Big big news in the Abramoff investigation:
The Justice Department has signaled for the first time in recent weeks that prominent members of Congress could be swept up in the corruption investigation of Jack Abramoff, the former Republican superlobbyist who diverted some of his tens of millions of dollars in fees to provide lavish travel, meals and campaign contributions to the lawmakers whose help he needed most.
[…]
Scholars who specialize in the history and operations of Congress say that given the brazenness of Mr. Abramoff’s lobbying efforts, as measured by the huge fees he charged clients and the extravagant gifts he showered on friends on Capitol Hill, almost all of them Republicans, the investigation could end up costing several lawmakers their careers, if not their freedom.
The investigation threatens to ensnarl many outside Congress as well, including Interior Department officials and others in the Bush administration who were courted by Mr. Abramoff on behalf of the Indian tribe casinos that were his most lucrative clients.
[…]
“I think this has the potential to be the biggest scandal in Congress in over a century,” said Thomas E. Mann, a Congressional specialist at the Brookings Institution. “I’ve been around Washington for 35 years, watching Congress, and I’ve never seen anything approaching Abramoff for cynicism and chutzpah in proposing quid pro quos to members of Congress.”
Abramoff was recently connected to AG candidate Bob McDonnell, thanks to the investigative work of the Washington Post‘s James Grimaldi.
It’s not clear that McDonnell is guilty of anything more than setting up a money laundering organization and having very poor taste in friends, but if there is anything more to his involvement, things must be rather uncomfortable at McDonnell campaign headquarters right now, given the metastasization of the Abramoff investigation.
Nationally I’d hope this scandal would shake loose a few seats in both houses, and do so heavily covered by the national media. Unless they put Patrick Fitzgerald on it I don’t have much faith that anything substantitive will happen.
My guess with regards to McDonald is that he will wait until it looks like there is an indictment pending before he would step aside. And who know’s how long it will take for them to get around to him? At the rate these things usually progress he could be a year and a half into his term before things “hit the fan” for him. Even then indictments haven’t really stopped republicans before – look at Delay.
So you suddenly extrapolate from an article that is based entirely upon the testimony of a convicted sex predator that McDonnell is somehow guilty of money laundering? McDonnell did NO WORK on this supposed “Freedom and Faith Alliance”; his former campaign aide asked for some legal advice and he simply refers the work to someone within his law firm? In case anyone has any knowledge of how law firms work, attorneys refer work to other attorneys within a law firm all the time. Once they do so they have their own clients, and DO NO WORK ON THE FILE. I used ot check this website religiously, but some of these posting are so kook fringe I’m going to stop
So you suddenly extrapolate from an article that is based entirely upon the testimony of a convicted sex predator that McDonnell is somehow guilty of money laundering?
Did I write that? Because, I’m reading what I wrote here and…hmm…I’m not coming up with that. I believe what I wrote — and I’m quoting myself here — is:
It’s interesting that you would conclude that McDonnell is guilty of money laundering.
McDonnell did NO WORK on this supposed “Freedom and Faith Alliance”
According to the Washington Post, you’re wrong. You’ll need to take this up with them, not me.
And it’s not a “supposed” organization — if you doubt the existence of the group, you are clearly the one on the “kook fringe.”