My Good Luck

Wow, I come back to the blogosphere for five minutes, and whaddya know?

A Travis County grand jury today indicted U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay on one count of criminal conspiracy, jeopardizing the Sugar Land Republican's leadership role as the second most powerful Texan in Washington, D.C.

The charge, a state jail felony punishable by up to two years incarceration, stems from his role with his political committee, Texans for a Republican Majority, a now-defunct organization that already had been indicted on charges of illegally using corporate money during the 2002 legislative elections.

I believe that, under House Republican rules, he has to give up his leadership position now. They tried to rewrite that law earlier this year, but after public outcry they rescinded it. In fact, MSNBC is reporting that David Dreier is replacing him.

This is a sea change. I'm sure the Bug Man will still be in a de facto position to strongarm votes, but this is a major blow to the GOP. Between DeLay, the Plame case, and this latest deal with Bill "Insider Trading" Frist, every branch of the GOP leadership in Washington, from the House to the Senate to the White House, is either under indictment or investigation.