Had Vowed To Fight On, Even If Indicted; Now Says He's Quitting For The Good Of His Family

Flip-Flopper?? ... In the meantime, with DeLay and Ney gone, Tom Feeney is the only remaining congressman to have accompanied Jack Abramoff to Scotland!

Winter Patriot Byon 8/7/2006, 9:57am PT





Guest blogged by Winter Patriot

According to ABC News and AP: Bob Ney Won't Seek Re-Election

COLUMBUS, Ohio Aug 7, 2006 (AP)— U.S. Rep. Bob Ney, dogged by an influence peddling probe in Washington, will not seek re-election, state Sen. Joy Padgett said early Monday.

AP writer Joe Danborn has some other details, including:

The six-term congressman from Heath in central Ohio had insisted he would not resign even if indicted over his dealings with now-convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff. In his first primary test in a decade, Ney won 68 percent of the vote May 2 against a little-known opponent. However, he faced a tough challenge in November from Democrat Zack Space, who had made the Justice Department's investigation into Ney a focus of his campaign.

The Pittsburgh Tribune Review has more, including some quotes from an exclusive interview with Ney: Ney drops out of fall race

Ney has not been charged with a crime, and he insists he did nothing wrong. But his former chief of staff, Neil Volz, who left to join Abramoff's team, pleaded guilty in May to conspiring to use gifts and trips to influence Ney's official activities. Volz said he and other Abramoff associates provided Ney and members of his staff with free or reduced-price trips to England, Scotland and the Fiesta Bowl in Tempe, Ariz.

Who went on that trip to Scotland? Let's see ...

There's Tom Delay ... oops! He's not in Congress anymore, is he?

Then there's Bob Ney ... and oops! Soon he won't be in Congress anymore either.

Soon, the only one of the three who will still be in Congress is Tom Feeney. And we have to wonder how long that will last...

According to U.S. Department of Justice court filings, Ney in return met with the secretary of the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development on behalf of an Abramoff client, helped another obtain a Congressional Gold Medal, assisted another's attempt to obtain a visa and provided other assistance.

Nothing wrong! Nope! There's nothing wrong with any of this!!

Psst! Hey buddy --- you wanna buy a Congressional Gold Medal?

Nothing wrong! Nope! Nothing wrong here!

Trust me: Nobody's doing anything wrong! Just keep walking, just keep walking...

In May, the House Ethics Committee announced it was investigating Ney and Rep. William Jefferson, D-Louisiana, another lawmaker with Abramoff ties. Abramoff is serving a 70-month prison sentence after pleading guilty in January to federal fraud and corruption charges related to the 2000 purchase of the SunCruz Casinos gambling fleet. Ney is widely acknowledged as being "Representative No. 1" in court documents that detail spending by Abramoff, including a golfing trip to Scotland, a trip to the Super Bowl and campaign contributions. Ney, who called Abramoff "dishonest and duplicitous," said he was misled by the lobbyist and his business partners.

What? Abramoff "dishonest and duplicitous"? Is there no honor among these thieves? Color me shocked!!

Ney was vague about his future plans. "I have some options in the nongovernment sector," he said.

I'm sure he does. Bob Ney's credentials --- including his selecton by CREW as one of top 13 Most Corrupt Members of Congress --- will serve him well in the private sector.

Regular BRAD BLOG readers will remember that we have been covering this story for a long time now. For more background on today's news, start here.



