parados wrote:Remind me again....
When did Karl Rove resign his position at the WH?
Remind me again....
When was he found to have committed any sort of crime and when was he indicted?
mysteryman wrote:parados wrote:Remind me again....
When did Karl Rove resign his position at the WH?
Remind me again....
When was he found to have committed any sort of crime and when was he indicted?
okie wrote:I read the article and translated into: Republicans believe in morals so when one of them are caught, the party does not go to bat for them, and the person actually shows remorse and resigns.
Nice to see we are on the same page MM.
It seems you disagree with Okie on Republicans having morals.
Okie Wrote:
Quote:I read the article and translated into: Republicans believe in morals so when one of them are caught, the party does not go to bat for them, and the person actually shows remorse and resigns.
Is that so?
http://americablog.blogspot.com/2006/10/gop-congressman-pleaded-guilty-today.html
Quote:
GOP congressman pleaded guilty today to accepting bribes for votes in Abramoff scandal. Then why is he staying in office until January?
by John in DC - 10/13/2006 11:39:00 AM
There will very likely be a lame duck session of congress following the November elections. Why in God's name should Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH), an admitted criminal, be permitted to attend that session, vote during that session? The man just admitted to accepting bribes to influence his votes, and we're going to let him vote some more? That's a bit like giving Mark Foley a few more pages for his retirement.
Despite his guilty pleas, Ney did not resign his seat in Congress. His lawyer, Mark Touhey, told the judge he would do so before sentencing on Jan. 19. Under the Constitution, he'll be gone before then. His term expires when the new Congress is sworn in at noon on Jan. 3.
He is now an admitted criminal.
What is he doing staying in the Republican Congress? Being permitted to vote AGAIN?
I'll tell you why. Because the Republicans are afraid they may lose control of the congress and they'd rather leave in power a criminal, who takes bribes to influence his votes, than risk losing the seat.
So politics trumps ethics and morality and good government in the Republican party.
I'll bet the Mark Foley child sex predator cover-up is starting to make a whole lot more sense right about now.
In short, Bob Ney - who pled guilty to bribery - is not resigning his seat. Not at all. You have an admitted crook in the Senate who refuses to resign his seat, and is the Republican leadership doing anything about it? Hmmmm..... no.
So you may want to, yaknow, come on down off of that moral high horse for just a bit.
Cycloptichorn
Former Abramoff associate abruptly quits job at D.C. law fir
Former Abramoff associate abruptly quits job at D.C. law firm
By David Whitney
McClatchy Newspapers
4/17/07
WASHINGTON - Kevin A. Ring, a key associate of disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff who spent many hours lobbying his old boss, Rep. John Doolittle, has abruptly resigned his job at a Washington law firm.
Ring's departure raises questions about whether Doolittle's former legislative director has become a Justice Department target in the investigation into the Abramoff lobbying scandal, to which Doolittle also has been linked.
Doolittle's office refused to say Monday whether the Republican congressman also was being drawn deeper into the investigation.
"In light of the uncertainty with Mr. Ring's situation, the congressman's attorney has advised him to provide no further comment on this investigation," said Richard Robinson, the congressman's chief of staff.
Robinson said that any questions about the Abramoff probe must now be directed to David Barger, a prominent criminal defense attorney in suburban Virginia whom Doolittle retained a year ago. Barger wasn't available for comment late Monday afternoon.
If there was anything improper in Doolittle's dealings with Abramoff, Ring would be in a position to know about it. He typically served as a liaison with Doolittle for several Abramoff clients. There are suggestions in an e-mail, released in connection with a Senate investigation last year, that Ring was an intermediary between Doolittle and Abramoff over a job for his wife in 2000 that never materialized.
The help was two-way. With Doolittle's recommendations, Ring took on clients of his own, including the cities of Lincoln and Elk Grove in the Sacramento, Calif., area. City officials didn't return calls to McClatchy Newspapers on Monday.
Richard Streeter, a managing partner at Barnes & Thornburg's Washington office, said Ring resigned Friday without notice.
"It was a surprise," Streeter said, declining further public comment.
Justice Department spokesman Bryan Sierra also declined comment. Ring's attorney, Richard Hibey, didn't return phone calls to his office.
Robinson said that the congressman wasn't aware of the reasons for Ring's resignation.
"The congressman is not aware of the specific reason behind Mr. Ring's resignation, but as a close friend and former employee, Kevin remains in the Doolittles' thoughts and prayers," Robinson said.
