Dennis Hastert



John Dennis Hastert was a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives representing Illinois' 14th District between 1987 and 2007 (map). Hastert was the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1999 to 2006. Hastert retired from Congress in at the end of 2007 and joined the Public Policy & Law Practice of the lobbying firm Dickstein Shapiro in 2008.

Ties to the American Legislative Exchange Council
Hastert is an alumnus of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), being a member during his three terms in the Illinois House of Representatives. During the time that he was Speaker of the U.S. House, ALEC began a new alumni forum for former members who serve in public office, called the "ALEC Alumni Forum." It was launched in 2001 and is "charged with developing a national forum to encourage improved communications among current and former ALEC members. Alumni Forum activities will include special investigations and speaking engagements at major ALEC events, and joint policy members with state and national leaders. . . . Through the Alumni Forum program, ALEC will seek the support of its former members in the development of reforms that reflect the principles of the organization at all levels of government."

Iraq War
Hastert voted for the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002 that started the Iraq War.

Environmental record
For more information on environmental legislation, see the Energy and Environment Policy Portal

CLEAN Energy Act resistance
Hastert opposed the CLEAN Energy Act of 2007, which addressed royalties and tax breaks previously afforded to oil and gas companies. He argued that, "We do not need a tax on domestic energy production and development...Increasing taxes on our nation's energy industry means one thing: more reliance on foreign oil and gasoline."

Jack Abramoff Scandal
On June 10, 2003 Dennis Hastert signed a letter, along with three other members of the GOP leadership, to Interior Department Secretary Gale Norton opposing the issuance of a casino license to the Jena Band of Choctaw Indians to open an off-reservation casino near the casino of the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana Indians, a client of Jack Abramoff's. The other singatorees of the letter were Majority Leader Tom DeLay, Majority Whip Roy Blunt, and Chief Deputy Majority Whip Eric Cantor. The letter was odd because none of these members represented any tribal interests. The lobbyist for the Jena Band, V. Heather Sibbison, found the letter to be very strange, "I have never seen a letter like that before. It was incredibly unusual for that group of people, who do not normally weigh in on Indian issues, to express such a strong opinion about a particular project not in any of their home states." The letter, it turns out, was drafted by Todd Boulanger (whose original version was toned down), a lobbyist working with Jack Abramoff.

Seven days before writing the letter, on June 3, 2003, Hastert attended a fundraiser for his leadership PAC, Keep Our Majority, at Signatures, a restaurant owned by Jack Abramoff. Keep Our Majority collected "at least $21,500 for his Keep Our Majority political action committee from the lobbyist's firm and tribal clients." Hastert then failed for two years to report using the restaurant for fundraising and did not reimburse for the cost as he is supposed to. In total Dennis Hastert and his PAC, Keep Our Majority, took in well over $100,000 in contributions from Abramoff and his clients.

On January 3, 2006 Abramoff pleaded guilty to a number of charges including bribing officials to obtain positive legislative action for his clients. Hastert quickly dumped campaign contributions connected to Abramoff by giving $70,000 to charity. Abramoff, in his plea deal, agreed to cooperate with further investigations of lawmakers who he had bribed. Three other lobbyists also pled guilty in connection to the case and agreed to provide information on lawmakers. Two of those lobbyists formerly worked for Tom DeLay and one worked for Bob Ney.

On May 24, 2006 Brian Ross of ABC News reported that Dennis Hastert was "in the mix" in the Justice Department's investigation of lawmakers influenced by Abramoff.


 * Federal officials say the Congressional bribery investigation now includes Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, based on information from convicted lobbyists who are now cooperating with the government.

Hastert quickly countered, stating that he never did anything wrong and that there was no investigation. The Justice Department also issued two denials of Hastert being under investigation. One of those denials was issued by the Deputy Attorney General Paul J. McNulty, ""With regard to reports suggesting that the Speaker of the House is under investigation or 'in the mix,' as stated by ABC News, I reconfirm, as stated by the Department earlier this evening, that these reports are untrue."

Ross refused to back down and, after checking back with his sources, reaffirmed the story. Ross and ABC state that Hastert is not a subject or a target in an investigation, but rather is "in the mix" of the ongoing investigation. Hastert and the DOJ have continued to deny that anybody is looking at Hastert and the Speaker has stated that he may sue ABC for libel if they do not retract their statements. Hastert has also claimed that the leaked information to Ross from Justice Department sources was retaliation for his stance against the raid of Rep. William Jefferson's congressional office.

