McDermott ordered to pay over $1M in Boehner suit

The Politico's Crypt blog is reporting that Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Seattle) has been ordered to pay over a million dollars in legal fees, interest and fines as a result of the invasion of privacy lawsuit filed against him by Rep. John Boehner in 1998. The total damages include $1,053,181.40 in attorney's fees and costs for Boehner, some $40,000 in interest, and $60,000 in fines.

The lawsuit resulted from an illegally recorded call made by Republican leaders regarding an ethics case against Newt Gingrich. The Florida couple who recorded the call gave the data to McDermott, who then released it to the press. Boehner sued and recently won in court, despite the support of a number of news organizations for McDermott.

Still, the Seattle Democrat remained defiant and proud of his actions.

"While the amount of damages assessed in this case is significant, I submit that defending the First Amendment is beyond measure and worth every penny," McDermott.  "A mere 45 words in length, the First Amendment has defined our commitment to freedom for two centuries. And with the end of this case, another threat against the First Amendment has been met and turned back.

"This has been a long and costly battle but, in the final analysis, the judgment handed down today in the U.S. District Court is a small price to pay in defense of so fundamental a principle, and freedom, as the First Amendment."