Jefferson's popularity with voters sparks debate
NEW ORLEANS -- In one breath, people here talk about William Jefferson as an embattled U.S. congressman under indictment on bribery charges. In another, they talk about him as their man in Washington, a shoo-in for re-election.
Jefferson's decisive victory in last week's Democratic runoff leaves him poised to claim a 10th term in the House of Representatives at the same time that he is awaiting trial on federal corruption charges.
And for a state that has long battled an image as a bastion for unscrupulous politicians, his victory has sparked heated debate between those who feel his victory is a blemish and those who say his get-it-done style is what New Orleans needs.
"There's a mixture of incredibility, a mixture of embarrassment," said Rob Couhig, a New Orleans attorney who ran for mayor as a Republican in 2004. "There's also a resignation that this is the way it is."
Jefferson, the first black Louisiana congressman since Reconstruction, is charged in a 16-count federal indictment with bribery, racketeering and money-laundering charges. Federal prosecutors allege Jefferson received more than $500,000 in bribes, including $90,000 that investigators found in the freezer of his Washington home. Prosecutors allege that was payment for his political clout to steer business deals to Nigerian companies.
Jefferson, through his chief of staff Eugene Green, denied the charges and has steadfastly maintained he did nothing wrong.
Jefferson's trial is scheduled to begin Dec. 2 in Virginia; meanwhile, his re-election Dec. 6 is virtually assured because his district is heavily Democratic and he faces a Republican challenger.
Green said he believes Jefferson remains popular because many in his district, the only predominantly African-American one in the state, perceive him as being a key figure in helping the region bounce back from the wallop of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005.
This summer, Jefferson helped lead a delegation of House leaders, including Democratic Majority Whip James Clyburn of South Carolina, on a tour of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.
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