Abstract

DeLay on the Hot Seat

The article looks at two grand jury investigations involving alleged money-laundering and campaign finance abuses in the United States as of October 2004. Two investigative bombs with long fuses are sizzling under House majority leader Tom DeLay, America's Machiavelli of gerrymandering and shakedown fundraising. A hearing is scheduled for September 29 into the alleged fleecing of Indian tribes by two of DeLay's closest allies, lobbyists Jack Abramoff and Mike Scanlon. But while the hearing may expose some wrongdoing, the more threatening aspect of the Washington probe involves the Federal Bureau of Investigation and a federal grand jury that has been meeting for months. They are focusing on the laundering of money for personal extravagances and political campaigns. The second bomb is sizzling in Texas, where a grand jury has just indicted three close associates of DeLay on charges of violating a state law banning corporate funding of political activity.