Shielding vaccine companies
In what has been described as a brazen move by Senator Bill Frist and House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL), the lawmakers covertly inserted language [in December 2005] in a fiscal year 2006 Defense spending conference report&mdash;the bill, H.R. 2863, was ultimately signed into law as Public Law 109-148&mdash;that would grant certain legal immunity to vaccine manufacturers, even in cases of willful misconduct. This language was added quietly and in the dead of night, receiving no debate on the House floor. Despite strong opposition from congressional members, Frist and Hastert used their power in the Senate and House to force the language through. The potential impact of this addition is that American citizens would have little legal recourse in the event of serious injury or death resulting from vaccines designed to combat an avian influenza pandemic. Several news articles have reported that both Frist and Hastert (and others, including Hastert's son) benefited from their actions. The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) is purported to be the key author of the language additions. This trade association represents virtually all major vaccine manufacturers.

Support for Turkey Controversy
In October 2000, Hastert withdrew at the last minute a promised House of Representative vote on a resolution to recognize the killing of as many as 1.5 million Armenians as genocide. Hastert claimed that this was prompted by a telephone conversation with President Bill Clinton in which "Clinton said he was 'deeply concerned' about the language in the document... Hastert said Clinton had warned of 'possible far-reaching negative consequences for the United States' if the House voted on the legislation." . Hastert defended pulling the vote, saying "I believe the Armenian people suffered a historic tragedy, and that this resolution was a fitting condemnation of those events. But the president of the United States, the commander and chief of our Armed Forces, has asked us not to bring this resolution to the House floor. This is not an idle request. We all know that the situation in the Middle East is unusually tense." He blocked similar legislation in 2004. 

Allegations of Bribery Controversy
In September 2005, an article by David Rose published in Vanity Fair Magazine reported that FBI translator turned whistleblower Sibel Edmonds alleged that she listened to wiretaps in which "[t]he targets [Turkish nationals] reportedly discussed giving Hastert tens of thousands of dollars in surreptitious payments in exchange for political favors and information." Rose states that, "Between April 1996 and December 2002, un-itemized personal donations to the Hastert for Congress Committee amounted to $483,000." Rose reported that, according to a Hastert spokesman, "Hastert has no affiliation with the A.T.C. or other groups reportedly mentioned in the wiretaps." The spokesman is quoted as saying, “He does not know these organizations”, that Hastert is “unaware of Turkish interests making donations,” and his staff has “not seen any pattern of donors with foreign names.” A Hastert spokesperson has called the article "nonsense".

Edmonds repeated her allegations under Oath in a deposition for an unrelated lawsuit, Jean Schmidt vs. David Krikorian. In her sworn testimony, Edmonds stated that Hastert is, "one of the primary U.S. persons involved in operations and activities that are not legal, and they're not for the interest of the United States but for the interest of foreign governments and foreign entities." and he's complicit in "[t]he acceptance of large sums of bribery in forms of cash or laundered cash ... to make it look legal for his campaigns, and also for his personal use, in order to do certain favors and ... make certain things happen for foreign entities and foreign governments' interests, Turkish government's interest and Turkish business entities' interests." (48-49)

Hastert And The Patriot Act
In February 2003 the Center for Public Integrity, a non-profit journalism group, released draft legislation prepared by the then Attorney General John Ashcroft titled the Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003 but dubbed Patriot Act II. The legislation, CPI argued, would "give the government broad, sweeping new powers to increase domestic intelligence-gathering, surveillance and law enforcement prerogatives, and simultaneously decrease judicial review and public access to information." At the time, members of the House Judiciary committees were unaware of that draft legislation was being prepared. The same week that CPI released the leaked draft, Senate Judiciary Committee staff had been told that no legislation was being prepared. However, a document obtained by the PBS program "Now With Bill Moyers" suggested that the draft legislation had been circulated to Hastert and Vice President Richard Cheney on Jan. 10, 2003. "Attached for your review and comment is a draft legislative proposal entitled the 'Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003,'" the memo stated. Hastert has been a strong supporter of the Patriot Act and its re-authorization. 

George Soros Controversy
In September 2004, billionaire currency trader George Soros filed an official complaint with the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct charging Hastert had said on radio and television that Soros received drug money. In an interview on Fox News Hastert had complained about Soros funding a range of 527 committees ahead of the 2004 Presidential election. "You know, I don't know where George Soros gets his money. I don't know where&mdash;if it comes overseas or from drug groups or where it comes from. And I&mdash;," he said. Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace interjected: "Excuse me?" "Well, that's what he's been for a number years&mdash;George Soros has been for legalizing drugs in this country. So, I mean, he's got a lot of ancillary interests out there," Hastert continued. 

New Orleans Rebuilding Controversy
Hastert generated controversy on September 1, 2005 when he said spending Federal money to rebuild New Orleans from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina "doesn't make sense to me.". Hastert went on to say that "It looks like a lot of that place could be bulldozed."

In a later media release by Hastert to 'clarify' his initial comments he stated: "It is important that when we rebuild this historic city that we consider the safety of the citizens first. I am not advocating that the city be abandoned or relocated." 

