Monetary influence of Jack Abramoff
Encyclopedia
The monetary influence of Jack Abramoff ran deep in Washington, as Jack Abramoff
spent millions of dollars to influence and entertain both Republican
and Democrat politicians. Abramoff had a reputation for largesse considered exceptional even by Washington standards. In addition to offering many Republican members of Congress expensive free meals at his restaurant, Signatures
, Abramoff maintained four skyboxes at major sports arenas for political entertaining at a cost of over $1 million a year. Abramoff hosted many fundraisers at these skyboxes including events for Republican politicians publicly opposed to gambling, such as John Doolittle
. Abramoff gave over $260,000 in personal contributions to Republican candidates, politicians, and organizations, and funded numerous trips for politicians and staffers and gave none to Democrats.
From 2000 to 2006, funds and Leadership PAC
s of numerous Republican candidates for Congress
. Under his guidance, his Indian tribe clients loosened their traditional ties to the Democratic Party, giving Republicans two-thirds of the $2.9 million they donated to federal candidates since 2001. He raised $100,000 for the reelection of George W. Bush
, making him a Bush Pioneer
. Abramoff and his wife gave $10,000 to the Bush-Cheney Recount Fund, shortly before Abramoff joined Greenberg Traurig
, which forgave over $314,000 in legal fees incurred by the Bush Campaign
in the 2000 Florida election recount
.
Of the approximately $85 million in tribal money entrusted to Abramoff, his employers, or his related organizations (see Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal
for more), over $4.4 million since 1999 were directed to at least 250 members of Congress, primarily Republicans in leadership positions or on relevant committees, and Democrats with standing connections to Native American interests (in a 2:1 GOP ratio). These contributions have since become tainted by their association with Abramoff's criminal behavior.http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0103/p01s03-uspo.html
Abramoff was associated with Tom DeLay
's and Grover Norquist
's K Street Project
to bring Republican dominance to Washington lobbying.
On May 7, 2000, while Abramoff was actively lobbying against the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act
in the House of Representatives, Tom DeLay
attended a performance by the Three Tenors in a skybox at Washington's MCI Center. Several major donors to DeLay's Texans for a Republican Majority
PAC were also invited. It was later revealed that the skybox was leased and paid for by Jack Abramoff, at an estimated cost of $3,600–7,500. Although Federal law at the time did not require disclosure or reimbursement of this sort of gift-giving from a lobbyist to a PAC
, the law was changed several months later, and the incident was cited in later criticisms of DeLay's acceptance of gifts.
On May 25, DeLay departed on a 10-day trip to Scotland
together with Abramoff and DeLay's aides Tony Rudy and Susan Hirschmann. In documents filed after the trip as required by House rules, DeLay claimed that the purpose of the trip was primarily "educational", to hold meetings with Conservative leaders in Britain, including former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, and that the total cost of the trip was $28,106. The filings indicated that the trip was being paid for by the "National Center for Public Policy Research", a think tank
then chaired by Jack Abramoff.
On the same date as DeLay's trip departure, Abramoff clients eLottery and the Mississippi Choctaw sent checks totaling $50,000 to the National Center for Public Policy Research. eLottery and the tribe both later claimed that they were unaware that the money was intended to pay for a trip.http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28252-2005Mar11.html
Details later emerged that many parts of the trip were paid for directly on Abramoff's credit card, and a card belonging to Edwin A. Buckham, another prominent lobbyist. Although the trip did include a meeting with Margaret Thatcher, according to detailed bills leaked to the Washington Post, the trip also included golf at the exclusive St. Andrews Golf Resort
, theater tickets, and "superior" room accommodations at the London Four Seasons. The total cost of the trip was estimated at $70,000–120,000, of which approximately $12,000 was reimbursed to Abramoff by Preston Gates.
The length of the trip, expense, source of funding, and activities of the trip are significant as House ethics rules at the time prevented representatives from accepting gifts from private parties if it would "create the appearance of using public office for private gain." http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A12416-2005Apr23.html
, Montana Republican; Byron L. Dorgan, North Dakota Democrat; and Minority Leader Harry Reid
, Nevada Democrat, along with Reps. J. D. Hayworth
, Arizona Republican, and Bob Ney
, Ohio Republican.http://www.wpherald.com/storyview.php?StoryID=20060111-093059-1441r
President George W Bush (R)
As a Bush Pioneer
, Abramoff raised over $100,000 for the George W. Bush reelection campaign
in addition to the $6,000 which he personally contributed.http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=politicsNews&storyID=2006-01-04T153929Z_01_SIB452554_RTRUKOC_0_US-CRIME-ABRAMOFF-BUSH.xmlhttp://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060117/ap_on_go_pr_wh/white_house_abramoff;_ylt=AgN3zRwO.HpQ8PDKGKqPX82yFz4D;_ylu=X3oDMTA5aHJvMDdwBHNlYwN5bmNhdA
Although the White House insists President Bush never met Jack Abramoff outside of large gatherings, The Texas Observer
reports that in May 2001 Abramoff "charged two of his clients $25,000 for a White House lunch date and a meeting with the President." http://www.texasobserver.org/showForPrint_new.asp?ArticleID=13
Time Magazine also reports having at least five White House publicity photos, or 'clicks' showing Bush together with Abramoff or Abramoff's family members.