Ring went to work for Abramoff in 2000, when the convicted lobbyist was still an ascending Republican star. Previously, Ring had worked for five years for Doolittle, rising to be his legislative director before leaving his office in 1998.
Ring became a prominent symbol in the Abramoff scandal at a 2005 Senate Indian Affairs Committee hearing, when he and another former Abramoff associate refused to answer questions from the committee's chairman, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.
Ring invoked his Fifth Amendment constitutional right against self-incrimination when grilled about what he knew of the Abramoff firm's lobbying for Indian tribes. McCain quizzed Ring about billing tribes for work unrelated to their interests, since he managed some of those clients.
Ring also was Abramoff's client manager for the firm's lobbying account with the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The firm was hired to lobby against congressional efforts to change the territory's labor and immigration policies, which critics charged were turning Saipan into a sweatshop for Asian-owned garment factories.
Doolittle was a major congressional supporter of the commonwealth and had taken steps to help Abramoff secure the lucrative lobbying contract beginning in 1999. Ring met regularly with Doolittle and his staff to lobby for the commonwealth, including efforts to win congressional funding or to plan strategy to defeat the reform legislation. During this period, Abramoff personally contributed $14,000 to Doolittle and his political action committee, with the last check written as the lobbying contract ended on Dec. 31, 2001.
All of the revelations coming out of the numerous investigations of this administration's workings are, to me, deeply depressing. Does anyone else have this same response?
It isn't that I/we didn't know much of this stuff or suspect it to be so with a high level of certainty. Many of us did.
I think that it is really rather like hearing that a rape has occured or that another school shooting has just taken place. Our first response is shallow, if sincere and negative.
But it is when we begin to be appraised of all the details that the ugliness really begins to sink in.
Ruh-roh!
http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/003040.php
Quote:FBI RAIDS DOOLITTLE'S HOME
By Paul Kiel - April 18, 2007, 4:28 PM
Breaking, from Roll Call:
The FBI has raided the Northern Virginia home of Rep. John Doolittle (R-Calif.), according to Congressional sources. No details are publicly available yet about the circumstances of the raid, but Doolittle and his wife, Julie, have been under federal investigation for their ties to the scandal surrounding imprisoned former lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
More soon, I'm sure.
Update: Remember that a former key aide to Doolittle, Kevin Ring, who'd worked with Abramoff, resigned suddenly from his job late last week. As I wrote before, that's a clear sign that Ring may be preparing to plead guilty and implicate Doolittle.
Update: According to The Hill, the FBI searched the home last Friday -- the same day that Ring resigned.
Abramoff ain't done singing, and you just know the WH is tied up in this.
Cycloptichorn
Doolittle tosses the wife under the bus
Quote: Doolittle Responds to Reports about FBI Search of Wife's Business
WASHINGTON, DC - Today, Rep. John T. Doolittle (R-Roseville) issued a statement to media questions regarding reports of an FBI search of his wife's business in Virginia.
Doolittle said, "My wife has been cooperating with the FBI and the Justice Department for almost three years and that cooperation is going to continue in the future. I support my wife 100 percent and fully expect that the truth will prevail."
It's a common-property state, idiot. When you hire your wife and give her a 15% cut of all your donations, you're taking them yourself. And when you get them from Jack, you better keep an eye open for the Feds.
Man, I bet a ton of Republicans are kicking themselves right now over deciding to do business with that guy!
Cycloptichorn
FBI Raids Business of Congressman's Wife
FBI Raids Business of Congressman's Wife
By James V. Grimaldi and Susan Schmidt
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, April 19, 2007; Page A18
The FBI on Friday raided the Northern Virginia home consulting business owned by the wife of Rep. John T. Doolittle (R-Calif.), whose ties to convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff have been under investigation for two years, sources familiar with the matter said. Agents seized computers and documents.
Doolittle's wife, Julie, operates Sierra Dominion Financial Services Inc. out of the couple's home in Oakton. Since 2005, a Justice Department task force has been looking into payments made by Abramoff and other lobbyists to Doolittle's wife and the spouses of other lawmakers.
Abramoff, the once-powerful lobbyist at the center of a wide-ranging public corruption investigation, was sentenced to five years and 10 months in prison on March 29, after pleading guilty to fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to bribe public officials in a deal that required him to provide evidence about members of Congress.
Julie Doolittle has denied wrongdoing. "Sierra Dominion Financial Services, and its owner, Mrs. Julie Doolittle, have cooperated for years, and continue to cooperate, in the ongoing investigation of the Jack Abramoff matter," said her lawyer, William L. Stauffer Jr.
