Jack Abramoff timeline
Encyclopedia
1980s
- 1981 - Elected Chairman of the College Republican National Committee in a campaign managed by Grover NorquistGrover NorquistGrover Glenn Norquist is an American lobbyist, conservative activist, and founder and president of Americans for Tax Reform...
, the executive director of the CRNC. - 1981 - recruits Ralph ReedRalph E. Reed, Jr.Ralph Eugene Reed, Jr., is a conservative American political activist, best known as the first executive director of the Christian Coalition during the early 1990s. He sought the Republican nomination for the office of Lieutenant Governor of Georgia but lost the primary election on July 18, 2006,...
as an unpaid intern for CNRC. - 1981-1983 - With Reed and Norquist, purges "dissidents" and re-writes the CRNC's bylaws to consolidate their control.
- 1983 - Appoints Reed to succeed Norquist as executive director.
- 1986 - After earning law degree, worked for Boardwalk & Associates in Washington, DC as vice president.
- 1986 - Appointed to the Holocaust Memorial Council by President Ronald ReaganRonald ReaganRonald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1986/50386d.htm - 1986 - First major lobbyist job for the International Freedom FoundationInternational Freedom FoundationThe International Freedom Foundation , was a self-described anti-communist group established in Washington, D.C. founded in 1986 by former lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Its purported aim was to promote individual and collective freedoms worldwide: freedom of thought; free speech; free association; free...
(IFF) where he recruited a number of so-called useful idiotUseful idiotIn political jargon, the term useful idiot was used to describe Soviet sympathizers in Western countries. The implication is that though the people in question naïvely thought themselves an ally of the Soviet Union, they were actually held in contempt and were being cynically used...
s.
1994-1996
- December 1994 - Following the Republican takeover of Congress in the November 1994 electionsRepublican RevolutionThe Republican Revolution or Revolution of '94 is what the media dubbed Republican Party success in the 1994 U.S. midterm elections, which resulted in a net gain of 54 seats in the House of Representatives, and a pickup of eight seats in the Senate...
, hired as a lobbyist at Preston Gates Ellis & Rouvelas Meeds LLP, the lobbying arm of Preston Gates & EllisPreston Gates & EllisPreston Gates & Ellis, LLP, also known as Preston Gates, was a law firm with offices in the United States, China and Taiwan. Its main office was in the IDX Tower in Seattle, Washington...
LLP, based in Seattle, WA. - 1995 - takes on the Northern Mariana IslandNorthern Mariana IslandsThe Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , is a commonwealth in political union with the United States, occupying a strategic region of the western Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines...
of SaipanSaipanSaipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
as a client. Abramoff and his firm are paid at least $6.7 million by the island's government from 1995 to 2001. - December 4–12, 1996 - Congressman Tom DeLayTom DeLayThomas Dale "Tom" DeLay is a former member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1984 until 2006. He was Republican Party House Majority Leader from 2003 to 2005, when he resigned because of criminal money laundering charges in...
staffers Ed BuckhamEd BuckhamEdwin A. Buckham is a former congressional staffer and lobbyist, who presently is under investigation in various scandals surrounding high-profile lobbyist Jack Abramoff and former Congressman Tom DeLay...
and Tony RudyTony RudyTony Charles Rudy , an American lobbyist and an associate of Jack Abramoff. After serving as a staffer in the office of U. S. Representative Tom DeLay from approximately 1995 to 2001, and rising to deputy chief of staff, Rudy joined "Team Abramoff" at Greenberg Traurig. Rudy was implicated in the...
go on a trip funded by Abramoff to SaipanSaipanSaipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
. - December 31, 1996 - DeLay and his family go on a trip arranged by Abramoff to Saipan; the trip itself is paid for by the Saipan government.
1997
- January 1997 - James Clyburn (D-SCSouth CarolinaSouth Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
) and Bennie ThompsonBennie ThompsonBennie G. Thompson, is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1993, and the ranking member of the Committee on Homeland Security since 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party....
(D-MSMissouriMissouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
) go on a trip funded by Abramoff to SaipanSaipanSaipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
. - 1997 - Tom DeLayTom DeLayThomas Dale "Tom" DeLay is a former member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1984 until 2006. He was Republican Party House Majority Leader from 2003 to 2005, when he resigned because of criminal money laundering charges in...
