The American Spectator

Washington Prowler

(Page 2 of 3)

Already, there have been calls for Moran to step down, which so far he has refused to do.

Moran was re-elected last November by a smaller margin -- albeit double digits -- than many expected. But he has had one of the safer seats in the House. His congressional district covers parts of Alexandria (where he served as mayor), and Arlington County, which is a haven for left-leaning politicians (no Republican serves on the county council or in a senior management position in government).

Moran's narrowing margin of victory may be due to his seeming inability to avoid the appearance of impropriety in his personal and political life -- from a messy divorce to voting for a bill that helped the credit card industry after he received a favorable debt consolidation package from one of the affected companies. The Washington Post declined to endorse Moran, and recently called on Northern Virginian Democrats to find an alternative to Moran in 2004.

All of this should be energizing Republicans, but it isn't, in part because they don't have a clear candidate who could step up and challenge in that district, even if Moran did resign. "It would be tough to find someone who could make that run in that district and win, " says a Virginia Republican Party official. "We've tried and tried, and just come up short."

In light of Moran's most recent embarrassments, the party has begun looking at mid-level to higher-level officials serving in the Bush Administration who live in the congressional district and who might avail themselves to run in a campaign should one develop.

"It hasn't been a competitive district for us for some time, but we've felt we were making headway," the Republican official. "We're looking at 2004 as a pivotal year, where perhaps if Moran remained, we'd have a real shot. The timing on this might not be right."

A broader political question is how far Pelosi feels comfortable slapping down one of her own. She was quick to call Moran's comments offensive, but privately, say other House members, she was hesitant to encourage anything greater than the verbal wrist slap she provided.

"If you accept, as many Democrats do, that this guy is a slightly smoother character than [former Rep.] Jim Traficant, then why bother drawing more attention to him and the party?" asks another Democratic House leadership staffer. "Moran isn't worth the effort for the leader. This is just smart politics."

p> FLORIDA CAN WAIT br> Much was made earlier this week about White House attempts to draw current Housing and Urban Development secretary Mel Martinez into a possible Senate race in his home state of Florida. Should current Sen. Bob Graham decide to run for president and not seek re-election, that seat might come into play.

topics:
Nancy Pelosi, Iraq, NATO