Ralph Reed's gamble (secret lobbying for Indian casino)

[Cocoa]

http://www.thenation.com/docprint.mhtml?i=20040712&s=newfield

When Ralph Reed was the boyish director of the Christian Coalition, he made opposition to gambling a major plank in his "family values" agenda, calling gambling "a cancer on the American body politic" that was "stealing food from the mouths of children." But now, a broad federal investigation into lobbying abuses connected to gambling on Indian reservations has unearthed evidence that Reed has been surreptitiously working for an Indian tribe with a large casino it sought to protect--and that Reed was paid with funds laundered through two firms to try to keep his lucrative involvement secret. Reed has always operated behind the scenes, and apparently he didn't want to risk becoming a humbled hypocrite like his right-wing cohorts William Bennett and Rush Limbaugh.

News accounts of the emerging scandal have focused on the two main figures under investigation: lawyer/lobbyist Jack Abramoff and Mike Scanlon, House GOP majority leader Tom DeLay's former spokesman and head of two campaign and public relations companies. But Reed has managed to slither below the media's radar--until now.

Neither he, Abramoff or Scanlon returned phone calls.

In early 2002 the Coushatta tribe of Louisiana was desperately trying to kill a planned competing casino that the rival Jena Band wanted to build in southwestern Louisiana. This new casino would have broken the Coushattas' geographical monopoly and cost the tribe--whose casino was grossing $300 million a year-- an estimated $1 billion in gambling revenue over five years. The Jena Band had hired former GOP national chairman Haley Barbour to make sure its casino compact was approved by the heavily politicized Bureau of Indian Affairs. So the Coushatta tribe, which already was in the process of paying Abramoff and Scanlon some $32 million over three years, also hired Reed, according to three witnesses and documents obtained by The Nation. This was not a crime, just furtive hypocrisy.

more...

[Wickerman]

1. ya mean this disgusting weasel?

:puke:

[President Jesus]

16. Ralph Reed's complete list of campaign donations

http://www.newsmeat.com/fec/bystate_detail.php?st=GA&last=Reed&first=Ralph

[Raster]

2. Get Him!!! ralph reed turns my stomach...

...with his holier-than-thou bullshit. Beneath that "All American" boyish christian exterior lies a hard-core hypocrite. Just like the rest of the christian bigots, he uses his religious facade to profit handsomely. Now we see he profits off of the industries, like gambling he rails against. Let's see, he makes money condemning gambling and the gambling industry, but secretly profits. What I like is the part about laundering the funds to try and eliminate the evidence. Love those right-wing morals and family values!!!

[Fenris]

3. Pardon my language

But what an absolute, Bible-fucking, hypocritical c**t.

[SpiralHawk]

4. Republican Family Values in action

Again.

As usual.

Take the motes and the beams from thine own eyes.

Puh-lease.

[belle]

22. And ram them up thine...oh. ahem.

[The Backlash Cometh]

5. Yes, it is a crime.

"This was not a crime, just furtive hypocrisy"

Reed has represented himself as a God fearing man to people who have donated money to his cause because they trusted him. This means that this hidden life of his is nothing short of fraud.

[havocmom]

7. We need to out as many of these telegenic hypocrites as possible

cuz the neocons will be shopping for new poster-boy-front-men to run in the future. We need to out these slimy hucksters and dry up their pool of 'candidates' to use as beards.

[calimary]

6. YOWZA!!! Hey, can we get him, too? I LOVE to see the "mighty" fall.

This little prick NEEDS to be exposed, and disgraced. Tarred and feathered while they're at it. And ridden out of town on a rail! Behind that seemingly innocuous, clean-cut, boyish exterior lies a cold-blooded, hard-hearted, calculating, manipulative, Machiavellian card-carrying serpent. He's the devil's own. I'd LOVE to see this guy get his - FINALLY!!!!!!!!!!! This one's WAY overdue. He's nothing but a slightly younger, more photogenic Bill Bennett. And that's being kind.

[orthogonal]

8. Thank you, God!

It's almost enough to make this atheist a believer.

I said, almost.

[peterh]

9. I would hope this IRS is taking notice….

I’m not a CPA, but I think I see some tax implications in this….I hope he gets his pecker nailed to the cross….

[havocmom]

10. Oooow, that's an interesting image (n/t)

[Mountainman]

11. So many of these wing nut values people are hiding their hypocrisy

Money trumps values all the time with wing nuts.

[mac56]

19. There was a thread about this the other day.

Right-wingers aren't as troubled by hypocrisy as we are. More's the pity.

link:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=1863678

[Raster]

12. let's kick this up a bit... me thinks second shift would really like....

...to read about reed. smarmy, wormy, little pissant. I NEVER liked this little prick. his holier-than-thou stance makes my skin crawl!

on edit: and let's not forget, this is the S.O.B. that engineered the "defeat" of Max Cleeland in Georgia. I say defeat with tongue-in-cheek because WE ALL KNOW that election was fixed. Thank you diebold.

[Judi Lynn]

18. Didn't know he was part of the assault on Max Cleland!

That makes this article that much sweeter, for sure. Thanks!



May Cheney be with you, Ralph!

[belle]

23. Ech, look at that smirk. What a reptile he is.

[David Zephyr]

13. Kick!

Bump lift this up where it belongs. :kick:

[TacticalPeek]

14. Kick. n/t

[Submariner]

15. kick

n/t

[Forkboy]

17. I'm shocked

ok,I'm not.

[candy331]

20. Seems only the corrupt thrives in this country now and hide behind

a veneer of God and Christian.

[RetroLounge]

21. "But Reed has managed to slither"

Slither? What else can this hypocritcal snake-in-the-grass do?

He can get Cheneyed...

RL