As I wrote last night, good riddance to the bug man of Texas.
Below are a few more very interesting and insightful articles written about The Hammer. LS
Excerpt: "THE HAMMER IS NAILED"
The corporate lobbies made out like bandits, literally writing their own subsidies into law. Big Pharma got hundreds of billions in a prescription drug law that prohibited Medicare from using its buying power to lower prices. Big oil got billions in subsidies while gouging Americans at the pump. As the Financial Times reported, earmarks in legislation—special favors that often ducked the normal legislative process—expanded to $62 billion last year. The tax code expanded from 40,506 pages in 1995 to 66,498 pages 10 years later, as legions of tax breaks and dodges became law. Since the “conservative revolution” came to power in 1994, the number of lobbyists exploded four-fold to 36,000. Of these, 29 are former DeLay staffers, not counting the two who have now pled guilty in the corruption probe.
TOM PAINE.COM ON DELAY
DELAY CAUGHT TRASHING HILLARY CLINTON ON MSNBC
THE HUFFINGTON POST ON DELAY AND HILLARY
I, DELAY By Sidney Blumenthal on Truthout.org
Excerpt:
When President George W. Bush assumed office, one-party rule commenced. DeLay served as Bush's "Hammer." Back in Texas, between the political operations of both of them, the Democrats had been shattered as a party. Now DeLay and Bush worked together nationally to accomplish the same goal. Karl Rove, Bush's chief political adviser, who had been instrumental in the Texas takeover, was the go-between in the relationship. And the go-between in the Rove-DeLay relationship was a lobbyist named Jack Abramoff.
While exercising absolute power in the House, DeLay was determined to augment it further by thoroughly rigging the outcome of congressional elections in Texas. He created a political action committee, raised millions from his K Street allies, and poured the money into the Texas legislature, which in turn redrew the lines of congressional districts to wipe out the existing Democrats. DeLay's scheme succeeded in giving him an even bigger Republican margin. But the district attorney of Travis County, Texas investigated and indicted two of his aides and finally DeLay himself for illegally using corporate campaign funds.
SIDNEY BLUMENTHAL ON DELAY
"NO, REALLY, WHY DID DELAY QUIT?" By Tim Grieve of Salon.com
Ken sent this great article this morning. LS
BREAKING Excerpt: (This information came to Mr. Grieve while writing the piece, apparently).
Update: I said earlier that the Times report comes closest to saying that it was the Abramoff investigation that did DeLay in. But that was before I saw Knight Ridder reporter Ron Hutcheson's story, which has several lawyers saying that as far as the law is concerned, DeLay is done.
In a story that includes many fine quotes, here's the best one: "The guy has a hide of titanium," John P. Flannery II, a former federal prosecutor, says of DeLay, dismissing the congressman's argument that he was afraid his race would get too nasty. "This is not about his election; this is about his defense of the criminal investigation. The circle is closing on him for a federal indictment."
TIM GRIEVE'S SALON.COM PIECE ON DELAY
RON HUTCHESON'S PIECE ON DELAY REFERENCED ABOVE BY MR. GRIEVE
RON HUTCHESON ON DELAY
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