Failure to disclose real estate trust
On June 14, 2006, Bill Allison of the Sunlight Foundation reported that Hastert used an Illinois trust to invest in real estate near the proposed route of the Prairie Parkway, a highway project in Illinois. In Congress, Hastert was then able to secure $207 million in earmarked appropriations for the project, which includes an exit near his land. According to the report, the trust has now transferred 138 acres of the land to a real estate development firm that plans to build a 1,600-home community, located just a few miles from the north-south connector Hastert has championed in the House.

Hastert's 2005 financial disclosure form, released June 14, makes no mention of the real estate trust. Hastert lists several real estate transactions in the disclosure, all of which were in fact done by the trust. Kendall County public records show no record of Hastert making the real estate sales he made public today. Rather, each was executed by the trust. 

On June 19, Hastert responded to the allegations, which at this point had been run in several prominent newspapers including the Chicago Tribune and Washington Post. Asserting that he had done nothing illegal, he stated, "I listed it the way the disclosure said I should list it exactly." He went on to blame the attention generated by this ordeal on the, "unrelenting Democratic media." 

Designed to connect the counties west of Chicago to the metropolis itself, the Prairie Parkway had neither the support of the public nor the Illinois Department of Transportation. Their objection: Rigid requirements in the highway bill would force the diversion of state funds that might have been used for the widening and improvement of existing roads--an approach, according to opinion polls, favored by a majority of the area's residents--or for more efficient transportation corridors to Chicago.

Squabbling over the ballooning cost of the bill might have prevented this highway from ever coming to fruition. But Hastert played an unusually active role in shepherding the legislation, a more aggressive role than he played at any other point in his speakership. His dominance of the process was noted by an Illinois highway official, who remarked, "I think it's truly a recognition of the leadership of Speaker Hastert. Speaker Hastert was able to deliver a bill that made it through Congress that the president could sign, rather than a bill that would make it through Congress that the president would veto." 

Human rights in Colombia
According to documents posted online by the National Security Archives at George Washington University, Hastert secretly told Colombian national police to ignore the human rights requirements that were attached to Clinton era US military aid to Colombia. Those requirements called on the Colombian police to cut their extensive ties to paramiliatry death squads with a long history of civilian massacres (sometimes with chainsaws) intended to seize farm land for right wing control over the drug trade. 

Rep. Mark Foley congressional page scandal
In October 2006, Hastert got swept up in the Mark Foley page scandal. In the early days of the scandal, Hastert denied knowing about Foley's page problems. This, however, was contradicted by a few Republican members of Congress that said they told him directly. Hastert later hedged his story by saying he may have been told but did not remember the conversations. In the ensuing days, several newspapers and members of Congress called for his resignation as Speaker of the House. The actions of Hastert's office were also the target of an investigation by the House ethics committee.


 * See the Congresspedia page on the Mark Foley page scandal for more details.

Accusations of hindering a probe of security contracts
In October 2006, two former House Appropriations Committee investigators accused Rep. Hastert's chief counsel, Ted Van Der Meid, of having hindered their efforts to look into possible waste and abuse of funds appropriated for upgrades to a secret House office meant to ensure the continued function of the legislature in the event of a terrorist attack. The investigators accused Van Der Meid of screaming profanities at them, refusing them access to certain sites, and telling at least one aide not to talk to them. Hastert's office had taken a lead role in supervising the security upgrades due to his position of third in line for the presidency in case of a coordinated terrorist attack. 

Hastert will not seek reelection in 2008
In August 2007, CQ reported that Hastert was expected to announce his retirement from Congress. The campaign for his replacement included Republicans Chris Lauzen, an Illinois State Senator, Jim Oberweis, a dairy executive, and Kevin Burns, mayor of Geneva. Democrats in the race included Bill Foster, a scientist and businessman, John Laesch, a previous Congressional contender, and Jotham Stein, a lawyer. The district previously favored Republican candidates, but Illinois Democrats said they would be aggressively competing in the election.

On August 17, 2007, Hastert officially announced that he would not seek reelection in 2008. After his announcement, he received praise from politicians of both parties. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said, “Speaker Hastert has always placed a high value on public service, a calling he dedicated much of his life to as a teacher, coach, and member of the House. He can take great pride in his record as the longest-serving Republican Speaker, an accomplishment that is a testament to his leadership in the Republican Conference. I salute Dennis Hastert for his service to our nation and wish him the best as he prepares for the next chapter in his life.”

President Bush also praised his service, saying "I am indebted to Denny for his candid advice and strong support, and I look forward to working with him throughout the remainder of the 110th Congress. As my good friend prepares to move on to the next phase of his life, he has my gratitude for his distinguished service."

