Free Republic

It was October 1992, nearly 15 years before the housing meltdown and subprime crisis. Republican Rep. Jim Leach of Iowa was on the floor of the House, talking about something that no one at the time seemed to care about: the potential danger that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac posed to the economy. In remarks later reported by the Washington Post, Leach warned that Fannie and Freddie were changing "from being agencies of the public at large to money machines for the stockholding few." Leach's prescient comments went unheeded — indeed, Congress spent the next decade and a half avoiding...

DENVER -- On a night when the wife of the presumptive Democratic nominee for president would take the stage at the Democratic National Convention following an address by the party's most revered elder statesman, it would be hard to imagine how a former congressman from eastern Iowa would even get notice, let alone high marks as one of the most important speeches of the night. Unless, of course, the former congressman was a Republican. So there was Jim Leach, former diplomat, friend of the Bush family and longtime Republican congressman from Iowa City, enjoying the enthusiastic response of thousands of...

Former Republican Rep. Jim Leach endorsed Barack Obama's White House bid Tuesday, and said he hopes the Illinois senator considers a former GOP ally of rival John McCain as his running mate. Speaking on a conference call with reporters to announce a new effort among Republicans in support of Obama's candidacy, Leach said he thought Nebraska Sen. Chuck Hagel should join the Democratic ticket. "There are a number of impressive potential vice presidential candidates and this is a singular decision for one person, and that is Barack Obama," Leach said. "But personally I'd be hopeful in the list of serious...

Barack Obama's campaign is rolling out a number of centrist Republicans who are endorsing the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee over Republican rival John McCain - in a show of his ability to win cross-over votes. A conference call Tuesday featured former Iowa Rep. Jim Leach, former White House intelligence adviser Rita Hauser and former Rhode Island Sen. Lincoln Chafee, who represented his state as a Republican, but switched to become a Democrat so he could vote for Obama in the primary. Leach predicted that a lot of Republicans and independents are going to be attracted by Obama's campaign. The Obama...

Excerpt - WASHINGTON (AP)--A House Republican and Democrat, in the new spirit of bipartisanship, are urging President George W. Bush to name defeated Republican Rep. Jim Leach to be the next U.S. ambassador to the U.N. ~ snip ~

The House on Friday voted 256-153 to support the military mission in Iraq Forty-two Democrats bucked their leadership to join a virtually united Republican Party and declare that the United States must complete "the mission to create a sovereign, free, secure and united Iraq" without setting "an arbitrary date for the withdrawal or redeployment" of U.S. troops. Three Republicans — Reps. Ron Paul of Texas, John Duncan Jr. of Tennessee and Jim Leach of Iowa — joined 149 Democrats and one independent to oppose the resolution. Three Democrats and two Republicans voted present in protest. Nineteen lawmakers did not vote....

1. Sen. Lincoln Chafee (R.I.) Once approached by Democratic Leader Harry Reid to switch parties, Chafee has long supported liberal policies. He backs legal abortion, gay rights, federal-funded health care, strict environmental protections and a higher minimum wage. Opposes ANWR drilling. Also was the only Republican in Congress not to endorse the President’s reelection and one of three who tried to gut Bush’s tax cuts. 2. Sen. Olympia Snowe (Maine) A self-described “centrist,” Snowe scored a 100% pro-choice voting record as scored by NARAL and consistently votes with Democrats on social issues. 3. Sen. Arlen Specter (Pa.) “Snarlin’ Arlen” warned...

Moderate RINOS Undermine the GOP November 11, 2005 Download Windows Media PlayerListen to Rush Conduct Broadcast Excellence BEGIN TRANSCRIPT RUSH: Well, now the White House has fought back. Will the congressional Republicans get their acts in gear? It looks like they're falling part. This gang of moderates under the tutelage of George Soros that killed the ANWR drilling project-- (interruption) You are unaware that the Republican mainstream partnership is funded by George Soros? I kid you not. It's on Michelle Malkin's website. I pulled it down last night. Here we go. She writes, "Many of you were asking for...