, Northern Marianas lobbying.- Frank MurkowskiFrank MurkowskiFrancis Hughes Murkowski is an American politician and a member of the Republican Party. He was a United States Senator from Alaska from 1981 until 2002 and the eighth Governor of Alaska from 2002 until 2006.- Early life and career :...
, then Senator from AlaskaAlaskaAlaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
and chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee writes a bill to extend the protection of U.S. labor and minimum wageMinimum wageA minimum wage is the lowest hourly, daily or monthly remuneration that employers may legally pay to workers. Equivalently, it is the lowest wage at which workers may sell their labour. Although minimum wage laws are in effect in a great many jurisdictions, there are differences of opinion about...
laws to the workers in the U.S. territory of the Northern Marianas. Then, and now, they are allowed to use the "Made in the USA" label. - So compelling was the case for change (91 percent of the workforce were immigrants, and were being paid barely half the U.S. minimum hourly wage, were forced to live behind barbed wire in squalid shacks minus plumbing, work 12 hours a day, often seven days a week, etc.), the U.S. Senate unanimously passed the Murkowski worker reform bill.
- As part of Abramoff's lobbying, Tom DeLay took a trip with his family and some staff members there in 1998. (On New Years Eve, there, is where DeLay called Abramoff "one of my closest and dearest friends."
- Abramoff funneled much of the money to his pet charities including and many DeLay charities.
- At least two people who worked on Abramoff's team at Preston Gates wound up with Bush administrationGeorge W. Bush administrationThe presidency of George W. Bush began on January 20, 2001, when he was inaugurated as the 43rd President of the United States of America. The oldest son of former president George H. W. Bush, George W...
jobs: Patrick Pizzella, named an assistant secretary of labor by George W. BushGeorge W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
; and David SafavianDavid SafavianDavid Hossein Safavian is a former chief of staff of the United States General Services Administration and a figure in the Jack Abramoff lobbying and corruption scandal....
, chosen by Bush to oversee federal procurement policy in the Office of Management and Budget. - By 2001, DeLay has successfully stopped Murkowski's bill, and the Islands gained at least $2 million more in federal aid from the administration.
- Frank Murkowski
1999
- 1999-2000 - Internet Gambling Prohibition Act
- Ralph Reed and Rev. Louis P. Sheldon of the Traditional Values Coalition helped Abramoff with a pro-gambling campaign to prevent Internet gambling from being federally outlawed.
- Reed and Sheldon focused on parts of the bill which allowed loopholes for dog, horse racing, and jai-alai. This enabled them to oppose the bill on the basis that it was 'pro-gambling' even though it was a bill to restrict internet gambling (and the bill was otherwise supported by James DobsonJames DobsonJames Clayton "Jim" Dobson, Jr. is an American evangelical Christian author, psychologist, and founder in 1977 of Focus on the Family , which he led until 2003. In the 1980s he was ranked as one of the most influential spokesman for conservative social positions in American public life...
of Focus on the FamilyFocus on the FamilyFocus on the Family is an American evangelical Christian tax-exempt non-profit organization founded in 1977 by psychologist James Dobson, and is based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Focus on the Family is one of a number of evangelical parachurch organizations that rose to prominence in the 1980s...
) - eLottery Inc was Abramoff's client
- Money to Reed was launderedMoney launderingMoney laundering is the process of disguising illegal sources of money so that it looks like it came from legal sources. The methods by which money may be laundered are varied and can range in sophistication. Many regulatory and governmental authorities quote estimates each year for the amount...
through Norquist's ATR, then through Robin Vanderwall, director of the Faith and Family Alliance, a shell company. Vanderwall was later convicted of soliciting minors via the InternetInternetThe Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
and is serving a seven-year term in Virginia State Prison. - Tony Rudy, DeLay's Chief of Staff, funneled inside information on the bill to Abramoff.
- Abramoff funneled eLottery money through "Toward Tradition", which employed Rudy's wife
- Shandwick Worldwide - hired by Abramoff to get letters opposing IGPA from Jeb BushJeb BushJohn Ellis "Jeb" Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd Governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. He is a prominent member of the Bush family: the second son of former President George H. W. Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush; the younger brother of former President George W...
