A collective sigh of relief came from much of the country when Tom DeLay came under indictment and he was forced to give up his post as House Majority Leader. Speculation quickly moved to identifying which Republicans would fill the power vacuum.
As it turns out, the conjecture was unnecessary; DeLay may have lost his title, but he still has largely the same power he had before.
When the chairman of the House Appropriations Committee needed guidance on how to prepare for a series of tough spending and budget issues, he sat down with Tom DeLay.
Mr. DeLay was also on hand as the Budget Committee chairman held a private session on the drive for new spending cuts. And when the Republican leadership was caught short of votes for a contentious energy bill, Mr. DeLay scoured the House floor to help deliver a narrow victory.
While Mr. DeLay is officially out of his position as majority leader because of his indictment on criminal charges in Texas, he remains the go-to guy for many House Republicans. […]
“DeLay is driving the agenda,” said one senior Republican lawmaker who did not want to be identified because of the sensitivity of talking about internal party matters. “I guess he has to be because he is the only guy who can get this done. But once people find out he is still in charge, that brings its own set of issues.” (emphasis added)
Well, yes, it does bring its own set of issues. The GOP caucus decided, on its own, to remove from leadership positions lawmakers who are under indictment. DeLay is facing three criminal charges, one of which (money laundering) could put him behind bars for life.
House Republicans, in other words, seem to have no qualms about a man accused of multiple felonies, on top of his multiple admonishments for ethics violations, and on top of scandals that may yet yield more indictments, to lead and direct their caucus.
It’s as if the GOP simply doesn’t care about tainting their agenda at all. They’re still playing the let’s-see-what-we-can-get-away-with game.
At least, that is, most of them don’t seem to care. A select few who aren’t terrified of DeLay are cautiously raising the points that the rest of the caucus is afraid to say out loud.
“I think there’s a nervousness and anxiety under the surface,” said Rep. Ray LaHood (R-Ill.). “We’re going to muddle through the rest of this legislative session and keep our heads down.”
LaHood said members were taking a “wait and see” attitude toward the current leadership structure. Without specifically mentioning DeLay, the outspoken Republican expressed concern that a temporary fix sent the wrong message to voters.
“I think it’s a poor reflection of our conference,” LaHood said. “It’s a continuation of a very negative message on the part of our leadership.”
It is, but what are House Republicans prepared to do about it? If they know having DeLay unofficially lead after his indictments is a problem, who will stand up and demand change?
I don’t think any of the lawmakers in a position of influence (sorry, Chris Shays) have the courage, but I’d like to be proven wrong.