Bigger Than Plame!!! -- Other Shoe About to Drop...

[Peter Frank]

Abramoff investigation has GOP holding its breath

CIA leak probe may be getting more attention, but troubles surrounding former lobbyist worry Republicans more.

By Scott Shepard
WASHINGTON BUREAU
Sunday, October 16, 2005



"...Abramoff is at the center of ever more complicated inquiries that touch on subjects as wide-ranging as allegations of influence-peddling in Congress and the White House, a gangland-style slaying in Florida and political shenanigans in Guam."


"...Abramoff has had close connections with leading Republicans, including Bush; U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay of Sugar Land, the former House majority leader; Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania; party strategist Grover Norquist, head of Americans for Tax Reform; and strategist Ralph Reed, the former Christian Coalition executive director and Bush campaign official who is now running for lieutenant governor of Georgia."

http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/10/16abramoff.html

edt -- headline

[Richard D]

1. May it drop hard and fast

[FreedomAngel82]

2. Oh I think it will

Everything seems to be going down hard for them. Couldn't happer at a better time! 2006 is looking great!

[Peter Frank]

10. With Bush's Base Already Eroding...

...these hits should get even more GOP supporteers second guessing themselves. ...Maybe go back to splitting tickets to restore checks & balances in D.C.

[Hobarticus]

3. To hell with shoes, what's the sound of a dozen heads rolling down stairs?

That's what I'm looking for.

[MN ChimpH8R]

12. Heads vill ROLL

and vun of zem vill be vearing a monocle, Klink!

[Walt Starr]

4. This one affects more cockroaches

The Plame investigation is limited to the White House. Dozens of Republican politicians in the House and Senate could eb affected by the Abramoff case.

[KittyWampus]

Gangland-style Slaying. Close as any widely available media source

has come to calling these thugs what they really are.

[Fla Dem]

11. Geez...the Repugs are just so slimey...Remember Nixon & BeBe Rebozo...

<snip

The men spent so much time together that rumours circulated that the men were having a homosexual relationship. Bobby Baker claimed that Rebozo and Nixon were "close like lovers". According to one interview carried out by Anthony Summers in his book The Arrogance of Power: The Secret World of Richard Nixon, Rebozo was a member of Miami's homosexual community.

<snip>

After Richard Nixon became president in 1968, Rebozo was a regular visitor to the White House. However, he often used a false name and was not logged in by the Secret Service. Rebozo also negotiated deals on behalf of his business friends. One of the released White House tapes reveals Rebozo explaining that he could get "a quarter of a million at least" from a friend in return for an ambassadorship. Rebozo is also heard providing information that could be used to smear Nixon's political opponents

Rebozo was eventually dragged into the Watergate Scandal. During the investigation, a $100,000 donation from Howard Hughes that was meant for the Republican Party, was found in a safe-deposit box owned by Rebozo. The IRS now began a detailed look into Rebozo's financial affairs, with a focus on "misappropriation of campaign contributions, acceptance of money in exchange for favors by the Justice Department, distribution of Watergate hush money, and alleged diversion of campaign funds to Nixon's brothers and personal secretary."

The IRS investigation discovered that when Nixon took office his net worth was $307,000. During his first five years in the White House this sum had tripled to nearly $1 million. During the same period Rebozo's net worth went from $673,000 to $4.5 million. According to Jack Anderson, Nixon and Rebozo had both hidden money in Switzerland.

<more>

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/JFKrebozo.htm

[Peter Frank]

37. And the parallels will keep on coming...

...as this web of undemocratic power unravels.

[Spazito]

5. Isn't it delicious! Plame/Abramoff equals the old ONE-TWO punch

that can lead to a KO!

[Hubris Heaver]

6. Give the repugnicans a bathtub

so they can drown themselves in it.

[hippiegranny]

8. I second that emotion!

Great sentiment! Merry Fitzmas!

[raysr]

14. Let them shrink down

small enough first!

[Halliburton]

7. given that plame is going to be a big flop according to raw story

i tend to agree with that statement.

[demobabe]

16. we don't know that

nobody knows anything about Plame yet - really! including raw story!

this is misinformation.

