Sifter

On Capitol Hill, House Majority Leader Tom DeLay is known as “The Hammer.” Famous for his fund-raising ability as well as his political ruthlessness and acumen, he runs the House, with its solidly Republican majority, like a fiefdom. Lately, though, his castle walls have been crumbling, as charges of influence-peddling, cronyism and outright corruption have dogged him in Washington and his home state of Texas. All of which raises the interesting question: How close is our own Rep. Wally Herger, a fellow Republican, to DeLay? Pretty close, as the information below suggests.

Amount Herger has accepted from Tom DeLay’s Americans for a Republican Majority Political Action Committee (ARMPAC): $1,105

Amount Herger has donated to DeLay’s legal-defense fund: $6,000

Percentage of times Herger has voted with DeLay: 94.75 (4,364 of 4,606 votes)

How Herger voted on House Resolution 5, to weaken ethics rules to protect DeLay: Yes

How Herger voted on a motion to table HR 153, a Democratic effort to tighten ethics rules: Yes

How Herger voted on a closed-door rule vote that would allow DeLay to stay in position even if indicted: Yes

Number of Republican House members who’ve together received a total of $2,140,625 from DeLay’s ARMPAC: 226

Number of House members who together have contributed a total of $336,500 to DeLay’s legal-defense fund: 80

Number of House members who have voted with DeLay at least 90 percent of the time: 182

Source: Public Campaign Action Fund (www.pcactionfund.org)