U.S. Rep. & Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX)
Joining Abramoff on a vacation was Tom DeLay
, whose airfare to London
and Scotland
in 2000 was charged to an American Express
card issued to Abramoff, according to two sources who know Abramoff's credit card
account number and to a copy of a travel invoice displaying that number. DeLay's expenses during the same trip for food, phone calls and other items at a golf course hotel in Scotland were billed to a different credit card also used on the trip by a second registered Washington lobbyist, Edwin A. Buckham, according to receipts documenting that portion of the trip.
U.S. Rep. & Former Chairman of the House Administration Committee Bob Ney (R-OH)
In 2002, after Abramoff and Reed closed the casino of the Tigua tribe, Abramoff persuaded the tribe to hire him to lobby Congress to reopen the casino. After Abramoff met with Bob Ney
to ask him to push the legislation, the Tigua (by overnight mail) sent three checks to Ney's political committees, totaling $32,000. The exchange of campaign contributions in return for Ney's support of an amendment to reopen the Tigua's casino constituted bribery
.
Emails between Abramoff and the Tigua's political consultant show that Ney solicited the Tigua to pay for part of a 2002 golf trip to Scotland, knowing full well that solicitation of travel is specifically prohibited by House rules. Shortly after Ney returned from Scotland, he was scheduled to meet with members of the Tigua tribal council. Prior to that meeting, Abramoff reminded the Tigua that "for obvious reasons" the golf trip would not be mentioned at the meeting, but that Ney show his appreciation "in other ways", which was, Abramoff pointed out, just what the tribe wanted. Although the tribe never ended up paying for the golf trip, Ney's attempt to tie the gift of the trip to the legislative assistance the tribe was seeking likely violates federal criminal law.
Ney lied when he said he was "duped" by Abramoff and lied again on financial disclosure forms when he said that a nonprofit had paid for the trip. However, Safavian, in an email to his government employer seeking permission to go on the trip, states that Abramoff personally extended invitations to all the guests. Ney also said he made the trip to speak to Scottish parliamentarians. But the Scottish parliament wasn't in session at the time he was in Scotland.
Ney is also implicated in the separate Abramoff SunCruz
scandal.
Bob Ney is now setting up a legal defense fund for Abramoff.
Bob Ney was "Representative #1," in Abramoff's January 3 plea agreement http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/documents/abramoff_info_010306.pdf,http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10218892/site/newsweek/. On September 15, 2006 Ney's guilty plea for bribery related to Abramoff's clients and others was submitted to the court and made public.
U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson, CD1 (R-NM)
Congresswoman Heather Wilson received $1,000 in a direct contribution from Abramoff.
U.S. Rep. Tom Feeney, III (R-FL);
Congressman Tom Feeney
(R-FL
) joined other Republicans on the now infamous golf trip to Scotland with Abramoff in 2003.
U.S. Rep. Richard Pombo (R-CA)
In 2003, Abramoff gave Richard Pombo's
(R-CA) PAC
$5,000. Abramoff also gave $2,000, the maximum allowed, to Pombo's congressional campaign committee that same year.
On January 8, 2006, the Los Angeles Times
reported that "Pombo helped one of Abramoff's clients, the Mashpee Indians in Massachusetts, gain official recognition as a tribe; the congressman received contributions from the lobbyist and the tribe in that instance."http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-banker8jan08,0,1764103.story?coll=la-home-headlines&track=morenews
U.S. Rep. Mike Ferguson (R-NJ)
New Jersey
Republican Rep. Mike Ferguson
is not going to give back the $1,000 he received in 2001, according to his spokeswoman Abby Bird. http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050818/NEWS03/508180435/1007/BUSINESS
U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ)
New Jersey
Republican Rep. Frank LoBiondo
has planned or has given back the $1000 contribution he had received in 2001.
U.S. Rep. Jim Saxton (R-NJ)
New Jersey
Republican Rep. Jim Saxton
has given back the 1000-dollar contribution he had received from Abramoff.
U.S. Senator Conrad Burns (R-MT)
Conrad Burns
(R-Montana) is an alleged recipient of illegal favors and $136,000 in campaign contributions from Abramoff. As the chair of the Interior Subcommittee on Appropriations, Burns received over $136,000 in campaign contributions through Abramoff and then directed $3 million to the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe of Michigan
, an Abramoff client and one of the wealthiest tribes in the country from a program intended to help the neediest tribes fix dilapidated schools.
After initially claiming credit for the appropriation, Burns subsequently denied knowledge of it. "A lot of things happened that I didn't know about. It shouldn't have happened, but it did."
Although initially refusing to return Abramoff's donations,http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?tl=1&display=rednews/2005/12/13/build/state/23-burns-abramoff.inc Burns ultimately said that he would return or give away $150,000 he received from Abramoff and his clients.
In December, 2005, a leader of a tribe which gave $22,000 in campaign contributions to Burns in 2002 stated that they had done so solely at the request of Abramoff and believed the senator was part of “Abramoff's group”.
