Democrats Also Got Tribal Donations (Abramoff)

Washington Compost ^ | June 3, 2005 | Jeffrey H. Birnbaum and Derek Willis

[hipaatwo]

Abramoff Issue's Fallout May Extend Beyond the GOP

By Jeffrey H. Birnbaum and Derek Willis Washington Post Staff Writers Friday, June 3, 2005; A01

Lobbyist Jack Abramoff and an associate famously collected $82 million in lobbying and public relations fees from six Indian tribes and devoted a lot of their time to trying to persuade Republican lawmakers to act on their clients' behalf.

But Abramoff didn't work just with Republicans. He oversaw a team of two dozen lobbyists at the law firm Greenberg Traurig that included many Democrats. Moreover, the campaign contributions that Abramoff directed from the tribes went to Democratic as well as Republican legislators.

Among the biggest beneficiaries were Capitol Hill's most powerful Democrats, including Thomas A. Daschle (S.D.) and Harry M. Reid (Nev.), the top two Senate Democrats at the time, Richard A. Gephardt (Mo.), then-leader of the House Democrats, and the two lawmakers in charge of raising funds for their Democratic colleagues in both chambers, according to a Washington Post study. Reid succeeded Daschle as Democratic leader after Daschle lost his Senate seat last November.

[hipaatwo]

FYI

[ncountylee]

The Post will now ignore any democrat involvement.

[hipaatwo]

I bookmared the article and will start sending it out as soon as this thing starts to blow up.

[Bahbah]

James Patrick Manley, Reid's spokesman, also asserted that Reid's connection to tribes was remote from Abramoff. He said that Reid does not know Abramoff. But Abramoff did hire as one of his lobbyists Edward P. Ayoob, a veteran Reid legislative aide. Manley acknowledged that Ayoob helped raise campaign money for his former boss. Lawyers close to the Abramoff operation said that Ayoob held a fundraising reception for Reid at Greenberg Traurig's offices here.

Does not pass the smell test, Dirty Harry. Can you say "culture of corruption" which is pretty much what we have with large numbers of our elected representatives, and if you are corrupt, no law will fix that. John McCain knows this, so his whole sctick is nothing but posturing for effect.

[hipaatwo]

Over at the DUmp their all excited thinking this will only target Republicans. It'll be nice to see them fall once again.. LOL

This article is from the summer, long forgotten by the Post.

[neodad]

Stop the investigation. Move on. Nothing to see here.

[Recovering_Democrat]

BWA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HAHA HA HA HA HA!

[marblehead17]

ping

[KCRW]

Because of Tom Delay, the Dems are pushing this right now. They believe that this will only reflect badly on Republicans.

The Dems are wrong.

[Bahbah]

This article is from the summer, long forgotten by the Post.

Thanks, I had not noticed the date. I was wondering how two such different articles, one of which completely ignores the dem connections, could run at the same time. I guess the WaPo's plan is just to ignore those connections, and they will just go away.

[ApplegateRanch]

Democratic lawmakers who responded to inquiries for this article said that any money they received from the tribes had nothing to do with Abramoff. They were quick to say they did not know the man.

And just then they heard a cock crow.

[neodad]

Just like the lobbiest paid for junckets. That disappeared as soon as the Dims were identified as equally "guilty" if not more.