2009: Hastert joins lobbying firm, working on $35,000/mo. contract for Turkey
April 10, 2009 The Hill reported that Hastert had joined the lobbying firm Dickstein Shapiro, and, along with others at the firm, is "working on a $35,000-per-month contract for Turkey, according to records on file with the Justice Department." The Hill also reported that, "[i]n a Feb. 27 letter to Thomas O’Donnell, Gephardt’s former chief of staff and executive vice president at his firm, Dickstein partner Robert Mangas says he and Hastert 'will be principally involved in the representation' of Turkey", and that, "[o]ne issue Hastert and others lobbying for Turkey will have to deal with this year is a congressional resolution that defines the killing of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians by Ottoman Turks in the early 1900s as genocide. The Turkish government opposes the resolution and has lobbied against it every time it has been introduced in Congress." 

Background
Hastert was born January 2, 1942 in Aurora, Illinois and grew up in Oswego, Illinois. He graduated from Wheaton College, Illinois in 1964 and earned a master's degree in education from Northern Illinois University in 1967. He moved to Yorkville, Illinois, 55 miles west of Chicago and took a job as a government and history teacher at Yorkville High School. He also coached wrestling and football, leading the wrestling team to a state title in 1976. In 1980, he was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives and served three terms, becoming ranking Republican on the Appropriations Committee.

14th District Congressman John Groteberg did not run for a second term in U.S. House election, 1986 due to a terminal illness. Hastert was nominated by a Republican convention to succeed him. He faced Mary Lou Kearns, the Democratic coroner of Kane County. Hastert initially ran a sluggish campaign, but eventually the district's strong Republican lean (the 14th has been held by Republicans for all but four years since its formation in 1903) prevailed, allowing Hastert to win with 52 percent of the vote. He has never faced another contest nearly that close, winning reelection nine times with close to 70 percent of the vote.

Rise to the Speakership
Hastert's rise to the Speakership came unexpectedly. During his first 12 years in Congress, he had been a relatively low-key member with a reliably conservative voting record. He worked closely with Illinois Republican leaders, especially Minority Leader Robert Michel. In the wake of the 1994 elections when Republicans took control of the House for the first time in 50 years Hastert was asked by Tom DeLay to run his campaign for Majority Whip. Hastert put together a team of 20 Republicans and worked to secure a victory for DeLay over his opponent Bob Walker. Afterwards Hastert was named Chief Deputy Whip, the highest appointed position in the House Republican caucus. In this position, he was chief vote-counter for Majority Whip Tom DeLay.

Following a disappointing Republican performance in the 1998 elections and facing rebellion from his caucus, Speaker Newt Gingrich of Georgia abruptly resigned from the Speakership and did not take his seat for an 11th term. House Committee on Appropriations chairman Bob Livingston of Louisiana quickly gathered enough support within the Republican caucus to become de facto Speaker-elect, but announced that he would resign his seat as well after admitting to an extramarital affair. This series of events occurred amid the impeachment of President Bill Clinton.

With the departures of Gingrich and Livingston, the likely candidates for the Speakership seemed to be Majority Leader Dick Armey and DeLay, both from Texas. However, both were seen as vulnerable. Armey had only recently deflected a challenge from Oklahoma's Steve Largent to unseat him as majority leader. DeLay was as controversial then as now, and was well aware that with a sharply reduced majority (indeed, it was at least in part Gingrich's prediction of a 30-seat win, and subsequent 5-seat loss, that had forced Gingrich out of the House), he would be too controversial and polarizing for the Republicans to reliably transact business in such a closely divided Congress. The leadership then turned to Hastert as a compromise candidate.

Praise from Religious Right
Religious Right leaders praised Hastert's elevation to the Speakership. Phyllis Schlafly said, "This is great news for the Republicans. It's turning over a new leaf. Denny Hastert has a longtime record as a pro-family conservative and I know that this is a better day for the Republicans in Congress."

The Executive Director of the Christian Coalition Randy Tate: "Denny Hastert is a man of true principle and integrity. He is a true conservative. Denny received a "Friend of the Family" award [from the Christian Coalition] and only 80 members out of the 435 members in the House received that award."

James Dobson, the head of Focus on the Family, also gave Hastert his blessing.

Hastert has attended numerous Religious Right meetings, including a Family Research Council discussion on AIDS and drug legalization.

Speaker
Following his election as Speaker, Hastert unusually delivered his acceptance speech from the floor, allowing Minority Leader Dick Gephardt of Missouri to preside briefly. Hastert noted the need for both parties to work together, saying: "Solutions to problems cannot be found in a pool of bitterness. They can be found in an environment in which we trust one another's word; where we generate heat and passion, but where we recognize that each member is equally important to our overall mission of improving the life of the American people." His policy agenda focused on lowering taxes, improving education, strengthening Social Security and Medicare, and bolstering national defense.

Although Hastert, as Speaker, is the nominal leader of the House Republicans, he does not take a high profile role in the media, in dramatic contrast to Gingrich. Some observers felt that the Majority Leader (first Armey, then DeLay, then Roy Blunt, and now John Boehner) has held more real power. Hastert denies this. In the months after 9-11, he met regularly with President Bush, Vice President Cheney, the two Senate leaders and the House minority leader to shape the national response. Some have offered the observation that while Gingrich was a bombastic strategist, Hastert is a quiet tactician; the contrast of his predecessor may have exaggerated Hastert's preferred working style. As Speaker he traditionally does not serve on any committee nor vote on the floor.

