Jack Abramoff’s Bipartisan
Sleeze
Brick Burner
By Joshua Frank
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is far too early to tell what kind of impact it will
ultimately have on the Republican establishment, but
the Jack Abramoff scandal could well be the most perilous
of all the storms developing around Washington. And
the cloud forming on the horizon is a dark one indeed.
The most enthralling aspect of this whole
controversy is the number of people it potentially involves.
From elected officials in Congress to top conservative
activists, the Abramoff lobbyist sham could ravage the
neocons far worse than the Plame affair. It could also
take a top Democrat or two down as well.
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The Abramoff saga is more than a single sordid tale of an
insider gone wild; it's a vivid narrative of how business
is done in Washington. From legal maneuvering to backroom
bribes and pay-offs, Abramoff is just a lobbyist in a long
line of power hungry DC powerbrokers.
At the heart of the Abramoff inquiry is the work he did for
six Indian tribes during the 1990s up until 2004. At question
is whether or not Abramoff along with his partner Michael
Scanlon bilked at least $80 million from his clients, evaded
taxes and violated lobbyist disclosure laws.
There are a handful of politicians currently under scrutiny.
Rep. Tom DeLay is the most notable, but now in the hot seat
are Sen. Conrad Burns of Montana, Rep. John Doolittle of California
and Rep. Robert Ney of Ohio, Republicans all. But on the periphery,
and I'm told a potential addition to the aforementioned list
in the very near future, could be Senate Minority Leader Harry
Reid of Nevada, a Democrat.
Last week the Associated Press reported that almost three
dozen congress people moved to halt the construction of a
Louisiana Indian casino while they simultaneously collected
large donations from Jack Abramoff and his tribal clients.
Senator Harry Reid was one of those elected officials.
Sen. Reid sent a letter to Interior Secretary Gale Norton
on March 5, 2002, which was also signed by Sen. John Ensign,
R-Nev. "The next day, the Coushattas issued a $5,000
check to Reid's tax-exempt political group, the Searchlight
Leadership Fund. A second Abramoff tribe sent another $5,000
to Reid's group. Reid ultimately received more than $66,000
in Abramoff-related donations between 2001 and 2004,"
the AP reported.
It was a political tit-for-tat. Reid opposed the construction
of the casino and was paid handsomely for his choice. Another
Democrat caught up in the legal chaos is former Senator John
Breaux of Louisiana, who, according to tribal records, wrote
Norton on March 1, 2002 about the same matter. Coushattas
wrote a $1,000 check to his Senate campaign five days later
and handed over $10,000 to his library fund.
We've all heard how DeLay was allegedly flown all over the
world on Abramoff's clients' tab, but what we don't hear much
about is that two Democratic congressmen, James E. Clyburn
of South Carolina and now the vice chairman of the House Democratic
Caucus, along with Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, were flown
to the Northern Mariana Islands in the mid-1990s, paid in
part by Jack Abramoff. And the list of Democratic culpability
in the Abramoff affair goes on.
Odds are looking good that the black cloud engulfing Washington
will eventually rain down on both the Republicans and the
Democrats.
Joshua Frank is the author of the brand new book, Left
Out!: How Liberals Helped Reelect George W. Bush, which
has just been published by Common Courage Press. You can order
a copy at a discounted rate at www.brickburner.org.
Joshua can be reached at Joshua@brickburner.org
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