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More Killer D's
A few new facts are available on the use of Homeland Security to track down the Killer D's. Unfortunately, those facts are buried in the often contradictory stories told by Tom DeLay and Texas House Speaker Tom Craddick.

The actual request for federal help came from Lt. Will Crais, a "veteran fugitive-hunter" at the Texas Department of Public Safety. Lt. Crais apparently tricked Homeland Security into helping by claiming the House Minority Leader's private plane was missing and might have crashed. Lt. Crais has not said who authorized him to federalize the search.

Craddick's office says they asked the Department of Public Safety to look for the truant Democrats but didn't say how to do it and never suggested federal help. Craddick says he had no idea how the hunt was conducted, but Lt. Crais ran the search out of a conference room next to Craddick's office

DeLay's office says there was no contact between his office and Homeland Security or the FBI, but a DeLay aide told the Washington Post that the Majority Leader "did pass along to the Justice Department Craddick's inquiry on whether federal law enforcement could assist in the manhunt."

Meanwhile, several more members of congress have joined Joe Lieberman in demanding an investigation. Joshua Marshall, Off the Kuff, and Burnt Orange have numerous detailed posts on this story.