Peoria Journal Star
 
April 28, 2005 

LaHood says he gave Hastert blunt advice on ethics 

By Dori Meinert and Finlay Lewis
Copley News Service

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Rep. Ray LaHood was blunt last week with House Speaker Dennis Hastert, as the two veteran congressmen returned to the nation's capital from Springfield to confront the mounting ethics uproar engulfing House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.

Flying with President Bush aboard Air Force One from the dedication of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum, LaHood recalled on Wednesday telling Hastert that "the burden was on him."

LaHood, R-Peoria, said that he then added: "Look, you're the only one who can make the change here. You're going to have to make a change."

LaHood said that Hastert, R-Plano, was noncommittal.

But then, on Wednesday, the speaker took steps clearly intended to limit the spreading damage from allegations that lobbyists had improperly financed several of DeLay's foreign trips. At a closed morning meeting with other House Republicans, the speaker urged his colleagues to reverse themselves and abandon a set of newly adopted rules governing
House ethics committee investigations.

In an attempt to end a Democratic boycott of the committee, Hastert said\ he was proposing that the rules in effect last year be reinstated so that the 10-member panel, evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans, could undertake an investigation of the claims against DeLay.

"I think Hastert has done the right thing and this is the only thing that he could do to break the logjam," LaHood said.

For weeks, Democrats have been charging that the new rules were designed to block an investigation of the DeLay case. They pointed to the fact that a tie vote would cause the dismissal of any charges against DeLay, a Texas Republican whose hardball tactics have enraged Democrats even as they have endeared him to GOP lawmakers. Under the discarded rules, an even split on the committee required a probe to continue.

Another of the disputed new rules would lead to the dropping of any charges if the committee failed to take action on them after 45 days.

House Democrats have retaliated by refusing to participate in committee meetings, effectively paralyzing it. They have also mounted continuing attacks on the GOP for displaying arrogance and abusing its majority power in the case.

In explaining Hastert's about-face, LaHood noted the Democrats had been "harping" about the issue, but he also credited critical commentary on the issue of newspaper editorial pages.

"My hometown paper has done some editorials," LaHood said. "The Springfield paper has. The Chicago paper has. Every major paper in the country has been editorializing about this ... it's pervasive."

He added, "This is more than a little brush fire. This thing was out of control. I think the speaker recognized that."

DeLay has written the committee asking for a chance to clear his name of charges that include claims that a lobbyist used his credit card to pay for the congressman's airfare to London and Scotland five years ago.