Can This Reputation Be Saved?

Tom DeLay

The short answer: Unlikely

As of today, if you google Tom Delay and "scandal" you get 482,000 postings; "investigation" is up to 1.260,000; and "corruption" is 546,000. That's a lot of noise and most of it does not favor the Speaker of the House.

Despite the man's obvious powers of persuasion, and notwithstanding the fact that he earned a trip to Rome for his loyalty, support for Delay appears to be waning. 45% of Texans in a recent Houston Chronicle poll said they'd vote for someone else. Leading Republicans have started to back away from full endorsements and there's even a rumor that Karl Rove wants him gone. This is not a sign of a reputation in good shape.

Still On The Schiavo Case:
One Step Forward, Two Steps Back
On the same day that DeLay came forward and apologized for issuing a veiled threat against judges in the wake of the Terri Schiavo right-to-die case ("The time will come for the men responsible for this to answer for their behavior."), DeLay also demanded that Congress conduct an independent review of the judges involved in the controversy.

Several federal courts refused to intervene in the Schiavo case despite novel legislation passed by Congress and signed into law by President Bush authorizing them to do so. DeLay's request could lead the House Judiciary Committee to impeach those judges. And while nobody expects that to happen, the fact that DeLay made the request suggests he continues to have a tin ear regarding the Schiavo controversy (which poll after poll has shown to be a disastrous one for the GOP) and still remains in the tight grasp of the religious right, which has made the saga a cornerstone of its political agenda.

Does DeLay Still Have a Chance?
Could he still recover? Possibly. But he has to stop violating the basics of media training: blaming, dodging, and avoiding. He insists that the "vast left-wing conspiracy" is behind his woes. That line's getting a little old, Tom: 93% of the American people don't think you're right, according to a recent CNN poll. He keeps trying to change the subject -- witness the Terry Schiavo efforts -- and he is being anything but up front about the facts. But whether he's right or wrong is irrelevant. These are behaviors that drive the media nuts, and when they see such behavior, they can't help themselves, they start investigation everything they possibly can.

The press will be there no matter what, and millions of American's are hearing news about the scandals on a regular basis. Another million or so are no doubt feeding the fire in the blogosphere (check out this blog , for example). And all these opportunities to see the bad news about your Congressman and your party can't be good for voter loyalty. So, my prediction is that his reputation is irretrievably lost, and he himself will be nowhere to be found by the time the serious 2006 campaigning begins. --KDP

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