. - Florida man, Matthew Blair, told authorities in a plea bargainPlea bargainA plea bargain is an agreement in a criminal case whereby the prosecutor offers the defendant the opportunity to plead guilty, usually to a lesser charge or to the original criminal charge with a recommendation of a lighter than the maximum sentence.A plea bargain allows criminal defendants to...
that he was hired to get letters opposing the bill from Bush and others, but created a forgeryForgeryForgery is the process of making, adapting, or imitating objects, statistics, or documents with the intent to deceive. Copies, studio replicas, and reproductions are not considered forgeries, though they may later become forgeries through knowing and willful misrepresentations. Forging money or...
when this failed. - Forged letter from Jeb Bush opposing IGPA circulated on House floor, caused confusion
- DeLay voted down on the bill, helped keep the bill off the floor for the rest of the session through procedural tricks (suspension calendar).
- eLottery paid for part of the 2000 Delay Scotland golf trip. Tony Rudy was invited as well.
- The bills' sponsors gave it another shot by trying to attach it to an appropriations bill.
- Reed and Sheldon focused on lobbying 10 conservative representatives in vulnerable districts
- The representatives told DeLay that their constituents were angry about the bill and did not want it passed; Rudy worked within DeLay's office to 'trump up' the concerns (manufactured by Reed and Sheldon) and get DeLay, Dennis HastertDennis HastertJohn Dennis "Denny" Hastert was the 59th Speaker of the House serving from 1999 to 2007. He represented as a Republican for twenty years, 1987 to 2007.He is the longest-serving Republican Speaker in history...
to tell the caucus not to pursue the bill. - Abramoff later hired Rudy after he left DeLay's office.
- Late 1999 Edwin Buckham and Michael ScanlonMichael ScanlonMichael Scanlon, AKA "Sean Scanlon", is a former communications director for Rep. Tom DeLay, lobbyist, and public relations executive who has pleaded guilty to corruption charges related to the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal...
travel to these CNMI in late 1999 to persuade two legislators to switch their votes for speaker of the 18-member House of Representatives in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana IslandsNorthern Mariana IslandsThe Northern Mariana Islands, officially the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , is a commonwealth in political union with the United States, occupying a strategic region of the western Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines...
. They succeeded. Once in office, the speaker pressed the island's governor to reinstate a lobbying pact with Jack Abramoff.
2000
- 2000 - DeLay Scotland golf trip
- 2000-2001 - He was part of the 2000 Florida Recount legal effort
- In 2001 moved to Greenberg Traurig. and poached some clients.
- February 2000 - SunCruz - Boulis enters into negotiations with Ambramoff and Adam KidanAdam KidanAdam Kidan is an American businessman, the former owner of SunCruz Casinos and former president of Atlantic & Pacific Mattress Co. He was one of lobbyist Jack Abramoff's business partners, and became a national figure when his involvement in one of Abramoff's illegal lobbying ventures came to...
regarding the sale of SunCruz - March 30, 2000 - SunCruz - Congressman Bob NeyBob NeyRobert William Ney is an American politician from the U.S. state of Ohio. A Republican, Ney represented Ohio's 18th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 until November 3, 2006, when he resigned...
, (R-OhioOhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
), enters criticism of Boulis into the Congressional Record. Michael ScanlonMichael ScanlonMichael Scanlon, AKA "Sean Scanlon", is a former communications director for Rep. Tom DeLay, lobbyist, and public relations executive who has pleaded guilty to corruption charges related to the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal...
, a business partner with Abramoff, claims that he asked Ney to make these comments. - September 27, 2000 - SunCruz - Kidan and Ben Waldman each fax to the lender showing that Kidan wired $23 million to Boulis' bank, consummating the sale, Boulis retains a 10 percent interest
- December 5, 2000 - SunCruz - Boulis and Kidan have a major argument at a meeting. Boulis claims Kidan is renegging on his payments, Kidan says Boulis attacked him. Kidan and Abramoff later agree, in email messages, that Boulis needs to be removed from SunCruz.
- December 13, 2000 - SunCruz - Kidan starts paying Moscatiello for food and security services
2001
- February 6, 2001 - SunCruz - Boulis is shot and killed, gangland-style slaying
- June 22, 2001 - SunCruz - Suncruz files for bankruptcy
- July 12, 2001: Coal industry lobbyist J. Steven Griles becomes the Deputy Secretary for the U.S. Department of Interior.
- July 30, 2001 - SunCruz - A court awards majority control of SunCruz back to the Boulis estate.
- 2001-2006 - He lobbied Congress and the administration on behalf of Native American tribes, some of which he has pled guilty to defrauding.
