[Mb-civic] Federal Probe Has Edged Closer to Texan - Washington Post

[William Swiggard]

Federal Probe Has Edged Closer to Texan
Two Ex-Aides Convicted, Another Also Named in Lobbying Investigation

By R. Jeffrey Smith
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, April 4, 2006; A07

The pending resignation of former House majority leader Tom DeLay 
(R-Tex.), once one of the most powerful lawmakers in Washington, comes 
amid a federal criminal investigation that already has reached into his 
inner circle of longtime advisers.

DeLay faces a trial later this year on money-laundering charges in Texas 
that stems from an October 2005 indictment related to corporate 
contributions to state elections in 2001 and 2002. Since then, two 
former aides and one of his most prominent contributors have pleaded 
guilty in a separate federal probe to crimes including conspiracy; wire, 
tax and mail fraud; and corruption of public officials.

The picture appeared to darken further last week with the guilty plea of 
Tony C. Rudy, DeLay's former deputy chief of staff. Edwin A. Buckham, 
the lawmaker's former chief of staff and his closest political and 
spiritual adviser, was described in court documents filed in the case as 
someone who collaborated with Rudy, Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff 
and former DeLay aide Michael Scanlon. They arranged payments, trips and 
favors that the department's investigators charged were part of an 
illegal conspiracy, according to the documents.

DeLay himself was formally designated as "Representative #2" in the 
documents, a title that cannot be considered a good omen. The lawmaker 
designated in the same documents as Representative #1 -- Rep. Robert W. 
Ney (R-Ohio) -- has been cited by the Justice Department as having 
received "things of value" for performing official acts.

Ney has not been formally named a target of the probe and denies 
wrongdoing. But he agreed last October to sign a Justice Department 
document waiving the five-year expiration of the statute of limitations 
on any alleged crimes until late April.

DeLay attorney Richard Cullen said last night that his client's decision 
to withdraw was "not connected to the criminal investigation."

DeLay and Buckham also have not been accused of wrongdoing by federal 
prosecutors, and they have asserted their innocence. But some of DeLay's 
official actions in Congress clearly fall within the scope of the 
continuing investigation: Last week's guilty plea by Rudy cites as part 
of the evidence of conspiracy a letter that DeLay wrote on behalf of an 
Abramoff client and legislation that DeLay supported on behalf of a 
client of Abramoff's firm.

DeLay has assembled a substantial legal team to fight back, and he has a 
defense fund -- financed largely by corporations with business before 
Congress -- that contained more than $600,000 at the end of last year, 
based on the cumulative record of its receipts and contributions. But 
contributions to the fund dropped from $318,000 to $181,500 between the 
third and fourth quarters of 2005.

DeLay also is entitled under federal election rules to convert any or 
all of the remaining funds from his reelection campaign to his legal 
expenses, whether or not he resigns, is indicted or loses the election. 
Election lawyers say one advantage of bowing out of the election now is 
that the campaign cash can be converted to pay legal bills immediately, 
instead of being drained in the course of a bid to stay in office.

As of Feb. 15, when his campaign filed its most recent report with the 
Federal Election Commission, DeLay had $1,295,350 on hand. But that was 
two weeks before the Texas primary in which DeLay bested three 
Republican rivals to win renomination, and the pot of money available to 
him now may be considerably less.

By stepping aside so early in an election year, a lawmaker "wouldn't be 
spending to be reelected" and could transfer the funds immediately to 
fend off any federal charges, said lawyer Kenneth A. Gross, a former 
head of the FEC's enforcement division. The last lawmaker to gain the 
FEC's formal approval for such a transfer was Rep. Randy "Duke" 
Cunningham (R-Calif.), who resigned last November after pleading guilty 
to evading taxes and accepting bribes.

Cunningham and DeLay shared a major contributor, Brent Wilkes, whose 
actions figured in the probe that led to Cunningham's eight-year prison 
term. Wilkes flew DeLay on his corporate jet at a time when he was 
seeking government contracts for his computer software firm, though no 
evidence has emerged that DeLay provided favors for Wilkes.

The central legal challenge for DeLay is more likely to arise from the 
work of the federal task force, made up of FBI and tax agents, Interior 
Department investigators, and prosecutors from the Justice Department's 
public integrity unit. A grand jury subpoena issued by the FBI in 
February for records of the U.S. Family Network, a nonprofit group 
formed by Buckham, specifically asked for any documents related to 
DeLay; his wife, Christine; Buckham's lobbying firm; Rudy; and a variety 
of contributors to the group from among Abramoff's client list.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/03/AR2006040302145.html?nav=hcmodule
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