WASHINGTON – In a letter to House Judiciary Committee John Conyers (D-Mich.), Rep. Artur Davis, congressman for Alabama’s 7th Congressional District, advocated including a probe into the legal troubles of former Gov. Don Siegelman in a hearing on allegations of selective prosecutions by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Rep. Jo Bonner declined to comment on Davis remarks directly, but insisted this was not some sort of “vast right-winged conspiracy.”
“The idea that Karl Rove and others in the White House and Justice Department were behind the legal action, the trial and the conviction [of Siegelman] ... I think that’s laughable,” said Bonner to Lagniappe last week.
But even the liberal New York Times Editorial Board has gotten on the conspiracy bandwagon. A June 30 editorial said Siegelman had been “railroaded” and even hinted a skewed election might have played a role in his downfall.
“He was defeated for re-election in 2002 by just a few thousand votes, in an election marred by suspicious vote tabulations,” wrote the Times editorial board.
Bonner said there was evidence admitted in the trial that made a very strong case against Siegelman, but he still feels sympathy for the former governor.
“As a human being, my heart goes out to Don,” added Bonner. “At the same time, he was convicted of breaking the law.”
He said even though we’re in “a very politically stimulated environment,” he would be surprised if the Siegelman controversy ends up becoming an issue in the national political landscape.
Libertarian takes another stab at Congress
Despite having made four prior unsuccessful attempts to run for Congress, former Air Force Lt. Col. Dick Coffee is going to make a fifth, and what he says could be his final, attempt.
“At 72, I don’t know if I will have the stomach left for another go,” said Coffee. “But upfront you need to know that I do this for its educational benefits to the people in [Alabama’s First Congressional] district.”
Coffee says “the entire lot” in Washington, with the possible exception of Ron Paul, turns his stomach – with “the Democrat’s socialistic views on large government” and the “Republican’s hypocrisy on the same subject.”
“At least the Dems are honest about wanting to make us more ‘sheepelish’ than we already are; the Republicans are just as intent on large government,” Coffee said.
Coffee suggested Rep. Jo Bonner should brush up on his constitutional law.
“For starters, I don’t think Bonner, who everybody thinks the world of, has ever read Article One, Section Eight of the Constitution – although I pester him to do so frequently,” added Coffee.
Coffee gives himself little to no chance and blames Alabama’s “draconian” ballot laws recently validated by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
“It will be impossible [to win],” said Coffee. “There are three reasons that I know of to run for office: 1) To win – Bonner spent $1.4 million on his first run and a ton since certainly way out of my league. 2) Vanity – too much hard work for that to overcome my capabilities. 3) To educate – I know that my efforts are miniscule, but the need for the folks to know that there is a viable alternative to the same old large, ever increasingly socialist government that they have been hood-winked into.”
Another challenge
According to Congressional Quarterly, Bonner will also face opposition from Democrat Benjamin Lodmell in the next election. Bonner took 68 percent of the vote in 2006 against his Democratic challenger, Vivian Sheffield Beckerle.
Sessions gearing up for Iraq battle on Capitol Hill
Coming off a resounding political victory with the defeat of the highly controversial immigration bill in the Senate, Sen. Jeff Session has his focus on the next battle on the forefront – senatorial efforts to pull troops out of Iraq.
Several Republican senators have defected from the Bush camp and are calling for some sort of timetable to withdraw troops from Iraq. But Sessions insisted Republican lawmakers should withhold action until Gen. David Petraeus, commander of the Multi-National Force in Iraq, makes his report in September.
“There are some very serious problems,” Sessions said to Lagniappe in his weekly teleconference last week. “I don’t mean to minimize them at all.”
But, despite refraining from passing judgment on whether the surge should be maintained or troops levels should be reduced, Sessions said preliminary reports indicate there has been some success.
“He [Petraeus] is taking the battle to them and is having success wherever he is join,” said Sessions.
Bonner defends position on pay raise vote
The Press-Register’s “Political Skinny” reported last week Rep. Jo Bonner, along with Rep. Artur Davis, voted to stop an attempt to require House members to vote on cost-of-living raises instead of having them automatically applied.
The bill was sponsored by Rep. Jim Matheson (D-Utah), but was defeated 244-181.
“It is the fair thing to do instead of members voting for pay raises,” Bonner said to Lagniappe last week.
Bonner points out pay raises for members are easy to demagogue. He said the status quo dates back to 1989 when former congressman Sonny Callahan “bit the bullet and tried to make this a professional salary for a professional position.”
“My position has been consistent since I’ve been in office” Bonner said. “I’m not going to vote for something, then turn around and accept it.”
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, with Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.) at the helm, ran ads in the last election cycle attacking Republicans for accepting automatic pay increases while voting against a minimum-wage increase.
“Rahm Emanuel violated a promise that said he was not going to use this as a campaign issue,” Bonner said.
According to Bonner, 85-90 percent of members in the Democratic caucus were upset over the Matheson bill.
He believes the cost-of-living adjustments are justified because the cost-of-living in Washington is higher than Mobile and he is required by law to maintain a residence in Mobile, while having to also have a residence in Washington. But, he said he knows of 30 members who sleep in their offices.
Contact Jeff Poor at jeffreypoor@yahoo.com.
Archives
Beltway Beat
