House speaker Newt Gingrich doesn’t want to pay the $ 300,000 fine levied on him by the ethics committee out of his own pocket. His wife, Marianne, feels even more strongly that the fine shouldn’t be paid out of their wallets. House GOP whip Tom DeLay adds, “I think it would be awful if he paid it out of his own funds. Number one, he doesn’t have the money.”
The problem, of course, is the firestorm that will erupt if Gingrich uses campaign dollars to pay it or conducts a special fund-raising drive. So, with an eye to avoiding a blowup, a new scheme has been concocted to pay the fine: Each of the 227 Republican House members would chip in to cover the $ 300,000. Backbenchers would pony up $ 1,000 apiece, committee chairmen $ 5,000, and members of the leadership as much as $ 10,000.
“This would solve all the problems,” says a Republican who favors the scheme. “And it’s an incredible sign of support for this speaker. How can any criticism be taken when the members are saying to the world, ‘Newt should not be carrying this burden by himself?.’ If Newt paid out of his campaign funds, the criticism would have legs. But not if members do it.”
Alas, there are still problems, or at least hurdles. Some members don’t like the idea. “Crackpot,” one member of the House GOP leadership says. Then, Newt’s pals have to get Rep. Nancy Johnson of Connecticut, who chaired the ethics committee during Newt’s case, to go along. She hasn’t yet. And Republican moderates like Chris Shays of Connecticut and Gingrich-bashers such as Peter King of New York might rebel. Also, there are reporters, who hate Gingrich, and Democrats, who hate Gingrich.
All that’s needed for the plan to work is for 200 Republicans to pitch in, a friend of Gingrich said. And there’s plenty of time to collect the money. The ethics committee hasn’t set a timetable on when Gingrich must pay. For his part, Gingrich is in no hurry to hand over the money.
