The Republican majority leader in the US House of Representatives Tom DeLay has been indicted with criminal conspiracy by a grand jury in Texas.
The charge relates to a campaign finance scheme in which two of Mr DeLay's associates also stand accused.
Mr DeLay, the second-highest ranking member of the house, said he would step down temporarily to answer the charges.
He is a key fundraiser for President George W Bush and is seen as wielding immense political influence.
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Mr DeLay's spokesman dismissed the charge as politically motivated.
"This indictment is nothing more than prosecutorial retribution by a partisan Democrat," said Kevin Madden, referring to prosecutor Ronnie Earle, a Democrat.
"We regret the people of Texas will once again have their taxpayer dollars wasted on Ronnie Earle's pursuit of headlines and political paybacks."
A Congressional ethics committee has reprimanded Mr DeLay three times for what it calls objectionable behaviour.
In the past, Mr DeLay has called the allegations against him "fiction and innuendo" and a result of a political witch-hunt.
It'll be interesting to see if they can get any of this to stick. I have no idea what the political fallout will be from all this, it's not like Congress seems to be doing anything anyway.
Took them long enough. Delay's redefined the term "crooked Congressman" for a long time and it's amazing that only NOW is he being tried for anything.
That said, this could potentially create a huge shakeup in the House. The Republicans still control the majority. If Delay goes down, it'll be interesting to see who takes his place.
And you thought selling Amway was his career lowlight?
Originally posted by It's FalseTook them long enough. Delay's redefined the term "crooked Congressman" for a long time
Ahh, Democrats and their short memories. Does James Traficant ring a bell?!
Having lived in his neck of the woods, Traficant was his own bizarro political party who had wide appeal in a very distressed part of the nation at the time.
What this really points out is how similar politicians are regardless of their affiliation.
(edited by DrDirt on 29.9.05 0643) Perception is reality
Here's one issue that hasn't been mentioned yet...Ronnie Earle (the DA pursuing the case) has a pretty well-known history of going after political rivals. This includes both Republicans (he got an indictment against Kay Bailey Hutchison, which never came to trial) and Democrats (he brought suit against Jim Mattox, who was running against Ann Richards, who did have the support of Earle). Mattox was acquitted.
As much as I hope DeLay goes down, Earle's history doesn't make me optimistic. He's a political opportunist, and I think he's just engaging in some good, old fashioned dirty Texas politics, which would be consistent with his historical record.
Besides, what exactly does 'criminal conspiracy' mean? Wouldn't that be awfully hard to prove? I'd think you'd need a major smoking gun for that, and I just don't see DeLay as being that sloppy. Corrupt, but not that stupid, especially when it comes to fund raising techniques.
"Teach children that they have great potential because they are human." -Warrior
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