- Abramoff TribeScam outline:
- Around 2001, Abramoff went in search of a lobbying client who was naive and had a lot of money to spend. Abramoff found the LA Coushattas, whose casino was in debt. ($30 m) Abramoff gained the Coushattas trust, Coushatta needed help with LA people who wanted to shut them down. Some of the Coushatta expressed doubts against trusting JA, JA exploited the intra-tribal (and inter-tribal) politics to discredit 'dissidents'. Excellent perspective from the tribe here.
- Abramoff TribeScam outline:
- In October 2001, JA convinced the Coushatta that TX legislature was going to allow Indian gambling. Exploited tribal fears of Tigua and AL Coushatta casinos in Texas, stealing their revenue from gamblers commuting from TX. This was the initial 'Phantom Menace' pitch to get the Coushatta to dish out $3.5 m in the first six months, to lobby against something which wasn't going to happen anyway.
2002
- In January 2002, Jena Choctaw submitted compact to get approval for a casino (in LouisianaLouisianaLouisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
). Abramoff had Reed and Dobson do the first 'anti-gambling' crusade, resulting in first Jena shutdown. (Reed got $4 m altogether) Abramoff funneled cash to Federal level (Dept. of Interior, indirectly through CREA ($225 000), Gale Norton's former PACPolitical action committeeIn the United States, a political action committee, or PAC, is the name commonly given to a private group, regardless of size, organized to elect political candidates or to advance the outcome of a political issue or legislation. Legally, what constitutes a "PAC" for purposes of regulation is a...
, now run by Italia Federici to get access to Steven GrilesSteven GrilesJames Steven "Steve" Griles was a coal industry lobbyist and the United States Deputy Secretary of the Interior during the George W...
and Gale NortonGale NortonGale Ann Norton served as the 48th United States Secretary of the Interior from 2001 to 2006 under President George W. Bush...
in the U.S. Department of the Interior) and cash to Senators and Representatives to write letters to Interior to stop Jena. Abramoff was on first-name basis with Griles, who arranged meetings between Coushatta and MS Choctaw chiefs (MS Choctaw also an Abramoff client, also opposed Jena) and Norton. Meetings occurred at CREA functions as well as officially, at Interior. Vitter wrote letters to Interior, got 26 other house members to sign. Reed promoted Vitter in postcard campaign, who later won LA Senate race. Senators John BreauxJohn BreauxJohn Berlinger Breaux is a former United States senator from Louisiana who served from 1987 until 2005. He was also a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1972 to 1987. He was considered one of the more conservative national legislators from the Democratic Party...
, Trent LottTrent LottChester Trent Lott, Sr. , is a former United States Senator from Mississippi and has served in numerous leadership positions in the House of Representatives and the Senate....
, Cochran send letters to Interior. - January 29, 2002, In an e-mail Abramoff tells Scanlon "I have to meet with the monkeys from the Choctaw tribal council."
- February 2002 - Abramoff knows through Reed that the Tigua casino is about to get shut down by Senator John CornynJohn CornynJohn Cornyn, III is the junior United States Senator for Texas, serving since 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party. He was elected Chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee for the 111th U.S. Congress....
. Abramoff and Scanlon make a move to take on Tigua as clients. Abramoff gets the Tigua to pay for Ney's Scotland golf trip (w/Safavian, Reed, Abramoff). - March 6, 2002 - After all the letters have been written, Coushatta cut the checks to 61 members of Congress. Also, one check on the list makes the CREA->Norton link implicit: "Council for Republican Advocacy (Norton)."
- March 7, 2002 - DoI rejects Jena compact. After rejection, Jena hired their own lobbyists (Patton-Boggs) and tried again, this time with tacit support of Billy Tauzin and Breaux.
- March 2002 - LA Rep. McCrery's chief of staff, Bob Brooks (who later went on a Scotland golf trip with Abramoff) writes up legislation to block Jena.
- Apr 17, 2002: a press release "JUDICIAL WATCH TO INVESTIGATE INFLUENCE PEDDLING AT BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS AND INTERIOR DEPARTMENT: Quid Pro Quo Of Campaign Contributions From Indian Gambling Revenues In Exchange For Meetings And Political Favors? Time Magazine Implicates Number 2 Official At BIA In Influence Peddling Scheme" at http://www.judicialwatch.org/1734.shtml - Note that it cites an April 11, 2002 article from Wall Street Journal, and Time Magazine of April 22, 2002.
