That's BS. Like I said, *generally* they don't indict at this level unless they feel they have something substantial.
That is a fact. Deal with it. I am not saying Delay is guilty, I am just saying at this level, they do not generally indict willy nilly.
"I am not saying Delay is guilty, I am just saying at this level, they do not generally indict willy nilly."
You don't know much about Ronnie Earl, do you? He has a history of issuing bogus, politically-based indictments for as long as I have been in Texas -- and that is 25 years.
In 1994 he indicted Kay Baily Hutchinson on similar charges -- just as she was coming up for election to the Senate. He then tried to delay the trial until after the election date. Hutchinson's lawyers managed to stop that, and when the case went to trial, the judge dismissed the charges.
Based on Earle's track record, Delay is unlikely to get convicted. In fact, it is unlikely to actually come to trial.
That was not the case in 1993 when the same DA indicted Kay Hutchison. It was clearly a politically-motivated indictment.
Man I don't know what part of the country your from but you don't know much about Texas politics, We are after all the origin of LBJ who perhaps set the standard as a political trickster.
The way the Grand Jury system works in Texas makes it virtually certain if a prosecutor is in the right county and pushes hard enough he could literally indict a "ham sandwitch". This is Travis County where democrats and dirty politics is the name of the game.
I've followed it somewhat and people tell me there is no evidence and therefore no real chance this will go to trial. There is a sham indictment on a PAC (set up by DeLay's people) election funds case, I've heard this case won't hold water. And DeLay's only connection to this case is his participation in the founding of the PAC in question. This is Texas politics because our Constitution is a little different and the structure of our Counties might have been set with political trickery in mind. wink wink.
Of course that's been denied, But believe me this is Texas partisan politics.
I don't know what you mean about "level". This is a COUNTY prosecuter, not some federal DA. He is going after a few thousand dollars of campaign donations, something that usually is handled at a federal level by the FEC with fines.
His "charge" against DeLay is conspiracy, suggesting that DeLay had some conversation with someone where they talked about a fundraiser, knowing that there was something illegal about it.
This was the ONLY thing he could charge DeLay for, because any actual election code violations would have to be tried in DeLay's county, and that prosecuter had no interest in wasting his time.
Conspiracy is a state charge which the travis county DA could do something about.
Imagine your local county prosecuter finding someone illegally sent money to Nancy Pelosi, and then bringing her up on conspiracy charges because he hates democrats.