Roll Call: Hastert Warns Ethics Panel May Haul in Democrats

[AtomicKitten]

Tit-for-tat, business as usual, look mom they're doing it too.


Hastert: Ethics Panel May Haul in Democrats
By John Bresnahan
Roll Call Staff
January 18, 2006

With both Republicans and Democrats scrambling to respond to the Jack Abramoff scandal, Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) said Tuesday that a number of Democrats may find themselves hauled before the House ethics committee if the panel ever gets back to full operation after a yearlong hiatus.

http://www.rollcall.com/issues/51_68/news/11756-1.html

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From Raw Story: http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Hastert_Ethics_panel_may_haul_in_0118.html

Excerpts:

Hastert suggested that Republicans were prepared to file ethics complaints against Democrats but had been prevented from doing so because the committee was not functioning.

While Hastert did not single out any Democrats by name in his remarks, GOP insiders said Hastert was referring to Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.), who is under investigation by the Justice Department over his role in the creation of two African telecommunications company. A former Jefferson aide, Brett Pfeffer, pleaded guilty last week to conspiracy to commit bribery and aiding and abetting the solicitation of bribes by a Member of Congress. The ethics committee is also believed to have begun preliminary investigations into Reps. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) and John Conyers (D-Mich.), for allegedly aiding family members.
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Pelosi recently wrote to Hastert urging an ethics investigation into Reps. Tom DeLay (R-Texas), Bob Ney (R-Ohio), Richard Pombo (R-Calif.) and John Doolittle (R-Calif.) over their dealings with Abramoff. All four men have been mentioned in media reports relating to the ongoing Justice Department probe into Abramoff, although only Ney appears to be in any immediate danger of legal action by the department. Abramoff recently pleaded guilty to federal corruption charges, including conspiracy to bribe public officials, and Ney has been identified as “Representative #1” in the Abramoff plea document. DeLay is battling money-laundering charges in Texas that are unrelated to Abramoff.

Developing ...

[ClassWarrior]

1. Hahaha hahaha hahaha hahaha hahaha hahaha hahaha...

:rofl:

Good one Denny. Have another brat.

NGU.

[truebrit71]

2. Hey, Pizza The Hut, I'd be more worried about my own chubby arse...

...than playing politics as usual with this Abramoff story if I were you.....


You fuckin' piker.... :grr:

[RobertSeattle]

3. Bring it on Dennis Boy

[stepnw1f]

4. Go For It Pig Boy... lol! (nt)

[babylonsister]

5. Good. Make a huge noise about it, then come up empty. nt

[Uben]

6. WTF?

Is this idiot trying to blackmail democrat congressmen? I can't believe he would make such a statement. He needs to be thrown in prison! If a dem needs to be brought before the committee, bring him. That's what it is for. As long as every damn republican that did the same thing is brought before the panel. Does dumbass Hastert think they should pick and choose? No. Every congress person who has violated an ethic rule needs to be censured. No exceptions, and that includes Hastert, which is probably why he is making the threat!

[ClintonTyree]

11. It's all they have left.........

really, it is.

[Old and In the Way]

7. I'll happily expose our warts if they expose their cancerous boils.

No problem Denny, lets get that Independent Commission underway and look at the complete picture of corruption. We'll take our chances with our Democratic Reps. And Denny...we'll be wanting to know a lot more about this Turkish money that found its way into your pockets...

[sui generis]

8. yikes. gosh we better back down then. NOT

Even if there ARE dems that could be shown to be unethical, the point of pursuing ethical standards in politics is not partisan.

It's just PURELY COINCIDINK that all the fat fucks who are sweating latoyajacksons JUST HAPPEN to be republican. Why, we hardly even noticed, so why would Hastert? What an odd, odd thing.

:sarcasm:

[Burried News]

9. Bring it on Hastert - war of attrition till the Vorpal Sword of justice

has you for a snicker snack.

[madfloridian]

10. Hastert....stuff about him.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/16/AR2006011600997.html

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article9774.htm

[MissMarple]

19. It sounds like the "powers that be" know about Hastert.

They just don't care. Getting caught is the real crime to this Republican Party.

From the information clearing house article:

"Edmonds has given confidential testimony inside a secure Sensitive Compartmented Information facility on several occasions: to congressional staffers, to investigators from the O.I.G., and to the staff from the 9/11 commission. Sources familiar with this testimony say that, in addition to her allegations about the Dickersons, she reported hearing Turkish wiretap targets boast that they had a covert relationship with a very senior politician indeed—Dennis Hastert, Republican congressman from Illinois and Speaker of the House since 1999. The targets reportedly discussed giving Hastert tens of thousands of dollars in surreptitious payments in exchange for political favors and information. “The Dickersons,” says one official familiar with the case, “are only the tip of the iceberg.”"

[Arkansas Granny]

12. Go right ahead, Mr. Hastert. If you find any Democrats guilty of

corruption, we don't want them in office, either. Just make sure you don't overlook any of your Republican cohorts while you are searching for Dems.

Just out of curiosity, why has the ethics committee not been functioning for over a year?

[Loonman]

13. Yeah...sure thing, Denny

Suck it up, buttercup.

[enid602]

14. Maxine

I hope they don't get Maxine Waters, as she is a hero in my eyes. Guilty of aiding family members? Doesn't sound too much like a heinous crime at first glance.

[Jeffersons Ghost]

15. those oinkish grunts resemble the truth.

Only he botched his lead. It should read: Democrats are scrambling AFTER Republicans, like a homeowner chases a thief from his yard. What a bunch of propaganda pulp-fiction.

[gratuitous]

16. Bring it on, Denny

Let's look into ALL of it; give Democrats subpoena power too, and let's get all the facts into the public record. I'm willing to let the chips fall where they may. Let's see whose hands have been in the cookie jar. And who's been in the jar up to their elbows. Or shoulders. Or hips.

[emulatorloo]

17. "Hastert" and "Ethics" look funny next to each other

Smear away Denny boy. Your time will come.

[hyphenate]

18. So what?

If there are bad Dems, they SHOULD be singled out and measures taken against them as well. However, one Dem compared to the top 40 or so pukes is a whole lotta difference. I suggest that Hastert shut the fuck up or we'll dig even deeper into HIS ethics!

[Doctor_J]

20. Oooooh, I am scared

:scared: Lte's do it, Mr. "Speaker". Let's toss out all the corrupt Congresspersons. Who do you think will have a majority when the purge is done?

[OneTwentyoNine]

21. All I can say to "Denny boy" is GO FOR IT fatass....

Lets see what you can shake out Republicans vs Dems. You won't like the results...

[neverevergivein]

22. Leadership posts should have a weight limit

Fat Repugs suck

[formercia]

23. Massah speaks

gotta keep dem uppity folks in line. Plantation Justice raises its ugly head in Congress.

http://xroads.virginia.edu/~UG97/blues/hall.html

[gulliver]

24. Bring it.

[NoFederales]

25. I hate to say this, but if the spotlight is on Corporate Politicians

swilling at the trough, then I say shove their piggy heads under the slop and drown 'em. No Party affiliation needs these corpo assholes. And it seems like the "reform minded swooners" are the goddamned corpos who will be suggesting reform--talk about foxes in charge of the henhouse!

Who are our favorite Corporate Politicians to whom we will excuse repeatedly?

NoFederales