- June 2002 - Strongly worded, Abramoff-written letter to Norton opposing Jena is signed and sent by Delay, Hastert, and Blunt. Griles tries hard to influence Norton within Interior. He is challenged by Michael Rosetti, Counsel at Interior, 'who did not want Norton's decision process on the Jenas influenced by "outside people".' Vitter tries to urge Interior to block Jena via language in Appropriations report.
- June 2002 - Team Abramoff lobbyists worked on behalf of the Saginaw Chippewa tribe in Michigan to secure a $3 million federal grant for school construction.
- October 9, 2002 - Abramoff emails Ken MehlmanKen MehlmanKenneth Brian Mehlman is an American businessman, attorney, and political figure who served as the campaign manager for the 2004 re-election campaign of George W. Bush and Chairman of the Republican National Committee from 2005 to 2007. In 2007, President Bush appointed Mehlman to the U.S...
to seek an endorsement from President George W. BushGeorge W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
for Republican candidates running in GuamGuamGuam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
. Two weeks later, Susan RalstonSusan RalstonSusan Bonzon Ralston , is the President of SBR Enterprises, LLC, a government affairs, public relations and business consulting firm in the United States...
e-mailed Abramoff: "Ken asked me to let you know that he has the quote to be approved for your Guam candidates." - December 2002 - Norton eventually allows Jena compact, but the tribe ultimately gets shot down by LA Gov. Kathleen Babineaux - BlancoKathleen BlancoKathleen Babineaux Blanco was the 54th Governor of Louisiana, having served from January 2004 until January 2008. She was the first woman to be elected to the office of governor of Louisiana....
, who does not want any expansion of gambling.
2003
- January 13, 2003: Julie Doolittle is paid $10,000 as a retainer for the months of January and February.
- March, 2003: the Spy Game Gala fundraiser is cancelled. Payments to Julie Doolittle cease.
- May 27, 2003: Abramoff's lobbying firm Greenberg Traurig lands the Sac & Fox tribe of Iowa as a client, with Kevin Ring as the most senior lobbyist on the account.
- Early June, 2003: Kevin Ring brings members of the Iowan Sac & Fox tribe to meet with John Doolittle in his office. (Sac Bee, 2/12/06)
- June 12, 2003: John Doolittle sends a letter to Interior Secretary Gale NortonGale NortonGale Ann Norton served as the 48th United States Secretary of the Interior from 2001 to 2006 under President George W. Bush...
on behalf of the Sac & Fox. - June 17, 2003: Doolittle's political committee, Superior California, spends $126 on a "meeting" at Abramoff's restaurant Signatures.
- July 2, 2003: Abramoff starts paying Julie Doolittle's $5,000 monthly retainer again through Greenberg Traurig.
- July 3, 2003: Doolittle's PAC, Superior California collects a $5,000 check from the Saginaw Chippewa of Michigan, an Abramoff client.
- Oct, 2003 - Doolittle writes a letter to Secretary Norton asking for to help for a Massachusetts tribe, the Mashpee Wampanoag, that was seeking federal recognition. The tribe was an Abramoff client.
- November 2, 2003: Julia Robb at the Alexandria Daily Town Talk reported that people within the Saginaw Chippewa and LA Coushatta tribes were criticizing tribal leaders (like Chief Poncho) for spending multi-millions on lobbyists, so that was likely when the house of cards started falling (Chief Poncho had recently been voted out of the tribal council). More notes to follow.
- November 2003: According to the first SIAC hearing transcripts, the Saginaw Chippewa first confronted Abramoff and asked if he had a side 'agreement' with Scanlon
2004
- February 19, 2004 - Julie Doolittle gets her monthly $5,000 retainer payment from Greenberg Traurig. It will turn out to be her last.
- February 22, 2004: Schmidt, Susan “A Jackpot From Indian Gaming Tribes - Lobbying, PR Firms Paid $45 Million Over 3 Years”, The Washington PostThe Washington PostThe Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
. - March 2004: The FBI also started an investigation allegedly based on the fact that Scanlon's ex-fiancee tipped them off to his illicit activities as payback for Scanlon cheating on her. Once Scanlon 'flipped', Abramoff 'flipped' and gave up all of his personal records. However, there's more work to be done to 'walk the cat back'.
