Tom DeLay's turn on 'Dancing with the Stars'

How will the former Republican House leader fare on ABC's reality TV dance competition?

If you hate Tom DeLay, prepare yourself, said former Delay communications director Emily Miller in Politics Daily. The man can dance. So, for those of us who know him, it makes sense that he was chosen to face off against Kelly Osbourne, Donny Osmond, and Iron Chef America chairman Mark Dacascos and the other new competitors on the ABC reality show Dancing with the Stars. "If you are a Tom DeLay supporter, be sure to tune in to the show and put Dancing With the Stars on speed dial to vote for him.

Tom DeLay, the former House Republican majority leader, had been keeping a low profile since leaving the House of Representatives in 2006, said CNN.com, but those days are officially over. Delay will be back in the spotlight when he competes on the dance floor with celebrities like Mya, Macy Gray, singer Aaron Carter, Ashley Hamilton, Melissa Joan Hart, ultimate fighter Chuck Liddell, and former Dallas Cowboy Michael Irvin.

The ABC reality show is a popular stop for celebrities trying to make a comeback, said Ashley Southall in The New York Times. And DeLay -- who was forced out of the House after he was charged back home in Texas with violating campaign-finance laws -- won't be the first politician to give the strategy a try. Jerry Springer, a former talk-show host and former mayor of Cincinnati, appeared in the third season. After the news broke, DeLay -- now a political consultant, said via Twitter, "This is going to be so much fun."

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The new roster of contestants is certainly "as diverse as ever," said Denise Martin in the Los Angeles Times. So no matter "what kind of fancy footwork former Texas Congressman Tom DeLay has to offer," this should be interesting.

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