After 17 years in the House of Representatives, Republican California Congressman John Doolittle is calling it quits. Doolittle has been under investigation for the last three years for alleged ties to convicted felon and former lobbyist Jack Abramoff. He will serve the remainder of his 9th term, but will not seek a 10th.
Congressman John Doolittle Out
Doolittle appears to have had a fairly standard quid pro quo arrangement with Abramoff, who has admitted to bilking millions from his Native American tribal clients. Congressman Doolittle allegedly interceded on behalf of Abramoff’s clients, while receiving tens of thousands of dollars for campaign contributions in return for his assistance.
Doolittle’s wife, Julie, was also paid in excess of $66,000 between September 2002 and February 2004 to plan a fundraising event for Abramoff that never took place. (Federal investigators are exploring whether or not Julie Doolittle actually performed any services for these payments.)
Overall, the Abramoff probe has resulted in more than a dozen convictions and sent one Congressman, former Ohio Rep. Bob Ney, to prison. As many as two dozen members of Congress are reportedly linked to the Abramoff scandal, including Senators Harry Reid (D-NV), Conrad Burns (R-MT), and Byron Dorgan (D-ND). As I noted last week, these investigations may essentially be shut down because of flawed court ruling that makes it nearly impossible to conduct criminal investigations of members of Congress.
By the way, for those of you interested in a review of the Abramoff scandal, including Judicial Watch’s pursuit of Secret Service records detailing Abramoff’s visits to the White House, click here.
Tom Fitton is the President of Judicial Watch, Inc., a conservative, non-partisan educational foundation, which promotes transparency, accountability and integrity in government, politics and the law.
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