Posted on 04/10/2005 11:45:55 PM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
WASHINGTON - Signaling that persistent ethics questions about House Majority Leader Tom DeLay may be starting to weigh down Republicans, a GOP moderate on Sunday called for DeLay to resign his leadership post, and a top GOP senator urged DeLay to answer questions about his ethics.
"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," Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., told the Associated Press after making similar comments at community meetings in his home district this weekend. He said DeLay should step down.
Shays has had a rocky relationship with DeLay, R-Sugar Land, in recent years over questions about campaign finance and ethics rules. But his concerns were underscored by Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., a conservative and the Senate's third-ranking Republican, who said DeLay needs to clear the air.
"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. He said that from what he knows of the ongoing DeLay controversies, "everything he's done was according to the law."
"Now you may not like some of the things he's done," said Santorum, who is up for re-election next year. "That's for the people of his district to decide, whether they want to approve that kind of behavior."
Ongoing investigations A political action committee created by DeLay has been under investigation by the Travis County district attorney, and federal investigators are probing a lobbyist, Jack Abramoff, who had ties to DeLay. The majority leader also has been the subject of recent news reports about the propriety of overseas travel, which may have been underwritten by lobbyists, including Abramoff.
DeLay also drew attention for his strident criticism of federal judges, particularly those who refused to order the reinsertion of a feeding tube for Terri Schiavo, a brain-damaged Florida woman who died March 31.
A spokesman for DeLay countered Shays' comment by noting he enjoys "wide support of the rank-and-file" of the House GOP conference. Most of the House Republicans are conservative, and many have viewed the scrutiny of DeLay as part of an orchestrated campaign to undermine their political agenda.
Asked if DeLay has heard from GOP House members who are worried about the volume of critical news reports, DeLay chief spokesman Dan Allen replied: "Members were very supportive through the week last week and going into the weekend."
A top administration official also said Friday that DeLay has not yet become the political liability that Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., became in 2002, when he was pushed out of his leadership post by the White House in favor of Sen. Bill Frist, R-Tenn., after making a political gaffe.
"Nobody around here is saying that DeLay is a problem the way Lott was," a senior administration official said.
But the mood on Capitol Hill has become testier as the controversies have raged on.
"I have no comment on anything," Rep. Michael Castle, R-Del., said as he avoided questions about DeLay last week.
Democrats also are trying to embarrass Republicans into dropping their support of DeLay. The Public Campaign Action Fund will announce today that it will run new anti-DeLay ads in key congressional districts.
Undoing rules changes One of the recent targets was Rep. Rob Simmons, R-Conn., who faced questions about DeLay during his own tough re-election battle last November. Simmons also strongly called for the resignation of his state's former Gov. John Rowland, who was convicted of selling access to his office for personal gain.
GOP members have maintained that they are getting relatively few questions about DeLay when they return to their districts. But on Saturday, voters at a town hall forum asked Shays about DeLay, the Greenwich Time reported.
"He is an absolute embarrassment to me and to the Republican Party," Shays told the Greenwich audience.
Shays and Rep. Joel Hefley, R-Colo., the past chairman of the House ethics committee, have signed a Democratic resolution that would undo some of the rules changes that GOP leaders, including DeLay, pushed through the House in January.
The new rules make it harder for the committee to pursue probes against members. Democrats have protested by blocking the committee from officially organizing.
Hefley was removed as chairman after the committee unanimously voted last year to issue three admonishments against DeLay. A key staffer also was fired.
DeLay recently offered to go before the committee to answer charges that have been raised in recent weeks. But his offer was viewed as largely symbolic since the committee is gridlocked.
"This whole ethics thing could not have been handled worse than it was," said Hefley, who recently spoke to House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., about ways to diminish the political heat on Republicans regarding ethics.
Loyalty with concerns Hefley said that the loyalty by members toward DeLay because of his strong leadership on tough issues has overshadowed the private concerns of some members about DeLay.
"A lot of folks mention quietly that they are concerned about it. On the other hand, you have a lot of members standing up and pledging their undying support for Mr. DeLay," Hefley said.
Among those standing behind DeLay are House Majority Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo., who said recently, "He's taking a lot of arrows for all of us."
gebe.martinez@chron.com
I ignore complaints from any politician, Republican or Democrat, from New England. If someone south of the Mason-Dixon complains, I'll take notice.
This is what Shays' complaint, and all his other RINO-related statements and votes, are all about.
He represents a wealthy-but-liberal NYC suburban area of Connecticut, Fairfield County. I have seen him listed as one of the most vulnerable Republicans in 2006. So this is all about appealing to his liberal constituents by very publicly bashing Liberal Public Enemy #1.
This is the first I've heard of any of this, and a Google search does not yield anything. Can you post a relevant link, etc?
Good point.
Correct. Considering that his district includes the limousine liberals in Westport (hello Paul Newman) and Stamford, along with the sh-thole that is Bridgeport, its amazing that there is a Republican in that district. At least Greenwich and New Canaan voted for Bush...
Once again a "moderate" that Republicans voted for in the primary "because he can win in November" does more damage to the party than a Democrat could.
Thanks for the contact info. E-mail sent.
That aside, his "moderate" moniker is not something that should remain unchallenged. And if he isn't gay, he ought to play one on TV.
a GOP moderate on Sunday called for DeLay to resign his leadership post
GOP modrate? Shays is an outright leftist.
You sound like a Memphis Dem to me!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's April 2005, doofus. Nobody is up for re-election for a year and a half.
bttt and sent.
Uh-huh, Mr. Shays.
We remember what you did and didn't do during Impeachment.
News reports I heard said $500K.
How did Shays vote on Clinton's impeachment?
Seems to me he supported Bubba.
Contact Hastert. And the WH.
He would be the Republican (loosely defined) representative who got a nice long look at the evidence against Clinton as re: Juanita Broadrick, said he believed Clinton WAS a rapist, then voted AGAINST impeachment.
If I recall correctly...
Can't have someone like Tom Delay displaying manhood around the Republican party, can we?
Nope, better to court the affection of the Barney Frank crowd.
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