Part Santorum, part Hot Tub Tom, meet the Floridian who Rahm Emmanuel calls "one of the best Republicans"-
Mr. Putnam, something of a political wunderkind who at 26 was one of the youngest members of Congress in decades when he was elected in 2000, has taken on the role of attack dog over the last three months.
...
He quickly ran into controversy when he waged a full-throated attack against Ms. Pelosi’s use of a military transport jet — larger than the plane used by her predecessor, Mr. Hastert — to fly between California and Washington, accusing her of “an arrogance of extravagance.”
It turned out that the House sergeant of arms, not Ms. Pelosi, had asked for the plane because of the distance involved. Mr. Putnam remains unapologetic, saying he was only responding to news reports. “I always thought it was reporters’ jobs to confirm their stories,” he said.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/26/washington/26putnam.html?_r=1&oref=sloginThis particular charge is a study in hypocrisy-
“The Democratic leadership has turned the people’s house into a personal bazaar of horse-trading and wheeling and dealing,” he said at a session with reporters last week. “What is the point here? What purpose are we serving?”
WHAT? Deals in the House? How'd THAT happen? Oh, wait, that's called "legislating". What would be really bad is if arms were twisted with cash bribes for, and threats against, say, a member's family. In 2003-
With the Medicare bill headed for defeat in the House last Saturday, Republican House leaders kept voting open for an unprecedented three hours beyond the normal 15-minute time limit in order to give themselves time to twist a few additional arms and put them over the top....
....Republican ur-gossip columnist Robert Novak tells us, it's even worse than that:
(Michigan congressman Nick) Smith, self term-limited, is leaving Congress. His lawyer son Brad is one of five Republicans seeking to replace him from a GOP district in Michigan's southern tier. On the House floor, Nick Smith was told business interests would give his son $100,000 in return for his father's vote. When he still declined, fellow Republican House members told him they would make sure Brad Smith never came to Congress. After Nick Smith voted no and the bill passed, Duke Cunningham of California and other Republicans taunted him that his son was dead meat.
Nice kid you've got there, Nick. Be a shame if anything happened to him....
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2003_11/002742.php 
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