- March 2004: the Senate hearing also indicates that SIAC initiated their investigation based on press accounts at this time
- June 22, 2004: The first subpoenas in the Senate Indian Affairs Committee investigation were issued I believe the SIAC got involved based on the complaints from the tribes.
- December 7, 2004: J. Steven Griles resigns from his position as Deputy Secretary for the U.S. Department of Interior.
2005
- March 2, 2005: Inside Politics: DeLay Defense, Washington Times: It says "House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, California Democrat, has called for the House ethics panel to investigate Mr. DeLay after the National Journal cited his trip and said the Texas Republican violated House ethics rules. "The House gift rule clearly states that lobbyists cannot pay a member's travel expenses, but the expense voucher submitted by lobbyist Jack Abramoff indicates that this is precisely what he did for Mr. DeLay," she said."
- August 11, 2005 - SunCruz - Abramoff and Kidan are indicted on fraud
- September 26, 2005 - SunCruz - Moscatiello and two others arrested for the murder of Boulis
- December 15, 2005 - SunCruz - Kidan pleads guilty to fraud, agrees to testify against Abramoff
2006
- January 3, 2006: Jack Abramoff pleaded guilty to three criminal felony counts in federal court related to the defrauding of Native American tribes and corruption of public officials.
- January 4, 2006 - SunCruz - Abramoff pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud and mail fraud, and of a separate charge of wire fraud, relating to the purchase of SunCruz Casinos.
- March 29, 2006: Jack Abramoff was sentenced to five years and 10 months in prison—the minimum allowed per the plea bargain—and ordered then to pay restitution of more than $21 million.
- March 31, 2006: Team AbramoffTeam Abramoff"Team Abramoff" is the team of lobbyists assembled by Jack Abramoff when he worked at Greenberg Traurig, primarily of former aides to prominent Congressional politicians...
lobbyist and DeLay staffer Tony RudyTony RudyTony Charles Rudy , an American lobbyist and an associate of Jack Abramoff. After serving as a staffer in the office of U. S. Representative Tom DeLay from approximately 1995 to 2001, and rising to deputy chief of staff, Rudy joined "Team Abramoff" at Greenberg Traurig. Rudy was implicated in the...
pleads guilty to conspiracy related to briberyBriberyBribery, a form of corruption, is an act implying money or gift giving that alters the behavior of the recipient. Bribery constitutes a crime and is defined by Black's Law Dictionary as the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official or...
involving Ney and DeLay. - April 4, 2006: Tom DeLay announces his resignation from Congress.
- May 1, 2006 - SunCruz - Adam Kidan tells authorities John Gurino killed Konstantinos "Gus" Boulis. The John GottiJohn GottiJohn Joseph Gotti, Jr was an American mobster who became the Boss of the Gambino crime family in New York City. Gotti grew up in poverty. He and his brothers turned to a life of crime at an early age...
mob-connected Gurino was said to have been shot to death by a business partner. Gurino wasn't part of the investigation before Kidan gave authorities the name. - May 8, 2006, Ney's former Chief of Staff, Neil VolzNeil VolzNeil Volz was Chief of Staff to Representative Bob Ney , staff director of the House Administration Committee, and later part of Team Abramoff, when he left Capitol Hill in February 2002 to work for Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig LLP...
pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy, including wire fraud and violating House rules. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=aQZNqOLUuMSE - September 29, 2006: House Committee on Governmental Reform releases a report detailing contacts between the White House and Jack Abramoff and his lobbyists, as well as exchanges with Grover Norquist and Ralph Reed.
- October 6, 2006: Karl Rove special assistant Susan RalstonSusan RalstonSusan Bonzon Ralston , is the President of SBR Enterprises, LLC, a government affairs, public relations and business consulting firm in the United States...
, named in the report as having requested and received events tickets from Abramoff on several occasions, resigns from the White HouseWhite HouseThe White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
.
2007
- March 23, 2007: J. Steven Griles pleads guilty to obstruction of justiceObstruction of justiceThe crime of obstruction of justice, in United States jurisdictions, refers to the crime of interfering with the work of police, investigators, regulatory agencies, prosecutors, or other officials...
in the Senate investigation of the Abramoff scandal, the top Bush administration official to do so. - April 6, 2007: Abramoff prosecutor Robert E. Couglin resigns from Department of Justice.
