Thomas Dale DeLay

Date of birth:
Place of birth:
Political party:	Republican
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Thomas Dale DeLay (born April 8 1947) is a politician from Sugar Land, Texas and a prominent Republican.

A conservative, DeLay was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1984 from Texas's 22nd congressional district. Known as "The Hammer" for his enforcement of party discipline in close votes and his reputation for exacting political retribution on opponents, he was appointed Deputy Minority Whip in 1988 and was elected House Majority Whip in 1994, helping Newt Gingrich lead the Republican Revolution. After the retirement of Dick Armey, he was elected House Majority Leader after the 2002 midterm elections.

In 2005, DeLay was indicted in Austin, Texas on criminal charges of conspiracy to violate election laws in 2002 by a Travis County, Texas grand jury after having waived his rights under the statutes of limitations. In accordance with Republican Caucus rules, DeLay temporarily resigned from his position as House Majority Leader, and on January 7 2006, after pressure from fellow Republicans, announced that he would not seek to return to the position. [1]

DeLay has publicly denied the charges, saying that they are motivated by the partisan actions of Democratic Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle. [2] After DeLay moved to dismiss all charges, trial judge Pat Priest dismissed one count of the indictment, which alleged conspiracy to violate election law. However, Judge Priest denied DeLay's motion to dismiss the charges alleging money laundering and conspiracy to engage in money laundering, and the prosecution is proceeding on those charges.

DeLay initially planned to campaign for re-election to his Congressional seat this year. He easily won the Republican primary on March 7 2006, taking 62% of the vote in the 4-way race. [3] On April 3, 2006, he told MSNBC correspondent Chris Matthews that he would not seek re-election. On April 3, 2006, a Time Magazine article reported on their website that DeLay will not seek re-election. [4] Officials said that a special election would likely take place in May. [5].

One newspaper says that DeLay explained that the polls showed him beating Democrat Nick Lampson in the general election but in a race that would be "too close for comfort". [6]

Biography and early political career

DeLay was born in Laredo, Texas. After living part of his childhood in Venezuela due to his father's work in the petroleum and natural gas industry, he received a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in biology from the University of Houston in 1970, though he had previously been expelled from Baylor University for drinking and vandalism (he was caught painting a building at Texas A&M green and gold, Baylor's colors). There he gained a reputation as a playboy, earning the nickname "Hot Tub Tom". [7] Prior to entering politics, DeLay ran a pest control company, which was reportedly "at best a struggling operation". This is also where he earned his nickname "the exterminator." DeLay faced tax liens three times by the IRS for not paying payroll and income taxes, and paid settlements to two different associates who claimed they were cheated by him. [8]

DeLay was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1978. He struggled with alcoholism during his service there. By his own admission, he was drinking "eight, ten, twelve martinis a night at receptions and fundraisers." [9]

DeLay became a born-again Christian in 1985, following the battle with alcoholism that had plagued his life. After his wife Christine DeLay began volunteering as a court-appointed special advocate for children in foster care, the DeLays also became foster parents. DeLay has declined to comment on reports in The New Yorker that he is estranged from much of his family, including his mother and one of his brothers. [10] According to The Washington Post, DeLay has not spoken to his younger brother, Randy, a Houston lobbyist, since 1996, when a complaint to the House Ethics Committee prompted Tom DeLay to cut his brother off in order to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest. [11]

DeLay was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1984, representing the Texas 22nd congressional district, which includes Sugar Land (map), after his predecessor, libertarian Republican Ron Paul, stepped down, citing his support for the concept of term limits (though Paul would return to Congress in 1996 as a representative of Texas's 14th district).

As a member of the Republican minority in the 1980s, DeLay made a name for himself by criticizing the National Endowment for the Arts and the Environmental Protection Agency. He also served for a time as chairman of a group of Republican conservative members of the House known as the Republican Study Committee.

DeLay was appointed deputy whip by then-Minority Whip Dick Cheney in 1988. When the Republican Party gained control of the House in 1995 following the 1994 election, DeLay was elected Majority Whip against the wishes of Speaker-elect Newt Gingrich.

