Disgraced political figure Tom DeLay

It is important to note that former Republican House Majority Leader Tom DeLay of Texas has not yet been convicted of anything illegal, but in 2005 he resigned his seat in the U.S. House of Representatives amidst charges of campaign finance misdeeds.

Staunchly conservative, DeLay (nicknamed The Hammer) was pro-life, pro-Israel, pro-business, against the teaching of evolution, and a major foe of environmental advocacy groups. He also joined in the debate over what to do about disconnecting comatose patient Terri Schiavo from life support. DeLay, of course, argued against disconnecting her feeding tube.

It appears that DeLay's troubles stem from his relationship with lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who pled guilty to various fraud charges.

Since is departure from Congress, DeLay has started his own political blog, has published a book and has appeared on Dancing with the Stars.