55AM | 0 recs

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It depends on Rahm Emanuel

Is Rahm going to devote as much money, resources and time into defeating DeLay as he is in defeating Cegelis?

How many prominant Democrats have pledged to campaign for and fund raise for Lampson?

by Gary Boatwright 2005-12-31 05:55AM | 0 recs

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It does not depend on Rahm Emanuel

(Gary, sorry I didn't reply to your e-mail, it's a busy time)

The lesson of 2004 is that you can make a fundraising end run around the central campaign committees. Howard Dean was quite the opposite of a party favored insider and me and a whole bunch of other people threw a totality of millions his way. It can happen again.

The Bugman is going to be a little more concerned about his Legal Defence Fund than throwing around money this year, and there are plenty of people who would gladly send $10, $50, $100 to any opponent of Delay if they thought the blood was in the water.

It is not exactly fund raising season yet and a lot of people on both sides of the aisle are waiting to see how January shakes out for Tom Delay.

While I would love Sugarland Texas to be represented by a Democrat, in the final analysis I just want it represented by anyone but Tom Delay. If Delay is forced to resign Lampson may be on his own, if Delay is on the ticket I don't thing fundraising is going to be a problem - with or without Rahm Emanuel.

by Bruce Webb 2005-12-31 07:16AM | 0 recs

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success in his money laundering trial?

I don't see it. I see a lot of bluster from his lawyer de Guerin and a count tossed out, but the fundamentals remain unchallenged: $190,000 went from corporations to DC with specific instructions and it came back to Texas exactly how it was directed to. I saw a bizarre item somewhere that part of the Delay request to have the charges tossed was to argue that 'checks' were not 'funds' for the purposes of this statute. "No your honor we were not money laundering, we were just writing each other checks"

Good bless Google. From CNN Dec 15: DeLay conspiracy charge tossed out Judge upholds more serious money-laundering allegations

"In trying to have those charges thrown out, the defense argued that the Texas money laundering law does not apply to funds in the form of a check, just coins or paper money. But the judge said that checks "are clearly funds and can be the subject of money laundering."

The defense attorneys also argued that the definition of money laundering in Texas involves the transfer of criminal proceeds. Because the money in this case was not illegal to begin with, they argued, money laundering never occurred."

I'll let any lawyers out there examine those two arguments. If that is the best de Guerin can come up with Delay is toast here. Because that is just lame. And an insult to the intelligence of the judge besides.

by Bruce Webb 2005-12-31 07:03AM | 0 recs

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Re: success in his money laundering trial?

All nine Republican judges on the Texas Appeals Court are Republicans. Let's hope they care more about the rule of law than they do about getting re-elected.

by Gary Boatwright 2005-12-31 07:12AM | 0 recs

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All the better

I would love to have Delay convicted in State trial court and then have his sentence overturned in blatently partisan fashion by the Appeals Court. Or even have the charges tossed without trial. Because I suspect that would piss off a whole assortment of Federal Prosecuting Attornies. To say nothing of the good people of Sugarland.

Seen Delay reelect numbers? Beaumont Enterprise: Poll says DeLay losing support
"The poll, conducted Dec. 1-4 by CNN, USA Today and the Gallup Organization, showed DeLay, R-Sugar Land, with 36 percent support and any Democratic challenger with 49 percent."

I don't see a lot of good news for Delay that has come out between Dec 4 and today. And being down 13 points to Generic Democrat?

2006 is shaping up in fine fashion and the Revenge of FDR is just around the corner (topic for another time and place, but my favorite).

by Bruce Webb 2005-12-31 07:31AM | 0 recs

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no; no; but yet...

My dream scenario: DeLay survives the state case on a technicality, but runs for reelection under Federal indictment.

Will it happen though? No, I think he'll end up being forced to resign, either through state conviction, or a Federal indictment. The pressure to throw in the towel will be enormous if the US Attorney's office brings charges against him.

Of course, that's just speculation. In terms of the political implications, I want to see Lampson take this seat, but... although I don't know the demographics of the district, we could be looking at a Rostenkowski situation. Rosti's corruption was much more important, in the end, nationwide than in his own district. He lost reelection running under indictment in 1994, but his successor, Michael Patrick Flanagan (R-IL) was defeated only 2 years later by Blagojevich (D-IL), succeeded in turn by Rahm Emanuel, whom we all know.

In other words, Rosti's corruption had zero long-term political effect in his own district, but was a contributing factor to a nationwide Republican landslide. This is what I hope for here, rather than victory TX-22 per se (as nice as that seat would be in our portfolio).

by arenwin 2005-12-31 08:33AM | 0 recs