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Are you arguing DeLay didn't do anything wrong or are you arguing DeLay didn't do anything worse than the Democrats?  

If all of those people broke the law by accepting trips from foreign sources they should have their feet held to the fire too.

If DeLay held a press conference stating he did something wrong and he is willing to accept the consequenses and then pointed to 10 Democrats who did the same thing it would lead a lot of people to believe he is a stand up guy and the Dems were being hyprocrits.

I think that your characterization of these trips as "breaking the law" is simply an error of fact. These trips are not against the law. They are common occurrences.

What we are witnessing is an attempt by left-leaning reporters to trade on the ignorance of most people about these things by singling out DeLay's trips, pointing at them, and saying, "See that? He took trips!"

The insinuation is that there is something odd or illegal going on, when in fact this is commonly-accepted practice in both houses of Congress.

In other words, it's a media-powered smear job against a guy they just don't like.

One might make the case that no member of Congress should be taking these trips, but that has been discussed at length and the decision was to accept the trips provided that they are disclosed. One can rant against that, too, but those are the rules as they are. To single out DeLay's trips and point to them as if they are an oddity is therefore disingenuous. It borders on lying-by-omission. Unfortunately this is what political conservatives must expect from the press these days. Most reporters are partisan political operatives hiding behind the skirts of "journalism." This is a perfect example of how they operate. They have you thinking that something illegal is going on when in fact no such thing has occurred.

... to see "Baghdad Jim", "Mad Maxine" Waters and Mo "Deibold is the Devil" Hinchey on this list?

Kinda surprising that Breaux and Bayh are the only Senators that make the top-10, though.

that Evan Bayh took so many trips on DLC's dime? They, like, so own him.

Might be worth trying to distinguish between trips based on sponsor and purpose before we get too excited one way or the other... but hey, this is good data, and if you find some Dems to crucify more power to you.

As far as I know the issue with the DeLay trips is who paid for them.

This is from a Chicago Tribune article about DeLay's trips:

Questions on his trips

In addition, DeLay has been peppered with questions about several foreign trips he took that were paid for by private interests, despite being sponsored by approved educational groups. One trip, however, was sponsored by a group registered as a foreign agent and therefore prohibited from underwriting lawmakers' travel.  

If the Dems are doing the same thing they shouldn't be able to get away with it either.

One trip, however, was sponsored by a group registered as a foreign agent

Which trip would that be?

It's right there on the registration form:

"Check this box if you are a foreign agent."

Sheesh.

paid for by a foreign agent or lobbyist?

... but still no facts.

I don't know whether I expressed that.

There is a box on the registration form.

From a USA Today article:

A fourth, to South Korea, was financed by a group registered with the Justice Department as a foreign agent and barred from paying for lawmakers' travel. DeLay says he believed the trips were underwritten by legitimate educational organizations.

who on that list besides delay took a trip
paid for by a foreign agent or lobbyist?

I don't know for sure, but let us assume that the "Korea - United States Exchange Council" is the "registered foreign agent" in question. In that case, the answer is:

John Carter -
Republican Party

November 28, 2003 - December 3, 2003 (6 days)
Seoul, Korea

Purpose - Familiarization trip to Korea, DMZ

Total Cost - $18,832.00

Ander Crenshaw -
Republican Party

August 26, 2001 - August 28, 2001 (3 days)
South Korea

Purpose - Educational / Meet with government officials

Total Cost - $27,640.00

Tom DeLay -
Republican Party

August 25, 2001 - August 28, 2001 (4 days)
South Korea

Purpose - Educational / Meet with government officials

Total Cost - $28,000.00

Eni Faleomavaega -
Democratic Party

November 29, 2003 - December 2, 2003 (4 days)
Korean DMZ

Purpose - mark 50th anniversary of the signing of the Armistice
agreement on the Korean penninsula. Will meet with senior official re
Korea/United States relations. Visit American Troops at DMZ

Total Cost - $22,098.84

Michael Honda -
Democratic Party

December 2, 2003
Seoul, Korea

Purpose - Familiarization with Korea

Total Cost -

Jim McDermott -
Democratic Party

November 29, 2003 - December 2, 2003 (4 days)
Seoul, Korea

Purpose - Familiarization trip to Korea, DMZ

Total Cost - $9,340.60

Ileana Ros-Lehtinen -
Republican Party

August 25, 2001 - August 28, 2001 (4 days)
Tel Aviv-Seoul, Republic of Korea and South Korea to Taipei, Taiwan

Purpose - educational and meetings with governmental officials

Total Cost - $27,960.00

The Korea-US exchange Council, sponsor of DeLay's trip to Korea, was registered as a foreign agent.

