In an “address to the constituents of the 22nd District of Texas,” conservative Sugar Land icon Tom DeLay confirmed Tuesday the widespread reports of the night before, and said he intends to resign from Congress.
DeLay said despite expected speculation to the contrary, “I have no fear whatsoever about any investigation into me or my personal or professional activities.”
Instead, he said, he looks forward to working at a grass-roots level to move conservative causes forward, to completing the Rio Bend foster care project in Richmond, and to spending time with his wife, Christine.
“After many weeks of personal prayerful thinking and analysis, I have come to the conclusion that it is time to close this public service chapter of my life,” DeLay said.
“Because I care so deeply about this district and the people in it, I refuse to allow liberal Democrats an opportunity to steal this seat with a negative, personal campaign,” he said in the address. “The voters of the 22nd District of Texas deserve a campaign about the vital national issues that they care most about and that affect their lives every day, and not a campaign focused solely as a referendum on me.
“So today, I am announcing my intention to resign my seat in the House. I will make that resignation effective sometime before mid-June, but largely dependent on the congressional calendar. I plan to begin focusing on the next phase of my life as a private citizen.”
DeLay also said he intends to “relocate to my Virginia property and reside closer to Washington, so that I can dedicate the necessary time and energy to making a successful transition from the public to private sectors for myself and family.
DeLay’s decision to quit the race comes just three days after his former deputy chief of staff, Tony Rudy, pleaded guilty to a federal count of conspiracy related to a Justice Department investigation into dealings by disgraced Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff probe. Rudy pleaded guilty to conspiring with disgraced lobbyist Abramoff and another former DeLay aide, Michael Scanlon, to give and receive gifts in return for specific congressional action.
Indictments returned against him in Travis County last fall, on conspiracy and money laundering charges, forced DeLay to give up his title as House majority leader. As the Texas court case dragged on through December 2005 and into January, DeLay gave up an attempt to regain the majority leader position.
DeLay has steadfastly maintained innocence in the Texas case, and has said he’s done nothing illegal or unethical in his dealings with Abramoff.
In his statement Tuesday morning, DeLay said he expects “political pundits” and the media to speculate on reasons for his resignation “devoid of, and unencumbered by accuracy, facts, and truth.”
He added, “I have no fear whatsoever about any investigation into me or my personal or professional activities.
“As one of my colleagues in the House leadership astutely observed a while back, the wheels of justice turn much more slowly than the wheels of allegation.”
The speculation began Monday night.
“He basically looked at the polling,” MSNBC’s Chris Matthews reported Monday night, of a conversation he had with DeLay. “He said the (negative) trend continued. He said he expected to take a beating all summer” on news about developments in the Jack Abramoff scandal, and the Texas charges against him.
DeLay said he will be “quite content to be judged when the passage of time has provided both all of the facts and a greater sense of perspective than is possible for most today.”
“I have no regrets today, and no doubts,” DeLay added. “I am proud of the past. I am at peace with the present. And I am excited about the future, which holds, as always, America’s brightest days… and mine, too.”
DeLay said despite expected speculation to the contrary, “I have no fear whatsoever about any investigation into me or my personal or professional activities.”
Instead, he said, he looks forward to working at a grass-roots level to move conservative causes forward, to completing the Rio Bend foster care project in Richmond, and to spending time with his wife, Christine.
“After many weeks of personal prayerful thinking and analysis, I have come to the conclusion that it is time to close this public service chapter of my life,” DeLay said.
“Because I care so deeply about this district and the people in it, I refuse to allow liberal Democrats an opportunity to steal this seat with a negative, personal campaign,” he said in the address. “The voters of the 22nd District of Texas deserve a campaign about the vital national issues that they care most about and that affect their lives every day, and not a campaign focused solely as a referendum on me.
“So today, I am announcing my intention to resign my seat in the House. I will make that resignation effective sometime before mid-June, but largely dependent on the congressional calendar. I plan to begin focusing on the next phase of my life as a private citizen.”
