Word on Capitol Hill is that ideological conservative state Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Naperville) is getting behind-the-scenes help in his six-way Republican congressional primary battle from GOP House Whip Tom DeLay of Texas.
DeLay is the arch-conservative former pest-control service operator whose former profession and aggressive attacks on federal regulation of almost any type, including environmental laws, has earned him the nickname “The Exterminator.”
A top aide to DeLay has been calling around to some big conservative backers suggesting they “take a look at” (i.e., send money to) Roskam, said a congressional source.
The open 13th Congressional District seat, to be vacated this year by retiring moderate GOP Rep. Harris Fawell of Naperville, reliably returns Republicans and so represents an opportunity for the conservative wing of the party to bolster its strength in Congress.
Roskam is not only ideologically dependable but, at 36 years old, young enough that he has the potential longevity to gain substantial seniority and influence within the House.
DeLay’s sympathy for Roskam surely also is enhanced by the candidate’s past service as a member of DeLay’s congressional staff.
Officially, DeLay remains neutral in the intraparty contest, said spokesman John Feehery. But, he said, Roskam “has some friends in this office. They might be helping him in their spare time.”
Rep. David McIntosh (R-Ind.), one of the young darlings of the conservative movement, will be in the district Thursday to show his support for Roskam, a spokesman said.
Fawell has given his endorsement in the race to a fellow member of the GOP’s moderate wing: Roskam’s chief rival, state Rep. Judy Biggert (R-Hinsdale).
Justice and delays: Illinois Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin is looking to give the GOP a taste of its own medicine if conservatives do not stop their foot-dragging on President Bill Clinton’s judicial nominations.
Unless Republicans start bringing the nominations to a Senate vote soon after the congressional session begins, Durbin advocates that the Democratic Party start a slowdown of the chamber.
The Senate’s complex rules give a minority party plenty of opportunities to tie up business in procedural knots. In fact, Democrats last fall invoked a rarely used Senate rule to stop any committee hearings after 2 p.m. in an unrelated protest.
“I hate to see it come to this. It’s not good for the country. It’s not good for the Senate. But the treatment given to these men and women is not fair,” Durbin said.
By tradition, Durbin and fellow Democrat Sen. Carol Moseley-Braun recommend judicial nominees for federal court vacancies in Illinois. Durbin says that the number of lawyers seeking the openings has dropped precipitously because of the long delays in confirming nominees.
“We had two judicial openings in Chicago last year, and we had over 100 applicants,” Durbin said. “Now, we are down to 15 to 18 people applying for federal judgeships.”
Media critic: Amid allegations of influence peddling by Labor Secretary Alexis Herman, Chicago’s Democratic Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. has responded by taking on the reporter who broke news of a Justice Department investigation, Brian Ross of ABC News.
Jackson wrote ABC News President David Westin on Friday to ask the network to investigate reports that Herman’s accuser was introduced to the Justice Department by Ross, who later disclosed the government investigation. “It is my understanding that journalists are to report news stories, not participate in their creation,” Jackson wrote in the letter.
Radio days: South suburban GOP Rep. Jerry Weller handled the none-too-onerous task this weekend of explaining to a nationwide audience why millions of married couples deserve a break on their income taxes.
Delivering the Republican response to President Clinton’s weekly Saturday radio address, the Morris lawmaker promoted a bill to eliminate the “marriage penalty,” a tax code quirk that lifts many married joint filers into a higher bracket.
On the road: When last we heard from Kathryn Cameron Porter, human rights activist and wife of Republican Rep. John Porter of Wilmette, she was on a hunger strike in front of the Capitol to win freedom for Leyla Zana, a Kurdish political leader imprisoned in Turkey.
That protest was called off after several weeks, without achieving Zana’s freedom, after some participants became ill, said the congressman’s spokesman, David Kohn.
Now, Kathryn Cameron Porter is traveling with her husband as a member of a presumably well-fed congressional delegation to, of all places, Turkey.
The trip is part of her husband’s work with the Helsinki Commission, which monitors human rights throughout Europe. Wouldn’t you know it? Zana is on the agenda.
“If their request (to meet with Zana) is not granted, they are going to make a big issue of this with the Turkish government,” Kohn said.
The couple, traveling with three other lawmakers and two of their spouses, also will visit Greece and Cyprus.
Authorities in Cyprus may recall one of Kathryn Porter’s previous stays: she created an international incident during the late 1980s when she led a procession of women across the “green line” dividing Greek Cyprus from its Turkish half.
