Doolittle Aides SubpoenaedJust in case you’d forgotten dead-pol-walking Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA) is under federal investigation for his ties to Jack Abramoff, a reminder today:
GOP Rep. John Doolittle’s chief of staff and deputy chief of staff have been subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury in a federal probe into ties between Doolittle, his wife and jailed lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
The grand jury subpoenas from the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia were issued to Chief of Staff Ron Rogers and Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Blankenburg. They were announced on the House floor as Congress returned from its August recess Tuesday after the aides informed House leaders about the subpoenas, as required under House rules.
The Sacramento Bee reported back in June that the feds had contacted as many as six of Doolittle’s former aides. The feds raided his Virginia home in April after he refused to plead guilty.
Abramoff may be in prison, but he’s continuing to cooperate with investigators. Recently a status conference was pushed back to December, meaning that Abramoff will likely not be sentenced for his bribery conviction until 2008. Abramoff pleaded guilty way back in January, 2006, and has been cooperating with investigators since 2004. It’s been quite a run, and it’s not over yet.
Late Update: According to the LA Times, three of Doolittle’s aides have been subpoenaed, including his Chief of Staff and Deputy Chief of Staff.