DeLay was not always on good terms with either Gingrich or Dick Armey, the House Majority Leader; he considered them uncommitted to "Christian values", and in 1997 DeLay tried to upstage Gingrich. Nevertheless, in the heyday of the 104th Congress (1995-1997), DeLay described the Republican leadership as a triumvirate of Gingrich ("the visionary"), Armey ("the policy wonk"), and himself ("the ditch digger who makes it all happen"). [12]

As Majority Whip, DeLay earned the nickname "The Hammer" for his enforcement of party discipline in close votes and his reputation for wreaking political vengeance on opponents. DeLay has expressed a like for his nickname, pointing out that the hammer is one of a carpenter's most valuable tools . In the 104th Congress, DeLay successfully whipped 300 out of 303 bills. ^{Citation needed}

Defense of Dan Quayle

In 1988, when questions were raised about Republican vice-presidential nominee Dan Quayle's alleged use of family connections to get into the Indiana National Guard and thus to avoid possible combat service in the Vietnam War, DeLay reportedly defended Quayle by saying that he had tried to enlist himself at the same age, but was told ethnic minorities had already filled most of the available positions. [13]

No one close to DeLay could say he made other attempts to serve, and later The Washington Post reported that he had received student deferments while at Baylor, received a high lottery number in 1969 and then got married prior to his 1970 graduation from the University of Houston.

DeLay was able to keep his student deferment after he was asked by the dean to sit out a semester at Baylor University, which he attended from 1965 to 1967. Instead of taking the time off, DeLay got married and enrolled at the University of Houston, where he graduated in 1970. [14]

Contributions from Russian oil executives

In December 2005, the Washington Post reported that a group of Russian oil executives gave money to a non-profit advocacy group linked to DeLay and to lobbyist Jack Abramoff in an attempt to influence his vote on a 1998 International Monetary Fund bailout of the Russian economy. [15] Associates of DeLay advisor Ed Buckham, the founder of the U.S. Family Network, said that executives from the oil firm Naftasib offered a donation of $1,000,000 cash to be delivered to a Washington, D.C.-area airport in order to secure DeLay's support. On June 25 1998, the U.S. Family Network received a $1 million check via money transferred through the London law firm James & Sarch Co. This payment was the largest single entry on U.S. Family Network's donor list. The original source of the donation is not recorded. [16] DeLay denied that the payment had influenced his vote. Naftasib denied that it had made the payment and that it had ever been represented by James & Sarch Co. The now-dissolved law firm's former partners declined to comment due to confidentiality requirements.

Settlement in civil suit

In early 1999, as the House vote on impeaching president Bill Clinton approached (a vote DeLay had worked very hard to ensure would succeed), Anne-Louise Bardach [17] at The New Republic picked up a story first reported by Houston-area alternative weeklies ([18]) alleging that DeLay himself had committed perjury during a civil lawsuit brought against him by a former business partner in 1994.

The plaintiff in that suit, Robert Blankenship, charged that DeLay and a third partner in Albo Pest Control had breached the partnership agreement by trying to force him out of the business without buying him out, and filed suit against DeLay, charging him and the other partner with breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, wrongful termination, loss of corporate expectancy, and injunctive relief. While being deposed in that suit, DeLay claimed that he didn't think he was an officer or director of Albo and believed he had resigned two or three years ago. [19] Yet his own congressional disclosure forms, including one filed subsequent to the deposition state that he was either president or chairman of the company between 1985 and 1994. The plaintiff also alleged that Albo money had been spent on DeLay's congressional campaigns, in violation of federal and state law.

DeLay and Blankenship settled for an undisclosed sum, and Blankenship's attorney told Bardach that had he known about the congressional disclosure forms, he would have referred the case to the Harris County district attorney's office for a perjury prosecution. These allegations have never been investigated and DeLay has never been charged with a crime in connection with this case.

After serving as whip for eight years, DeLay was elected Majority Leader upon the retirement of Dick Armey in 2002. His tenure as Majority Leader has been marked by strong Republican party discipline in close votes, and the use of parliamentary political techniques to preserve his party's control of the House.

After being indicted on September 28 2005, DeLay stepped down from his position as House majority leader. DeLay was the first House leader in over 100 years to be indicted. Rep. Roy Blunt of Missouri took over as acting leader. [20] On January 7 2006, after weeks of growing pressure by Republican colleagues, most notably Reps. Charlie Bass (NH) and Jeff Flake (AZ), who were fearful of being associated with his legal issues in an election year, DeLay announced that he would not seek to regain his position as Majority Leader.