Dear Greg, Thank you for contacting my office about Hurricane Katrina and the situation along the Gulf Coast. I appreciate hearing from you. Katrina was the most devastating natural disaster to befall this country in generations. As with any catastrophic event, a certain amount of discombobulation was inevitable at the outset. But the leadership failures and chaos that ensued after the levees gave way in New Orleans were inexcusable. Katrina exposed a shocking lack of preparedness in our emergency-response systems at the local, state and, most importantly, federal level. It almost defies belief, for example, that help was delayed for...

2006 Congressional Election Cycle Has Begun  50 Republican Incumbents Undeserving of Support by Pro-life Voters   The Republican National Coalition for Life PAC is currently receiving phone calls from Republican candidates for Congress in the 2006 Republican primaries. Our usual practice is to mail our Candidate Questionnaire to Republican candidates in each district as soon as the filing deadlines are reached. When we receive the results of the questionnaire, they are recorded on our website at www.RNCLife.org so that voters can see for themselves it those seeking to represent them in Washington are truly pro-life. We hope that this service...

Gannett newspaper. Click on link.

WASHINGTON, July 22 (Yonhap) -- Rep. James Leach has obtained a visa to enter North Korea and is expected to travel there late next month, multiple sources said Thursday. Two-term Congressman Leach (R-Iowa). chairman of the House Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, had shown interest in visiting the North in the past. His office declined to comment, but one source, speaking on condition of anonymity said, "I am glad he is going." A State Department official, also asking not to be named, said the general practice of the department is to "encourage" congressional visits. Another source called the...

REMEMBERING RUSSIAGATE Never Have So Few Stolen So Much From So Many Now that President Bush has returned from his tour of the former Soviet states, those Americans who still remember how our last president used to deal with Russian affairs are breathing a sigh of relief that grownups have once more taken charge of our foreign policy. When the Clintons took office, they inherited the awesome, historic task of rebuilding and redefining America's relationship with the fallen Soviet empire. Instead of rising to the challenge, they presided over the systematic rape of the former Soviet economy. The financial catastrophe...

<p>WASHINGTON - It was both an auspicious and ominous way to begin the week: Auspicious because of President George Bush's resolute demand that Saddam Hussein and his sons leave Iraq. There were also ominous noises from his predecessor in the White House, Bill Clinton, who bared not only his antagonism to the president but his horror at envisioning a strong America.</p>

DES MOINES, Iowa (Reuters) - Iowa Republican Rep. Jim Leach, once an aide to now-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, said on Tuesday White House policy-makers had made one of the most misguided assumptions ever in U.S. strategy by not planning for a decisive withdrawal from Iraq (news - web sites). Reuters Photo "The current (administration) thinking is that we'll be there six or seven years, people will realize that we're saviors and they'll want us to have many (military) bases and that this will be a bulwark in the Middle East for an American presence," said Leach, a 13-term House of...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 26 — With six weeks to go, Republicans appear to hold a slight edge in this year's fight for control of the House, according to interviews with politicians and analysts around the country and examinations of local polls. Republicans have about 10 more seats safely in their hands than the Democrats do. So even if they won fewer than half of the approximately 40 races that are truly competitive, they could still keep control of the House. That unusually small number of competitive districts means that the Democrats have fewer opportunities to achieve the net gain of seven...

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa, Sept. 10 — After 26 years in Congress, happily cultivating his image as the quintessential Republican moderate, somehow above the partisan fray, Representative Jim Leach suddenly finds himself smack in the middle of the battle for the House. "It's a hard time," he says, sighing, his voice trailing off as he ponders the weeks ahead. Redistricting has forced him into a new Congressional district that is decidedly Democratic. His opponent, Dr. Julie Thomas, is well financed, has strong roots in the community, and makes the case — in the calm, just-trust-me style of a longtime pediatrician —...