House GOP Gives Scandal-Ridden Don Young’s Committee Seat To Scandal-Ridden Doc Hastings
House GOP Gives Scandal-Ridden Don Young’s Committee Seat To Scandal-Ridden Doc Hastings
In a letter to the House GOP this week, House Minority Leader John Boehner lauded the election of Joseph Cao, who defeated the corrupt Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA). The future of the GOP, Boehner said, is dependent on good ethics:
The Cao victory is a symbol of our future. In the two years ahead, House Republicans will demonstrate our commitment to reform by holding ourselves to the highest possible ethical standard.
This week, Boehner seemed to be following through with the pledge, telling Rep. Don Young (R-AK) that he could no longer support him as ranking Republican on the Natural Resources Committee, leading to Young’s resignation from the post.
But the promise is already imploding. The AP reports that a panel of top House leaders picked Rep. Doc Hastings (R-WA) today to lead the committee. “The recommendation by the GOP Steering Committee is final under a rule change adopted Wednesday.”
Recall, Jack Abramoff once boasted of having an “excellent relationship” with Hastings, who received $14,000 from Abramoff’s firm, Preston Gates — including $1,000 from Abramoff himself. After taking control of the Ethics Committee, Hastings reportedly fired two staff lawyers involved in unanimous decisions to admonish Tom DeLay for improper fundraising. Hastings also contacted fired U.S. Attorney John McKay and attempted to pressure him in an ongoing investigation.
As ThinkProgress has documented, Boehner has a history of playing musical chairs with committee assignments for corrupt members:
Rep. Jerry Lewis: Boehner ruled that Rep. Jerry Lewis of California could continue as the ranking member on the Appropriations Committee while under federal investigation on ethics charges.
Rep. Ken Calvert: The GOP Steering Committee appointed Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA) to Rep. Jon Doolittle’s (R-CA) Appropriations seat, after Doolittle was the subject of an FBI investigation for his ties to Abramoff. Calvert has profited from legislation he supported and was caught in the act with a prostitute.
Rep. Tom Feeney: Feeney, who was questioned by the FBI over his relationship with Abramoff took over as GOP leader on the space subcommittee for Calvert.
Despite Boehner’s ethics pledge after ethics pledge, the culture of corruption still rules at the end of the day.
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Way to go Boehner! Just keep digging that hole you and your party is in. What an IDIOT!
December 11th, 2008 at 8:13 pmBoner is a one eyed snake that only cares about one thing. And it ain’t ethics.
December 11th, 2008 at 8:19 pmBoehner likes to talk about ethics at length, but he has no intention to follow through on his words. Appointment after appointment, we see that this GOP puppet is desperately scrambling to revive his party.
December 11th, 2008 at 8:29 pmReplacing a criminal with another criminal. All this while Boner Boy let’s the voters of his State lose their jobs and homes. Boner Boy is looking out for Boner Boy only and no one else. One would think the people of Ohio would elect someone who cared about them but they didn’t. Now many will be layed off just before Christmas and then have to wait for Obama to be swore in to get their jobs back.
December 11th, 2008 at 8:33 pmIf this his idea of reviving the GOP then Boehner needs to rethink that stragety. All this does is remind people why they voted the way they did. The GOP has no intention of learning from the beat down that the electorate gave them in November. Not as long as fossils like Boehner are in charge of it.
December 11th, 2008 at 8:36 pmGive this man a shovel and enough time and he may bury the whole Rep.Party. I hope.
December 11th, 2008 at 8:37 pmAre there any smart republicans left or was ’smart republicans’ just a rumor I heard long ago and they don’t exist?
December 11th, 2008 at 8:50 pmBy the way, Boner is shitfaced most days. It’s fun to watch him. His latest ‘executive order’ above ended with a burp and the slurring of words! So much fun.
December 11th, 2008 at 8:51 pmWell, c’mon, Jackie… let’s cut the Boner a break. After all, he’s only got a limited number of faces to work with, and most of them are criminals of one stripe or another. So it was bound to happen.
