“The job of majority leader and the mandate of the Republican majority are too important to be hamstrung, even for a few months, by personal distractions.” Whether it be due to Abramoff’s encroaching testimony, the uprising of GOP moderates, Duke Cunningham’s wire, or all of the above, Boss DeLay has admitted defeat and given up his post for good. While this is excellent news, there’s still much work to do: The ringleader may be dethroned, but the DeLay Ring persists. Hopefully prosecutors in Texas and the Justice Department, as well as members of Congress shamed by the rampant corruption characterizing DeLay’s reign, won’t rest until the Hammer is thrown out of the House and taken to the woodshed. In fact, with any luck, Boss DeLay will be a featured member of the Big House before long.
Tag: Election 2006
Folding Operations.
“In the short run, members of Congress will get allergic to lobbyists.” As Casino Jack enters a second plea and the fatcats of K St. begin to panic, many top GOP officials burn their Abramoff cash (and for good reason), including Ney, DeLay, Hastert, Blunt, and Dubya. “Abramoff raised at least $100,000 for the Bush-Cheney ’04 re-election campaign, earning the honorary title ‘pioneer’ from the campaign. But the campaign is giving up only $6,000 that came directly from Abramoff, his wife and one of the Indian tribes that he worked to win influence for in Washington.” Update: According to the NYT, the Abramoff plea may have put the dagger to Boss DeLay’s comeback hopes.
Casino Jack-pot.
Happy 2006, y’all. Today’s a travel day for me (from San Diego back to Norfolk), so updates will be sparse. That being said, amid the grim news in West Virginia, I’d be remiss if I didn’t post this glint of light for the new year: As rumored, the Feds have flipped Jack Abramoff, meaning trouble ahead for the DeLay-driven GOP corruption machine. While the inquiry into Boss DeLay, who just picked up a Dem opponent in the 2006 midterms, “could take up to a year and require the cooperation of other witnesses before issues are resolved,” it seems prosecutors will move more quickly against DeLay deputy and GOP official Bob Ney, who corresponds to a “Representative #1” referred to in the plea agreement. Let’s get this show started!
Jack of Clubs.
“‘Jack would say, ‘I gave that guy 10 grand and he voted against me!'” Previewing “what could become the biggest congressional corruption scandal in generations” when it fully erupts in 2006, the Washington Post offers a brief overview of the meteoric rise and sordid fall of Casino Jack Abramoff.
The Prize Fish?
It’s Boss DeLay’s worst nightmare: the Feds might be close to flipping Abramoff. “Abramoff would provide testimony about numerous members of Congress and their staffs if he and the Justice Department reach an agreement, the sources said.” Great…my only concern is that Casino Jack might try to pull a Wee-Bay (from The Wire), and take the fall for the higher-ups in his organization. Then again, with Abramoff, Adam Kidan, Michael Scanlon, and David Safavian all on the hook, one of the rats should likely squeal.
ANWR’s Nine Lives.
“The legislation would allow states to impose new fees on Medicaid recipients, cut federal child support enforcement funds, impose new work requirements on state welfare programs and squeeze student lenders.” Although a tie-breaking vote by Cheney got the deficit bill passed — meaning people on Medicaid, welfare recipients, and students with loans will soon be paying for Dubya’s millionaire tax breaks — the Dems do succeed in beating back ANWR drilling, much to the chagrin of Ted Stevens, who gambled that the Senate wouldn’t vote down a defense bill.
Ice Station Dubya.
Off again, on again: Along with a smattering of Operation Offset-type cuts (particularly with regard to student loans), “Bridge to Nowhere” Ted Stevens and the GOP attach ANWR drilling to a fiscal defense bill, in effect daring the Dems to vote against supporting the troops. Is this ANWR’s last stand? Update: Senate Dems ready for a fight.
Dubya Unchecked.
Team Dubya spent the weekend on the offensive regarding the recent disclosure of illegal NSA wiretaps, with Bush saying over and over again that disclosing the wiretaps was “a shameful act” that “damage[d] our national security.” Sheah. That Dubya and his cronies would try to pass off these egregious violations of civil liberties and due process with more dissent is disloyalty garbage (and a frisson of 9/11, 9/11, 9/11) speaks once again to how corrupt and out-of-control this administration has become. Let the investigations commence. Update: Newsweek‘s Jonathan Alter weighs in: “Bush was desperate to keep the Times from running this important story — which the paper had already inexplicably held for a year — because he knew that it would reveal him as a law-breaker…If the Democrats regain control of Congress, there may even be articles of impeachment introduced.”
Dubya for DeLay (and a Heck for Rummy)
In an interview with FOX News’s Brit Hume, Dubya backs Boss DeLay, saying he is innocent of money laundering. “It is highly unusual for a president to express an opinion on a pending legal case. Richard M. Nixon, for instance, was widely criticized for declaring Charles Manson ‘guilty, directly or indirectly’ of murder while Manson’s trial was ongoing.” Also in the interview, Dubya tried to pin Casino Jack on both parties and gave Rumsfeld the Brownie thumbs up. Update: The backlash begins.
The Eye of the Needle.
“They are trading the lives of poor people for their agenda. They’re being, and this is the worst insult, unbiblical.” As liberal Christian groups protest GOP cuts in poverty programs, the Post looks into why the usual right-wing suspects are AWOL on the issue of poverty.