In a 2003 speech Hastert announced that a principle of his as Speaker would "to please the majority of the majority. ... On occasion, a particular issue might excite a majority made up mostly of the minority. ... The job of speaker is not to expedite legislation that runs counter to the wishes of the majority of his majority." In following this statement Hastert has ushered in a policy whereby all legislation that will pass must pass only with the "majority of the majority". Therefore, members of the minority -- the Democrats -- have been left sidelined and rarely able to influence policy. The pursuance of such a policy has partially been determined by the slim majority that Hastert has ruled with.

In 2001, Hastert visited Osweiler, Luxembourg, the village in Luxembourg where his ancestors are from.

Hastert has been a prominent advocate of the Fair tax proposal to replace the income tax with a national sales tax. He has been a strong supporter of all of the Bush administration foreign and domestic policies.

On June 1, 2006 Hastert became the longest serving Republican Speaker of the House in history. Hastert surpassed Joseph "Uncle Joe" Cannon, also of Illinois, who served as Speaker from November 1903 to March 11, 1911. Hastert has served since January of 1999.

2006 congressional elections
Hastert was challenged in the 2006 congressional elections by Democrat John Laesch. He defeated Laesch, receiving 60% of the vote. 

Expected resignation
Republican aides on October 18, 2007 said Hastert would resign soon rather than complete his term 15 months from now. In August, 2007 Hastert announced he would not seek re-election in 2008, but said he planned to finish the current term, which ends in January 2009. Aides said he intended to leave office late 2007 or early 2008. A resignation would cause a special election, probably in early 2008. Republicans reportedly hope to hold the seat ahead of the November 2008 election which some fear may draw large numbers of Democratic voters unhappy with President Bush and the Iraq war.

Resignation
On November 26, 2007, Hastert submitted official notice of his resignation. In letters addressed to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, Hastert announced his decision to resign immediately.

The 11-term Republican based the timing of his decision on an upcoming primary election. By resigning when he did, Hastert gave Blagojevich enough time to schedule a special election the same day as the primary election.

Joins Turkish Lobby, 2009
April 10, 2009 The Hill reported that Hastert had joined the lobbying firm Dickstein Shapiro, and, along with others at the firm, is "working on a $35,000-per-month contract for Turkey, according to records on file with the Justice Department." The Hill also reported that, "[i]n a Feb. 27 letter to Thomas O’Donnell, Gephardt’s former chief of staff and executive vice president at his firm, Dickstein partner Robert Mangas says he and Hastert 'will be principally involved in the representation' of Turkey." 

Money in politics
cid=N00004781&cycle=2006

Committees

 * House Committee on Energy and Commerce
 * Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection
 * Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet
 * Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality

Committee assignments in the 109th Congress (2005-2006)

 * Speaker of the House

External Articles

 * Juliet Eilperin, "Hastert Draws Crowds of Lobbyists," Washington Post, October 3, 1999.
 * "U.S. House shelves Armenia genocide bill: Legislation sparked protests by Turkish government, citizens CNN, October 19, 2000.
 * Carl Hulse, "Hastert's Lobbyist Son," New York Times, April 8, 2002.
 * Jonathan E. Kaplan, "Hastert slices Turkey bill," The Hill, July 20, 2004.
 * Jack Shafer, "Dennis Hastert on Dope: Two heartbeats from the presidency, an absolute nut job," Slate, September 1, 2004.
 * Charles Babington, "Hastert Launches a Partisan Policy," Washington Post, November 27, 2004.
 * Alexander Bolton, "Hastert Takes a Broom to Ethics Panel," The Hill, March 2, 2005.
 * Mike Flannery, "Magazine Article Claims Hastert Took Bribes: Story Alleges Hastert Took Money To Block Armenian Resolution," CBS-2, August 4, 2005.
 * David Rose, "An Inconvenient Patriot," Vanity Fair, August 15, 2005.
 * Charles Babington, "Hastert Tries Damage Control After Remarks Hit a Nerve," Washington Post, September 3, 2005; Page A17.
 * Bob Cusack, "Hastert Strong arms Medicare Bill," The Hill, November 16, 2005.
 * John Stanton, "Frist, Hastert Aid Vaccine Companies," Roll Call, December 20, 2005.
 * "Hastert donates Abramoff-linked money. Lawmakers rush to shed financial ties to tainted lobbyist," CNN, January 3, 2006.
 * Jonathan Weisman, "GOP Leaders Seek Distance From Abramoff. Hastert to Donate Money Given by Lobbyist's Clients," Washington Post, January 4, 2006.
 * Josh Gerstein, "Lobbyist's Plea Sets Off Scramble," The New York Sun, January 4, 2006.
 * Michael Kranish, "Bush, DeLay give back Abramoff funds. Hastert also joins list of politicians seeking distance from scandal," Boston Globe, January 5, 2006.
 * Mike Dorning, "Abramoff plea could bring renewed scrutiny of Hastert letter," Chicago Tribune (Mercury News), January 5, 2006.
 * Jonathan Weisman, "Hastert Moves to Tighten Rules on Lobbyists," Washington Post, January 9, 2006.
 * Jonathan Weisman, "Speaker Largely Silent Amid Scandal," Washington Post, Januray 17, 2006.
 * AnthonySF, "Hastert Sneakily Ditches Hydro Car for SUV (Updated w/Slide Show!)," Daily Kos, April 28, 2006.
 * Bill Theobald, "Vaccine makers helped write Frist-backed shield law," The Tennessean, May 8, 2006.
 * Dan Eggen and Shailagh Murray, "FBI Raid on Lawmaker's Office Is Questioned," Washington Post, May 23, 2006.
 * Jonathan D. Salant, "Congressional Leaders Challenge FBI Raid on U.S. House Office," Bloomberg, May 23, 2006.
 * Patrick O’Connor, "Hastert tells President Bush FBI raid was unconstitutional," The Hill, May 24, 2006.
 * Brian Ross, "Officials: Hastert "In the Mix" of Congressional Bribery Investigation," ABC News, May 24, 2006.
 * Brian Ross, "ABC News Update on Hastert Story," ABC News, May 24, 2006.
 * Brian Ross, "Second DOJ Statement after Midnight," ABC News, May 25, 2006.
 * Andy Sullivan, "Hastert lawyer may sue ABC over Abramoff report," Reuters, May 25, 2006.
 * Susan Crabtree, "Hastert accuses DOJ of intimidation," The Hill, May 25, 2006.
 * "Inside Out: The Abramoff Investigation and Speaker Hastert," ABC News, May 26, 2006.
 * Howard Kurtz, "Hastert, Justice Dept. Dispute Inquiry Story," Washington Post, May 26, 2006.
 * Ralph Z. Hallow, "Hastert slammed for raid reaction," Washington Times, May 26, 2006.
 * MSNBC News Services, "House leaders want rules for FBI office search," MSNBC.com, May 27, 2006.
 * Ron Elving, "Hastert Profile Rises, But at a Bad Time," NPR, May 30, 2006.
 * Jim Abrams, "Hastert is longest-serving GOP speaker," Associated Press, June 1, 2006.
 * Bill Allison, "Under the Influence: Dennis Hastert's Real Estate Investments, The Sunlight Foundation, June 14, 2006.
 * "The Pictures of Corruption: How Hastert Used Tax Dollars to Turn a $1.5 Million Profit," Think Progress, June 15, 2006.
 * James Kimberly and Andrew Zajac, et al., "How Hastert benefited from sale. Planned highway could sweeten asset near Plano," Chicago Tribune, June 18, 2006.
 * Jonathan Weisman, "Lawmakers' Profits Are Scrutinized. Hastert and Others Defend Land Gains," Washington Post, June 22, 2006. Also see Reps. Ken Calvert and Gary Miller.
 * Lynn Sweet, "Hastert Miffed at Land Debate," Sun-Times News Group, June 23, 2006.
 * Editorial: "The Speaker's Hard Lesson in Reform," New York Times, June 25, 2006.
 * "CREW releases second annual most corrupt members of Congress report," Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, September 20, 2006.
 * John Aravosis, "House GOP Leadership knew about Foley almost a year ago, let Foley remain in House leadership, let him remain as chair of House sex offender caucus," AMERICAblog, September 29, 2006. re Mark Foley
 * "Foley e-mails an open secret in D.C.? N.Y. lawmaker says he told House Speaker of lurid messages sent to page," Associated Press (MSNBC), September 30, 2006.
 * Mark Silva, "Speaker's office long aware of a Foley problem, 'unaware' it was 'obscene' until this week," The Swamp Newsblog/Chicago Tribune, September 30, 2006.
 * Frank James, "Why did Foley keep child-protection job?" and "Foley didn't set off alarms, says Boehner spokesman," The Swamp Newsblog/Chicago Tribune, September 30, 2006.
 * Joe Sudbay, "Hastert: I might have known even though I said I didn't know" and "More GOP cover-up: Reynolds contradicts Hastert," AMERICAblog, September 30, 2006.
 * Jonathan Weisman, "Speaker was told about Foley e-mails, GOP member says. Hastert does not dispute he may have been notified," Boston Globe, October 1, 2006.
 * Carl Hulse and Raymond Hernandez, "GOP informed of Foley's e-mails. House speaker told months ago, says congressman; both parties want investigation," New York Times (San Francisco Chronicle), October 1, 2006.
 * Susan Davis, "Hastert Calls on Justice Department to Investigate Foley," Roll Call, October 1, 2006.
 * Jerry Zremski and Douglas Turner, "Reynolds knew of Foley's e-mails. Though Issue Was Resolved. Says he notified speaker of House," Buffalo News (NY), October 1, 2006. re Tom Reynolds
 * Josh Marshall, "This just gets better and better," Talking Points Memo, October 1, 2006.
 * John Aravosis, "Hastert is in Trouble," AMERICAblog, October 1, 2006.
 * Cliff Schechter, "Republican Sexcapades: Meet The Real GOP," The Huffington Post, October 1, 2006.
 * Jay Newton-Small and Laura Litvan, "Republican Lawmakers Scramble to Avoid Taint of House Scandal," Bloomberg, October 2, 2006.
 * Susan Milligan, "Speaker calls for inquiry on Foley. FBI examining ex-lawmaker's e-mails to teens," Boston Globe, October 2, 2006.
 * Howard Kurtz, "Fox News vs. The World," Washington Post, October 2, 2006. Scroll down to "Foley's Showdown With ABC" and "More Foley Fallout".
 * John Aravosis, "Holy cow. Bay Buchanan rips Hastert and GOP leadership" and "GOP member of Page Board contradicts Hastert and Shimkus, says Foley emails were clear evidence of a problem, not just simply 'overly friendly'," AMERICAblog, October 2, 2006.
 * "Dazed Denny Hastert gives confused, contradictory interview to CNN about Foley child sex predator scandal," AMERICAblog, October 2, 2006. Link to YouTube video.
 * Josh Marshall, Talking Points Memo, October 2, 2006.
 * Carl Hulse and Jeff Zeleny, "Pressure Grows for Republicans Over Foley Scandal," New York Times/International Herald Tribune, October 3, 2006.
 * Editorial: "Resign, Mr. Speaker," Washington Times, October 3, 2006.
 * Editorial: "No place for politics," Boston Globe, October 3, 2006.
 * Andrew Taylor, "Hastert Defends Handling of Page Scandal," Washington Post, October 3, 2006.
 * Susan Milligan, "GOP distances itself from Foley e-mail. Democrats say problem ignored," Boston Globe, October 3, 2006.
 * Margery Eagan, "In the House, as in Church, perverts live under protection," Boston Herald, October 3, 2006.
 * "Boehner Points Finger at the Speaker," Political Radar Blog/ABC News, October 3, 2006. re John Boehner
 * Editorial: "Capitol Hill creepshow," New York Daily News, October 3, 2006.
 * Doug Thompson, "Denny Hastert: Symbol of an out-of-control GOP Congress," Capitol Hill Blue, October 3, 2006.
 * John Aravosis, "LA Times: Reynolds' chief of staff is link between Foley and House GOP leadership in child sex predator scandal," AMERICAblog, October 3, 2006.
 * Maggie Gallagher, "Hastert Must Resign," The Conservative Voice, October 3, 2006.
 * Alan K. Ota, "Hastert Tells Conservative He’ll Resign If It Helps GOP," New York Times, October 4, 2006.
 * Jonathan Weisman and Charles Babington, "Ex-Aide To Foley Cites '03 Warnings. Former Staffer Says He Alerted Hastert's Office," Washington Post, October 5, 2006.
 * Josh Gerstein, "Hastert's Future Suddenly Looks In Grave Doubt," The New York Sun, October 5, 2006.
 * Devlin Barrett, "Ex-aide: Foley was discussed long ago. He says Hastert's office was notified," Associated Press (Detroit Free Press), October 5, 2006.
 * John Aravosis, "Boehner and Hastert today blame the children who were the victims," AMERICAblog, October 5, 2006. re John Boehner
 * Alexander Bolton, "Longtime Republican was source of e-mails," The Hill, October 5, 2006.
 * Larry Margask, "Ethics Panel Launches Foley Case Probe," Washington Post, October 5, 2006. See House Ethics Committee
 * "TIME Poll: The Foley Sex Scandal Has Hurt G.O.P. Election Prospects. Two-thirds of those aware of the scandal believe Republican leaders attempted a cover-up, according to a new survey," TIME Magazine, October 5, 2006.
 * "Internal Poll Suggests Hastert Could Devastate GOP," Fox News, October 5, 2006.
 * Frank James, "Hastert briefing raises more questions," The Swamp Blog/Chicago Tribune, October 5, 2006.
 * Alan Cooperman, "GOP's Hold on Evangelicals Weakening. Party's Showing in Midterm Elections May Be Hurt as Polls Indicate Support Dropping in Base," Washington Post, October 6, 2006.
 * Thomas Hargrove, "Hastert's escalating problems and the usual suspects," Capitol Hill Blue, October 6, 2006.
 * Paul Kiel, "GOPers to Hastert: Cut the Conspiracy Chatter," TPM Muckraker, October 6, 2006.
 * Jonathan Weisman, "Staffer Cites Earlier Role by Hastert's Office. Confrontation With Foley Detailed, Washington Post, October 7, 2006.
 * John Yang, "Source Undercuts Hastert on Foley Timeline. House Staffer Seems to Back Earlier ABC News Source on When House Speaker's Staff Had Information," ABC News, October 7, 2006.
 * Justin Rood, "Foley Scandal: Page's Lawyer Softens Stance; More Trouble for Hastert," TPM Muckraker, October 7, 2006.
 * Jonathan Weisman, "Lawmaker Saw Foley Messages In 2000. Page Notified GOP Rep. Kolbe," Washington Post, October 9, 2006.
 * jesselee, "Moot?" The Stakeholder, October 9, 2006.
 * Paul Kiel, "Foleygate: Hastert's Story Clashes with Recent Revelations," TPM Muckraker, October 9, 2006.
 * John Aravosis, "Hastert does press conference about Foley scandal in front of a graveyard," AMERICAblog, October 10, 2006. Includes transcript from CNN and link to 3-minute 40-second video posted on YouTube.
 * Jonathan Weisman, "Hastert Aides Interest Ethics Panel. Staff Members' Knowledge of Foley's Actions With Former Pages in Question," Washington Post, October 12, 2006.
 * Juliet Eilperin, "Scandal Sidelines Hastert, Reynolds. GOP Leaders Cut Campaign Appearances," Washington Post, October 12, 2006.
 * Scott Lilly and Norm Ornstein, "Worse than FoleyGate" "The New Republic" October 13, 2006.
 * John Yang and Brian Ross, "Exclusive: Former House Clerk's Testimony," The Blotter Blog/ABC News, October 19, 2006.
 * Rhonda Schwartz, "Turmoil in Hastert's Office as Key Staff Testifies," ''The Blotter' Blog/ABC News, October 23, 2006.
 * Larry Margasak, "Hastert top aide testifies about Foley," Associated Press (Houston Chronicle), October 23, 2006.
 * Andrew Taylor, "Hastert Urges Quick Action on Foley," Associated Press (Forbes), October 24, 2006.
 * Steven T. Dennis, "Investigators Say Speaker’s Aide Hindered Inquiry of Hill Security Contracts," Congressional Quarterly, October 27, 2006.
 * "Hastert on the hot seat in midterms. House Speaker may be out if Republicans lose - or if they barely win," Associated Press (MSNBC), October 31, 2006.
 * Andrew Taylor, "Hastert la vista? Many Republicans expect Denny to quit if they lose House -- maybe even if they don't," Chicago Sun-Times, October 31, 2006.
 * "Group Urges Probe Into House 'Bid-Rigging,' 'Kickbacks'," U.S. Newswire (truthout), November 9, 2006. re letter from Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales
 * Carl Hulse, "Hastert Scouts for House Role After 8 Years as Speaker," New York Times, November 23, 2006.
 * Lane Hudson, "This is Pathetic!" News for the Left Blogspot, January 3, 2007.
 * "Hastert to announce retirement tomorrow," Think Progress, October 17, 2007.