Legislative and electoral methods

DeLay was known to "primary" Republicans who resisted his votes (i.e., to threaten to endorse and to support a Republican primary challenge to the disobedient representative), and, like many of his predecessors in Congress, DeLay used promises of future committee chairmanships to bargain for support among the rank-and-file members of the party.

Employing a method known as "catch and release," DeLay allowed centrist or moderate conservative Republicans to take turns voting against controversial bills. If a representative said that a bill was unpopular in his district, then DeLay would ask him to vote for it only if his vote were necessary for passage; if his vote were not needed, then the representative would be able to vote against the party without reprisal.

In the 108th Congress, a preliminary Medicare vote passed 216-215, a vote on Head Start passed 217-216, a vote on school vouchers for Washington, D.C. passed 209-208, and "Fast track," usually called "trade promotion authority", passed by one vote as well. Both political supporters and opponents remarked on DeLay's ability to sway the votes of his party.

DeLay was also noted for involving lobbyists in the process of passing House bills. Lou Dubose and Jan Reid wrote a critical biography of DeLay, The Hammer, that quoted a lobbyist as saying, "I've had members pull me aside and ask me to talk to another member of Congress about a bill or amendment, but I've never been asked to work on a bill - at least like they are asking us to whip bills now." (93)

Like many successful incumbents, DeLay's ability to raise money gave him additional influence. During the 2004 election cycle, DeLay raised $2.91 million. [21] Partly as a result of DeLay's management abilities, the House Republican caucus under him displayed unprecedented, sustained party cohesion. ^{Citation needed}

Domestic policy

In 2001, DeLay defied President George W. Bush when DeLay refused to increase the Earned Income Credit welfare entitlement during the congressional battle over Bush's tax cuts to people making between $10,500 and $26,625 a year; when reporters asked DeLay about what he would do about increasing the EIC, DeLay simply stated "[it] ain't going to happen." When Bush's press secretary Ari Fleischer reiterated the president's desire for a low-income tax cut, DeLay retorted "the last time I checked they [the executive branch] don't have a vote." [22]

On economic policy, DeLay was most recently rated a 95 out of 100 by Americans for Tax Reform, the lobbying group founded by Grover Norquist, and 95 to 100 by the United States Chamber of Commerce, a business lobby. On environmental policy, he earned ratings of 0 from the Sierra Club and League of Conservation Voters. He has been a fervent critic of the EPA, which he has called the "Gestapo of government". [23] DeLay also sided with business owners over labor unions and is for gun rights in the gun politics debate. The ACLU measured that his voting history aligned with their civil liberties platform 2% of the time. [24]

DeLay blamed Senate Democrats and what he dubbed "BANANA (Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anything) environmentalists" for blocking legislative solutions to problems such as the 2003 North America blackout. [25]

DeLay maintained public neutrality on Houston's 2003 METRORail light rail initiative. Public filings later showed that DeLay had his Americans for a Republican Majority Political Action Committee (ARMPAC) and his congressional campaign committee send money to Texans for True Mobility, a group advocating more debate and discussion on the issue. Despite DeLay's efforts, the proposal passed by a slim margin. [26] [27] Following the passage of the initiative, DeLay helped obtain funding for the light rail program. [28]

In 2005, DeLay voted 100% in line with the views of the National Right-to-Life Committee and 0% with the National Abortion Reproductive Rights Action League.

DeLay supported the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005. Critics of this law argued that it unduly favors creditors over consumers, and have stated that the credit card industry spent millions of dollars lobbying in support of the act.

In 2005, DeLay, acting against the president's wishes, initiated the "safe harbor" provision for MTBE in the Energy Policy Act of 2005, together with Rep. Joe Barton. [29] [30] This provision would have retroactively protected the makers of the gasoline additive from lawsuits. The provision was dropped from the final bill.

