U.S. Representative Scott Desjarlais, The Tennessean
By Chas Sisk, The Tennessean
Gov. Bill Haslam thinks U.S. Rep. Scott DesJarlais ought to weigh
whether he can continue to be effective in Congress, but the governor
has not been part of any "official" conversations about asking him to
resign, he said Monday.
"I think the congressman's decision is,
can I effectively represent the people who elected me?" Haslam told
reporters after a public appearance in Nashville. "It's not my call.
It's his decision."
Criticism of DesJarlais, R-South Pittsburg, has sharpened since a Marion County court released official transcripts
from DesJarlais' divorce proceedings that contradicted his account of
what happened after a patient he had slept with told him she was
pregnant with his child.
DesJarlais said in October that he was
not aware that a telephone conversation he had with the woman was
recorded and that he had used "strong rhetoric" to get her to admit that
she was not really pregnant.
But the patient testified in 2001
that she actually was pregnant, though she did not in the end have a
child by DesJarlais. DesJarlais testified that he and his wife had
recorded the conversation together.
The transcripts also showed
that the pro-life congressman had backed two abortions by his ex-wife
before their marriage in 1995: once for medical reasons and once
because they were having a difficult time in their relationship.
He 'misled voters'
Since the transcripts' release Thursday, former Cracker Barrel executive Forrest Shoaf has said he may take on DesJarlais
in the 2014 primary if he attempts to run for a third term. Meanwhile,
Weston Wamp, who unsuccessfully challenged U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleishmann
for his seat in August, told a Chattanooga television station that
DesJarlais had "clearly misled voters" during the campaign.
Lloyd
Daugherty, chairman of the Tennessee Conservative Union, said before the
transcripts' release that DesJarlais should step down. But a spokesman
for DesJarlais said Monday that the congressman will not resign and does
plan to be sworn in for a second term in January.
Haslam chose
his words carefully when asked whether there has been discussion within
the Republican Party about whether DesJarlais should step down.
"I haven't been a part of or heard any official discussions like that," Haslam said.
Haslam said he would not personally call for DesJarlais' resignation because he had not read the 665-page transcripts.
"As
the governor of Tennessee, I'm not sure that falls into my line of
responsibility," Haslam said. "In the end, it comes back to he has a
decision to make."