[converted_democrat]

9. Yea!! n/t

[Peter Frank]

13. Troubled Year Gets Worse for the GOP...

By Dan Balz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, September 29, 2005; Page A01

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/28/AR2005092802388.html

"...The probe of well-connected lobbyist Jack Abramoff, a former close associate of DeLay, threatens to create even more troubles for Republicans."


"...At an earlier point, Bush could have provided political cover for scandals that touched one or another Republican elected official. But with his approval ratings in the low 40s, there is little to prop up the party's image when congressional leaders are under investigation."

[underpants]

15. Follow... ...... ..... the ...... .. ... ... .. .. ......Money

always good advice. It is like WMDs it leaves some sort of a trace everywhere it goes.

[Peter Frank]

17. The Washington Post Article...

...does seem somewhat Watergatish.

[Peter Frank]

19. kick

:kick:

[Peter Frank]

31. Very Good Avice...

...particularly in this case.

"...For his lobbying efforts, Mr. Abramoff was reportedly paid with thirty-six $9,000 checks funneled through a Laguna Beach lawyer to disguise the lobbyist's role in working for the Guam Superior Court."

http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Guam_envoy_to_Congress_calls_for_Abramoff_investiga_0823.html

[Peace Patriot]

18. Treason, murder, massive theft, what do the Republicans care? They have

Diebold and ES&S to keep them in office no matter what they do.

And that is my main concern--even if Fitzgerald or these other prosecutors blow them out of the water, we still get endless war and grand theft down to our last bankrupt penny.

Even if they bring Cheney down (who will likely end up in Halliburton Heaven, not jail); the Republicans will put a fresh face in as VP and Diebold him or her into office in '08.

OR, a more devious plan, they will "select" a War Democrat to fill in for 4 years, to start taking the rap for all the Bush regime disasters (the war profiteering corporate news monopolies will, of course, quickly forget the massive crimes of the Bushites, and pile it onto the Democrat), to get a Draft (Bush can't do it), and to run the bread lines and handle the food riots, preparatory to installing Jeb (the real Nazi) in '12.

We have a window of opportunity between now and then, to restore our right to vote--which must be done at the state/local level. Congress is worse than useless. They PERMITTED Bushite corporations to gain control of the vote tabulation with "TRADE SECRET," PROPRIETARY programming code in the new electronic voting systems, and funded it with a $4 billion boondoggle, as well as permitting lavish lobbying of our state/local election officials. The resultant corruption is a formidable obstacle to election reform--but the state/local level is still the most viable one. (Power over election systems still resides locally, and ordinary people have more influence at this level.)

We don't have much time. We need...

1. Paper ballots hand-counted at the precinct level (--Canada does it in one day, although speed should not even be a consideration, just accuracy and verifiability)

or, at the least...

2. Paper ballot (not "paper trail") backup of all electronic voting, a 10% audit (automatic recount), strict security, and NO SECRET, PROPRIETARY PROGRAMMING! (...jeez!).

Join your local election reform group, or form your own, and let's get this done! We also need projects for independent monitoring of '06 and '08 election results (parallel elections; independent and non-doctored exit polls; statistical analysis and preparation for challenges--see below for one such project*).

Throw Diebold and ES&S election theft machines into 'Boston Harbor' NOW!

---------------

See "MythBreakers," an easy to read pamphlet on the perils of electronic voting: http://www.votersunite.org.

*See, a project for statistical monitoring and challenges of the '06 and '08 elections: http://www.UScountvotes.org.

See, for 2004 election info and analysis: http://TruthIsAll.net.

[SnowGoose]

20. May it drop in the summer of 06!

So it's fresh in our minds in November.

[centristo]

21. where is abramoff right now?

Is he in jail waiting trial? Is he free on bail? Where is this guy? I've been reading about his crimes for months now.

[peekaloo]

22. Damn. These Repukes have more shoes than Imelda Marcos.

:evilgrin:

Too bad they could be traded in for leg irons.

[Peter Frank]

36. That's why I didn't say in the subject line --

"...The Other Shoe About to Drop"

At the end of the day, there will be many whose shoes I would not wish to be in.

[DanCa]

23. Damn makes you wonder whos going to be left to take over

when all the chimps horses and all the chimps men are broken apart and put in the slammer.