Foreign policy

DeLay has been a strong supporter of the State of Israel, saying, "The Republican leadership, especially that leadership in the House, has made pro-Israel policy a fundamental component of our foreign policy agenda and it drives the Democrat [sic] leadership crazy — because they just can’t figure out why we do it!" [31] In a 2002 speech, DeLay promised to "use every tool at my disposal to ensure that the Republican Conference, and the House of Representatives, continues to preserve and strengthen America's alliance with the State of Israel." [32]

On a 2003 trip to Israel, DeLay toured the nation and addressed members of the Knesset. His opposition to land concessions is so strong that Israel's conservative National Union Party deputy Aryeh Eldad remarked, "as I shook his hand, I told Tom DeLay that until I heard him speak, I thought I was farthest to the right in the Knesset." [33] Former Mossad chief Danny Yatom said "The Likud is nothing compared to this guy." (The Hammer, 236)

In 2005, in a snub to the Bush administration, DeLay was the "driving force behind the rejection of direct aid" to the Palestinian Authority. The deal was "brokered" by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. In the wake of the legislation, some Jewish leaders expressed concern "about the degree to which the Texas Republican, an evangelical Christian who opposes the creation of a Palestinian state, will go to undercut American and Israeli attempts to achieve a two-state solution." [34]

Accusations of misuse of federal investigative agencies

During the Texas redistricting warrant controversy, several Democratic members of the Texas House of Representatives fled the state in order to prevent the House from establishing a quorum of members, thereby preventing the House from acting on any legislation. Although not a member of the Texas legislature, DeLay became involved, by contacting:

• Three Federal Aviation Administration offices (in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Fort Worth, Texas and Washington, D.C.)
• Four Federal Bureau of Investigation offices (in Dallas, Texas, Corpus Christi, Texas, Austin, Texas and Ardmore, Oklahoma)
• Two United States Marshal offices (in the Western and Northern Districts of Texas)
• The United States Attorney's office in San Antonio, Texas
• The Office of Legislative Affairs at the United States Department of Justice
• The Air and Marine Interdiction Coordination Center (in Riverside, California)

U.S. Senator Joseph Lieberman requested an investigation into the Congressman's involvement in the requests, and asked that any White House involvement be reported. The House Ethics Committee unanimously admonished DeLay for these actions.

The K Street Project

Main article: K Street Project

DeLay's involvement with the lobbying industry also included a pointed effort on the part of the Republican Party to parlay the Congressional majority into dominance of K Street, the famed lobbying district of Washington, D.C. DeLay, Senator Rick Santorum, and Norquist launched a campaign in 1995 encouraging lobbying firms to retain Republican officials in top positions. Firms that had Democrats in positions of authority, DeLay suggested, would not be granted the ear of Majority Party members. Firms initially responded to this campaign, but it waned during 2004, when the possibility of Senator John Kerry's winning the presidency gave some incentive for hiring Democrats.

Terri Schiavo

Main article: Terri Schiavo

DeLay made headlines for his role in the Terri Schiavo controversy. On Palm Sunday weekend in March 2005, several days after the brain-damaged Florida woman's feeding tube was disconnected for the third time, DeLay and other House members met in emergency session to pass a bill allowing Schiavo's parents to petition the removal of the feeding tube to a federal judge. DeLay called the removal of the feeding tube "an act of barbarism." DeLay faced accusations of hypocrisy from critics when the Los Angeles Times revealed that he had consented to ending the life support for his own father, who was in a comatose state because of a debilitating accident in 1988. [35]

DeLay was accused of stirring up controversy in the wake of a series of high-profile violent crimes and death threats against judges when he said that "the men responsible [for Terri Schiavo's death] will have to answer to their behavior." DeLay's comments came soon after the February 28 2005 homicide of the mother and husband of Chicago Judge Joan Lefkow, and the March 11 2005 killing of Atlanta Judge Rowland Barnes. DeLay's opponents accused him of rationalizing violence against judges when their decisions were unpopular with the public. Ralph Neas, President of the liberal People for the American Way, said that DeLay's comments were "irresponsible and could be seen by some as justifying inexcusable conduct against our courts." [36] DeLay publicly apologized for the remark after being accused of threatening the Supreme Court.