U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX)
(R-Texas) On November 12, 2001, Reed sent Abramoff an e-mail stating, "get me details so I can alert cornyn
and let him know what we are doing to help him" [sic]. Similarly, on November 13, Reed wrote "I strongly suggest we start doing patch-throughs to perry and cornyn [sic]. We're getting killed on the phone." Also, on January 7, 2002, Reed sent Abramoff an e-mail stating "I think we should budget for an ataboy for cornyn" [sic].
When Cornyn ran for Senate, Abramoff contributed $1,000, the maximum amount legally allowed. Cornyn, who has spoken out against gambling, also received $6,250 in contributions from Las Vegas
casino interests who oppose Indian gaming, some of which were made at the same time Cornyn was pushing to close the Tigua's casino.
New Jersey State Senator William Gormley (R-Atlantic, NJ)
New Jersey State Sen. William Gormley
, R-Atlantic, got $1,000 from Abramoff when Gormley was running for the U.S. Senate in 2000. http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050818/NEWS03/508180435/1007/BUSINESS
Abramoff also gave $5,000 to the New Jersey Republican State Committee. New Jersey Democratic Party Chairwoman Bonnie Watson Coleman
hopes this money will be returned to Abramoff. http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050818/NEWS03/508180435/1007/BUSINESS
According to an analysis by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics
, Abramoff has contributed more than $220,000 in New Jersey since 1995, almost exclusively to Republican candidates and committees and only a "smattering" of those who received donations from Abramoff have returned them. http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050818/NEWS03/508180435/1007/BUSINESS
U.S. Senator Jim Talent (R-MO)
U.S. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA)
In 2000, Abramoff gave $500 to Ed Royce
http://www.capitaleye.org/abramoff_recips_detail.asp?type=R&Name=Ed+Royce+(R-Calif).
Rep.J.D. Hayworth the largest single recipient of Abramoff related money and co-chairman of the Congressional Native American Caucus, has received more than $150,000 from Indian tribes once represented by Abramoff.
U.S. Senator David Vitter (R-LA)
The Louisiana Jena Band of Choctaws offered testimony accusing Louisiana Senator David Vitter
(R) of being in cahoots with Abramoff and his attempts to stymie the tribe's casino plans.http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/washington/index.ssf?/base/news-1/112253289179960.xml
U.S. Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA)
Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) is chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, one of several committees investigating the scandal. From 2001 to 2004, Grassley received over $62,000 in donations from groups related to the scandal. In March 2002 he sent a letter to Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton opposing the Jena casino. In April he received a donation of $1000 from Abramoff's firm.
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/13189471.htm
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)
Between 2001 and 2004 Sen. Harry Reid
received $61,000 from donors with whom after the fact had hired Abramoff later on, Reid's office confirmed, and has decided not to return any donations. In a February 9, 2006 Washington Post article http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/09/AR2006020901208_pf.html, Reid's office acknowledged contacts with Greenberg Traurig
during this time.
Reid also intervened on government matters in ways that Abramoff's tribal clients might have deemed helpful, once opposing legislation on the Senate floor and four times sending letters pressing the Bush administration on tribal issues. Reid collected donations around the time of each action. Reid's office said none of the senator's actions were affected by donations or done for Abramoff.
Reid sent a letter they wrote on March 5, 2002, to Interior Secretary Gale Norton asking her to reject an application from the Jena Band of Choctaw Indians, which was seeking to open a casino outside its Louisiana reservation. An Abramoff client fighting the Jena casino, the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana, donated $5,000 to Reid's political action committee, the Searchlight Leadership Fund, the next day, at Abramoff's request. While Abramoff never donated directly to Reid, the lobbyist did instruct the tribe to send $5,000 to the fund. The Washington Post reported that Abramoff sent a list to the tribe titled "Coushatta Requests" recommending donations to campaigns or groups for 50 lawmakers. Alongside Reid's name, Abramoff wrote, "5,000 (Searchlight Leadership Fund) Senate Majority Whip." Reid was Democratic whip at the time.
About the same time, Reid sent a letter to the Interior Department helpful to the tribe, records show. His March 5, 2002, letter pressed the agency to reject a casino proposed by a potential rival to the Coushattas, the Jena Band of Choctaw Indians. Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) also signed the letter.
Future Abramoff coworker Edward Ayoob before he knew Abramoff worked for Reid from June 1997 to March 2002 variously as legislative counsel, tax counsel, appropriations manager, foreign affairs adviser and chief aide on judicial nominations, according to a biography on his employer's Web site. Ayoob in 2002 was hired as a lobbyist by Greenberg Traurig LLP, where his work included teaming with Abramoff and other lobbyists on client matters. According to the Greenberg Traurig website, Greenberg Traurig has over 1400 lobbyists.
Abramoff left Greenberg Traurig in March 2004 after the Senate and the FBI began investigating his activities while Ayoob left Greenberg Traurig in spring 2005. Ayoob is now a senior lobbyist at Barnes & Thornburg
LLP.
Reid downplayed Ayoob's role, saying Ayoob was a legislative assistant on his staff and not an adviser.
Ayoob and Reid met "from time to time" after Ayoob became a lobbyist, according to a Reid spokesperson. She said she did not know when they last spoke or how Reid would characterize their relationship today.http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2006/Jan-04-Wed-2006/news/5194840.html The Washington Post has reported that the aide later helped throw a fundraiser for Reid at Abramoff's firm that raised money from several of Abramoff's lobbying partners. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/09/AR2006020901208_pf.html, http://mediamatters.org/items/200602100013, http://mediamatters.org/items/200602100013, http://mediamatters.org/items/200602100001, http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/007651.php.
U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND)
Senator Byron Dorgan
, the senior Democrat on the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, had received at least $79,300 from associates and clients who later hired Abramoff to work for them.
After several news articles appeared detailing the tribal donations http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/04/AR2005120401158.html, Dorgan wrote a news release replying to several claims he said were erroneous, including the allegation he received money directly from Abramoff. In the release, Dorgan said, "The fact is I have never met Abramoff and have never received a campaign contribution from him. If he was directing any of his clients to make a political contribution to me, it was done without my knowledge."http://dorgan.senate.gov/newsroom/record.cfm?id=249445
Dorgan says, in the release, that his activities in support of several tribal programs are continuing his trend of supporting Native American issues since being elected, and do not stem from Abramoff-related campaign contributions.
In December 2005, Dorgan returned tribal donations totaling $67,000.http://www.in-forum.com/articles/index.cfm?id=111260§ion=Newshttp://washingtontimes.com/national/20051213-111244-2879r.htm
U.S. Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA)
According to the FEC, Sen. Tom Harkin
(D-Iowa) failed to account properly for two fundraisers he held in Abramoff’s skybox at Washington’s MCI Center in 2002 and 2003, according to filings with the FEC and the Iowa Democrat's spokeswoman.http://www.hillnews.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/102005/news3.html
.
According to CBS, over 100 lawmakers have donated Abramoff related money to charity. It is not yet clear if donating the money will give them tax advantages in a way that returning the money would not or if these charities have a history of donating money or aiding favorable lawmakers in other ways.
President George W. Bush (R)
On January 4, 2005 President George W. Bush
announced that his campaign will donate $6000 to the American Heart Association
. The $6000 is the sum of the donations by Abramoff, Abramoff's wife, and the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan. The more than $100,000 in Bush Pioneer
money raised by Abramoff, but not directly contributed by Abramoff will not be returned http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/01/04/lobbyist.fraud.ap/index.html.
Republican Governors Association
On January 12, 2006, The Boston Globe reported paraphrased Massachusetts Governor, Mitt Romney
, saying that "the Republican Governors Association
would donate to charity $500,000 in contributions it received from a donor entwined in the Abramoff investigation."
U.S. Rep. J.D.Hayworth (R-AZ)
Rep.J.D. Hayworth, the largest single recipient of Abramoff related money and co-chairman of the Congressional Native American Caucus, has received more than $150,000 from Indian tribes once represented by Abramoff. Hayworth has said he will keep these donations because they were given independently of Abramoff's influence. He donated to charity $2,250 he got directly from Abramoff. The charity's name is unavailable, but was claimed to be related to Hurricane Katrina relief.
U.S. Senator Mel Martinez (R-FL)
Returned $2,500 contribution he received from Bob Ney
. He has so far refused to return a quarter million dollars raised at a fundraiser co-chaired by Abramoff http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/columnists/orl-maxwell2606jan26,0,4941874.column?coll=orl-news-col.
U.S. Senator Jim Talent (R-MO)
On October 26, Sen. Jim Talent
returned a $2,000 contribution made to his 2002 Senate campaign by Abramoff. Talent also returned a $1,000 contribution that Abramoff's former law firm made to Talent's re-election campaign earlier this year. http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/tallahassee/news/politics/13003623.htm
U.S. Senator Max Baucus (D-MT)
Sen. Max Baucus
gave $18,892 in Abramoff-related money he received to tribal colleges in Montana.
U.S. Senator Conrad Burns (R-MT)
Sen. Conrad Burns
, the fourth largest recipient of Abramoff related money, some $60,000, announced that he would return or donate $150,000 he received from Abramoff and his clients. Via his spokesman he had previously claimed that the money could not be returned as the committee that received it was shut down and the money was "already spent".http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?tl=1&display=rednews/2005/12/13/build/state/23-burns-abramoff.inc
Burns attempt to make a $111,000 "donation" to the Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council was rejected by the tribe who said the money was tainted because it originally came from Abramoff and his clients.
Julia Doney, president of the Fort Belknap Indian Community Council, and a member of the tribal leaders council, explained that the tribes are "tired of being used" and don't want help Burns with his political troubles.
"it's tainted money" said Doney http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/13660751.htm
The Blackfeet Community College has also refused to accept money Burns because it came from Jack Abramoff. James St. Goddard, a Blackfeet council member, told The Great Falls Tribune
that taking the money "would have made it look like the money is clean. We do not want Mr. Burns to use the tribes any more for his political gain." http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060119/NEWS01
U.S. Rep. Dennis Rehberg (R-MT)
Rep. Dennis Rehberg returned $20,000.http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051221/NEWS01/512210303/1002
U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND)
On December 13, 2005 Sen. Byron Dorgan
reported that he would return $67,000 in questionable donations from Abramoff's clients (the entirety of his "Abramoff-related money"). Dorgan was quoted as saying he would not "knowingly keep even one dollar in contributions if there is even a remote possibility that they could have been the result of any action Mr. Abramoff might have taken." http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/1205/285514.html
U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ)
On August 18, 2005, Rep. Frank LoBiondo
said he plans to give back the $1,000 contribution he received in 2001 from Abramoff.
