Doolittle says other lawmakers also raided

Two other congressmen were raided by federal authorities when his home was invaded by FBI agents in April, Rep. John Doolittle, R-Roseville, revealed Thursday.

"One's a Democrat and one's a Republican," Doolittle said during a media conference call from Washington, D.C. He said the raids were related to the ongoing federal investigation of jailed lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who had business contacts with Doolittle's wife Julie Doolittle. She raises funds for her husband and others through her political consulting firm.

Doolittle said he would draw a page from media practice by only saying "well-placed sources" had advised him of the raids, which had not become public until his pronouncement. He said he did not know the other congressmen's names.

Meanwhile Doolittle, 56, said he would have a specific announcement about the three-year investigation of his and his wife's associations with Abramoff before Memorial Day.

"I know what the truth is and so does Julie, and we're both clear in our consciences on this," Doolittle said. "We're utterly shocked that our government suspects we've committed a crime."

Abramoff pleaded guilty in January 2006 to federal political corruption charges of defrauding millions from Indian tribes involved in casinos, trying to bribe Congress members and tax evasion.

Julie Doolittle's firm accepted about $67,000 from Abramoff's company from 2002 to 2004. Doolittle used Abramoff's skybox at a Washington-area sports complex and has received campaign money from him in the past.

Although he temporarily resigned his spot on the powerful House Appropriations Committee after the Friday-the-13th raid on his wife's home office, Doolittle said again he has no plans to leave Congress.

"They'd have to drag me out of here; there's no way I'm stepping down," Doolittle said. "I'm not resigning."

Doolittle said the FBI has returned his wife's computers but has not given back her client files, thus depriving her of "taking care of the few clients she has left."

"There seemed to be a push by the Justice Department to make things happen, and now they're backing off a bit," the congressman said. "I wish they'd fish or cut bait."

The veteran representative said he and his wife had nothing to hide but are preparing separate legal defense funds as their $500-per-hour attorney bills continue to mount. The separate funds came from federal rules to avert conflicts of interest, Doolittle said.

In an unrelated item, Doolittle said a new funding bill for the war in Iraq will be introduced soon to replace the one President Bush vetoed. That bill will also include the replacement funds for rural American schools recently lost when Congress let the Secure Rural Schools Funding Act lapse.

That act took the place of federal timber receipts that communities like Nevada County used to get from logging sales.

Nevada County schools got $318,000 from the secure schools law for this school year. Doolittle said the new bill would bring back about 90 percent of past funding.

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To contact Senior Staff Writer Dave Moller, e-mail davem@theunion.com or call 477-4237.