Army Head Should Quit if He Takes Fifth - Tauzin
Sun Jul 14, 7:39 PM ET
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A leading congressional Republican on Sunday suggested that Army Secretary Thomas White resign if he refuses to testify to a Senate panel looking into his role at collapsed energy giant Enron Corp later in the week.
White, a former senior Enron executive, is set to testify before the Senate Commerce Committee on Thursday about whether his energy-trading division hiked prices during the California power crisis of 2000 and 2001.
But anonymous Republican sources quoted in the July 22 issue of Newsweek magazine have said that White will refuse to testify.
Army spokesmen did not return calls seeking comment, but White said through a spokesman in May that he would be happy to testify if called.
Reacting to the Newsweek story on ABC's "This Week," Louisiana Republican Rep. Billy Tauzin said White should consider stepping down if he exercised his constitutionally protected right against self-incrimination.
"No government official working for this administration ought to go before a committee of Congress, House or Senate, and take the Fifth," said Tauzin, referring to the constitutional amendment that provides the protection.
"If you're going to do that, maybe you ought to find another job," said Tauzin, who chairs the House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee.
Senate Commerce Committee spokesman Andy Davis said he did not know if White planned to testify.
White left a post as vice chairman of Enron Energy Services to become Army secretary in mid-2001.
Houston-based Enron, once ranked as the world's largest energy trader, declared bankruptcy last December after its stock collapsed amid allegations that Enron accountants hid corporate debt to boost profits.
White has also been criticized for being slow to sell his Enron investments and is under investigation for trips using Army aircraft.
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