U.S. Rep. Jim Saxton (R-NJ)
On August 18, 2005 Rep. Jim Saxton
also returned a $1,000 contribution Abramoff made in 2001. http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050818/NEWS03/508180435/1007/BUSINESS
U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY)
On January 5, 2006, Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign announced that it would contribute $2,000 in donations from American Indian tribe clients of lobbyist Jack Abramoff to a New York charity. http://1010wins.com/topstories/local_story_005075047.html
U.S. Rep. & Former Chairman of the House Transportation Committee Ernest Istook (R-OK)
On January 9, 2006, Rep. Ernest Istook
announced he is giving $23,000 that was donated to his re-election campaign or his PAC to the Boy Scouts of America. This is in addition to $6,000 in Abramoff-related donations given to Indian health research last month. In December 2005, Rep. Ernest Istook
, said he would donate a $1,000 campaign donation he received from Abramoff to the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation for Indian health research. A $5,000 donation to a political action committee Istook was involved with will also be given to the OMRF.
http://www.normantranscript.com/cnhi/thenormantranscript/opinion/local_story_011002337?keyword=topstory
U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio(D-OR)
On January 9, 2006, the office of Rep. Peter DeFazio
announced he will return $1,500 he received from out-of-state Indian tribes represented by disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff.http://www.newsreview.info/article/20060109/NEWS/60109001
U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor (R-VA)
As the Virginia Democratic Party called on all Virginia Republicans in Congress to dump Abramoff's contributions, Virginia Representative and chief deputy Republican whip Eric Cantor
announced that he would donate almost 10,000 of Abramoff money to charity on January 4.
U.S. Rep. Thomas M. Davis, III (R-VA)
At the same time, the Richmond Times-Dispatch
reported that "Rep. Thomas M. Davis
III, R-11th, planned to give to charity money from the Abramoffs and tribal clients, possibly totaling $4,500, according to an aide who was uncertain of the exact amount.
U.S. Rep. J. Randy Forbes (R-VA)
Rep. J. Randy Forbes planned to give to charity $1,000 from the Abramoffs;
U.S. Senator John W. Warner (R-VA)
and Sen. John W. Warner, $1,000, from an Indian tribe." http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD%2FMGArticle%2FRTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1128769109214&path=!news&s=1045855934842
President George W. Bush (R)
On January 4, 2005 President George W. Bush
announced that his campaign will donate $6000 to the American Heart Association
. The $6000 is the sum of the donations by Abramoff, Abramoff's wife, and the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan. The more than $100,000 in Bush Pioneer
money raised by Abramoff, but not directly contributed by Abramoff will not be returned.
U.S. Rep. J.D.Hayworth (R-AZ)
Rep.J.D. Hayworth the largest single recipient of Abramoff related money and co-chairman of the Congressional Native American Caucus, has received more than $150,000 from Indian tribes once represented by Abramoff. These donations Hayworth has said he will keep because they were given independently of Abramoff's influence. He donated to charity $2,250 he got directly from Abramoff.
U.S. Senator Mel Martinez (R-FL)
Senator Martinez has so far decided not to return $250,000 raised at a fundraiser co-chaired by Abramoff.
U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA)
Sen. Patty Murray
received $35,000 from tribal donors who once used Abramoff's services. Murray will not return the donations, saying in a letter to the Seattle Times, "I will not rush to scapegoat those tribes who have already been victimized by Jack Abramoff."
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)
Sen. Harry Reid
received $61,000 from Indian tribes represented by Abramoff's firm, Reid's office confirmed, and has decided not to return any donations. http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2006/Jan-04-Wed-2006/news/5194840.html
U.S. Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY)
Rep. Charles Rangel of Harlem, who received $36,000 in donations from Abramoff clients, says he's keeping the money. A Rangel spokesman says Abramoff's guilty pleas won't affect Rangel's decision.
U.S. Rep. John Doolittle
(R-CA)
Rep. John Doolittle
, who is the fifth highest recipient of Abramoff-directed money and has gotten more money from this source than any two Democrats combined, has refused to return the donations, explaining that the money is his.
U.S. Rep. Randy Forbes (R-VA)
Rep. Randy Forbes
was not a major receiver of funds, but has kept the $2,000 from the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana, $1,000 from the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, and $1,000 from the Tigua Indian Reservation. http://www.capitaleye.org/abramoff_recips_detail.asp?type=R&Name=J%2E+Randy+Forbes+%28R%2DVa%29
U.S. Rep Charles H. Taylor
(R-NC)
Over several years, Taylor's campaign received approximately $3,000 total [need source] in donations from now convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff, his firm, and one of his clients. Several editorials in the Asheville Citizen-Times have called on Taylor to explain his relationship with Abramoff, which he has so far chosen not to do, other than to claim he did nothing wrong and wasn't going to give up the money he received from Abramoff.
"Even in this town, where huge sums are routinely paid as the price of political access, the figures are astonishing."
