September 12, 2007

Vitter's Dirty Laundry Airs... Again

Maybe it was his appearance during yesterday's high-profile hearings on Capitol Hill, but all of the sudden Sen. David Vitter's personal woes are back in the spotlight after his initial implication in the D.C. Madam scandal all but faded from the collective Beltway memory.

Hustler publisher Larry Flynt called a press conference yesterday to once again accuse the Louisiana Republican of paying for sex with a New Orleans prostitute in 1999. The former call girl at the center of those allegations, Wendy Ellis, appeared with Flynt at yesterday's briefing.

At the time of their alleged trysts, Ellis went by the name "Leah." She told reporters that Vitter ended their business arrangement when she proposed taking the relationship to a more personal level. "I said, 'My real name is Wendy,' and he said, 'Oh my God.' That was the last time I saw him through the escort service." Vitter's wife's name is also Wendy.

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Posted at 2:45 PM
Posted to: Congress, Crime, David Vitter, Senate
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September 06, 2007

Winning Back GOP Was Losing Battle For Craig

The Gate doesn't care if Larry Craig is in the closet. But last we checked, being closeted isn't grounds for stripping a senator of his committee assignments or forcing his resignation.

It's become clear that while the Republican leadership may have overreacted -- as Sens. Arlen Specter, Ted Stevens, Jim Bunning and Mike Enzi believe -- there is little desire to reach out to the 27-year congressman. The GOP would pack and ship Craig's belongings back to Idaho themselves if they could, and the threat of total isolation may have compelled Craig to agree yesterday that he would stick by his Sept. 30 resignation date if his legal battle isn't resolved by then.

Spokesman Dan Whiting basically stated the obvious to AP today, that legal cases like the one Craig's about to pursue tend to be lengthy affairs. The cable networks jumped all over Whiting's comments as if they were breaking news, but the prospect that a judge or jury won't decide Craig's legal petition by the end of the month isn't necessarily an admission of guilt. He remains determined to battle a Senate Ethics Committee probe, and his attorneys will challenge his misdemeanor plea before a Minnesota court.

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Posted at 4:49 PM
Posted to: Congress, David Vitter, Larry Craig, Senate
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July 16, 2007

Vitter Won't Explain D.C. Madam Link

Louisiana Republican David Vitter went before the cameras one week after admitting he committed a "very serious sin" related to a Washington escort service. But he did not come with hat in hand.

"I'm not going to answer numerous questions about it again and again and again," Vitter said with a note of indignation.

Vitter did not explain why his phone number turned up in the records of Deborah Jeane Palfrey, the so-called D.C. Madam, only referring to his "past failings." Vitter also denied long-circulating rumors that he solicited prostitutes in the late 1990s as a state representative based in New Orleans.

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Posted at 6:54 PM
Posted to: Congress, Crime, D.C. Madam, David Vitter, Prostitution, Senate
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July 13, 2007

On Your Marks... Get Set...

The Washington press corps had better spend some time at the gym this weekend. They're sure to be jostling with cameramen and journos from outside the Beltway for the first glimpses of Sen. David Vitter, R-La., since his admission that he was a client of the so-called D.C. Madam, Deborah Jeane Palfrey.

Vitter missed several votes on the Hill this week to be with his family -- and stay out of sight. Fellow GOP Sen. Jim DeMint told AP that he expects Vitter to return to his job on Tuesday, when the Senate will be holding votes.

The Baton Rouge Advocate reports Vitter could face an ethics reprimand, and the Times-Picayune has an interview with a prostitute who says Vitter was a regular client.

Posted at 5:26 PM
Posted to: Congress, Crime, D.C. Madam, David Vitter, Prostitution, Senate
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July 10, 2007

Vitter Caught In D.C. Madam's Cross Hairs

It's been a rough year for New Orleans politicians. Just one month after Rep. William Jefferson (D) was indicted on 16 counts of bribery and fraud, Sen. David Vitter (R) has become the first member of Congress officially ensnared in the controversy surrounding the so-called D.C. Madam -- Deborah Jeane Palfrey.

The Louisiana senator released a statement late yesterday apologizing for his patronage of Palfrey's alleged prostitution ring. The disclosure of Vitter's involvement in the scandal came when Palfrey was granted permission to publish the phone records of her escort service, Pamela Martin & Associates.

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Posted at 11:40 AM
Posted to: David Vitter, Senate
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