In a statement made to the Albuquerque Journal, Domenici said: "The mother of that child made me pledge that we would never reveal that parenthood, and I have tried to honor that pledge and so has she." But, Domenici said, he believed someone else might soon make the story public: “Rather than have others breach this privacy, I have decided to make this statement. These circumstances now compel me to reveal this situation."

Domenici was chairman of the Senate Budget Committee before stepping down from his seat in 2008, after six terms, for health reasons. He also noted in his statement that his wife (and eight children) have "been aware of these events for several months.”

His son, Adam Paul Laxalt, was born in 1978, and is a former officer of the Navy and current lawyer. Adam Laxalt's mother, Michelle Laxalt, works as a lobbyist, and is herself the daughter of former Sen. Paul Laxalt, R-Nev., who also chaired the Republican National Committee.

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