This from The Hill's Hans Nichols and Jonathan E. Kaplan:

House Republicans have until noon today to propose any rules changes to inoculate Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) from losing his leadership position should he be indicted in a campaign-finance criminal probe back in Texas.

Republicans dismiss the investigation by Travis Country District Attorney Ronnie Earle as a politically motivated witch hunt, but GOP internal conference rules are clear that any elected member of the leadership must temporarily relinquish his position if indicted on a felony count that could lead to more than two years in prison.

[...]

The Republican rule requiring any elected leader to take leave of his leadership position pending the outcome of an indictment dates back to 1993, when Republicans sought to draw attention to the ethical problems of then-Ways and Means Chairman Dan Rostenkowski (D-Ill.).

If Republicans did attempt to change the rule, Democrats would accuse them of rank hypocrisy. Republicans must weigh that likely media maelstrom against the potentially more damaging prospect of having their majority leader forced to step down as a result of a campaign-finance indictment.

In the early ’90s, when House Republicans were in the political wilderness, they latched onto a series of ethical scandals in making their claim that the majority power had been corrupted by its years in power.

“We need new leadership which will act because it is right, not because they have been caught in cover-ups and scandals,” DeLay said on the House floor in 1992.

“Once again, what we are pointing out here is that we are outraged at the mismanagement of this House, and it is not just this last year. It has been going on for years. It is the arrogance of power, the lack of follow-through, the ‘Oh, yes, we can push that over in the corner and not address it.’”

I couldn't say it better myself... “We need new leadership which will act because it is right, not because they have been caught in cover-ups and scandals.” Thanks, Tom, for that great line.

The Republicans swept to power in 1994 in a large part due to the corruption of the Congressional Democratic Leadership (it is foolish to think that Clinton's healthcare plan was the only cause), and it is becoming increasingly apparent to this writer that for the Democrats to retake Congress in the near future, they too must grab on to the same issues. As I've written before, it needs to come down to this five word mantra:

Government accountability and fiscal responsibility