RNC Chief Mehlman Removed Abramoff Enemy (TPM Muckraker)

[swag]

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/000085.php

By Paul Kiel - March 13, 2006, 12:40 PM

There was such a wealth of muck in David Margolick's Vanity Fair piece on Jack Abramoff last week that it was possible to let the occasional morsel slip by. The piece mentions, for instance, that Ken Mehlman (who, like many, was uncomfortably close to Abramoff) got his hands dirty:

"...according to documents obtained by Vanity Fair, Mehlman exchanged email with Abramoff, did him political favors (such as blocking Clinton-administration alumnus Allen Stayman from keeping a State Department job)..."
Now, this parenthesis is news; as far as I can tell, it hasn't been reported before. So the Chairman of the Republican National Committee, Ken Mehlman, who like everyone else says he barely knows Abramoff was actually killing nominations for him only a few short years ago.

Now, to properly appreciate its delectability, you need a little more backstory on Stayman. So let me give you some more of the background details.

Stayman had been on Abramoff's hit list for a long, long time, because, as a higher-up at the Interior Department, he had been an ardent advocate for bringing the sorts of labor and immigration reforms to the Northern Mariana Islands that Abramoff had been hired to squelch. How do I know that Abramoff wanted Stayman gone? Because Abramoff said so in one of his famous emails - this one leaked long before the Senate Indian Affairs Committee began investigating him.

. . . more

[alfredo]

1. Oh man, if we fail in our quest to rid our government of the

criminal right, our Democracy will suffer a fatal blow.

[swag]

2. Just to connect a dot, here's the Conrad Burns - Marianas - Abramoff

connection, as reported by the Independent Record (Helena, MT):


http://www.helenair.com/articles/2006/03/09/national_top/a01030906_01.txt


Besides the flap over the Saginaw Chippewa school, Burns has come under scrutiny for another dealing involving Abramoff and his clients. In 2001, Burns changed his position on a bill dealing with labor and immigration standards on the Northern Marianas Islands, a U.S. territory near Guam. Burns, who had earlier not opposed an identical, but unsuccessful measure, voted against the law after receiving $5,000 in donations from an Abramoff client.

Two of Burns’ staff later went to work for Abramoff: Brooke and Shawn Vasell, Burns’ former statewide director, who worked for Burns immediately after leaving Abramoff’s firm and returned to Abramoff after working for Burns for about a year.

[seafan]

3. Shawn Vasell was involved with the Election 2000 Brooks Bros riot in Miami

Shawn Vasell, another bright and shiny puzzle piece.


Poacher used to work for Abramoff, Conrad Burns, FL Recount riot team
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x5680237#5682277

[seafan]

4. From today's Raw Story:

And just today, from Raw Story, March 13, 2006:

The Justice Department pulled the personal financial records of at least nine Members of Congress and at least seven former staffers last summer and fall, many of whom have been identified publicly as having links to ex-lobbyist Jack Abramoff, ROLL CALL reports Monday. Excerpts:

In a stretch running from June to October, a pair of aides at Justice examined the financial disclosure forms of Sen. Conrad Burns (R-Mont.), Reps. Tom DeLay (R-Texas), John Doolittle (R-Calif.) and Bob Ney (R-Ohio), as well as ex-staffers for three of those lawmakers, according to House and Senate records.

While Justice officials declined to comment, many of the financial searches appear to be connected to the continuing two-year probe of Abramoff’s dealings on Capitol Hill and with the Bush administration. In addition, the agency looked over the financial records of several lawmakers who have had no public connection to the investigation: Reps. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.), Earl Pomeroy (D-N.D.), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) and John Sweeney (R-N.Y.), as well as Del. Eni Faleomavaega (D-American Samoa).

http://rawstory.com/news/2006/Roll_Call_DOJ_investigating_9_Congressmen_0313.html

[harpo]

5. boing...this is IMPORTANT

nice...this falls in line with the culture of corruption theme and it ties abramoff to those guys waaaaaaaaaaay back :nuke: