Gingrich: Scandals threat to GOP

Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Monday that Tom DeLay's ongoing legal battles coupled with the recent scandals that brought down two of his lobbyist associates threaten to drown out the Republican Party's message in this year's congressional elections.

But Gingrich, the architect of the GOP's 1994 takeover of Congress, also said during a visit to Austin that Democrats are poorly positioned to take advantage of the drumbeat of bad news raining down on DeLay, who is under indictment on money-laundering charges stemming from fund-raising activities in 2002.

DeLay , a Sugar Land Republican, is also a close associate of Washington lobbyists Jack Abramoff and Michael Scanlon, each of whom have pleaded guilty to a variety of corruption charges that are expected to ensnare several members of Congress.

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