Jefferson Win Poses Dilemma for Party
“Rep. William J. Jefferson may be a pariah in some Washington political circles, but voters in this storm-battered city weighed in over the weekend with their own verdict regarding their scandal-plagued congressman: He’s still our guy.
“Voters gave the Louisiana Democrat an emphatic reelection victory over state Rep. Karen Carter, even though his campaign had been weighted with revelations that federal authorities had videotaped him taking $100,000 in alleged bribe money, and that $90,000 of it had been found inside a freezer in his apartment in the District. The investigation led his House colleagues to dump him from a key committee, donors abandoned him and the state Democratic Party switched its allegiance to his opponent….
“[His] victory now poses a quandary for Democrats, some of whom have shunned him politically, and possibly also for the city, as leaders here seek to project an image of civic probity as they lobby for more federal money for recovery from Hurricane Katrina.” (WaPo, NYTimes, The Hill)
Judge Hears Torture Claim
“A federal judge on Friday seemed reluctant to give Donald Rumsfeld immunity from torture allegations, yet said it would be unprecedented to let him face a civil trial….
“The ACLU is suing on behalf of nine former prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan. The lawsuit contends the men were beaten, hung upside down and otherwise abused.
“If their suit were to go forward, it could force Rumsfeld and the Pentagon to disclose what officials knew about abuses at prisons such as Abu Ghraib in Iraq and what was done to stop it.” (AP, LA Times, WaPo)
Democrats Vow Close Oversight of War on Terror
“Democrats say they will begin a vigorous push for oversight of programs the Bush administration has used in the war on terrorism when they take control of Congress next year.
“But they acknowledge they face many of the same barriers their Republican predecessors did and say they must walk a fine line between oversight and unpopular ‘gotcha’ politics.” (Washington Times)
Former Aides To Congress Switch Sides for Upcoming Probes
“Deee-fense, Deee-fense Deee-fense.
“You can almost hear the chant rising from corporate offices all over town. As soon as Democrats take over Congress next month, all sorts of businesses will no doubt face sharp-elbowed congressional hearings called O & I — oversight and investigations. And they’ll need a strong defense.
“Luckily for corporate America, many of the people who formerly conducted those nasty and frequently televised inquiries have switched sides and are available for hire to the highest bidders. For the right fee, a company can retain a former chief counsel to almost any of the most marauding committees on Capitol Hill.” (WaPo)
GOP Alienation Marks Turnabout for Bush
“President Bush, weakened by an unpopular war and the loss of Republican control in Congress, is now confronting disaffection within his own party that could complicate his attempt to set an agenda for his final two years in office.
“As Republicans departed Capitol Hill this weekend, some who used to dismiss Democratic attempts to investigate the administration as political posturing are now lining up behind calls for greater oversight of the executive branch.
“They are advertising attacks on Bush’s foreign policy that they once kept largely private. Last week, Oregon Sen. Gordon H. Smith gave a speech calling the current war strategy “absurd” and sent out a news release with his remarks.” (LATimes)
Congress Backs Iraq Inspection Office
“Investigators who have uncovered millions of dollars in wasteful spending in Iraq’s rebuilding would keep up their watchdog role for an additional year under legislation awaiting President Bush’s signature.
“Congress had ordered that the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction be closed next October, in a little noticed provision tucked into a defense bill this year. Some senators said they were unaware of the plan and insisted the office be preserved.
“The Senate extended the term of the special inspector general on Wednesday and the House acted by voice vote before Congress adjourned early Saturday for the year.” (AP)
Roberts May Leave Intelligence Committee
“Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts, outgoing chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, may leave the panel altogether next year, in part so the Republican can free himself up for a re-election fight in 2008.
“Mr. Roberts’ plans were confirmed by several well-placed Republicans, none of whom would agree to be quoted, saying the details had not been finalized.” (Washington Times)
Alaska Lawmaker Arrested in FBI Probe
“A state legislator was arrested on a federal bribery warrant, three months after federal agents raided the offices of at least six Alaska lawmakers in an investigation into a large oil field services company.
“Rep. Tom Anderson was arrested Thursday at his Anchorage home and was being held at the city jail, FBI Special Agent Eric Gonzalez told The Associated Press.
“Anderson’s name had not appeared on a list of offices raided in late August and early September. Agents were searching for possible ties between the lawmakers and VECO Corp., officials and aides have said.” (AP)
Lobbying Job Prospects Not Good for Defeated Republicans
“Some departing lawmakers insist they will go back home when they are sitting congressmen no more, after their successors are sworn in Jan. 4. This, despite the lucrative lure of joining the influence industry in the capital as a lobbyist or consultant….