Articles by Hastert

 * Dennis Hastert, "There's a right way," USA Today, May 26, 2006.

Reports and Press Releases

 * Right Wing Watch Report on Dennis Hastert People For the American Way, January 6, 1999.
 * Justice Dept. Drafts Sweeping Expansion of Anti-Terrorism Act: Center Publishes Secret Draft of 'Patriot II' Legislation by Charles Lewis and Adam Mayle, Center for Public Integrity, February 7, 2003.
 * Office of House Speaker Dennis Hastert, Statement From House Speaker Dennis Hastert About City Of New Orleans; Clarifies Earlier Comment About Rebuilding City Media Release, January 9, 2005.
 * CREW Files FEC Complaint Requesting Investigation Into Foreign Donations to Hastert's Campaign US Newswire, August 16, 2005.

Resources

 * Official website
 * Official blog
 * Technorati Search: Dennis Hastert
 * Googles News Search: Dennis Hastert
 * Yahoo! News Search: Dennis Hastert
 * Power Trips: How much did Dennis Hastert travel?
 * GovTrack Statistics: Dennis Hastert
 * News videos about Dennis Hastert
 * Social Security protest at Hastert’s Office (4-30-2005)
 * Letter from Reps. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), Tom DeLay (R-Texas), Eric Cantor (R-Va.) and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) to Interior Secretary Gale Norton on June 10, 2003. The letter opposed an expansion of gambling by some Indian tribes that would have cut into the gambling profits of another tribe that was a client of lobbyist and convicted felon Jack Abramoff.

2006 Election Resources

 * Open Secrets - 2006 congressional races database
 * Challenger John Laesch's official site
 * Laesch's official blog
 * Laesch's DailyKos diary
 * DumpHastert.com

Local blogs and discussion sites

 * Philosophe Forum