- April 9, 2007: It is reported that Abramoff is talking in hopes of a shorter prison sentence for his Sun Cruz crimes.
- April 13, 2007: Kevin A. RingKevin A. RingKevin A. Ring is a former lobbyist and Republican Congressional staffer. He was a figure in the Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal scandal. After leaving Team Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig in 2005, he joined Barnes & Thornburg LLP law firm in Washington, DC...
resigns from Barnes & ThornburgBarnes & ThornburgBarnes & Thornburg LLP is a large U.S. law firm and lobbying group. It is currently the largest law firm in the state of Indiana, and 97th largest in the United States...
; the FBI raids the home of John DoolittleJohn DoolittleJohn Taylor Doolittle , American politician, was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1991 to 2009, representing . In the 109th Congress, he held a leadership role as the Deputy Whip for the Republican party in the House...
, seizing documents of his wife's company, Sierra Dominion Financial Services. - April 20, 2007: Doolittle steps down from seat on Appropriations Committee and starts a defense fund.
- April 23, 2007: Documents are filed by the Justice Department against Mark ZacharesMark ZacharesMark Zachares is a former Congressional aide to Rep. Don Young and lobbyist who pleaded guilty to accepting tens of thousands of dollars in gifts from lobbyist Jack Abramoff in return for using his position in Congress to advance Abramoff's interests....
, former Don YoungDon YoungDonald Edwin "Don" Young is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1973. He is a member of the Republican Party.Young is the 6th most senior U.S. Representative and the 2nd most senior Republican Representative, as well as the 2nd most senior Republican in Congress as a whole...
staffer and Marianas official. - April 24, 2007: Zachares pleas guilty and announces cooperation with prosecutors, tying Rep. Tom Feeney (FL-24) to the Abramoff scandal.
- June 8, 2007: Italia FedericiItalia FedericiItalia Federici , the former president of the Council of Republicans for Environmental Advocacy . Federici was also a political aide to Secretary of the Interior and CREA co-founder Gale Norton...
, president of CREA, pleads guilty to tax evasion and obstructing the United States SenateUnited States SenateThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
investigation into the Abramoff scandal. - July 7, 2007 Jared CarpenterJared CarpenterRobert Jared Carpenter was the vice president of the Council of Republicans for Environmental Advocacy beginning in 2000. In 2007, he pleaded guilty to one count of income tax evasion. He and CREA president Italia Federici, who previously pleaded guilty on similar charges, had used CREA funds for...
, vice-president of CREA, pleads guilty to tax evasion.
2008
- November 20, 2008 Trevor BlackannTrevor BlackannTrevor Blackann is a former American lobbyist who pleaded guilty in the Jack Abramoff scandal.Blackann began his political career as a staffer for Roy Blunt, and subsequently Kit Bond....
, former staffer for Roy BluntRoy BluntRoy D. Blunt is the junior United States Senator from Missouri. He is a member of the Republican Party. His Senate seat was previously held by Republican Kit Bond, until his retirement....
(R-Mo.) and Sen. Kit BondKit BondChristopher Samuel "Kit" Bond is a former United States Senator from Missouri and a member of the Republican Party. First elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986, he defeated Democrat Harriett Woods by a margin of 53%-47%. He was re-elected in 1992, 1998, and 2004...
(R-Mo.), pleads guilty to making false statements about gifts and implicates lobbyists Todd BoulangerTodd BoulangerTodd Boulanger is an American lobbyist. He was senior vice president of Cassidy & Associates and was a figure in the Jack Abramoff scandal.-Background:...
and James HirniJames HirniJames F. Hirni is a lobbyist who was convicted for bribing Senate Staff aides in return for favorable amendments to federal legislation. A former aide to Sen. Tim Hutchinson , he joined the lobbying firm Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosenthal, and then became a member of "Team Abramoff" at Greenberg Traurig...
. - November 21, 2008 Todd BoulangerTodd BoulangerTodd Boulanger is an American lobbyist. He was senior vice president of Cassidy & Associates and was a figure in the Jack Abramoff scandal.-Background:...
resigns from his lobbying firm, Cassidy & AssociatesCassidy & AssociatesCassidy & Associates is a government-relations firm based in Washington, D.C., known for pioneering the use of congressional earmarks as a method of obtaining grants for university clients. It was founded in 1975 as Schlossberg-Cassidy Associates by Gerald Cassidy and Kenneth Schlossberg, both...
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