In February 2002, Abramoff and Scanlon signed up the tribe as a client, trading in part on their close ties to DeLay and on Abramoff's claim that he would work for free to win the tribe's business later. By March, Abramoff had enlisted the Ohio congressman. As he told Scanlon in an e-mail: "Just met with Ney!!! We're f'ing gold!!! He's going to do Tigua." A week later, Abramoff wrote to Texas-based lobbyist Marc Schwartz, explaining that the tribe needed to contribute to Ney's campaign and political action committees -- and tribal leaders soon forked over $32,000. By April, Scanlon indicated to Schwartz that Dodd was on board, too.
Soon, however, the congressman required still more favors. In June, Abramoff wrote to Schwartz again: "Our friend [Ney] asked if we could … cover a Scotland golf trip for him and some staff … and members in August," just like the trip DeLay had taken two years earlier.
Maybe golf is way, way more fun than I ever imagined. But I just can't wrap my mind around a representative asking for such a frivolous favor as payment for supporting legislation. Campaign contributions, sure. But golf money?
I guess that's why I'm in philosophy grad school, and other people are chasing the dollars on Wall Street.
1 comment:
I am delighted (although I realize it's possibly coincidental) that nothing was going wrong or abnormal for Abramoff et al in this business except for one Democrat (Dodd) standing up to them. Glad to see we can at least do what an Opposition is supposed to do - watch for the excesses of corruption in the governing party, and say "whoa boy".
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