In a tribute to DeLay, a bid for party loyalty

Thursday night's tribute to embattled House majority leader Tom DeLay at the Capitol Hilton aims to send a message to GOP colleagues contemplating jumping ship: Do so at your peril.

President Bush won't be there, but a near who's who of Washington's conservative establishment will. ("Near" is the operative word: Absences will be noted.)

"The tribute is a statement to him: You're not alone. We'll stand by you. And it's to say to people in this town: If you pick a fight with him, you've got us to contend with," says organizer Cleta Mitchell, a GOP election lawyer on the board of the American Conservative Union. "Our target for that message is Republicans in the House and the Senate," she adds.

So far, only a handful of Mr. DeLay's GOP colleagues have publicly distanced themselves from him, including Reps. Christopher Shays (R) of Connecticut, Thomas Tancredo (R) and ex-Speaker Newt Gingrich, whom Mr. DeLay once conspired to topple.

But with the House ethics committee back in business, a new investigation into DeLay's travel and ties to lobbyists is ramping up. At the same time, an ongoing grand-jury investigation into alleged illegal corporate contributions involving DeLay associates in Texas fuels ethics concerns.

Also - and for the first time - the 11-term lawmaker faces a credible electoral threat. Former Rep. Nick Lampson (D) of Texas announced last week that he will challenge DeLay in 2006. Political handicappers give him a shot in a race sure to attract millions in outside money.

Ironically, the Texas redistricting plan, engineered by DeLay, that helped defeat Lampson in 2004 - and add five seats to the GOP majority in the House - now makes it tougher for DeLay to hold his own seat, which took on about 20 percent of Lampson's former district.

"The architect of the redistricting proposal had to take his lumps, too, in drawing these lines and taking on new areas," says Amy Walter, who analyzes House races for the Cook Political Report. Also, "these allegations and problems are taking a serious toll on [DeLay's] standing, even in his own district," she adds.

Sponsors of Thursday night's tribute say DeLay is the most effective GOP legislator in Congress, and they can't afford to lose him. "The reason why conservatives are sticking with DeLay is that he has always been for them on issues," says Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, a sponsor.

Other sponsors include David Keene of the American Conservative Union (ACU), Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, Ed Feulner of the Heritage Foundation, Paul Weyrich of the Free Congress Foundation, Gary Bauer of American Values, and Emmett Tyrrell, Jr., of the American Spectator - key contacts for conservatives aspiring to higher office.

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