A furious George Galloway today challenged US senators to charge him with perjury over claims that he solicited money from Saddam Hussein’s oil-for-food programme and lied about it under oath.
The US Senate inquiry into the Bethnal Green and Bow MP’s alleged involvement in the saga claims to have discovered $150,000 (£85,000) in Iraqi oil money in his estranged wife’s bank account.
Its chairman, the Republican senator Norm Coleman, says this means Mr Galloway lied under oath when giving evidence to the senate permanent sub-committee on investigations on May 17, when he offered a passionate defence against similar claims.
Today Mr Galloway repeated denials that he had ever received any oil cash, and told Mr Coleman to "put up or shut up" by either bringing a prosecution or dropping the allegations. The Respect MP accused Mr Coleman of orchestrating a "sneak revenge attack" motivated by a desire to avenge his "humiliation" at the hearing in May.
Contrast Galloway with the timid little churchmice called Democrats in Congress today.