DeLay Indicted – Again!

A new grand jury in Texas has indicted former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay on a new criminal charge – this time, for money laundering in an additional indictment issued by a Travis County grand jury, according to the Associated Press.

DeLay stepped down from his House leadership position last week after a different Travis County grand jury indicted him on conspiracy charges in connection with the illegal funneling of corporate money to Texas candidates in 2002. Texas law prohibits corporate political contributions.

DeLay's associates, John Colyandro of Austin and Jim Ellis of Washington, were each indicted on a money laundering charge last week. Money laundering is a charge under the criminal code, not the election code.

"(Travis County District Attorney) Ronnie Earle has stooped to a new low with his brand of prosecutorial abuse," DeLay said in a prepared statement. "He is trying to pull the legal equivalent of a 'do-over' since he knows very well that the charges he brought against me last week are totally manufactured and illegitimate. This is an abomination of justice."

The latest indictment, from a grand jury whose term began Monday, came just hours after DeLay's attorneys filed a motion to dismiss the original case.

Next up: Bush/Cheney White House gurus Karl Rove and Scooter Libby for treason in the intentional outing of covert CIA operative Valerie Plame.