HOUSTON — Rep. Tom DeLay, one of the country's most powerful Republicans, was indicted Wednesday by a Texas grand jury on a charge of violating state campaign finance laws. The action forced him to step aside as House majority leader, deepening the GOP's political woes.
As DeLay proclaimed his innocence, House Republicans selected Rep. Roy Blunt of Missouri as temporary majority leader. Party leaders emphasized that they would continue to aggressively pursue their legislative agenda.
The indictment rocked Capitol Hill and raised questions about how effectively House Republicans would operate. DeLay has been a top fundraiser for the GOP, a strict enforcer of party discipline and an outspoken advocate for conservative causes.
DeLay indictment -- An article in Thursday's Section A about the indictment of Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas) described as "illegal" the campaign contributions that Sears, Roebuck & Co. and other companies made to a political action committee formed by DeLay. The article should also have said that charges against Sears were dropped as part of an agreement with a Texas prosecutor, who found "no intent on the part of [Sears] to violate Texas law."
House Republican rules required that DeLay give up his leadership job because of the indictment, but he retains his House seat. DeLay is the highest-ranking member of Congress ever to be indicted.
The single charge alleges that DeLay and two political associates conspired to illegally funnel corporate money to Republican candidates in Texas. It capped years of intense political animosity between DeLay and Ronnie Earle, the Democratic district attorney in Austin, Texas, who is leading what has been a lengthy investigation into DeLay and his allies.
"Let me be very, very clear," DeLay said Wednesday. "I have done nothing wrong. I have violated no law, no regulation, no rule of the House. I have done nothing unlawful, unethical or, I might add, unprecedented."
Many of his colleagues backed him up, and White House spokesmen Scott McClellan said that President Bush still considered DeLay "a good ally, a leader who we have worked closely with to get things done for the American people."
Democrats seized on the indictment as another in a series of ethical problems and political missteps by the Republican establishment.
House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco called DeLay's indictment "the latest example that Republicans in Congress are plagued by a culture of corruption at the expense of the American people" -- an accusation she and other Democrats have signaled they will emphasize in next year's midterm elections.
For many Republicans, DeLay's indictment heightens anxiety over the political environment developing for the 2006 campaign.
"Anytime you have anything that even smacks of scandal, I think it hurts all of us," Rep. Joel Hefley (R-Colo.) said.
