Last week’s arrest and indictment of Ted Loza, Ward 1 D.C. Council member Jim Graham’s chief of staff, continues to put Graham in a rather unpleasant spotlight this morning. After WUSA9 first reported on Monday that the FBI investigation was also targeting the councilman, FOX-5 followed up last night with its own story, noting that Graham refused to go on the record all day on Monday in response to the allegations (earlier that morning when we saw him, Graham claimed he still hadn’t read the story).

Seeing a vulnerability in Graham’s otherwise strong Ward 1 armor, the D.C. Republican Committee has gone on the attack in recent days. D.C. Wire reports that robocalls were placed to 10,000 Ward 1 voters trying to link Graham more closely to the Loza scandal. “We need anyone but Graham in 2010,” closed the calls.

The GOP followed up today with an open letter to Graham requesting that he take a leave of absence until he is cleared of any wrongdoing.

“The allegations that your office is facing are troubling, and we hope they are not true,” wrote GOP chair Robert Kabel. “You have done the right thing by putting your chief of staff on leave. You should hold yourself to that same standard you set for your staff.”