Today's edition of the Washington Post has a
good follow-up on yesterday's Tony Rudy guilty plea on one count of conspiracy.
As suspected, Rudy will cooperate with Justice Department investigators:
Rudy, 39, agreed to cooperate with the Justice Department investigation, which sources have said is scrutinizing the actions of half a dozen members of Congress, as well as of Capital Hill staffers, other officials and Abramoff's business associates.
More on Rudy and his first trial as a witness in extended.
Rudy will get his first experience as a cooperative witness in the upcoming David Safavian trial. The trial will also be the first to feature Michael Scanlon and Jack Abramoff as witnesses. Safavian, charged with obstruction of justice and making false statements, is the former White House official who lied about his involvement in a 2002 Abramoff-sponsored trip to Scotland. At the time, Abramoff had business before Safavian's General Services Administration.
As has been noted, Rudy's charging document mentions Reps. Bob Ney, Tom DeLay and former DeLay aide Ed Buckham. While DeLay isn't mentioned to have participated in explicit wrongdoing, the Post notes:
Rudy's plea makes it clear that the federal investigation has far to go. The confession "does not include all of the facts known to me concerning criminal activity in which I or others engaged," [Rudy] stated.
So, while DeLay is not directly implicated in the charging document, this is not to say DeLay is in the clear. Contrary to Bob Novak's recent article, the absence of direct public implication doesn't equal the clearing of one's record.
As for Ney:
Rudy could also be a witness against Ney. The congressman agreed last fall to waive the five-year statute of limitations on possible charges in Florida. The waiver will expire in late April.
Clearly, speed is of the essence here. Recently, we saw Ralph Reed cleared of charges in Texas because the statute of limitations expired. Presumably, Ney won't be as obliging to extend the statute of limitations this time around.
Back to DeLay: Buckham's lined up to be the next target to flip:
Stanley M. Brand, a former House counsel with experience in corruption probes, said prosecutors may be trying to surround DeLay by gaining the cooperation of aides higher and higher up his operation. "This is not a good day for Tom DeLay," Brand said.
Besides his recent primary victory, one would have to search hard to find many good days had by DeLay recently. It looks like many more bad days are to follow.