Doolittle said in a statement: "My wife has been cooperating with the FBI and the Justice Department for almost three years and that cooperation is going to continue in the future. I support my wife 100 percent and fully expect that the truth will prevail."
On Friday, Kevin Ring, who served as legislative director to Doolittle before joining Abramoff's lobbying team, resigned as a lobbyist for Barnes & Thornburg. Ring also has been under Justice Department scrutiny.
Abramoff hired Julie Doolittle's firm to raise funds for a charity he founded. Sources said that Ring was an intermediary in the hiring of Julie Doolittle's firm.
The GOP scandles seems all too common in the Bush administration. Couldn't locate the Gonzales thread, so posted here.
GOP senator calls for Gonzales to resign
By LARA JAKES JORDAN, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 11 minutes ago
WASHINGTON - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales struggled Thursday to convince skeptical senators he did nothing improper in firing eight federal prosecutors, losing ground as a second senator from his own party joined the calls for his resignation.
Republican as well as Democratic lawmakers challenged the embattled attorney general during an often-bitter five-hour hearing before the Judiciary Committee. Lawmakers confronted Gonzales with documents and sworn testimony they said showed he was more involved in the dismissals than he contended.
"The best way to put this behind us is your resignation," Sen. Tom Coburn (news, bio, voting record) of Oklahoma bluntly told Gonzales, one conservative to another. Gonzales disagreed, rejecting the idea that his departure would put the controversy to rest.
Even with the White House offering fresh support, it was a long day for the attorney general. Seventy-one times he fell back on faulty memory, saying he could not recall or remember conversations or events surrounding the firings. During breaks in the hearing, sign-waving protesters rose from the audience calling for him to resign
Quote:Congressman Quits Panel After Raid
By Jonathan Weisman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, April 20, 2007; Page A08
Less than a week after the FBI raided the Northern Virginia home of his wife, Rep. John T. Doolittle (R-Calif.) gave up his coveted seat on the House Appropriations Committee yesterday amid concerns that he had used that post to advance the interests of convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff and other allies.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/19/AR2007041902558.html?hpid=sec-nation
Given an administration so top-heavy with business interests, particularly business interests so involved with the products of war and war logistics, it really isn't much of a surprise that Appropriations is where we'll find corruption pervasive.
'Follow the money' still has much truism to it.
FBI Raids Renzi Family Business
April 19, 2007
FBI Raids Renzi Family Business
"In a second blow to House Republicans this week, the FBI raided a business tied to the family of Rep. Rick Renzi (R-AZ) Thursday afternoon as part of an ongoing investigation into the three-term lawmaker," Roll Call reports.
"Renzi's most recent financial disclosure form lists the business as an asset belonging to his wife, Roberta, and valued at $1 million to $5 million."
"Little is known about the inquiries into Renzi's activities, but according to media reports the Justice Department has been running a two-track investigation into Renzi regarding a land deal, as well as a piece of legislation he helped steer that may have improperly benefited a major campaign contributor. It was not immediately clear which investigation the raid pertained to..."
Earlier this week, the FBI raided the home of Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA).
I hope the FBI raids and busts EVERY corrupt congressman,no matter what their party affiliation.
But I am noticing something.
I havent seen anyone rush to the defense of these repub congressman getting caught.
Yet when a dem had his ofice raided,and when the feds found $90,000 in his freezer at home,it seemed like everyone rushed to his defense.
Why is that?
mysteryman wrote:I hope the FBI raids and busts EVERY corrupt congressman,no matter what their party affiliation.
But I am noticing something.
I havent seen anyone rush to the defense of these repub congressman getting caught.
Yet when a dem had his ofice raided,and when the feds found $90,000 in his freezer at home,it seemed like everyone rushed to his defense.
Why is that?
Noone here on the left rushed to his defense. I certainly didn't. IIRC the majority of LIbs here called for him to resign (before he f*cked up the program for the rest of em!)
You need to review old postings before making statments like this.
Cycloptichorn
mysteryman wrote:I hope the FBI raids and busts EVERY corrupt congressman,no matter what their party affiliation.
But I am noticing something.
I havent seen anyone rush to the defense of these repub congressman getting caught.
Yet when a dem had his ofice raided,and when the feds found $90,000 in his freezer at home,it seemed like everyone rushed to his defense.
Why is that?
It would do your credibility here some good if you were to go back and find what people actually said, then return and apologize for writing something this erroneous and for being so lazy as to not bother checking before you wrote it.