In May 2005, the hit NBC television drama Law & Order: Criminal Intent used DeLay's name in a negative way. On the show, Detective Alexandra Eames, investigating homicides of several judges, said, "Maybe we should put out an APB for somebody in a Tom DeLay T-Shirt." The show was apparently referring to the comments DeLay made about Supreme Court justices during the Terri Schiavo controversy. DeLay responded by writing to Jeff Zucker, president of Universal Television Group: "This manipulation of my name and trivialization of the sensitive issue of judicial security represents a reckless disregard for the suffering initiated by recent tragedies and a great disservice to public discourse." The producer of the show, Dick Wolf, replied that "these shows are works of fiction." Wolf also commented, "But I do congratulate Congressman DeLay for switching the spotlight from his own problems to an episode of a television show." [37]

Cuban cigar photograph

DeLay has long been a strong critic of Cuban leader Fidel Castro, and a supporter of the trade embargo against Cuba. In April 2005, Time Magazine published a photo from a July 2003 trip to Israel. In the photo, DeLay is seen smoking a Cuban cigar. [38] The consumption or purchase of Cuban cigars is illegal in the United States, but legal in Israel. At the time, smoking a Cuban cigar abroad was legal for U.S. citizens. Since September 2004, the U.S. Treasury Department's enforcement of the law has been toughened to forbid consumption or purchase of Cuban cigars by U.S. citizens anywhere in the world. [39]

Jack Abramoff

Main article: Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal

DeLay received gifts from Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff, including paid golfing holidays to Scotland, concert tickets, and the use of Abramoff's private skyboxes for fundraisers. Abramoff has since pleaded guilty to federal charges in an influence-peddling investigation. Robert Novak reports that Jack Abramoff "has no derogatory information about former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and is not implicating him as part of his plea bargain with federal prosecutors."[40]

The Associated Press reported on April 7 2005:

DeLay's political action committee did not reimburse lobbyist Jack Abramoff for the May 2000 use of the skybox, instead treating it as a type of donation that didn't have to be disclosed to election regulators at the time.

The skybox donation, valued at thousands of dollars, came just three weeks before DeLay accepted a trip to Europe, including golf with Abramoff at the world-famous St Andrews course for himself, his wife and aides that was underwritten by some of the lobbyist's clients.

Two months after the concert and trip, DeLay voted against gambling legislation opposed by some of Abramoff's Indian tribe clients. [41]

DeLay may be one of the targets of the Justice Department investigation into Abramoff's actions. Abramoff referred clients to the Alexander Strategy Group, the lobbying firm for which Christine DeLay worked from 1998 to 2002, allegedly in exchange for political favors from her husband. [42]

On January 10 2006, The Associated Press reported that in 2001, DeLay co-signed a letter to U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft calling for the closure of a casino owned by the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas. Two weeks earlier, the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, one of Abramoff's clients, had donated $1,000 to DeLay's Texans for a Republican Majority PAC (TRMPAC). [43] Currently, and at the time of the letter, casinos or other private gambling establishments are illegal in Texas, even on Indian reservations. [44] In fact, the U.S. law, Ysleta del Sur Pueblo and Alabama-Coushatta Tribes of Texas Restoration Act in 1987 [45], which reinstated the rights of the Alabama-Coushatta and other Texas tribes has a specific section denying those tribes the right to violate Texas gaming law. [46]

Northern Mariana Island legislation

According to ABC's 20/20 television program, Abramoff lobbied DeLay to stop legislation banning sex shops and sweatshops that force employees to have abortions in the Northern Mariana Islands when Abramoff accompanied DeLay on a 1997 trip to the commonwealth. While on the trip, DeLay promised not to put the bill on the legislative calendar.

In 2000, Frank Murkowski, a conservative Republican senator from Alaska, compelled the U.S. Senate to unanimously pass the Murkowski worker reform bill to extend the protection of U.S. labor and minimum-wage laws to the workers in the U.S. territory of the Northern Marianas. DeLay, then the House Republican Whip, stopped the House from even considering Murkowski's bill. [47]

DeLay later blocked a fact-finding mission planned by Rep. Peter Hoekstra by threatening Hoekstra with the loss of his subcommittee chairmanship. [48]

Main article: Tom DeLay corruption investigation

In the reapportionment following the 1990 census, Texas Democrats drew what Republican political analyst Michael Barone argued was the most effective partisan gerrymander in the country. The Democrats won 70 percent of the Texas congressional seats in 1992, the first year in which the new districts were in effect, while taking half of the total number of votes cast for Congress statewide. After the 2000 census, Republicans sought to redraw the district lines to support a GOP majority in the congressional delegation while Democrats desired to retain a plan similar to the existing lines. The two parties reached an impasse in the Texas Legislature, where Republicans controlled the Senate and Democrats controlled the House. As a result the new district lines were drawn by a three judge federal court panel that made as few changes as possible while adding the two new seats.

