Tom DeLay Cleared, Democrat Smear Machine Hardest Hit

Don't expect blaring headlines over this development, especially since it's one of those evil Republican bogeymen who's been cleared in a federal investigation.

The Justice Department has informed former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) that the government has ended a six-year investigation of his ties to the disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, according to DeLay's lead counsel in the matter, Richard Cullen, chairman of McGuireWoods.

The investigation lasted through two presidents and four attorneys general. Its demise provides a stark footnote to the lobbying scandals that helped Democrats regain the House majority they held for 40 years and lost in the Republican revolution of 1994, which eventually made the pugnacious DeLay one of Washington’s top power brokers.

“The federal investigation of Tom DeLay is over, and there will be no charges,” Cullen said. “This was one of the longest and expensive and thorough investigations in recent memory. DeLay took a tack right from the start that he had nothing to hide, and we have been in a routine and constant dialogue with [prosecutors].

“I’m sure he wishes it didn’t take six years of his life, with a cloud hanging over him. I am pleased with the outcome. They just took longer than we would have preferred. He said he was gratified and thanked us.”

Cullen said he was pleased there were no leaks from the government as the investigation ground on. “They played fair,” he said.

The Justice Department does not comment publicly on investigations where charges are not brought. But Cullen said a prosecutor from the department’s Public Integrity Section telephoned him with the news last week and said he was free to make it public.

Cullen said investigators talked to witnesses and checked documents overseas and had an “extremely active grand jury” that heard testimony from former aides and others.

“In 2005, we voluntarily produced to the prosecutors over 1,000 e-mails and documents from the DeLay office dating back to 1997,” Cullen said.

State charges against DeLay are still pending in Texas but judging by these developments they may well have a very weak case.

Hammer Time! Tom DeLay on 'Dancing With the Stars'

Oh my, the left is going to have a complete meltdown today. We haven't seen much of Tom 'The Hammer' DeLay since he left Congress and this is the last place we thought we'd see him resurface. Can't wait to see the outrageously outraged reaction from his long line of enemies.

Former Republican Majority Leader Tom DeLay will join 15 celebrities from the worlds of entertainment and sports in kicking up their heels on the new season of "Dancing With the Stars.

Other hopefuls include entertainer Donny Osmond; singers Mya, Macy Gray and Aaron Carter; actors Melissa Joan Hart, Debi Mazar and Ashley Hamilton (son of George); models Joanna Krupa and Kathy Ireland; reality stars Kelly Osbourne and Mark Dacascos ("the Chairman" on Food Network's "Iron Chef America"); mixed martial artist Chuck Liddell; professional snowboarder Louie Vito; Olympic swimmer Natalie Coughlin; former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin and the 62-year-old former congressman from Texas.

Some background here on the contestants.

Speaker of Most Ethical Congress Ever Paid Husband With PAC Money

Now the media and Democrats can lump in the disgraced Nancy Pelosi with Jack Abramoff and Tom DeLay. Can't wait to see the endless litany of stories coming before she's driven from office.

Oh wait, she's a Democrat.

Never mind.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has directed nearly $100,000 from her political action committee to her husband's real estate and investment firm over the past decade, a practice of paying a spouse with political donations that she supported banning last year.

Financial Leasing Services Inc. (FLS), owned by Paul F. Pelosi, has received $99,000 in rent, utilities and accounting fees from the speaker's "PAC to the Future" over the PAC's nine-year history.

The payments have quadrupled since Mr. Pelosi took over as treasurer of his wife's committee in 2007, Federal Election Commission records show. FLS is on track to take in $48,000 in payments this year alone - eight times as much as it received annually from 2000 to 2005, when the committee was run by another treasurer.

Lawmakers' frequent use of campaign donations to pay relatives emerged as an issue in the 2006 election campaigns, when the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal gave Democrats fodder to criticize Republicans such as former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay of Texas and Rep. John T. Doolittle of California for putting their wives on their campaign and PAC payrolls for fundraising work.

Last year, Mrs. Pelosi supported a bill that would have banned members of Congress from putting spouses on their campaign staffs. The bill - which passed the House in a voice vote but did not get out of a Senate committee - banned not only direct payments by congressional campaign committees and PACs to spouses for services including consulting and fundraising, but also "indirect compensation," such as payments to companies that employ spouses.

"Democrats are committed to reforming the way Washington does business," Mrs. Pelosi said in a press release at the time. "Congressman [Adam] Schiff's bill will help us accomplish that goal by increasing transparency in election campaigns and preventing the misuse of funds."

Heh. Transparency. it's pretty transparent Pelosi is corrupt and should be removed from office.

But it'll never happen. She has immunity from media scrutiny since she had the D after her name.

No wonder this hack won't touch the even more corrupt Charles Rangel.

Gateway Pundit links. Thanks!

A Little Something Else for Democrats to Whine About

One of their favorite punching bags, Tom DeLay, could soon be cleared of money-laundering charges.

Money-laundering charges against former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay and two indicted co-conspirators may be dismissed because the 2002 campaign finance case involved checks and not cash, a lawyer for DeLay said Sunday night.

"We win," said Dick DeGuerin, DeLay's lawyer, "because there's nothing but checks in the case."

The state's 3rd Court of Appeals on Friday actually upheld the money-laundering indictments against DeLay's two campaign associates, John Colyandro of Austin and Jim Ellis of Washington.

But the ruling contained a silver lining for the trio's lawyers because it concluded that the state's money-laundering statute — written in 1993 to combat illicit drug activity by focusing on the cash in the criminal transactions — did not apply to checks at the time DeLay is accused of laundering corporate money into campaign donations. The Legislature changed the law in 2005 to include checks.

Lawyers for the three defendants have included the check-versus-cash argument in other legal motions. But it was not part of the constitutional challenge that was before the 3rd Court of Appeals, so the appellate court could not dismiss on those grounds, DeGuerin said.

Few people inspire demonic rage in Democrats like DeLay. Hopefully, this really gets under their skin.

How Did Karl Rove Pull This One Off???

(Reuters) - Texas' highest criminal court upheld on Wednesday the dismissal of a campaign finance conspiracy charge that contributed to the political fall of Republican Tom DeLay, but he still may face trial on two other felony counts.

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals refused to reinstate a charge thrown out by a lower court that DeLay and two associates conspired to violate Texas election law by funneling corporate money to Republican state legislature candidates in 2002.

Corporate political donations are forbidden under Texas law, but the charge was dismissed on a legal technicality.

"We knew we were right from the start. The bottom line is (Travis County District Attorney) Ronnie Earle's office obtained an indictment that wasn't even on the books," DeLay attorney Dick DeGuerin told Reuters.

DeLay, the former U.S. House of Representative majority leader, still is charged with money laundering and conspiracy to launder money, but has appealed the indictments on grounds they were politically motivated.He has accused Earle, a Democrat, of pursuing him because his success as House Republican leader had made him a favorite target of Democrats.

Presiding Judge Pat Priest has said he will not set a trial date until the appeals are finished.

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