DeLay Resigns

Okay, while it is not specifically related to Iowa, it is specifically related to Progress, so it is going on the Blog.

Just a few minutes ago the AP reported that former House Majority Leader Tom Delay (R-TX) announced today that he is resigning from the House of Representatives. The stated reason is that his reelection campaign was more difficult and more costly than he was prepared for (although he was sure to note that he thought he could’ve won, and of course, it was those pesky Liberals’ faults for being so darn negative).

And now for the spin: Republicans say that they were expecting DeLay to resign later this spring, and that he served our country well, blah, blah, blah. DeLay denied that his resignation has anything to do with lobbyist Jack Abramoff or his recent conviction.

“I know that the left has used it to try to brand me with guilt by association, but I have always served honorably and ethically,” DeLay said. “I’ve never broken the law or the spirit of the law or even a House rule.”

Democrats are of course calling this a huge victory, stressing that this goes beyond DeLay and has greater implications for the Republican Party.

“Tom DeLay’s decision to leave Congress is just the latest piece of evidence that the Republican Party is a party in disarray, a party out of ideas and out of energy,” said Bill Burton, a spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

DeLay has been plagued by scandal lately, not only in connection to Abramoff. DeLay’s aide, Tony Rudy, has confessed to conspiring with Abramoff and committing illegal actions while working for DeLay. In September DeLay stepped down as House Majority Leader after being indicted in Texas for illegally steering funds from corporate donors to Texas legislative candidates.

No word yet on whether there will be a special election held in Texas or if the seat will remain vacant until the elections in November.

So long, Mr. Hammer.

1 comment April 4th, 2006

News Roundup

Well, we didn’t announce this two weeks ago as perhaps we should’ve, but Grinnell has been on Spring Break since then, and it has meant that our coverage is a little less than usual. (And, when I say “usual,” I’m basing it on our one week of good coverage.)

Still, here are some stories we’ll be watching as more of us get back to campus in the next day or two:

• The “tax on coolness” (Vilsack’s cigarette tax increase) is stalled. Everybody but me seemed to like the idea, but it turns out that house Republicans agree with me that regressive taxes are bad and that we can find other ways to finance a solid health care system that everyone has access to. Or maybe they have different reasons…
• Jim Nussle is under investigation by the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board. The allegations have something to do with not reporting funds from Nussle’s congressional campaign account that were spent on his gubernatorial bid. Whether or not these are really terrible charges, the current political climate could mean that any proof of wrongdoing — even on a really small scale — will devastate him. (The party also blogged about this.)
• Iowans protest the terrible right-wing immigration bill in Washington and, more notably, in Marshalltown. The Marshalltown protest included 80 middle and high school students, which seems really cool. Less cool: “[Marshalltown Police Chief] Walker said he didn’t know what the signs said because they were in Spanish and he has no Spanish-speaking officers.” And if they do it again, it sounds like he’s going to arrest them.
• And the Register likes to think that Iowa’s house races are the awesomest in the country. That sounds exciting!

Our coverage will get better again soon, we promise.

Add comment March 31st, 2006