In 2001 the Texas Legislative Redistricting Board (a panel composed of the state's Lieutenant Governor, Comptroller, Speaker of the House, Attorney-General, and Land Commissioner) redrew state legislative districts in accordance with the census. The new map that was adopted by the Republican-dominated board gave the GOP an edge in winning the Texas House of Representatives, still controlled at that time by the Democrats. During the 2002 elections under these new maps, DeLay aggressively fundraised for Republican candidates under TRMPAC. It has since been alleged that TRMPAC was used to funnel illegal corporate donations into the campaigns of Republican candidates for State Representative.

The GOP victories in 2002 resulted in their control of the Texas House in addition to the Senate. As a result, the Texas Legislature was called into session in 2003 to redistrict the state's congressional lines in favor of the Republican Party. A number of Democrats left the state, going to Oklahoma, and later New Mexico, to deny a quorum for voting, but they eventually returned, and the legislation passed.

On May 26 2005, a Texas judge ruled that a committee formed by DeLay had violated state law by not disclosing over $600,000 worth of fundraising money, mostly from the credit card industry, including $25,000 from Sears, Roebuck & Co. [49], and $50,000 from Diversified Collections Services of San Leandro, California. [50] Five Texas congressional seats changed hands from Democrats to Republicans during the 2004 elections, in part because of the new redistricting. [51]

On September 30 2004, the House Ethics Committee unanimously admonished DeLay because he "offered to endorse Representative [Nick] Smith's son in exchange for Representative Smith's vote in favor of the Medicare bill." [52]

On October 6 2004, the House Ethics Committee unanimously admonished DeLay on two counts. The first count stated that DeLay "created the appearance that donors were being provided with special access to Representative DeLay regarding the then-pending energy legislation." The second count said that DeLay "used federal resources in a political issue" by asking the Federal Aviation Administration and U.S. Department of Justice to help track Texas legislators during the battle over Texas redistricting. [53] At the time of the latter admonishment, the House Ethics committee deferred action on another count related to fundraising while that matter was subject to state criminal action. That state investigation eventually led to the felony indictment on September 28 2005.

In 2005, the Federal Elections Commission audited ARMPAC, DeLay's political action committee. The FEC found that ARMPAC had failed to report $322,306 in debts owed to vendors, and that it had incorrectly paid for some committee expenses using funds from an account designated for non-federal elections. The FEC also found that ARMPAC had misstated the balances of its receipts and ending cash-on-hand for 2001, and of its receipts, disbursements, and beginning and ending cash-on-hand for 2002. ARMPAC corrected the omission of the debts in amended reports, and is reviewing the portion of the audit dealing with incorrect payment for expenses. [54]

Grand jury indictments

On September 8 2005, a federal grand jury indicted Texans for a Republican Majority, which allegedly accepted an illegal political contribution of $100,000 from the Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care, and the Texas Association of Business on four indictments, including charges of unlawful political advertising, unlawful contributions to a political committee and unlawful expenditures such as those to a graphics company and political candidates. [55]

On September 13 2005, a federal grand jury indicted ARMPAC's executive director Jim Ellis and TRMPAC's former executive director John Colyandro, who already faced charges of money laundering in the case, as well as 13 counts of unlawful acceptance of a corporate political contribution. [56]

On September 28 2005, a Travis County grand jury operating under Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle indicted DeLay for conspiring to violate Texas state election law stemming from issues dealing with his involvement in Texans for a Republican Majority. Texas law prohibits corporate contributions in state legislative races. The indictment charged that Texans for a Republican Majority accepted corporate contributions, laundered the money through the Republican National Committee, and directed it to favored Republican candidates in Texas. DeLay had waived his rights under the statutes of limitations, which had expired in the summer of 2005.

On September 30 2005, in response to a motion to dismiss his initial indictment, Earle sought a second indictment of DeLay from a second grand jury. That jury refused to indict. Contrary to normal Texas procedure, a "no bill" document was not publicly released, and no public announcement was made regarding the result until after Earle had presented evidence to a third grand jury and obtained an indictment.