I didn't rush to his defense. All I did was ask: "doesn't everyone keep money in their freezers?"
Strangely, he still hasn't been charged with anything.
mysteryman wrote:I hope the FBI raids and busts EVERY corrupt congressman,no matter what their party affiliation.
But I am noticing something.
I havent seen anyone rush to the defense of these repub congressman getting caught.
Yet when a dem had his ofice raided,and when the feds found $90,000 in his freezer at home,it seemed like everyone rushed to his defense.
Why is that?
"Everyone" doesn't seems to be a large number.
Did anyone even defend him? I didn't.
FBI Asks Tom Feeney About Trip With Abramoff
FBI Asks Tom Feeney About Trip With Abramoff
By Anita Kuman
St. Petersburg Times
Monday 23 April 2007
Feeney's office said the congressman is cooperating voluntarily.
Washington - The FBI has asked U.S. Rep. Tom Feeney for information about his dealings with Jack Abramoff as part of its ongoing investigation into the lobbyist convicted of defrauding clients.
FBI agent Kevin Luebke refused to say whether Feeney, a Republican from the Orlando area, is under federal investigation.
Federal agents also have asked the St. Petersburg Times for an email sent to the newspaper by Feeney's office describing a golfing trip the congressman took with Abramoff to Scotland in 2003.
Feeney did not return calls for comment Monday. But his Washington office released a statement to the Times late Monday.
"Rep. Feeney considers this an embarrassing episode in his 17-year career as an elected official and an expensive lesson for him as a public servant," according to the statement.
Feeney is one of three House members who accompanied Abramoff to Scotland on trips that included rounds of golf at the legendary Royal & Ancient Golf Club at St. Andrews.
The others are: former Rep. Bob Ney, R-Ohio, who is serving prison time for corruption, and former House Republican leader Tom DeLay, indicted in Texas for alleged improper fundraising, is under investigation.
"The Justice Department has been investigating activity surrounding Jack Abramoff," according to Feeney's statement. "The Justice Department has contacted Rep. Feeney to request more information regarding this matter and he is pleased to voluntarily cooperate."
The FBI contacted the Times last week to ask for the February 2006 email that Feeney's then chief of staff Jason Roe wrote to the newspaper in response to a series of questions about interactions between Feeney and Abramoff. The Times has referred the FBI's request to its attorney.
Roe, now deputy campaign manager for presidential candidate Mitt Romney, said Monday he has not been contacted by the FBI and has no knowledge of an investigation. But, he said, he was not surprised to hear federal agents are asking questions.
"I'm sure they're doing due diligence," he said. "I guess it would be my expectation they would look into everything" associated with Abramoff.
Feeney, 48, who spent a decade in the Florida Legislature where he was speaker of the House, has paid $23,000 in legal fees this year - more than any other expense - according to his latest campaign finance reports.
"Rep. Feeney anticipates voluntarily cooperating with the Justice Department in any further investigation of this trip and looks forward to promptly resolving this matter," according to Feeney's statement.
The U.S. House announced in January that Feeney violated its rules by apparently letting Abramoff pay for the trip to Scotland. Feeney agreed to pay the cost of the trip - $5,643 - to the U.S. Treasury.
Feeney said he thought a conservative think tank - the National Center for Public Policy Research - was paying for the trip. He said he learned later from newspaper reporters that Abramoff may have paid in violation of House rules that forbid members from taking free trips from lobbyists and asked the ethics committee to investigate.
"Any assertion that this office knew Abramoff paid for the Scotland trip is a g--d----- lie," Roe wrote in the email being sought by the FBI. The email was quoted in a newspaper article last year.
Records and media reports show lawmakers - including Ney and DeLay - have helped Abramoff with his lobbying.
Last week, Rep. John Doolittle, R-Calif., gave up his coveted seat on the House Appropriations Committee after the FBI raided his home.
In last year's email, Roe vehemently denied any improper relationship with Abramoff as a result of the trip.
"Tom has never written a letter for Abramoff. Abramoff has never been in our office. Abramoff has never asked anything of us," Roe wrote in the email. "There is no accusation of a quid pro quo. No quid pro quo exists."
Feeney received $4,000 from Abramoff and three of his clients but recently gave the $1,000 from Abramoff to charity. Money also went the other direction: Feeney paid the tab at Abramoff's Washington restaurant, Signatures, at least three times, twice when the costs were more than $2,000, according to Feeney's campaign finance reports.
------------------------------------------
Times researcher Angie Drobnic Holan contributed to this report.