The "reistered foreign agent" might also be the Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce. In that case, the answer is:

Chinese National Association of Industry and Commerce - 25 trips

Anibal Acevedo-Vila -
Democratic Party

May 26, 2001 - June 2, 2001 (8 days)
Taiwan, ROC

Purpose - Fact-finding and educational visit

Total Cost - $9,122.00

Julia Carson -
Democratic Party

January 8, 2001 - January 13, 2001 (6 days)
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - Fact-finding and educational visit

Total Cost - $7,570.00

Eva Clayton -
Democratic Party

January 8, 2001 - January 13, 2001 (6 days)
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - Fact-finding and educational visit

Total Cost - $7,590.00

Ander Crenshaw -
Republican Party

August 28, 2001 - August 30, 2001 (3 days)
Taiwan

Purpose - Educational / Meet with government officials

Total Cost - $1,242.00

Danny Davis -
Democratic Party

January 8, 2001 - January 13, 2001 (6 days)
Taipei, Taiwan

Purpose - Fact finding and educational visit

Total Cost - $15,140.00

Tom DeLay -
Republican Party

August 28, 2001 - August 30, 2001 (3 days)
Taiwan

Purpose - Educational / Meet with government officials

Total Cost - $1,242.00

Benjamin Gilman -
Republican Party

August 13, 2001 - August 16, 2001 (4 days)
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - Fact finding and educational visit and participate in the Global Peace Conference

Total Cost - $9,900.00

Van Hilleary -
Republican Party

December 26, 2000 - January 2, 2001 (8 days)
Tokyo - Taipei, ROC - Washington

Purpose - Attending seminar, fact-finding and educational visit

Total Cost - $8,190.00

Grace Napolitano -
Democratic Party

November 11, 2000 - November 26, 2000 (16 days)
None

Purpose - Attending seminar, education visit

Total Cost - $3,770.00

George Nethercutt, Jr. -
Republican Party

April 10, 2001 - April 17, 2001 (8 days)
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - Attend seminar

Total Cost - $3,770.00

Solomon Ortiz -
Democratic Party

May 26, 2001 - June 2, 2001 (8 days)
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - Fact finding

Total Cost - $5,050.00

Doug Ose -
Republican Party

January 6, 2002 - January 11, 2002 (6 days)
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - fact-finding, educational and economic development

Total Cost - $5,050.00

Bob Riley -
Republican Party

August 13, 2000 - August 17, 2000 (5 days)
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - Fact-finding

Total Cost - $2,129.00

F. James Sensenbrenner -
Republican Party

January 2, 2000 - January 8, 2000 (7 days)
Taiwan

Purpose - Fact-finding/education

Total Cost - $2,550.00

Robert Wexler -
Democratic Party

December 17, 2001 - December 21, 2001 (5 days)
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - fact finding and educational visit

Total Cost - $4,786.00

Roscoe Bartlett -
Republican Party

April 16, 2001 - April 21, 2001 (6 days)
Taipei, Taiwan, ROC

Purpose - Fact-finding and educational visit

Total Cost - $5,120.00

Joseph Crowley -
Democratic Party

November 18, 2000 - November 22, 2000 (5 days)
New York - Tiawan - New York

Purpose - Meetings with Tiawanese officials, meetings with business leaders

Total Cost - $4,510.00

Stephanie Jones -
Democratic Party

January 8, 2001 - January 13, 2001 (6 days)
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - Fact-finding and educational visit

