Hastings denied top intelligence seat

• Article
• Comments ()
• Click-2-Listen
• Videos

By

Speaker-elect Nancy Pelosi yesterday informed Rep. Alcee L. Hastings, the Florida Democrat who was removed as a federal judge over bribery charges, that he would be passed over for the chairmanship of one of the most sensitive and powerful committees on Capitol Hill.

"Congressman Alcee Hastings and I have had extensive consultations, and today I advised him that I would select someone else as chairman of the House intelligence committee," Mrs. Pelosi said in a short statement after meeting behind closed doors with Mr. Hastings.

Mrs. Pelosi received intense criticism after suggestions that she would elevate Mr. Hastings to the top spot.

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle argued that the former federal judge would be a poor choice for chairman because he was charged in 1981 with accepting a $150,000 bribe. A jury acquitted Mr. Hastings after a key witness refused to testify.

Still, a Democrat-controlled House of Representatives later impeached Mr. Hastings on a 413-3 vote with support from Mrs. Pelosi and others in Congress who now support Mr. Hastings. The Democrat-led Senate convicted Mr. Hastings and he was removed from office.

Mr. Hastings, the second-ranking Democrat on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, maintains his innocence and dismissed the importance of his impeachment.

In a letter to colleagues last week, he said, "Most of the congresspersons and senators who voted never saw the evidence. Many of them never read the reports of the committee or reviewed the daily videos. Iraq and the budget are not the only times votes have been cast without adequate review and knowledge of the facts."

The speaker in waiting was attacked for considering Mr. Hastings for the chairmanship after suffering an embarrassing defeat when the majority of her caucus rejected her candidate for majority leader, Rep. John P. Murtha of Pennsylvania, in part because of ethics questions.

Mrs. Pelosi did not publicly explain why she passed over Mr. Hastings, saying only that he will continue to play a major role in the party's national security decisions.

Mrs. Pelosi, who represents San Francisco's congressional district, did not say whom else she is considering for the intelligence chairmanship. Rep. Jane Harman of California, the most senior Democrat on the panel, is not expected to be chosen because of personal and philosophical differences with Mrs. Pelosi.

Among Mr. Hastings' strongest supporters were fellow members of the Congressional Black Caucus, whose relations with Mrs. Pelosi have been strained. Caucus members have complained about unfair treatment and accused Mrs. Pelosi of holding them to a double standard on ethics matters.

Rep. Melvin L. Watt, North Carolina Democrat and caucus chairman, called the Hastings decision disappointing.

"The statement issued by Rep. Hastings following his meeting with Speaker-elect Nancy Pelosi reflects the qualities for which the Congressional Black Caucus so strongly supported him to be the next Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence -- an unequivocal commitment to our nation's security, selflessness and true statesmanship," Mr. Watt said. "He would have made an outstanding Intelligence Chairman and we still hope he will at some point in our nation's future."

Mr. Hastings seemed to accept the decision.

"Now I must, and will seek other ways to better serve the citizens of Florida's 23rd Congressional District and our great Nation," he said. "As has been the case over the past seven years of my service on the Intelligence Committee, the next Chair of the Committee will have my full support to do everything we can to protect the national security of the United States and our allies. Our nation's national security is far more important than my professional security."