On October 3 2005, a Monday, Earle sought and received a new indictment of DeLay from a third grand jury in Austin on charges of conspiracy and money laundering. The maximum sentence for money laundering under Texas law is a life sentence. The next day, in a written statement, Earle publicly admitted "that prosecutors presented their case to three grand juries — not just the two they had discussed — and one grand jury refused to indict DeLay. When questions arose about whether the state's conspiracy statute applied to the first indictment returned last Wednesday, prosecutors presented a new money-laundering charge to (a) second grand jury on Friday because the term of the initial grand jury had expired. Lawyers for DeLay immediately called foul after Earle released his statement after 5 p.m. Tuesday." [57]

On October 7 2005, DeLay's attorneys filed a motion in court to have the latest indictment thrown out, charging that Earle coerced the grand jury and illegally discussed grand jury information and encouraged others to do the same. [58]

On October 19 2005, a Texas court issued a warrant for DeLay's arrest, setting initial bail at US $10,000. DeLay surrendered at the Harris County, Texas jail the next day, was booked, was photographed, was fingerprinted, and posted a $10,000 bond. He appeared in court on October 21 2005. [59]

On November 1 2005 DeLay prevailed in a motion to remove assigned Travis County judge Bob Perkins from the case. Perkins had donated to Democratic candidates and organizations, including MoveOn.org. DeLay's attorneys argued Perkins could not be publicly perceived as impartial under the circumstances. DeLay is also attempting to have the venue changed from Democratic-leaning Travis County.

On November 3 2005 Pat Priest, a "semi-retired" judge, was chosen to preside over the case. Priest is also a Democrat. [60] On November 22 2005 DeLay filed a motion to dismiss the charges against him. [61] On December 5 2005 Judge Priest dismissed one count (conspiracy to violate election law), but let stand two counts alleging money laundering and conspiracy to commit money laundering. [62].

Indictments of associates

DeLay's indictment occurred along with that of two associates, John Colyandro, TRMPAC's former executive director, and Jim Ellis, who was the head of ARMPAC at the time. The charges were brought before the grand jury by Earle.

Joe Turner, who represents Colyandro, has said that he does not want a jury trial in Austin, because he believes that "DeLay and Republicans are hated [there]". [63]

The indictment charges that DeLay, Colyandro and Ellis conspired to pass corporate contributions to candidates for the Texas legislature in violation of Texas campaign finance law. Allegedly, several corporations made contributions to TRMPAC. The indictment charged that TRMPAC then sent a check for $190,000 to the Republican National Committee, made payable to "RNSEC" (the Republican National State Elections Committee), along with a list of state-level Republican candidates who should receive the money. According to the indictment, the Republican candidates in Texas did in fact receive the money so designated. [64]

The indictment was issued by a grand jury of Texas citizens. Grand jury foreman William Gibson said that there were "stacks and stacks" of evidence and, "As far as we're concerned, they presented us enough evidence and witnesses that we felt we were on the right track. I would not have put my name on that grand-jury indictment unless I felt we had ample probable cause." [65]

Gibson told KLBJ Radio in an interview that he had made up his mind to indict DeLay before he heard the grand jury evidence, because he did not like DeLay's newspaper ads from the Texas Business Association. (audio and transcript)

Earle's investigation of DeLay is the subject of an upcoming documentary, which was filmed with Earle's cooperation over the past two years, before DeLay was notified of the charges. [66] [67] [68]

Terry Nelson was named in the money laundering indictment against DeLay, though he was not charged. Nelson was the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Republican National Committee in 2002. Nelson went on to become George W. Bush's national political director in 2004. On March 20 2006, Senator John McCain appointed Nelson to be a senior advisor to his political committee, the Straight Talk America PAC. [69]

Reaction to indictments

DeLay blasted the charges as a "sham" and an act of "political retribution," perpetuated by his opponents. He added, "I have done nothing wrong, I have violated no law, no regulation, no rule of the House." [70]

Earle, a Democrat, has indicted both Democratic and Republican office-holders in Texas, including an unsuccessful 1993 investigation of Republican Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison on charges of official misconduct and records tampering. DeLay and his attorney, Dick DeGeurin, have said that Earle has a history of indicting his political enemies.

