Medicare Fraud

Brad DeLong cynically suggests that Tommy Thompson and the Prevaricator in Chief are pulling a respective Claude Raines upon "learning" that a Medicare administrator had been threatened to withhold the drug benefit's true cost from Congress.

And the Grey Lady herself decides to cover the drug benefit vote bribery scandal that continues to grow more interesting (or, at least it would be interesting, until you realize how primordially craven the whole thing is).

The House ethics committee voted on Wednesday to start a formal investigation into accusations of bribery surrounding last November's vote on the Medicare prescription drug law, signaling that an initial fact-finding inquiry might have produced evidence of wrongdoing.

The panel, formally known as the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, met behind closed doors. Afterward, it issued a statement saying it had established an investigative subcommittee to conduct "a full and complete inquiry" into the bribery claims. The accusations were made by Representative Nick Smith, Republican of Michigan.

Mr. Smith, who is retiring, voted against the Medicare bill. Immediately after the vote, he said some lawmakers and groups had tried to induce him into voting for the measure with promises of financial support for the House candidacy of his son. He said there had been no specific offer of money, but his remarks prompted the ethics panel to begin a fact-finding inquiry last month.

Mr. Smith issued a statement on Wednesday saying that he would "cooperate fully with the inquiry" and that he would make no further public comment.

This makes the Rep. from Sugarland very, very angry.

"Representative Tom DeLay of Texas, the majority leader, accused the Democrats of promoting an ethics investigation for political reasons.

"'I think what they are doing is very, very dangerous,' Mr. DeLay said then."

Stay tuned to this Bat Station to find out what "The Hammer" means by that.