Texas Democrats Revel in DeLay's Departure: CBS AP article

Barely a day after leaving office, former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay was anything but off the hook among Texas Democrats at their state convention Saturday.

"If the sun seems a little brighter today; if our step seems a little bouncier; if life seems a little better today, there's a good reason for it. For the first day in 22 years, Tom DeLay is not a member of Congress," U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, said as the crowd cheered wildly.

DeLay, a Sugar Land Republican who recently moved to Virginia, announced his resignation in April but made it effective Friday. DeLay faces money laundering charges in Texas, accused in a scheme to route corporate money through the Republican National Committee to state GOP legislative candidates for their 2002 races.

At the state Democratic convention Saturday, Senate contender Barbara Ann Radnofsky said her opponent, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, hosted some "K Street Project" events _ a DeLay-backed initiative that pressured lobbying firms to hire Republicans and fund GOP causes.

Then Radnofsky brought out what she called a gift for Hutchison: a Virginia tote bag that she said symbolized Hutchison's relocation.

"I couldn't find a `Virginia is for lovers' bag so that she and Tom DeLay could enjoy themselves," Radnofsky said, later adding that she meant the two "are very closely aligned."

But highlighting what they call the GOP's ethics and policy failures isn't enough, some Democrats said. Edwards said Democrats must do a better job of defining their own party and its values, because "too many of our fellow Texans have been falsely led to think we don't believe in God."

He also said Democrats must quickly "counterpunch" when opponents attack.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/06/11/ap/politics/printableD8I5M16O0.shtml