Abramoff buys himself more time by cooperating
By Kirstin Ellison
Posted on Wed May 23, 2007 at 03:02:46 PM EST
Good news for Abramoff, bad news for Tom DeLay and John Doolittle? From The Hill:
On Monday, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia postponed the sentencing dates for Abramoff and [Michael] Scanlon yet again. Abramoff and Scanlon were convicted of conspiring to bribe public officials more than a year ago, but the court has postponed the sentencing of each several times....
..."Mr. Abramoff has been cooperating with government agents and prosecutors," Justice Department prosecutors wrote. "The government anticipates that Mr. Abramoff's cooperation will continue for the foreseeable future."
In addition to Abramoff and close friend Michael Scanlon, the court has also delayed sentencing hearings for Tony Rudy and Neil Volz. What might this mean? Well, if prosecutors are continuing to gather information from the key players in the Abramoff scandal, it may strengthen their investigations and potential charges of players not yet under indictment, such as DeLay and Rep. Doolittle. And the willingness of the court to continue to postpone sentencing indicates that the information they are receiving from these men is valuable. DeLay and Doolittle can't be feeling very safe right now.
DeLay's PAC shuts down
By Kirstin Ellison
Posted on Wed May 02, 2007 at 12:20:11 PM EST
Say bye-bye to what was arguably once the most powerful PAC in the nation. Tom DeLay's Americans for a Republican Majority (ARMPAC) filed termination papers with the FEC on April 24, ending it's decade of unsurpassed influence over Republican lawmakers and policy.
ARMPAC was a "leadership PAC," different from congressional re-election committees in that they are used by Congressmen to contribute to colleagues' PACs - a measure to gain influence with one's peers on Capitol Hill. Leadership PACs can accept larger donations than re-election committees - $5,000 per individual per year - and make larger donations to toher lawmakers - $10,000 per election cycle.
What made ARMPAC so influential? Money, of course - more money than anyone else.
And, in an 11-year run among GOP leadership ranks, no one in Congress used political money to maximize his own influence more than DeLay. From 2001 through 2005, as DeLay's power reached its apex, his PAC dished out more than $2.6 million in donations to other House and Senate candidates as well as national political party committees.
In 2004, the PAC, known on Capitol Hill as ARMPAC, gave out $781,299 in donations, according to FEC reports. [That's about $150,000 more than the man above him in leadership, then-Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), gave out that year.]
Of course, ARMPAC was central to the scandal that has brought down so many in Washington and still threatens so many more. DeLay pal Ed Buckham worked closely with the PAC, and his and Abramoff's clients became huge ARMPAC donors. An offshoot of ARMPAC known as Texans for a Republican Majority (TRMPAC) was the money-laundering tool that got DeLay indicted on charges in Texas and led to his fall from leadership.
Let's hope this serves as a warning to all other Congressmen who use their leadership PACs to curry favor and influence. Don't let your committee become the next ARMPAC.
Jack Abramoff is obviously cooperating with investgators
By Kirstin Ellison
Posted on Mon Apr 30, 2007 at 05:31:45 PM EST
Jack Abramoff is yakking away - at least, that's the implication the Sacramento Bee gives in an excellent article summarizing the sudden flurry of Abramoff-related activity around the country.
"It's not clear to me or my lawyers exactly what they're doing," Doolittle said Thursday of his own case.
Really? This might clarify some things for you, sir:
The flurry of activity can be traced to the federal courthouse in Miami, where prosecutors revealed last month that they're prepared to reduce Abramoff's sentence for fraud in connection with his purchase of a fleet of gambling ships.
Prosecutors said he had more to tell about Washington corruption, and they were offering a lower sentence as an elixir to lubricate his tongue.
Seems to have worked, no? Since Bob Ney went to prison, nothing much had been happening in the investigation. Then, all of a sudden in the last couple of weeks we get:
- Rep. John Doolittle's (R-CA) home is raided.
- Kevin Ring, former aide to Doolittle and close friend of Abramoff's, resigns from his law firm.
- Mark Zachares pleads guilty to conspiracy with Abramoff.
- Rep. Tom Feeney (R-FL) announces he's being asked questions about an Abramoff-funded golf trip he took in 2003 - the same trip Zachares was on.
- Reports surface that Ed Buckham, former aide to Tom DeLay and lobbyist extraordinaire, may be nearing charges, which chould ensare DeLay. Buckham could also be a link between the Abramoff investigation and the Duke Cunningham bribery case (see also Brent Wilkes).
The common denominator? Jack Abramoff.
Yep, he's talking.
Don't forget about DeLay!
By Kirstin Ellison
Posted on Fri Apr 27, 2007 at 03:26:36 PM EST
Since the Abramoff scandal first broke, countless names have been mentioned in connection to the infamous lobbyist. With all the developments over the last couple of years, it's easy to forget the roots of the whole thing - one might argue, the ultimate face of the "culture of corruption."
