"Abramoff's hiring of several congressional wives"

[rainbow4321]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/3484962.html

Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land, now facing separate campaign finance charges in Texas, is one of the members under scrutiny, the sources said. Others include Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., Rep. John Doolittle, R-Calif., and several members of Congress involved with Indian affairs, one of Abramoff's key areas of interest.

Prosecutions and plea deals have become more likely, the lawyers said, now that Abramoff's former partner — public relations executive Michael Scanlon — has agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy and to testify about gifts that he and his K Street colleagues showered on lawmakers, allegedly in exchange for official favors.

An attorney for DeLay, whose wife worked for a lobbying firm that received client referrals from Abramoff, said there was no connection between her work and congressional business. A spokesman for Doolittle, whose wife received payments from Abramoff's lobbying firm, also said there was no connection with her husband's position. Burns' office has said his actions were consistent with his support for improving conditions for Indian tribes.

Investigators also are gathering information about Abramoff's hiring of several congressional wives, sources said, as well as his referral of clients to Alexander Strategy Group, a lobbying and consulting firm run by former senior aides to DeLay. Financial disclosure forms show that the firm employed DeLay's wife, Christine, from 1998 to 2002.

[spindrifter]

1. Gee, whenever I want to hire

a top-notch, qualified person, I always look at wives and kids. It's genetic brilliance, ya know.

[Jara sang]

2. Casolaro was researching a connection with gambling and Cabazon Indians.

He was found dead in a hotel room in Martinsburg, West Virginia. Wonder if there is a connection.

:tinfoilhat:

[Pithy Cherub]

3. Family Values on parade and SOLD to the highest bidder.

See, it is just not for piggy Halliburton or greedy corporations anymore, corrupt republicans want to instill debauchery and stealing at the dinner table from both idiot parents. :rofl:

[FreedomAngel82]

4. Boy this guy is in all sorts of trouble!

I wouldn't have wanted to be involved with him where business is concerned!

[SoCalDem]

5. I hope that DEMOCRATIC legislators are paying attention

DC is an incestuous little place, and I would guess that A LOT of wives, daughters, sons, sons in law, etc are "employed" by lobbyists and firms they do business with, as a "thank you" for "help" with some pesky regulations/laws ...

This is the way the "Good Ole Boy Network" works.. Everyone knows that the salaries paid to congresspeople and senators is NOT sufficient to maintain a lifestyle they want/need and allow for chi-chi schools for their kids.

Lobbyists do their homework..They find out who has hire-able wives, kids, etc, and since they technically cannot pay the senator/congressman, they CAN "hire" his daughter/wife for say./.$500K a year to fold paper or answer a phone...and if the senator/congressman "performs" for them, more "jobs" handed out to other family members at other "friendly" companies..

I think if a thorough investigation was done, you would find that a LOT of these DC "companies" are just fronts to funnel money to legislators.

Any Democrats who are also aboard the Gravy Train, need to get off at the next stop. Before long we will hear a litany of "democrat senators" whose families are similarly "employed".


If we are to capitalize on the greed and wrongdoing of the republicans, we must not have people in office who are just as guilty.

[autorank]

6. Totally Agree...Abramhoff is the Rosetta Stone for Republican Crimes

but it's wise to sort out the "biz as usual" DC practices.

Nepotism is just the most obnoxious thing you can run into in personnel practices.

We need a contract for all appointed government officials and elected officials that says:

1) I will not benefit personally from my position;
2) I will not benefit financially nor will any of my friends or relatives;
3) I will resign if found to have violated the above.

This is what they did in the Republic of Venice from about 1100 through 1700 -- The Doge and other key leaders signed highly detailed contracts against any type of known or anticipated corruption; and they were held to it. Probably why that place, tiny as it was, lasted for 700 years as the wealthiest, most advanced nation on earth!!!

[TahitiNut]

9. I don't care what party flag they wrap themselves in ...

... corrupt is corrupt. Abuse of public trust deserves a prison term.

