Hell hath no fury like a Congressman scorned.

Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., still smarting over the way small business groups ambushed his recent hearing into the Small Business Administration, has accused unnamed SBA employees of setting him up, and he's demanding an investigation.

Federal agencies and their employees are prohibited from using tax dollars to lobby Congress, either directly or indirectly, and can face fines up to $100,000 if convicted.

The controversy began when Lloyd Chapman, president of the American Small Business League (ASBL), issued a statement about the hearing before Coburn announced it. Chapman characterized it as an attempt to abolish the SBA; Coburn called the claim distorted and unethical.

The situation escalated yesterday when Coburn charged that SBA employees sent e-mails to special interest groups to rouse opposition to the hearing. He says he has seen at least one such e-mail. The Associated Press also reported that it had reviewed one e-mail that an SBA employee had forwarded to others.

In a separate statement, Chapman acknowledged today that Coburn was "infuriated" by the ASBL's press release but said his organization was "on the mark" with its concerns.