Total Cost - $7,570.00

Carolyn Kilpatrick -
Democratic Party

January 8, 2001 - January 13, 2001 (6 days)
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - Fact-finding and educational visit

Total Cost - $7,570.00

Peter King -
Republican Party

August 27, 2001 - August 30, 2001 (4 days)
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - Education/meetings

Total Cost - $5,600.00

Barbara Lee -
Democratic Party

January 6, 2001 - January 13, 2001 (8 days)
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - Fact-finding and educational visit

Total Cost - $7,570.00

Solomon Ortiz -
Democratic Party

May 29, 2000 - June 2, 2000 (5 days)
Taipei, Taiwan

Purpose - Fact-finding and education

Total Cost - $4,950.00

Silvestre Reyes -
Democratic Party

May 29, 2000 - June 2, 2000 (5 days)


Purpose - Fact-finding and educational visit

Total Cost - $8,550.00

Gregory Meeks -
Democratic Party

January 8, 2001
Taiwan, Republic of China

Purpose - fact-finding and educational visit

Total Cost - $13,790.00

Ileana Ros-Lehtinen -
Republican Party

August 28, 2001 - August 30, 2001 (3 days)
Taipei, Taiwan to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Purpose - educational and meetings with governmental officials

Total Cost - $1,226.00

They're not a foreign agent. The accusation about Delay does not surround a trip where a foreign agent openly sponsored a trip - but one to Russia sponsored by a US think tank that had received money from a foreign agent. There's also no evidence that Delay knew.

I see that other House members, including Democrats, have accepted travel money from this group as well.  Sounds like they all broke the rules.  This one does not sound very serious to me.

This is from a Washington Post article:

Justice Department documents show that the Korea-U.S. Exchange Council, a business-financed entity created with help from a lobbying firm headed by DeLay's former chief of staff, registered under the Foreign Agents Registration Act on Aug. 22, 2001. DeLay; his wife, Christine; and two other Republican lawmakers departed on a trip financed by the group on Aug. 25 of that year.

This link is to the Department of Justice's 2002 list of registered foreign agents.

I dunno Mike, we're finding out all kinds of good stuff here. The notion that this is a press-powered smear job, conducted by highlighting DeLay's trips — and only DeLay's trips — is getting stronger by the minute.

Never mind the foreigners, look at Breaux's trips. The guy is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the railroads and the drug companies. And I haven't even peeked at Her Heinous yet.

See here.  But it does seem unfair to single out DeLay here since others have accepted travel money from this organization as well.  

What you're not mentioning is that the trip was arranged long before the 22nd and certainly long before the trip on the 25th, just three days after the organization registered itself as a foreign agent.

These types of trips are planned weeks in advance. And that's when the sponsors are checked to see whether they are valid. Three mere days to the trip, the organization registers itself as a foreign agent and does not inform the congressmen.

Therefore DeLay and the other Reps (and their representatives i.e. aides, etc.) who travelled with him on this trip were not aware of this before the travel date. DeLay travelled with other Republicans as well as Democrats, including an aide to Nancy Pelosi representing her boss.

So yes, in light of the fact that the Press implicitly seems to have accepted that the other junket-participants, especially the Democrats, were unaware of the Korea-U.S. Exchange Council's change of status, the focus on DeLay suggests this is nothing more than a witch-hunt.

I'm so surprised our lily white Congressmen take money from anywhere they can get it-- sarcasm

Seriously, though, all these guys and gals need to be more careful from whom they accept money.  They all know better.  None of this stuff about ignorance of the source of cash cuts the mustard for me.  These trips might be perfectly legitimate, but House Rules are very specific about gifts and any attempts to buy influence.

DeLay's being pounded not becuase of one trip he made, but a series of actions that have gotten him admonished by the Ethics Committee three times and continue to crop up anywhere this guy goes or exerts influence.

The article I quote says the same thing you just did about the trip being taken three days after the agent registered.

My first post in this thread suggested that DeLay should admit his mistake/error/whatever you want to call it and then point to the Democrats who did the same thing he did and turn the tables on them.

Nice one!  Good to see someone else here with a sense 'o humor.