Posted on 01/11/2002 2:24:05 PM PST by anniegetyourgun
WASHINGTON- Shortly after he was confirmed as attorney general, John Ashcroft was invited by Enron Corp. Chairman Kenneth Lay to speak at an exclusive meeting of corporate leaders, Justice Department officials said Friday.
Lay, who was vice chairman of the Business Council, introduced Ashcroft at the Feb. 22, 2001, meeting in Washington. Ashcroft spoke about the importance of lowering crime.
Government officials, including Federal Reserve members as well as Cabinet secretaries from all recent administrations, have spoken at other meetings of the Business Council, whose members are executives of the nation's largest companies.
Ashcroft's speech was arranged by his schedulers and the attorney general never spoke directly to Lay, said department officials.
The information was released in response to an inquiry by The Associated Press about Ashcroft's dealings with Enron since he became attorney general.
Lay and Enron executives donated over $50,000 to Ashcroft's fund-raising committees in his unsuccessful campaign for Senate re-election in 2000.
Ashcroft has recused himself from a Justice Department criminal investigation of the failed energy company.
Lay's contacts with members of the Bush administration were the focus of intense scrutiny after officials disclosed that Lay and Enron's president had contacted two Cabinet members and a top Treasury official for help when the company was in a financial tailspin.
When I read this, I actually heard the "tada" sound. You know like when you used to shut down Win95?
Then I pictured Rubin's nerdy mug after the "tada".
They are SO busted.
The following quote is from this article.
Enron reported in its court filing yesterday that Citigroup's Citibank unit is its largest unsecured creditor, with two loans totaling $3 billion.
Leiberman's campaign contributions can be found at opensecrets.org. Click here and search on Lieberman
2002 Race for Senate: Citigroup $112,546 top contributor - (next was United Tech at $62000
2000 Race for Senate: Citigroup $59,296 top contributor - (next was United Tech at $36,000)
1998 Race for Senate: Citigroup $54,350 top contributor - (next was Goldman Sachs at $30,350)
The first time Citigroup shows up is in 1998 and, since then, they have been the top contributor.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.