I'm talking about Tom DeLay, of course. Now, despite being one of Abramoff's closest buddies on the Hill, "The Hammer" has not been charged with any specific Abramoff-related crime; he's under indictment on other corruption charges (he was a busy man). However, that may all change relatively soon.
From the Forth Worth Star-Telegram:
But prosecutors could decide within weeks whether to bring charges against Delay's former staff chief Edwin Buckham, according to sources close to the investigation who spoke on the condition that they not be identified. The decision should give a clear signal on whether DeLay remains in legal jeopardy, the sources said.
Yeah, Ed Buckham is pretty deep into a lot of this stuff. Frankly, it would be a bit of a shock if Buckham escaped from all this indictment-free.
"We'll know it when we see it" is not good enough
By Kirstin Ellison
Posted on Wed Apr 25, 2007 at 05:32:31 PM EST
Roll Call asks an excellent question: when it comes to Members of Congress who come under criminal investigation, what is the rule for stepping down from important committee posts? The answer, simply put, is that there isn't one.
House rules provide only that when a Member is convicted of a crime carrying a sentence of more than two years, he or she "should not" engage in committee business or vote on the floor. Further action is up to the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct and the House membership.
Both parties have formal rules that a leader or committee chairman who's indicted automatically steps down from those posts, but there is no formal rule applying to rank-and-file Members.
Well, uh...that just sounds like an invitation to do nothing...
Oh, and what do you know?!
House ethics: You snooze, you lose
By Kirstin Ellison
Posted on Thu Apr 12, 2007 at 11:13:28 AM EST
House Democrats want to be seen as the standard-bearers of ethics reform in government - but their efforts seemed to have stalled somewhere after the "100 hours" ended.
From today's Post:
The promise to end the "culture of corruption" they said developed in Washington under Republican rule helped propel Democrats into the majority in November elections. But after a promising start, lawmakers appear to be backing off a proposal for an independent entity to investigate ethics charges...after weeks of meetings, a House task force studying the issue says the group has not begun discussing a plan and will probably miss its May 1 reporting deadline.
Let the excuses begin! There's something called an "options menu" out there...and this gem from task force Chairman Rep. Michael Capuano (D-MA):
"We were asked to consider whether there is a need for, a desire for this," Capuano said. "The answer we might come up with is, 'No, we don't need one.'"
Pardon me? Did I misread that? After DeLay, Ney, Cunningham, Jefferson, and Foley, they can't possibly delude themselves that the current ethics process works and doesn't need outside enforcement.
Or can they?
"We've got to do something or be wildly ridiculed," said a staffer working on the issue. "But members are always going to be worried about giving up some of their power."
Follow me inside to read what the watchdogs are saying, including a quote from our own Sarah Dufendach.
DeLay's redistricting plan doesn't quite produce expected results
By Kirstin Ellison
Posted on Thu Dec 14, 2006 at 12:20:01 PM EST
Democrats picked up a 30th House seat this week, and once again, it's all Tom DeLay's fault. This time, though, it's more than just his long list of scandals dragging down the Republican Party. This time, his direct actions may have cost the GOP the seat.
On Tuesday, former Representative Ciro Rodriguez (who'd lost his seat due to DeLay's mid-decade redistricting) narrowly beat incumbent Rep. Henry Bonilla in a runoff election, largely due to the redistricting that changed voter demographics. It was an unexpected win, and it certainly adds insult to injury to the disgraced DeLay.
The former congressman from Texas was the mastermind of a 2003 redrawing of congressional lines in the state that led to the removal of six House Democrats in the 2004 elections.
Two years later, DeLay's fortunes have suffered a near-total reversal, as the redistricting map that once seemed certain to cement his legacy and GOP majorities for years has instead led to the end of that career and may well be a building block for a reenergized Democratic Party in the state.
To those in the reform community who were dismayed to see the redistricting process being abused for partisan gain at the expense of fairness to voters, this is the cherry on top of the DeLay disgrace sundae.
Jack Abramoff: Inmate No. 27593-112
By James Benton
Posted on Wed Nov 15, 2006 at 10:37:48 AM EST
Abramoff's ship: Now in dry dock
After years of multimillion-dollar deals and living the gilded life of a well-connected Washington lobbyist, Jack Abramoff's next job will pay far less: 12 cents an hour.
The Associated Press reports that the former lobbyist at the center of an influence-peddling scandal in Washington entered a minimum-security prison in Cumberland, Md., this morning.
Abramoff arrived at the prison about 6:30 a.m. today. He's expected to serve nearly six years after being convicted in Florida earlier this year on charges stemming from a fraudulent, multimillion dollar deal to buy casino ships.
He's awaiting sentencing in Washington for corrupting government officials and their staff members. The charges arose from years of work on Capitol Hill in which Abramoff gave out tickets to sporting events, meals and trips. He's also under investigation for bilking Indian tribes he represented out of $82 million.
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