Former Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH), who pleaded guilty and was jailed for his role in the Jack Abramoff scandal, wrote in a new book that Rep. John Boehner (R-OH) offered him a job if he quit his campaign in 2006 and resigned from Congress. From National Journal:
The most inflammatory accusation against Boehner in the book is Ney’s contention that he ended his reelection campaign after winning the primary in 2006 only after Boehner, then the majority leader, summoned the cash-strapped and embattled congressman to his office and told him if he quit the race, Boehner would take care of him. “If you resign the next day, I will personally guarantee you a job comparable to what you are making, and raise legal defense money for you that should bury all this Justice Department problem for you,” Boehner said, according to Ney. He said he pressed Boehner, repeating the terms and getting assurance that the offer was “ironclad.” When Ney called back the next day to accept the deal, he wrote that he again repeated the terms to Boehner, who agreed. “Because of Boehner’s promise, I stepped aside,” he wrote. But Ney said Boehner did not keep his word. “I had been lied to and ditched,” Ney said.
Boehner spokesman Michael Steel denied the claim in a statement to National Journal:
“This is a convicted felon with a history of failing to tell the truth, making a lot of baseless accusations to try and sell books. More than anything else, it’s sad. Congressman Boehner urged his friend to resign and deal with his personal and legal issues. The allegations that a resignation was traded for specific promises are untrue.”
