] It is now beyond dispute that retiring Rep. Nick Smith,
] R-Mich., was offered a $100,000 bribe to vote for the
] Medicare pharmaceutical bill. Smith turned down the
] bribe—a promise of campaign funds for Smith's son Brad,
] who is seeking the GOP nomination to succeed his father.
] Smith then described the offer, angrily but somewhat
] enigmatically, to various media outlets. After Chatterbox
] pointed out that an offer of $100,000 in exchange for a
] House vote met the statutory definition of bribery (the
] recipient can be a third-party "entity"), Smith clammed
] up. Then, late last week, just as the Justice Department
] was promising to review the case (the House ethics
] committee is also poised to investigate), Smith recanted:
]
]
] I want to make clear that no member of Congress made
] an offer of financial assistance for my son's campaign in
] exchange for my vote on the Medicare bill. I was told
] that my vote could result in interested groups giving
] substantial and aggressive campaign "support" and
] "endorsements." No specific reference was made to money
] [italics Chatterbox's].