[Peter Frank]

35. I've Been Concerned Since Bush Was Installed the First Time...

...what would remain of our democracy once his regime was through. And as it turns out -- my fears were very well founded.

[Peter Frank]

24. Bush Demoted Acting United States Attorney ...

...for Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, Frederick A. Black.; in November 2002.

August 23, 2005

Honorable Glenn A. Fine
Inspector General


United States Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, Suite 4322
Washington, DC 20530-0001

"Dear Inspector General Fine:

We write to request that the Office of the Inspector General conduct an investigation into the November 2002 demotion of former Acting United States Attorney for Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, Frederick A. Black. We are troubled by an August 7, 2005, report in the Los Angeles Times that suggests this demotion was politically motivated (enclosed).1 "

"At the time U.S. Attorney Black was demoted, he was supervising a grand jury investigation into the lobbying activities of Jack Abramoff and conducting an ongoing investigation into possible corruption within the Government of Guam. U.S. Attorney Black had been serving as the Acting United States Attorney for more than 10 years when he was demoted. The timing of President Bush's decision to remove and replace U.S. Attorney Black is questionable and warrants an investigation..."

"...For his lobbying efforts, Mr. Abramoff was reportedly paid with thirty-six $9,000 checks funneled through a Laguna Beach lawyer to disguise the lobbyist's role in working for the Guam Superior Court. These transactions were the target of a federal grand jury subpoena issued on November 18, 2002, which required the Guam Superior Court Administrative Director to release records involving the lobbying contract. It was on November 19, 2002, that President Bush announced he was demoting U.S. Attorney Black. The federal grand jury took no further action in the Abramoff investigation."
http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Guam_envoy_to_Congress_calls_for_Abramoff_investiga_0823.html

[drb]

25. If Ralph Reed goes to jail, I'm flinging poo with Will Pitt!!!!!

:headbang:

[Peter Frank]

26. Yeah...

...there's quite a cast of characters involved here.

[eowyn_of_rohan]

27. How did Diebold and CyberCo Holdings get Indian casino contracts?

Both diebold and cyberco (Remember CYBERNET?) were listed as suppliers to Greektown (Chippewa/Indian) casino. Might mean nothing in combination with Indian casino lobbyist/rip-off artist Jack Abramoff, but while reading the Statesman article, I remembered these interesting Neocon tie-ins with Indian casinos...(saved this info from the cybernet "dig" last November):

List of Vendor Exemptions, Suppliers & Exemptions
(11/05/2004 02:02 PM)Vendor Registration Short Form ($600 - $49,999)
CYBERCO HOLDINGS INC (d/b/a CyberNet Engineering) - Grand Rapids, MI 49503 - (#25-002815-2004) (Greektown Casino, L.L.C.)

Vendor Registration Application (over $50,000)
DIEBOLD, INCORPORATED - North Canton, OH 44720 - (#25-001583-2002) (Greektown Casino, L.L.C.)
http://www.michigan.gov/documents/Vendorlist_9219_7.doc

'Exploitation, deceit'
Abramoff has largely avoided public events since he and onetime partner Michael Scanlon, a former DeLay aide, endured blistering attacks from members of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee investigating the fees that they received for lobbying on behalf of six casino-operating tribes.
The committee released hundreds of e-mails that Abramoff and Scanlon exchanged during their representation of the tribes, some of which referred to their clients as "idiots" and "troglodytes" and celebrated the hefty fees that they received. "Is life great or what!" Abramoff wrote in one.
While "every kind of charlatan and every type of crook" has exploited American Indians since the sale of Manhattan Island, said Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., the committee chairman, "what sets this tale apart, what makes it truly extraordinary, is the extent and degree of the apparent exploitation and deceit."

[Peter Frank]

30. Precisely.

I remember Abramoff's dirty dealings with native Americans & how he mocked them while screwing them out of their money. ...Delay's kind of man.

Despicable.

[bonito]

28. Kick

[eowyn_of_rohan]

29. Drop kick me Jesus

Through the goal posts of life

[buddysmellgood]

32. AMEN!

[Peter Frank]

33. Kick

:kick:

[Peter Frank]

34. Kick

[Peter Frank]

38. kick

[Peter Frank]

39. kick