Wright Inquiry May Undermine ‘Sleaze Factor’

To their own surprise, Republicans are on the verge of achieving the one thing that might spare Vice President George Bush from being tagged with the “sleaze factor” in the November election: a public investigation of the nation’s top Democratic officeholder.

And even more surprising to everyone involved--especially the Democrats--is that the Republicans have succeeded in triggering an investigation of House Speaker Jim Wright (D-Tex.) within his own chamber, where his party dominates by a majority of about 2 to 1.

Members of the House Ethics Committee, headed by Rep. Julian C. Dixon (D-Los Angeles), are expected today to launch their investigation of allegations raised by Common Cause, the citizens lobby.

Focus Placed on Book

The investigation will focus on charges that Wright used publication of a 117-page book as a subterfuge to convert at least $55,000 in campaign funds to his own use and that he improperly intervened with federal regulators on behalf of several Texas thrift institutions.

Although Wright staunchly maintains his innocence and again expressed confidence Wednesday that the committee would “put all these allegations to rest,” the investigation is expected to undermine election-year efforts by Democrats seeking to capitalize on charges involving the ethical conduct of Atty. Gen. Edwin Meese III and other members of the Reagan Administration.

“It minimizes the ability of the Democrats to use the ‘sleaze factor’ against George Bush,” said Johanna Schneider, an aide to House Minority Leader Robert H. Michel (R-Ill.).

Moreover, Democrats fear that Wright’s prominent role as chairman of the Democratic National Convention in Atlanta next month in some ways could soil the “squeaky-clean” image that the party’s apparent presidential nominee, Michael S. Dukakis, has carefully fostered during his years as governor of Massachusetts.

Bush Issues Challenge

Indeed, Bush has wasted no time in using the allegations against Wright to deflect attention away from members of the Reagan Administration. Whenever he is asked about Meese, Bush responds by challenging Dukakis and his one remaining competitor for the nomination, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, to join him in calling for a special prosecutor to investigate Wright.

“Talk about ethics,” Bush said recently. “You talk about Ed Meese? How about talking about what Common Cause raised about the Speaker the other day? Are they going to look into it? Are they going to go for an independent counsel so the nation will have this full investigation? Why don’t people call out for that? I will right now. I think they ought to.”

Ironically, the case against Wright gained little attention--even among Republicans--many months ago when it was first raised by Rep. Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.), a right-wing gadfly. Gingrich several times postponed plans to formally request an ethics committee investigation, and Wright dismissed the charges as the preoccupation of a small group of GOP conservatives who were frustrated because they are in the minority in the House.

Not until Common Cause joined the chorus against Wright on May 18 did members of Gingrich’s party begin to pay attention to the matter. More than 70 Republicans eventually co-signed a letter accompanying the ethics committee complaint that Gingrich filed against Wright on May 26, closely following the Common Cause request.

Crusade Gains Momentum

In fact, Gingrich’s crusade against Wright has gained so much momentum in the last few weeks--including the editorial support of many newspapers--that the Georgia Republican now sees “a strong possibility” that Wright will be deposed as Speaker by the end of the year.

“Democrats are not a party to tolerate an albatross,” he said.

Angered by Gingrich’s success, Democrats insist that the allegations arose as part of a Republican vendetta against Wright, who led the effort to kill military aid to the Contra rebels in Nicaragua. “He beat them on their No. 1 issue,” said Rep. Tony Coelho (D-Merced), the House assistant majority leader and a Wright ally.

In addition, Coelho said that the complaint was timed to embarrass Democrats shortly before the party convention. “This is raw politics,” he said. “If they were really concerned about ethics, they would have filed them eight months ago.”

He also expressed the hope that the voters would not link Dukakis to the Wright investigation. “Michael Dukakis has not been part of the national government, as George Bush has been,” he said. “If they think the two are comparable, they are missing the point.”

Republicans deny any political motivation in raising the charges against Wright--even though Gingrich acknowledges that it is “marginally advantageous to George Bush.” He insisted that he is more concerned about good government than gaining an advantage for the GOP.

‘Above Partisan Politics’

“If the man third in line to be President of the United States has an ethical problem, that’s a consideration that is far above partisan politics,” Gingrich said.

Likewise, Michel’s aide, Schneider, argued that the charges would have been virtually ignored by members of the ethics committee if they had not been filed first by Common Cause, a group that is technically nonpartisan but usually sides with Democrats on most issues.

“The timing of this was nothing more than bad luck for the Democrats,” she said. “If Common Cause had called for the investigation six months ago, it would have happened then. . . . It is not a concerted effort on the part of Republican leaders in the House.”

Although Gingrich acknowledges that he brought pressure on the lobbying group to file a complaint against Wright, Common Cause Vice President Randy Huwa insisted that the organization acted of its own accord on the basis of independently developed information. He noted that his group has been responsible for triggering other investigations.

“We call them as we see them,” Huwa said.

Privately, members of both parties said that the charges might have been ignored by many Republicans if Wright were not viewed as a highly tyrannical partisan by members of the minority party.

Not a Tip O’Neill

They noted that former Speaker Thomas P. (Tip) O’Neill Jr. (D-Mass.), a more popular figure on both sides of the aisle, easily sidestepped allegations in the mid-1970s that he was improperly influenced by Korean lobbyist Tongsun Park.

“There is no reservoir of good will for Jim as there was for Tip,” said a House Democrat, who declined to be identified by name. “It’s pathetic. . . . He’s a loner.”

As for the Speaker himself, he has now offered to cooperate fully with an investigation. In addition, he has hired a Washington lawyer, William C. Oldaker, a former general counsel of the Federal Election Commission, to represent him before the committee.

Staff writer Cathleen Decker contributed to this story.