5 years after indictments, DeLay's trial begins

AP
By JUAN A. LOZANO, Associated Press Writer
Mon Oct 25, 3:41 pm ET

AUSTIN, Texas – Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, one of the most polarizing politicians of the Bush years, is finally getting his day in court, five years after being charged with illegally funneling corporate money to help elect Republicans to the Texas Legislature.

Jury selection begins Tuesday, but it's at neither the time nor the place that DeLay sought. The trial will be in Austin, the most Democratic city in one of the nation's most Republican states, and testimony is set to start on the eve of Election Day.

DeLay was once one of the most powerful Republicans in Congress. As the No. 2 leader in the House, he earned the nickname "the Hammer" for his heavy-handed style in bringing recalcitrant members of the GOP into line for votes.

But the criminal charges in Texas, as well as a separate federal investigation of his ties to disgraced former lobbyist Jack Abramoff, forced DeLay to step down as majority leader and eventually to resign after representing suburban Houston for 22 years.

(More here.)