Briber of Congressman fires shot across the bow

Brent Wilkes, currently being tried for bribing former congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-CA), has subpoenaed thirteen senior Congressmen to testify at his bribery trial. The members will decline to comply with the subpoenas.

The list of Congressmen as provided by The Politico is:

• Rep. Dennis Hastert (R-Il) former Speaker of the House;
• Rep. Roy Blunt (R-MO) current House Minority Whip;
• Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-CA), former chairman of the Appropriations Committee;
• Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA), former chairman of the Armed Services Committee;
• Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-MI), former Intelligence Committee chairman;
• Rep. Ike Skelton (D-MO) current Armed Services Committee Chairman;
• Rep. Silvestre Reyes (D-TX) current Intelligence Committee Chairman;
• Rep. Jack Murtha (D-PA), current chairman of the Defense subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee;
• Rep. Norm Dicks (D-WA);
• Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA);
• Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA);
• Rep. Joe Knollenberg (R-MI); and
• Rep. Jerry Weller (R-Il).

Wilkes is known to have provided a lot of money in bribes to Rep. Cunningham. This list amounts to an accusation that all of these Representatives have also taken bribes from Wilkes.

The list appears to have become available when the House of Representatives voted to decline to permit the court to enforce its subpoenas on these members. Representatives all reported that House Rules did not permit the members to respond to the subpoenas. (See TPM Muckraker.)

Have any ex-House members also been subpoenaed? For example Tom DeLay? If not, then it would be reasonable to assume that this was a form of political blackmail that Wilkes' attorneys were trying to gain protection for the court.

I guess those Representatives who were subpoenaed see a mass denial to appear at Wilkes' trial as politically preferable to any of them showing up and taking the Fifth Amendment. Still, this vote puts the entire House of Representatives on record as defending those of their members who have taken bribes and sold their vote. [Bad guess. Cynical as I am, there was apparently no vote for me to rail against.]

This is still a very significant accusation from the man currently incarcerated ex-Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham named as his briber that the entire House of Representatives was highly corrupt. From TPM Muckraker:

"Wilkes came out last year to offer the defense that he didn't bribe lawmakers -- it was the other way around: they shook him down. "Transactional lobbying" (i.e. no free favors) was his phrase for it. Perhaps the subpoenas were part of that defense strategy?"

Since Wilke's trial has been delayed and will probably not start until early next year I am sure that we will hear more about this.