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April 14, 2005

Delay Struggling to Retain Senate GOP Support

From the Washington Post:

House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) implored Republican senators yesterday to stick with him while he addresses questions about his travel and his dealings with lobbyists, as House Democrats unveiled plans to try to make ethics a defining issue for the year.

As DeLay left a 90-minute luncheon with his party's senators, he told reporters that his basic message was "Be patient; we'll be fine."
...
Attendees said DeLay, in extremely brief remarks, told the senators that, if asked about his predicament, they should blame Democrats and their lack of an agenda. The attendees said DeLay thanked Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) for supportive comments on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday. Santorum had said that DeLay is "very effective in leading the House," but he also noted that the Texas lawmaker needs to "lay out what he did and why he did it."

More from The Chicago Tribune:

Toward the end of Republicans' weekly policy lunch in the stately Senate Mansfield Room, DeLay (R-Texas) rose to deliver his defense. He said he was the victim of a Democratic conspiracy, blaming liberal billionaire George Soros and the grass-roots group MoveOn.org.

"He wasn't too defensive or combative," said Sen. Lincoln Chafee (R-R.I.). "He said it was old material, liberal media, a few red-meat buzzwords."

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a former House member, quoted DeLay as telling the senators: "Please be patient. I'm confident that I'll be fine."

Graham added, "He just basically thanked people for . . . being patient and to give him a chance to defend himself. Tom feels very satisfied that the facts, once looked at, are going to be on his side."

Posted by Max at April 14, 2005 12:30 AM

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