Indicted DeLay leaves House leadership post

Indicted DeLay leaves House leadership post


HOUSTON, Texas (Reuters) - The second-ranking Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives, Tom DeLay, said on Wednesday he would step aside temporarily from his leadership post following an indictment on a campaign-finance charge.

A grand jury in Travis County, Texas, indicted DeLay on a single felony conspiracy charge related to fund-raising activities by a political action committee he created, CNN and the Austin American-Statesman newspaper reported.

On September 8, TRMPAC and lobby group Texas Association of Business were indicted on charges of illegally funneling corporate donations into the 2002 elections for Texas Legislature.

Three men -- John Colyandro, Jim Ellis and Warren Robold -- with links to DeLay and the committee were indicted last year in the case and are awaiting trial. They were charged with accepting a total of $600,000 in illegal corporate contributions.

TRMPAC's money and expertise helped Republicans win control of the Texas Legislature for the first time since the post-Civil War Reconstruction era.

At DeLay's urging, the Legislature then conducted a controversial remapping of congressional districts that resulted in more Republicans from Texas being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.

DeLay has denied any wrongdoing, saying he was not involved in TRMPAC's day-to-day activities.

DeLay has repeatedly accused Earle, a Democrat, of conducting a political witch hunt. DeLay met with Earle several weeks ago to explain his limited role in the committee.