[Catrina]

7. It's hard to keep up with this guy's corrupt activities

But one of the worst accusations against him came earlier this year, regarding the Mariana Islands ~ this man cheated and destroyed people, like the Indian Tribe's livlihood, while taking their money pretending to help them, and essentially impoverishing the tribe. But that was the end of the line for him and the beginning of all these other revelations of corruption.

His disgraceful involvement in blocking legislation that was meant to end the virtually slave labor, in the Mariana Islands may be one of his most depraved involvements, along with Tom Delay and anyone else who helped him, which may even include George W. Bush!!

As I recall, Bush vetoed bills that would have ended the exploitation of
of people, mostly Asian women, in the Mariana Islands.

These are truly evil people and those who tried to stop them were the ones being vilified. This guy and his Republican co-horts don't have enough life-times to spend in jail for what they did:

Abramoff, DeLay and the Northern Mariana Islands


“Let’s remember what they paid for: a protection racket that sheltered a sweatshop industry that systematically exploited tens of thousands of impoverished foreign workers -- mostly Asian women -- who were little better than indentured servants; a sweatshop industry that earned some of the heaviest fines in U.S. history for violating labor laws; an industry repeatedly cited by the Departments of Justice, Interior and other federal agencies. They were defending a corrupt immigration system that regularly approved visas for non-existent jobs, resulting in hundreds of women being forced into the sex trade, including prostitution.

“They killed my reform bills year after year. And even when an immigration reform by Senator Frank Murkowski, a Republican, was approved by the full Senate, they blocked it repeatedly in the House. Abramoff took credit and was paid handsomely for that, too.


snip


“And still, no congressional committee is investigating this aspect of Abramoff’s work, even though information indicates that Congress played a pivotal role in this protection scheme. This operation is beginning to look more and more like criminal activity and Congress must immediately launch a thorough investigation of this issue. The House Committee on Resources has jurisdiction over the Mariana Islands and I have already called on the Chairman, Representative Richard Pombo, to investigate this matter.

“There are many in Washington today who hope to dismiss the current attention to ethics abuses and congressional travel under the guise of, ‘Everyone does it.’ Well, if you read today’s news articles I think you will agree that everyone does not do this. Today’s revelations should provide further incentive for the Committee to begin an investigation right away.”


http://www.house.gov/georgemiller/marianasupdate.html

We would need a whole forum to keep up with Abramoff's various crimes against the people ~ and to follow each one to make sure everyone involved is held accountable.

Rep. Miller sounded so disgusted by what he knew, and yet couldn't get anything done about it. I hope now he will be able to expose all of those who killed his bills, and that George Bush himself will have to explain his role in the 'sweatshop' trade. They are vile people. How did this happen to this country?

[TahitiNut]

8. "Hiring" or "putting on the payroll"??

I gotta wonder how much time "on the job" these people actually put in.

[rainbow4321]

10. Delay's wife was paid to find each Congress members' "favorite charity"

Ok..so how in God's name did it take THREE YEARS to find out these people's "favorite charities". How fucking hard can it be to send an email asking this question, tally the answers and have the results?? Wonder how "interesting and worthwile" she would have found this if she was told it was a VOLUNTEER position instead of a PAID ($115,000) one???
------------------------------
From the same article:

Richard Cullen, an attorney for the DeLays, said Christine DeLay was hired by Buckham, an old family friend, to determine the favorite charity of every member of Congress. She was paid $3,200 to $3,400 a month for three years, or about $115,000 total, he said.

"It wasn't like she did this 9 to 5, but it was an ongoing project," Cullen said, noting her work was commensurate with the project and had nothing to do with her husband or any official congressional business. "This was something that she found to be very interesting, very ... worthwhile."

[TahitiNut]

11. "It wasn't like she did this 9 to 5, but it was an ongoing project,"

In other words ... she never showed up at the office ... and the work was never done. Other people get fired for that, but GOP wives are applauded? The corruption is boundless.

[lovuian]

12. Ya gotta see that her job is very shaky here if there is no

actual work done... for that amount of money well thats suspicious!!!