Committee on Oversight and Gov't Reform Releases Proposed Abramoff Report

[maddezmom]

Chairman Waxman and Ranking Member Davis issued a proposed Committee report on White House contacts with Jack Abramoff that concludes that Mr. Abramoff had personal contact with President Bush, that high-level White House officials held Mr. Abramoff and his associates in high regard and solicited recommendations from them on policy matters, that Mr. Abramoff and his associates influenced some White House actions, and that Mr. Abramoff and his associates offered White House officials expensive tickets and meals.

Documents and Links here:

http://oversight.house.gov/story.asp?ID=1996

President Met Disgraced Lobbyist At Least Six Times
The White House Had Previously Acknowledged Only Two Meetings
By JUSTIN ROOD
The White House had stronger ties to disgraced superlobbyist Jack Abramoff than it has publicly admitted, according to a draft congressional report released Monday.

President Bush met Abramoff on at least four occasions the White House has yet to acknowledge, according to the draft report by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

And White House officials appeared as comfortable going to Abramoff and his lobbyists seeking tickets to sporting and entertainment events, as they did seeking input on personnel picks for plum jobs, the report found.

President Bush himself met Abramoff on at least six occasions, the report said, citing White House documents; the White House had previously acknowledged only two.

When questions were first raised about Abramoff's connection to Bush officials in January 2006, then-White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Bush had personally met Abramoff on just two occasions, both at White House Hanukkah receptions.

more:http://www.abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5031587&page=1

WAPO Abramoff Had White House Juice, Report Says
A congressional investigation has found that lobbyist Jack Abramoff influenced some actions by the White House by lavishing exclusive sports tickets and meals on political staffers in the executive mansion, but the panel has uncovered no indication that President Bush had a role in the actions, reports The Post's James Grimaldi.

In a draft report, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee found no evidence that Abramoff lobbied President Bush on at least six occasions when the superlobbyist met with the president. Though photographs taken of Bush and Abramoff confirm personal contacts, there was no evidence found that the president directed an action in response to a request from the lobbyist.

The main action taken by the White House at Abramoff's request -- according to the report -- was to remove Alan Stayman from the State Department position that oversaw the relationship with the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, a major client of Abramoff and his Greenberg Traurig lobbying firm. Stayman had taken positions that were opposed by the island's government, the report says.

Abramoff's activities are the subject of an ongoing federal investigation that has resulted in more than dozen convictions so far of Congressional aides, lobbyists and public officials. The disgraced lobbyist is serving a prison sentence on a related fraud while he awaits sentencing in the lobbying scandal.


The report was the second by the committee on contacts with the White House. An earlier report found that tickets were given to staffers and that Abramoff and his colleagues billed their clients for more than 400 contacts with White House officials between 2001 and 2004, but new details were released today:

more:http://blog.washingtonpost.com/washingtonpostinvestigations/2008/06/hill_committee_says_abramoff_h.html?hpid=news-col-blog

[Joanne98]

1. K&R

[wurzel]

2. It will get the same attention as the recent "intelligence" report.

It demonstrated we were lied into this war. And was totally ignored by the MSM.