It’s a relatively minor point, but I’ve seen several news reports explain that Tom DeLay has been rebuked by the House Ethics Committee three times. That’s not quite accurate — he was reprimanded three times last year, but there have been five admonishments over DeLay’s House career.
* In 1997, the Ethics Committee rebuked DeLay, warning him that his fundraising pitches created the impression that campaign contributions would bring “official action or access.”
* In 1999, the Ethics Committee chastised DeLay for threatening a Washington trade association, the Electronic Industries Alliance, with retaliation last year for hiring a Democrat as its president. The House was poised to consider implementation of an international treaty the trade association had requested, but DeLay used his influence to scuttle the treaty — just to show the EIA who’s boss.
* In 2004, the Ethics Committee admonished DeLay for offering a political favor to then-Rep. Nick Smith (R-Mich.) in exchange for his vote on Bush’s Medicare bill. It’s a violation of House rules for a member to “offer or link support for the personal interests of another member as part of a quid pro quo to achieve a legislative goal.”
* A week later, the Ethics Committee rebuked DeLay twice in one day, one for his role in misusing the FAA for partisan purposes and another for staging a fundraising event in a way that appeared to link access to him with political donations.
This, of course, does not include ethical transgressions for which DeLay was investigated but that the committee didn’t pursue due to lack of evidence. It also doesn’t include the ongoing investigation into DeLay’s Abramoff-financed golf trip, which will very likely lead to a sixth formal rebuke.
And these are just the ethics violations, unrelated to DeLay’s criminal conspiracy charge brought by a Texas grand jury yesterday.
Something to keep in mind when considering the judgment of House Republicans who unanimously chose Tom DeLay as their leader.