Howard Dean
"There are no Democrats who took money from Jack Abramoff, not one, not one single Democrat. Every person named in this scandal is a Republican. Every person under investigation is a Republican. Every person indicted is a Republican. This is a Republican finance scandal. There is no evidence that Jack Abramoff ever gave any Democrat any money. And we've looked through all of those FEC reports to make sure that's true." http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0601/08/le.01.html
Jack Abramoff
Jack Abramoff is an American former lobbyist and businessman. Convicted in 2006 of mail fraud and conspiracy, he was at the heart of an extensive corruption investigation that led to the conviction of White House officials J. Steven Griles and David Safavian, U.S. Representative Bob Ney, and nine...
spent millions of dollars to influence and entertain both Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
and Democrat politicians. Abramoff had a reputation for largesse considered exceptional even by Washington standards. In addition to offering many Republican members of Congress expensive free meals at his restaurant, Signatures
Signatures Restaurant
Signatures Restaurant is the Washington D.C. restaurant opened by Jack Abramoff. Expensive and lavishly appointed with expensive memorabilia, Villeroy & Boch chargers and Christofle flatware, Signatures was used by Abramoff in coordination with his skyboxes and foreign trips to spend money...
, Abramoff maintained four skyboxes at major sports arenas for political entertaining at a cost of over $1 million a year. Abramoff hosted many fundraisers at these skyboxes including events for Republican politicians publicly opposed to gambling, such as John Doolittle
John Doolittle
John 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...
. Abramoff gave over $260,000 in personal contributions to Republican candidates, politicians, and organizations, and funded numerous trips for politicians and staffers and gave none to Democrats.
From 2000 to 2006, funds and Leadership PAC
Political action committee
In 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...
s of numerous Republican candidates for Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
. Under his guidance, his Indian tribe clients loosened their traditional ties to the Democratic Party, giving Republicans two-thirds of the $2.9 million they donated to federal candidates since 2001. He raised $100,000 for the reelection of George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George 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....
, making him a Bush Pioneer
Bush Pioneer
Bush Pioneers are people who gathered $100,000 for George W. Bush's 2000 or 2004 presidential campaign. Two new levels, Bush Rangers and Super Rangers, were bestowed upon supporters who gathered $200,000+ or $300,000+, respectively, for the 2004 campaign, after the 2002 McCain–Feingold campaign...
. Abramoff and his wife gave $10,000 to the Bush-Cheney Recount Fund, shortly before Abramoff joined Greenberg Traurig
Greenberg Traurig
Greenberg Traurig LLP and Greenberg Traurig PA is an international law firm based in Miami, Florida.The firm has approximately 1,800 attorneys and governmental professionals in 32 locations in the United States, Europe and Asia. Its founding office is in Miami, Florida with its largest office in...
, which forgave over $314,000 in legal fees incurred by the Bush Campaign
George W. Bush presidential campaign, 2000
This article is about the 2000 presidential campaign of George W. Bush, winner of the 2000 presidential election and re-elected in the 2004 election.See George W. Bush for a detailed biography and information about his presidency, and George W...
in the 2000 Florida election recount
Florida election recount
The Florida election recount of 2000 was a period of vote re-counting that occurred following the unclear results of the 2000 United States presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore, specifically the Florida results. The election was ultimately settled in favor of George W. Bush when...
.
Of the approximately $85 million in tribal money entrusted to Abramoff, his employers, or his related organizations (see Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal
Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal
The Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal is a United States political scandal relating to the work performed by political lobbyists Jack Abramoff, Ralph E. Reed, Jr., Grover Norquist and Michael Scanlon on Indian casino gambling interests for an estimated $85 million in fees. Abramoff and Scanlon...
for more), over $4.4 million since 1999 were directed to at least 250 members of Congress, primarily Republicans in leadership positions or on relevant committees, and Democrats with standing connections to Native American interests (in a 2:1 GOP ratio). These contributions have since become tainted by their association with Abramoff's criminal behavior.http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0103/p01s03-uspo.html
Abramoff was associated with Tom DeLay
Tom DeLay
Thomas 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...
's and Grover Norquist
Grover Norquist
Grover Glenn Norquist is an American lobbyist, conservative activist, and founder and president of Americans for Tax Reform...
's K Street Project
K Street Project
The K Street Project is an effort by the Republican Party to pressure Washington lobbying firms to hire Republicans in top positions, and to reward loyal GOP lobbyists with access to influential officials. It was launched in 1995 by Republican strategist Grover Norquist and then-House majority...
to bring Republican dominance to Washington lobbying.
Skyboxes and St. Andrews
Through the front company Sports Suites LLC, Abramoff owned skyboxes at MCI Center and Camden Yards, and two at FedEx Field. Between 1999 and 2003, Abramoff hosted 72 events for members of Congress, all but eight for Republicans.On May 7, 2000, while Abramoff was actively lobbying against the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act
Internet Gambling Prohibition Act
The Internet Gambling Prohibition Act was a 1999 bill in the US Senate to ban Internet gambling. Passage of the bill was defeated, in large part, by the lobbying efforts of Jack Abramoff...
in the House of Representatives, Tom DeLay
Tom DeLay
Thomas 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...
attended a performance by the Three Tenors in a skybox at Washington's MCI Center. Several major donors to DeLay's Texans for a Republican Majority
Texans for a Republican Majority
Texans for a Republican Majority or TRMPAC is a general-purpose political action committee registered with the Texas Ethics Commission. It was founded in 2001 by former Republican Texas U.S. Rep...