Because of Republican party rules regarding leadership and indictments, DeLay stepped down from his position as House Majority Leader, while he retains his seat representing Texas' 22nd congressional district. White House spokesman Scott McClellan commented by saying that President Bush still viewed DeLay as "a good ally, a leader who we have worked closely with to get things done for the American people." On January 7 2006, DeLay announced that he would not seek to return to his position as Majority Leader.

DeLay's lawyers have asserted that there are various problems with the indictments. On October 3 2005, DeLay's lawyers filed a motion to get the indictment of conspiracy to violate election law thrown out as fraudulent, claiming it was a violation of the U.S. Constitution's ban on ex-post facto applications of law. DeLay's lawyers claim that, in 2002, the crime of conspiracy did not apply to Texas election law. However, George Dix, a professor of law at the University of Texas at Austin, believes that charges of criminal conspiracy could legally be applied to any felony (including violation of election law) committed prior to the 2003 law, and characterized the 2003 change cited by DeLay's lawyers as a clarification of existing law, stating "It isn't unheard of — the Legislature passing a law to make clear what the law is." [71]

While the Texas Penal Code defines laundered money only as money gained as the "proceeds of criminal activity," DeLay's lawyers maintain the corporate donations came from normal and legal business activity. Stuart Roy, a GOP consultant and former DeLay aide, criticized the second charge, saying, "Ronnie Earle may truly be the Elmer Fudd of politics."

Texas Penal Code Chapter 34:02 [72]

§ 34.02. MONEY LAUNDERING. (a) A person commits an offense if the person knowingly

(1) acquires or maintains an interest in, receives, conceals, possesses, transfers, or transports the proceeds of criminal activity

(2) conducts, supervises, or facilitates a transaction involving the proceeds of criminal activity; or

(3) invests, expends, or receives, or offers to invest, expend, or receive, the proceeds of criminal activity or funds that the person believes are the proceeds of criminal activity.

Later, when two liberal groups planned to air a 30 second political advertisement about DeLay, he threatened to sue any television stations that aired the ad. As news of this began to surface, liberal bloggers called DeLay's move an attempt to coerce the media. [73]

DeLay easily won the Republican primary on March 7 2006, taking 62% of the vote in the 4-way race, his lowest showing in a primary. [74] DeLay outspent his closest opponent (Tom Campbell) by a 400-1 proportion.

Nevertheless, on April 3 2006, DeLay announced that he would not run for re-election. [75] He said that he would likely resign from his position in May or June 2006 [76]. DeLay said that he planned to move to a house he owns in Virginia near Washington, D.C. [77]

• Dubose, Lou; & Reid, Jan (2004). The Hammer: Tom DeLay: God, Money, and the Rise of the Republican Congress. PublicAffairs. ISBN 1586482386.

Majority Leaders of the United States House of Representatives
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	Texas Congressional Delegation serving in the 109th United States Congress
Senators	Kay Bailey Hutchison (R), John Cornyn (R)
Representative(s)	Louie Gohmert (R), Ted Poe (R), Sam Johnson (R), Ralph Hall (R), Jeb Hensarling (R), Joe Barton (R), John Culberson (R), Kevin Brady (R), Al Green (D), Michael McCaul (R), Mike Conaway (R), Kay Granger (R), Mac Thornberry (R), Ron Paul (R), Rubén Hinojosa (D), Silvestre Reyes (D), Chet Edwards (D), Sheila Jackson Lee (D), Randy Neugebauer (R), Charlie Gonzalez (D), Lamar S. Smith (R), Tom DeLay (R), Henry Bonilla (R), Kenny Marchant (R), Lloyd Doggett (D), Michael C. Burgess (R), Solomon P. Ortiz (D), Henry Cuellar (D), Gene Green (D), Eddie Bernice Johnson (D), John Carter (R), Pete Sessions (R)
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Preceded by: David Bonior	House Majority Whip 1995–2003	Succeeded by: Roy Blunt
Preceded by: Newt Gingrich	House Republican Whip 1995–2003	Succeeded by: Roy Blunt
Preceded by: Richard K. Armey	House Majority Leader 2003–06; interim Roy Blunt 2005-06	Succeeded by: John Boehner