Cunningham to be honored

13 Jul 2006 // The U.S. Capitol Historical Society will hold a reception next week to honor a select group of lawmakers “for their hard work, service, time and the sacrifices made in upholding the office with which they were entrusted.”

One of the people slated to receive such accolades is former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham (R-Calif.).

The disgraced ex-legislator, of course, can’t make the July 19 event or any other social gathering in the near future because he’s serving a prison term of eight-plus years for a bribery scandal you may have heard about.

But Cunningham qualifies for the Capitol Historical Society because he is a retiring member of Congress. The society opted not to exclude anyone, even convicted felons. The group did not comment by press time about its rationale for keeping Cunningham on the list.

The event, which will be held in Statuary Hall from 6 to 8 p.m., honors every member on the way out. Cunningham’s name on the official invitation is among 31 other departing House members and five senators to be honored.

Some House members on the list hope this will not be their last hurrah serving on Capitol Hill; seven are running for the Senate.

Another honoree is former Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas), who recently indicated that he may run for his old seat if an appeals court does not overturn a ruling that he must remain on the November ballot. DeLay hadn’t responded to the invitation earlier this week.

The co-hosts of the event will include members of leadership, including House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).

Don’t even think about crashing this party. Admission to the reception is by invitation only. Bring your own shackles.