And former NRSC Chair John Ensign is taking the National Republican Senatorial Committee down with him:
Recipients of subpoenas issued in the Justice Department investigation tied to Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) include several Nevada firms that donated to the National Republican Senatorial Committee during Ensign’s tenure as chairman, as well as his former top aide, CBS affiliate KLAS-TV reported Thusday.The NRSC also acknowledged publicly Thursday that it has received a subpoena for documents in the investigation, which is believed to be focused on Ensign’s efforts to secure lobbying work for former aide Douglas Hampton. Hampton left the Senator’s staff after Ensign ended an affair with Hampton’s wife, Cynthia Hampton. A $96,000 payment that Ensign’s parents made to the Hamptons may also be under review.
The station’s Web site identified executives at the tech firms eCommLink, Selling Source and Pay Card USA, who Ensign allegedly pushed for contributions to the NRSC.
How soon will we know exactly how much hot water Ensign, his staff, and, possibly, NRSC staff are in? Soon (emphasis added by me):
Many of the federal agencies involved are being tight-lipped, but they have cast a wide net.Some of the people subpoenaed will appear before the grand jury at the end of the month. From there, depending on the testimony and evidence, the Senate and the DOJ will have to decide if it’s time for prosecution.
If the Justice Department decides that there is enough evidence to move forward with a prosecution of Ensign, Ensign staff, and possibly NRSC staff, that should be loads of fun for Senate Republicans leading up to Election Day. I don’t imagine that it will be easier for the NRSC to fundraise while under federal investigation. And it can’t be any easier for Republican incumbents and challengers running in 2010 to be linked to this Ensign-Vitter Republican Party.
If Ensign had resigned when the scandal first broke, at least it would be in the past for the Senate Republican Caucus. At this point, a scandal-tarred resignation will only further put the story front-and-center. And given Ensign’s role leading the NRSC when all of this was going down, the scandal’s tentacles reach across the Senate Republican Caucus. (Recall, for instance, that Republican Tom Coburn, up for re-election this year, knew of Ensign’s improprieties for around a year before the news broke, and refuses to disclose key details- obstruction of justice much?)
Something tells me this matter will get much worse for the Senate GOP before it gets better.
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