“Lawmakers are more inclined to leave families home these days and sink fewer roots here than in the past. Beyond that, most of the departing members are Republican, and job prospects in the capital may be less-than-stellar, with Democrats taking control of both houses of the new Congress.
“‘The ability of Republicans to make money in the short run is less than it is for Democrats right now,’ said L. Sandy Maisel, director of the Goldfarb Center for Public Affairs at Colby College in Waterville, Maine. ‘I don’t think the doors are as wide open.'” (AP)
Did Abramoff Lobby HUD?
“Last spring, as the fallout from disgraced super lobbyist Jack Abramoff’s January guilty plea swirled through Washington, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development said the agency was unaware of any lobbying Abramoff had done there.
“Now, though, e-mail and billing records turned over to a congressional committee by Greenberg Traurig, the Miami-based firm that employed Abramoff, say that Abramoff and others conducted a coordinated lobbying campaign at HUD in 2002-03 on behalf of Michigan’s Saginaw Chippewa Indian tribe.
“The campaign involved lobbying contacts with at least three high-ranking HUD officials, including current HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson, the records say.” (Miami Herald)
Disputed Nominee Myers Has an Abramoff Problem
“Five years ago, high-powered Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff went to a dinner with top officials of the Interior Department, representatives of the White House and leaders of the National Mining Assn.
“That Georgetown dinner has now come back to haunt one of the guests â William G. Myers III, who was the Interior Department’s top lawyer at the time and for the last three years one of President Bush’s most controversial nominees for a federal judgeship.” (LATimes)
Airline “Risk Assessment”: Defending the Right to Snoop
” The Department of Homeland Security’s Automated Targeting System has become a key part of the nation’s air security system. Rather than just checking a list of passenger names for those who might be suspected of terrorist activities, it applies a ‘risk assessment’ to every airline passenger entering the U.S. by using more than two dozen criteria. . . .
“But ATS, which was recently upgraded after a new agreement on international standards with European countries, has come under increased criticism for knowing too much, being too secret, and not allowing passengers any recourse to challenge their risk assessments….
“The outcry has grown loud enough to bring out DHS officials for an aggressive counterattack. DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff, who weighed in with an op-ed article in the Washington Post this week, told TIME in an interview that the ATS program is an ‘essential’ way to look for the connections that terrorists have used in the past before they struck.” (Time)
Federal Scientist Admits He’s Guilty of Conflict of Interest
“A senior government scientist from the National Institutes of Health who took about $300,000 in unauthorized payments from a drug company pleaded guilty Friday to a federal charge that he committed a criminal conflict of interest.
“The admission by Dr. P. Trey Sunderland III came after years of denials by his attorneys and six months after the scientist had asserted his constitutional right against self-incrimination to a congressional subcommittee.
“The prosecution was the first of an NIH scientist under federal conflict-of-interest laws in 14 years.
“Sunderland, 55, admitted that he failed to get required authorization for taking $285,000 in consulting fees and $15,000 in expense payments from the drug company Pfizer Inc. from 1998 to 2003. During the same period, he provided Pfizer with spinal-tap samples collected from hundreds of patients as part of a research collaboration approved by the NIH.” (LA Times)
Top Air Force Lawyer Had Been Disbarred
“A top Air Force lawyer who served at the White House and in a senior position in Iraq turns out to have been practicing law for 23 years without a license.
“Col. Michael D. Murphy was most recently commander of the Air Force Legal Operations Agency at Bolling Air Force Base in the District.
“He was the general counsel for the White House Military Office from December 2001 to January 2003, and from August 2003 to January 2005. In between those tours, he was the legal adviser to the reconstruction effort in Iraq, an Air Force spokesman said.” (WaPo)
McKinney Introduces Bill to Impeach Bush
“In what was likely her final legislative act in Congress, outgoing Georgia Rep. Cynthia McKinney introduced a bill Friday to impeach President Bush.
“The legislation has no chance of passing and serves as a symbolic parting shot not only at Bush but also at Democratic leaders. Incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has made clear that she will not entertain proposals to sanction Bush and has warned the liberal wing of her party against making political hay of impeachment.
“McKinney, a Democrat who drew national headlines in March when she struck a Capitol police officer, has long insisted that Bush was never legitimately elected. In introducing her legislation in the final hours of the current Congress, she said Bush had violated his oath of office to defend the Constitution and the nation’s laws.” (AP)