December 11th, 2008 at 9:37 pmThe same Repubs that go hysterical over Blagojevich totally ignore their own scandals, defend their own Repub criminals, and promote them to other jobs. What hypocrites Repubs are.
December 11th, 2008 at 9:53 pmHas anyone ever investigated Boehner himself? Never seen a word about him anywhere. What a slime.
December 11th, 2008 at 10:18 pmWhat limp dick state elected Boner? Seems like dog catcher would be beyond his abilities.
December 11th, 2008 at 10:25 pmCorruption is embedded in the Republican lizard brain. I believe they call it entitlement.
December 11th, 2008 at 10:26 pmBe realistic, people. It’s not like they have anyone honest to put in there.
December 11th, 2008 at 10:56 pmactually, I think the latest election shows that the gop holds that honor.
December 11th, 2008 at 11:10 pmanother f up by the GOP:
Auto bailout dies in Senate after compromise talks fail.
they did not like the bill as labor unions would not lower their wages? Incredible…
Harry Reid commented the stock market will take a bad dive tomorrow.
December 11th, 2008 at 11:31 pmExcellent news for Dems.
Republicans continue to think that if they keep changing everything around fast enough, nobody will notice that all of their decisions are stupid.
December 12th, 2008 at 12:20 amBoner is an idiot. That is why the GOP’s mentality won’t change. Replace a criminal with another criminal is their motto.
December 12th, 2008 at 12:23 amThese people can line up and try to play connect the dots with Blagojevich and Obama, but they’re subscribing to this crap?
I see the Bush legacy sure won’t be dead come January 20. If these idiot GOP “rebels” in the Senate think the unions are the big hang-up with the auto industry, let history be the Grand Old Party’s Grim Reaper starting….
NOW!
December 12th, 2008 at 1:25 amrepugs are corrupted as they get.
chimpy rewards crooks with metals and ribbons which instantly diminishes the meaning, it’s proud heritage and it’s value. What dirty dogs they are.
repugs reward their crooked puppets with bs positions because it means nothing to them. they refused to understand 95% of the population.
they are too busy thinking of schemes/lies instead of being honest, truthful and compassionate.
they won’t understand that they are beyond the pale and there’s no way back.
repugs are synonymous with words like nasty, vile, trickery, dirty etc.
They can regroup all they want, it won’t change a damn thing.
December 12th, 2008 at 2:30 amMy theory is that the part of the brain that governs self-criticism is entirely missing or inactive in right-wingers. This does much to explain their bizarre behavior over the last few years. It may also explain their speech impediment–saying Democrat when they mean Democratic–but this is only a theory.
Such a neurological deficit has clear advantages in winning (i.e., stealing) elections, but it also makes Republicans the worst people on earth for government service.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSGLzStgujM
December 12th, 2008 at 6:50 amHippie_crusher Says:
Please. You people are the biggest bunch of pathetic losers on the face of the planet. Rezko’s singing you morons.Blago’s next to talk.Then it’s bye bye messiah.
Apparently this moran couldn’t read the transcript where Blago is complaining that the Obama camp won’t give him anything but appreciation for his senate seat. At least he’s ’smart” enough to know not to try and defend ole weepy mctaninacan.
And why is he so afraid of hippies? Granted, we dress funny, and smell funny, and hate capitalist pigs, and war, and we were not fooled by his fool. That must be it, he’s spent his life being told that hippies are stoopid liberals and liberals are stoopid and now he’s finally figured out that we were right all along about repulbicans and he sees that he’s the stoopid one. and he’s mad.
December 12th, 2008 at 7:45 amStill trying to keep their corrupted little hooks in the American pie?
Hoping Obama can ferret out all these weasels.
December 12th, 2008 at 7:55 amDudes, don’t be so hard on old Tan Man.
There aren’t any honest, ethical Republicans LEFT to promote to any seat.
They purged them all from their ranks.
December 12th, 2008 at 1:14 pm