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DeLay Steps Down Amid Indictment

Representative Tom DeLay, 58, will step down as House majority leader, after a Texas grand jury indicted the Congressman on a conspiracy charge. "I have notified the speaker that I will temporarily step aside from my position as majority leader pursuant to rules of the House Republican Conference and the actions of the Travis County district attorney," DeLay says.

In the wake of his move, Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert announced that Missouri Congressman Roy Blunt, currently Majority Whip, will take over the position. Hastert planned to recommend that California Rep. David Dreier and Missouri Rep. Roy Blunt, the GOP whip, both temporarily split DeLay`s duties without getting his official title, a senior GOP leadership aide told reporters.

DeLay, calls the charge against him a "sham" and an act of "political retribution," saying, "I have done nothing wrong. I have violated no law, no regulation, no rule of the House." According to news sources, a grand jury in Austin charged DeLay and two associates already facing criminal charges with a single count of criminal conspiracy, a charge where, if convicted, could mean up to two years in prison and fines up to $10,000.