PAC were also invited. It was later revealed that the skybox was leased and paid for by Jack Abramoff, at an estimated cost of $3,600–7,500. Although Federal law at the time did not require disclosure or reimbursement of this sort of gift-giving from a lobbyist to a PAC
Political action committee
In 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...
, the law was changed several months later, and the incident was cited in later criticisms of DeLay's acceptance of gifts.
On May 25, DeLay departed on a 10-day trip to Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
together with Abramoff and DeLay's aides Tony Rudy and Susan Hirschmann. In documents filed after the trip as required by House rules, DeLay claimed that the purpose of the trip was primarily "educational", to hold meetings with Conservative leaders in Britain, including former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, and that the total cost of the trip was $28,106. The filings indicated that the trip was being paid for by the "National Center for Public Policy Research", a think tank
Think tank
A think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...
then chaired by Jack Abramoff.
On the same date as DeLay's trip departure, Abramoff clients eLottery and the Mississippi Choctaw sent checks totaling $50,000 to the National Center for Public Policy Research. eLottery and the tribe both later claimed that they were unaware that the money was intended to pay for a trip.http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28252-2005Mar11.html
Details later emerged that many parts of the trip were paid for directly on Abramoff's credit card, and a card belonging to Edwin A. Buckham, another prominent lobbyist. Although the trip did include a meeting with Margaret Thatcher, according to detailed bills leaked to the Washington Post, the trip also included golf at the exclusive St. Andrews Golf Resort
Old Course at St Andrews
The Old Course at St Andrews is the oldest golf course in the world. The Old Course is a public course over common land in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland and is held in trust by The St Andrews Links Trust under an act of Parliament...
, theater tickets, and "superior" room accommodations at the London Four Seasons. The total cost of the trip was estimated at $70,000–120,000, of which approximately $12,000 was reimbursed to Abramoff by Preston Gates.
The length of the trip, expense, source of funding, and activities of the trip are significant as House ethics rules at the time prevented representatives from accepting gifts from private parties if it would "create the appearance of using public office for private gain." http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A12416-2005Apr23.html
Justice Department investigation
Currently, there is an investigation by the Justice Department to examine widespread claims and allegations of corruption of law-makers connected with Jack Abramoff. The investigation is attempting to determine and evaluate evidence on whether official acts were performed in exchange for campaign contributions or favors. According to a Washington Times story using an unnamed source working on the investigation, the Justice Department is focusing on the so-called "first-tier" law-makers: Sens. Conrad BurnsConrad Burns
Conrad Ray Burns is a former United States Senator from Montana. He is only the second Republican to represent Montana in the Senate since the passage in 1913 of the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and is the longest-serving Republican senator in Montana history.While in...
, Montana Republican; Byron L. Dorgan, North Dakota Democrat; and Minority Leader Harry Reid
Harry Reid
Harry Mason Reid is the senior United States Senator from Nevada, serving since 1987. A member of the Democratic Party, he has been the Senate Majority Leader since January 2007, having previously served as Minority Leader and Minority and Majority Whip.Previously, Reid was a member of the U.S...
, Nevada Democrat, along with Reps. J. D. Hayworth
J. D. Hayworth
John David Hayworth, Jr. , usually known as J. D. Hayworth, is an American politician who served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 2007 from Arizona's 5th congressional district...
, Arizona Republican, and Bob Ney
Bob Ney
Robert 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...
, Ohio Republican.http://www.wpherald.com/storyview.php?StoryID=20060111-093059-1441r
Politicians who have received direct contributions from Abramoff
FEC records show that Abramoff gave $172,933 for Republican candidates, $88,985 to Republican causes and nothing to Democratic candidates or organizations. A compilation of the complete FEC record and its analysis of contributions made by Jack Abramoff, only, independently confirmed the latter claim. http://scoop.epluribusmedia.org/story/2006/2/17/01135/9251 Some of the most prominent who have received such contributions and who may have other connections to Abramoff include:President George W Bush (R)
As a Bush Pioneer
Bush Pioneer
Bush Pioneers are people who gathered $100,000 for George W. Bush's 2000 or 2004 presidential campaign. Two new levels, Bush Rangers and Super Rangers, were bestowed upon supporters who gathered $200,000+ or $300,000+, respectively, for the 2004 campaign, after the 2002 McCain–Feingold campaign...
