Records Show DeLay, Lobbyist Daily Contact

[deminks]

WASHINGTON - Tom DeLay and his top aides were often in daily contact with lobbyist Jack Abramoff during the mid-1990s as the lobbyist made campaign contributions and arranged travel for the House leader while seeking legislative help for a multimillion-dollar client, according to law firm records made public for the first time.

DeLay's office kept Abramoff, now under criminal investigation, routinely apprised of congressional efforts to block new regulations on his client, the Northern Mariana Islands.

Abramoff's firm reported it drafted legislative materials for DeLay, and Abramoff boasted to island leaders he could use his close ties to Republican leaders to block legislation from receiving a House vote.

They provide a day-by-day account of the lobbyist's campaign of fundraising, trip-providing and schmoozing with lawmakers in both parties aimed at getting Congress to block Clinton administration efforts to regulate alleged "sweatshop" garment factories in the Northern Marianas. Those rules were never enacted.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=512&ncid=1278&e=2&u=/ap/20050426/ap_on_go_co/delay_lobbyist

[dave29]

1. Yes, but what time did Abramoff check out?

Is there a record of him ever leaving DeLay's pocketbook?

[deminks]

2. LMAO!

Apparently, there is no exit record!

:rofl:

[yellowcanine]

15. To be fair, those card readers don't always work. That could explain

why sometimes there is no record of Abramoff entering Delay's pocketbook and other times no record of him leaving. OTOH maybe sometimes he actually stayed in Delay's pocketbook overnight, playing pocket pool, no doubt.

[Judi Lynn]

3. This is almost unbelieveable.

This man has to leave.

I read it in a real hurry, but am I correct in believing he charged the government of the Marianas Islands for sending various congresscritters he was working for support on various bills, projects, to the Marianas, using the trips as bribes?

SLEAZY.



I'll reread it later when I have more time but this looks loathesome, and completely dishonest. Tom Delay has shoved his Christian saintliness down everyone's throats so long. The only people who wouldn't laugh in his face are criminals, also.

[kevinmc]

4. Headline Rewrite.....

Records show “Hot Tub Tom” Delay had sex daily with Lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

[MADem]

5. Snarky comments aside, this is IMPORTANT

This shows a direct money for influence connection, not a sloppy, third party relationship, a direct relationship. I gotta hand it to Abramoff, he ain't gonna be played for a patsy. And he was a player, certainly, but to my mind, it is the GOVERNMENT official with responsibility to create and UPHOLD the law who bears the greater burden.

It's a lot like prostitution--if there were no customers, there would be no whores.

[Straight Shooter]

11. Amen.

Abramoff, as the saying goes, knows where the bodies are buried.

Tom DeLay is a dead politician walking.

:popcorn:

[peacetalksforall]

6. DeLay is his partner for all the reasons people form partnerships.

Whether or not they had a contract written up. It's so obvious. He thinks he can get away with everything and may pull it off because of the railraoding criminality of this admin.

[barbaraann]

7. Nominated.

The GOP is a bottomless pit of pond scum.

Is that a stupid metaphor? ;)

[Robbien]

8. Headlines keep talking about trips, the real issue is sweatshops

Delay traded sweatshops for an all expense paid luxury vacation.

How sick is this?

[politicaholic]

19. 16 to 20 hour work days grow character...

Tom Delay, after reading the article on the front page today, is seriously one sick fuck. Blocking sweat shop regulation is about as evil as a person can get without murdering a bus full of nuns.

I can't believe that everyone in the republican party isn't literally trampling over each other to get as far away from him as possible.

[Paul Dlugokencky]

20. How "Christian"?

How will the religious right react to the sweatshops?



http://www.cafepress.com/kickindemocrats

[fishnfla]

9. I think Abramoff is pissed at Bugman and is ratting him out

I'd bet he's the source for these stories we're seeing

[Zynx]

18. More like Abramoff is facing life w/ no parole

Lots and lots of offenses here.

[spooky3]

10. What makes me cringe most...

is those Rethugs who talk about what a great job that DeLay has done. It's like saying Ken Lay was a great CEO. Breaking the rules can sometimes give you an temporary advantage, especially when you have a job description that consists primarily of bullying fellow, less powerful Rethugs into toeing the party line under the threat of being denied campaign support (and worse).

[MontageOfFreedom]

12. Isn't it strange how the web of scandals never ends?

How far back does the Tom DeLay, Jack Abarmoff, Grover Norquist web go exactly.....

http://www.seekgod.ca/cnp/

^Who exactly wrote this website I've seen strewn about?

[lovuian]

13. This is probably why Delay worked so hard against Gore!!!

for his money pal!!!

[AlCzervik]

14. Looks like Jack is singing like a dirty bird

and turning over paper work he either forgot to shred or kept in a safe deposit box in case he came up missing.

[Paul Dlugokencky]

21. ...the net is closing...

http://www.cafepress.com/kickindemocrats

[Nothing Without Hope]

16. UPDATE- Time Magazine: Abramoff gave LOTS of gifts to DeLay staffers

As the all-DeLay news blog The Daily DeLay ( http://dailydelay.blogspot.com ) points out, either Abamoff himself or someome close to him must be singing like a bird.

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1054596,00.html
W E B E X C L U S I V E

Gifts in High Places

Did DeLay staffers violate ethics rules?
By KAREN TUMULTY

Lobbyist Jack Abramoff gave expensive gifts to key members of then-House Majority Whip Tom DeLay's staff, which the aides accepted in apparent violation of House ethics rules, according to two sources who worked at Abramoff's law firm at the time Abramoff made the gifts. The gifts included high-end golf equipment, tickets to sporting events and concerts and, in the case of one high-ranking DeLay staff member, a weekend getaway paid for by Abramoff's own frequent flyer and hotel points, two sources who had direct knowledge of the transactions tell TIME.

The two sources say that one recipient of the gifts, including the weekend trip and expensive golf clubs, was Tony C. Rudy, who worked for DeLay for five years and served at various times as DeLay's press secretary, policy director, general counsel and deputy chief of staff when DeLay was House Majority Whip. When Rudy left DeLay's office in 2002, he joined Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig, the firm that hired Abramoff in December 2000. Rudy now works at Alexander Strategy Group, a lobbying firm headed by former DeLay Chief of Staff Ed Buckham.

A spokesman for Abramoff said he is unavailable for comment. Rudy has not returned repeated calls requesting comment.

(snip)

Rudy's biography on the firm's website ( http://alexanderstrategy.com/rudy.asp )boasts that he was once ranked on one of Capitol Hill's top 50 staff members by Roll Call newspaper. "As Deputy Chief of Staff to the House Majority Whip, Tony had extraordinary access and influence in the legislative process," his biography claims. "He ran DeLay's well-known member services operation that enabled Tony to develop personal relationships with dozens of House members including current members of the House Leadership, Committee Chairman (sic) and members of key committees including the Appropriations Committee, Commerce Committee, the Ways and Means Committee and the Financial Services Committee. Tony also has extensive contacts with hundreds of key staff members in Congress."

[lies and propaganda]

17. DeLay has his lobbyists....

Gannon has his boyfriends in everyother room of the WH. These are things that would just be wrong if we did them. Damned liberal media!

[paineinthearse]

22. Crowley on CSPAN, speaking of Abramoff now

Crowley speaking of Abramoff now

Interesting facts coming out.

He has a series of emails from the Senate Indian Affairs committee where Abramoff uses terms such as "these mofo's" and "monkeys" to refer to the Saginaw-Chippawa Nation people.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=1751863#1752619