"Feb 26, 2004 -- Roll Call: FBI Examining Smith Medicare Allegations
By John Bresnahan
Three months after a controversial floor vote propelled Rep. Nick Smith (R-Mich.) into the national spotlight, FBI agents are looking into alleged attempts to sway the Michigan Republican during a tense Nov. 22 showdown on Medicare reform, according to sources.
Smith declined to comment on whether he has had discussions with the FBI, and it is unclear if agents have actually interviewed him yet. But sources said Smith has indicated he will not seek protection under the Speech or Debate Clause, which restricts lawmakers from being questioned about legislative activity.
The injection of federal law enforcement officials into the mix raises the stakes in a controversy that has simmered since the late November vote on adding a prescription drug benefit to the Medicare program.
Smith, who is retiring at the end of this session, has already met with the top Republican and Democrat on the House ethics committee, Reps. Joel Hefley (R-Colo.) and Alan Mollohan (D-W.Va.), to discuss the events surrounding the Nov. 22 vote."
http://www.campaignlegalcenter.org/press-1052.html"Get ready for the third version of Rep. Nick Smith's Medicare bribery story.
Version 1—by far the most convincing—was Smith's allegation that someone in the House leadership (whom he declined to identify) had offered to give "$100,000-plus" to his son Brad's congressional campaign if he would only change his "no" vote on the Medicare prescription-drug bill to a "yes." Smith, a Michigan Republican who's decided not to run for re-election, stuck by his guns and voted "no" (on the grounds that it would create an expensive new entitlement), then spoke out angrily against these heavy-handed political tactics.
Version 2 came into being after Chatterbox, reacting to columnist Robert Novak's report on the $100,000 offer, pointed out that it easily met the legal definition of a bribe under United States Code, Title 18, Section 201. Smith himself had used the word "bribes" to describe what occurred on the House floor the night of the vote, but either he hadn't thought through the implications, or he hadn't meant "bribes" in the non-metaphorical, alderman-goes-to-jail sense of the word. As pressure mounted for the Justice Department to investigate, Smith apparently got worried and clammed up.
Smith had expected to win kudos for being a brave man of principle. Instead, he was starting to look like an uncooperative witness in a potential criminal investigation. So, he issued a statement on Dec. 4 that said, "
o member of Congress made an offer of financial assistance for my son's campaign in exchange for my vote on the Medicare bill." Although "he lobbying from members was intense," Smith insisted that "o specific reference was made to money." Smith saw "no need for an ethics investigation, let alone a criminal investigation.""
http://www.slate.com/id/2093667
Sounds like the leadership silenced him - DeLay? Sure sounds like him.
"(Battle Creek, December 5, 2003, 6:51 p.m.) A Michigan congressman is in the middle of a tempest that questions the integrity of the House of Representatives.
U.S. Representative Nick Smith, who represents the Battle Creek area, said he was offered a bribe by congressional leaders in exchange for his vote on the controversial Medicare bill that passed last month. Now, he's changing his story.
Yesterday Rep. Smith issued a statement. In it he says he never said money was offered in exchange for a vote. But we have a taped conversation between Rep.Smith and a local radio station that tells a very different story.
It was a big vote, an important vote. So important the house floor was held open for three hours. An unprecedented amount of time. Time for arm-twisting, according to congressional staffers. And Rep. Smith was getting the best of it."
http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=1553300&nav=0RcdJW5I
And the DeLay direct link:
"WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An ethics panel admonished U.S. House of Representatives Majority Leader Tom DeLay on Thursday, saying he improperly offered to endorse a lawmaker's son in return for a vote on a Medicare prescription drug bill.
The House ethics committee said while the conduct "could support a finding" that it violated the chamber's rules, it does not recommend further action against the Texas Republican.
In a 62-page report released shortly before the presidential debate, the panel also admonished Reps. Nick Smith and Candice Miller, both Michigan Republicans. But it recommended no further action against them, either.
It said Smith had "fairly interpreted" Miller's comments to him during a vote on the White House-backed Medicare bill last November as a "threat of retaliation" for opposing it."
http://tinyurl.com/7olru
Sounds like Nick Smith covered for DeLay so he wouldn't get prosecuted for bribery. It's also interesting to note that his son lost the election. Coincidence? I don't think so.