The Press Corpse Lies Early With No Delay: "G-G-G-GOP Unit!!!"

Now why the hell is this a story?

Every defense attorney wants the charges dismissed.

Duh.

They basically test the waters with the judge, and let the prosecutor know they're serious about fighting this at every single stage of the process unless a settlement is agreed upon. Plus they are obligated to by law, or by the hundreds of dollars an hour they stand to earn.

Whatever.

This isn't even the first time they've repeated this, so what's the "news" here?

Okay, here's a quote from early in the article that answers that:


"DeLay wants the charges dismissed or resolved in his favor by January or he risks losing his House majority leader position. Under House rules, he was forced to give up his post after he was charged in September with a felony."


So what?

Is this supposed to help?

What next... you want a cookie???


(...)


The link to the web page is rather long and unwieldy, so I'm guessing they don't care if it's passed on. However, I'm also guessing they'll continue to say stuff like this to make it look like Tom "The Hammer" Delay is being victimized by the courts, the press, and the public, and that he deserves our sympathy.

How many other random "Joey Famous Wants Charges Dismissed" stories are there?

How many are blandly repeated again and again and again by the Press Corpse?

How many times will we hear what Tom Delay wants until we want it too?

How many times will we ignore how he's been indicted several times?


(...)


The Press Corpse?

"G-G-G-GOP Unit!!!"


(...)

Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Texas, and his wife, Christine, arrive for a court appearance in Austin, Texas, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2005. DeLay is battling conspiracy and money laundering charges. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Yahoo! News

DeLay's Attorneys Want Charges Dismissed

By LIZ AUSTIN, Associated Press Writer 13 minutes ago

AUSTIN, Tex., - Rep. Tom DeLay and two Republican fundraisers will likely have to wait for a judge to decide whether to drop conspiracy charges against them without a trial.

Duh.


Defense attorneys and prosecutors presented arguments Tuesday before Senior Judge Pat Priest, who said he wanted to read written responses from both sides before making his ruling. He said he would notify attorneys of his ruling either by e-mail or mail, but he didn't say how long that might take.

DeLay wants the charges dismissed or resolved in his favor by January or he risks losing his House majority leader position. Under House rules, he was forced to give up his post after he was charged in September with a felony.

Why not by Christmas? Happy Holidays!


The Texas Republican declined to talk to reporters as he entered the courtroom with his wife. He and party fundraisers John Colyandro and Jim Ellis are accused of operating a 2002 campaign finance scheme that funneled corporate money to Texas House candidates in violation of state law.

On Tuesday, Dick DeGuerin, DeLay's attorney, said DeLay shouldn't be charged with conspiracy to violate the election code because the law wasn't on the books until 2003, the year after DeLay's alleged offenses occurred.

"We can look at this case much more simply than hundreds of pages of briefs and motions may suggest," DeGuerin said. "There's no such thing in 2002 as conspiracy to violate the election code."

Prosecutor Rick Reed disputed that argument, saying the Legislature was just clarifying the law in 2003, and state law has long defined conspiracy as an agreement to commit any felony.

Ellis' attorney, Mark Stevens, argued that the state's money laundering statute applies only to cash. The campaign contributions in question were checks, he said.

Okay, he's got a point. It's on the top of his head.


DeLay and his co-defendants have acknowledged trying to help get Republicans elected but say they've done nothing illegal.

DeLay founded Texans for a Republican Majority, a political committee that raised $600,000 from corporations during the 2002 elections. Prosecutors say DeLay and his co-defendants sent the corporate money to the Republican National Committee, and then arranged for $190,000 to be sent to seven Texas legislative candidates. Colyandro was the executive director of DeLay's Texas committee. Ellis heads DeLay's national political committee, Americans for a Republican Majority.

"It was basically a negotiated swap," Reed said. "It was done in this manner in order to disguise the fact that this purchase had been negotiated."

State law bans the use of corporate money in campaigns, except for administrative costs. Prosecutors allege DeLay and his co-defendants conspired to work around the ban and launder the money through the RNC.

Prosecutors say DeLay's goal was to help the GOP capture control of the Texas House so Republican lawmakers could pass a new congressional voting district map drawn by DeLay that would guarantee more Republicans in Congress.

The hearing is DeLay's first before Senior Judge Pat Priest, who was appointed to the case after DeLay's attorneys succeeded in having the first judge removed because of his campaign contributions to Democratic candidates and causes.

Oh good. Loyalty is a key to survival.

"G-G-G-GOP Unit!!!"

* Email Story
* IM Story
* Discuss
* Printable View

RECOMMEND THIS STORY

SOURCE - http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051122/ap_on_go_co/delay_indictment_10;_ylt=AgZunPaf531_m3KeMgAio_2GbToC;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHNlYwMlJVRPUCUl