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Sunday, May 01, 2005

Abramoff Sunday

The Moose suggests that today was Super Sleaze Sunday.

Two major pieces on Rabbi "Casino Jack" Abramoff were included in both the Washington Post and the New York Times. The New York Times piece focuses on the personal saga of a rather unapologetic Abramoff. Essentially, he believes that he did nothing wrong.

On this, Abramoff may have a point. The current culture of the Delayicans is reflected in the Abramoff/Scanlon/DeLay/Reed Indian gaming scandal. Under the moral environment created by the GOP, Abramoff was par for the course, so to speak.

One revealing passage in the article is when one of the leaders of the conservative movement apparently bails out on Righteous Ralph,

" Coushatta money also went to Ralph Reed's Atlanta-based political consulting firm. That firm took more than $4 million from Abramoff to rally religious opposition to a casino Abramoff was trying to shut down on the Coushatta's behalf. (Reed, who is running for lieutenant governor of Georgia, has insisted he was ''deceived'' by Abramoff. Others on the Christian right aren't so sure. ''I think it's a hard sell that he didn't know any of this,'' says Paul Weyrich, a dean of Washington social conservatives.)"

What may be even more troubling to the DeLayicans is the front page story in today's Washington Post that reveals another episode in the Abramoff saga,

"Not long after Abramoff and his partners bought SunCruz Casinos in September 2000, the venture ran aground after a fistfight between two of the owners, allegations of mob influence, dueling lawsuits and, finally, Boulis's death on Feb. 6, 2001. Now, Abramoff is the target of a federal investigation into whether the casino ship deal involved bank fraud. According to court records, the SunCruz purchase hinged on a fake wire transfer for $23 million intended to persuade lenders to provide financing to Abramoff's group.

"Although the outlines of the tale have become part of South Florida lore, what has not been disclosed are the full details of the alleged fraud at the heart of the transaction and the extent of Abramoff's role -- including his use of contacts with Republican Reps. Tom DeLay (Tex.) and Robert W. Ney (Ohio) and members of their staffs as he worked to land the deal."

Forget the Sopranos, the Delayicans are far more entertaining!
-- Posted at 5:33 PM | Link to this post | Email this post