, Abramoff raised over $100,000 for the George W. Bush reelection campaign
George W. Bush presidential campaign, 2004
This article is about the presidential campaign of George W. Bush, the former President of the United States and winner of the 2004 Presidential Election. See George W. Bush for a detailed biography and information about his full presidency, and George W. Bush presidential campaign, 2000 for a...
in addition to the $6,000 which he personally contributed.http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=politicsNews&storyID=2006-01-04T153929Z_01_SIB452554_RTRUKOC_0_US-CRIME-ABRAMOFF-BUSH.xmlhttp://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060117/ap_on_go_pr_wh/white_house_abramoff;_ylt=AgN3zRwO.HpQ8PDKGKqPX82yFz4D;_ylu=X3oDMTA5aHJvMDdwBHNlYwN5bmNhdA
Although the White House insists President Bush never met Jack Abramoff outside of large gatherings, The Texas Observer
The Texas Observer
The Texas Observer is an American political newsmagazine published bi-weekly and based in Downtown Austin, Texas. The non-profit magazine is nonpartisan, but the publication has historically been an advocate for liberal politics...
reports that in May 2001 Abramoff "charged two of his clients $25,000 for a White House lunch date and a meeting with the President." http://www.texasobserver.org/showForPrint_new.asp?ArticleID=13
Time Magazine also reports having at least five White House publicity photos, or 'clicks' showing Bush together with Abramoff or Abramoff's family members.
U.S. Rep. & Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX)
Joining Abramoff on a vacation was Tom DeLay
Tom DeLay
Thomas 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...
, whose airfare to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in 2000 was charged to an American Express
American Express
American Express Company or AmEx, is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Three World Financial Center, Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Founded in 1850, it is one of the 30 components of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The company is best...
card issued to Abramoff, according to two sources who know Abramoff's credit card
Credit card
A credit card is a small plastic card issued to users as a system of payment. It allows its holder to buy goods and services based on the holder's promise to pay for these goods and services...
account number and to a copy of a travel invoice displaying that number. DeLay's expenses during the same trip for food, phone calls and other items at a golf course hotel in Scotland were billed to a different credit card also used on the trip by a second registered Washington lobbyist, Edwin A. Buckham, according to receipts documenting that portion of the trip.
U.S. Rep. & Former Chairman of the House Administration Committee Bob Ney (R-OH)
Bob Ney
Robert 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...
to ask him to push the legislation, the Tigua (by overnight mail) sent three checks to Ney's political committees, totaling $32,000. The exchange of campaign contributions in return for Ney's support of an amendment to reopen the Tigua's casino constituted bribery
Bribery
Bribery, 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...
.
Emails between Abramoff and the Tigua's political consultant show that Ney solicited the Tigua to pay for part of a 2002 golf trip to Scotland, knowing full well that solicitation of travel is specifically prohibited by House rules. Shortly after Ney returned from Scotland, he was scheduled to meet with members of the Tigua tribal council. Prior to that meeting, Abramoff reminded the Tigua that "for obvious reasons" the golf trip would not be mentioned at the meeting, but that Ney show his appreciation "in other ways", which was, Abramoff pointed out, just what the tribe wanted. Although the tribe never ended up paying for the golf trip, Ney's attempt to tie the gift of the trip to the legislative assistance the tribe was seeking likely violates federal criminal law.
Ney lied when he said he was "duped" by Abramoff and lied again on financial disclosure forms when he said that a nonprofit had paid for the trip. However, Safavian, in an email to his government employer seeking permission to go on the trip, states that Abramoff personally extended invitations to all the guests. Ney also said he made the trip to speak to Scottish parliamentarians. But the Scottish parliament wasn't in session at the time he was in Scotland.
Ney is also implicated in the separate Abramoff SunCruz
Jack Abramoff
Jack Abramoff is an American former lobbyist and businessman. Convicted in 2006 of mail fraud and conspiracy, he was at the heart of an extensive corruption investigation that led to the conviction of White House officials J. Steven Griles and David Safavian, U.S. Representative Bob Ney, and nine...
scandal.
Bob Ney is now setting up a legal defense fund for Abramoff.
Bob Ney was "Representative #1," in Abramoff's January 3 plea agreement http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/documents/abramoff_info_010306.pdf,http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10218892/site/newsweek/. On September 15, 2006 Ney's guilty plea for bribery related to Abramoff's clients and others was submitted to the court and made public.
U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson, CD1 (R-NM)
Congresswoman Heather Wilson received $1,000 in a direct contribution from Abramoff.
U.S. Rep. Tom Feeney, III (R-FL);
Congressman Tom Feeney
Tom Feeney
Thomas Charles "Tom" Feeney III, usually known as Tom Feeney , is an American politician from the state of Florida. He represented . He was defeated in the 2008 election by Democrat Suzanne Kosmas.-Early life:...
(R-FL
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
) joined other Republicans on the now infamous golf trip to Scotland with Abramoff in 2003.
U.S. Rep. Richard Pombo (R-CA)
In 2003, Abramoff gave Richard Pombo's
Richard Pombo
Richard William Pombo is a former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives, having represented California's 11th congressional district from 1993 to 2007...
(R-CA) PAC
Political action committee
In 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...
$5,000. Abramoff also gave $2,000, the maximum allowed, to Pombo's congressional campaign committee that same year.
On January 8, 2006, the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
reported that "Pombo helped one of Abramoff's clients, the Mashpee Indians in Massachusetts, gain official recognition as a tribe; the congressman received contributions from the lobbyist and the tribe in that instance."http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-banker8jan08,0,1764103.story?coll=la-home-headlines&track=morenews
U.S. Rep. Mike Ferguson (R-NJ)
New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
Republican Rep. Mike Ferguson
Mike Ferguson (New Jersey)
Michael A. "Mike" Ferguson is an American Republican Party politician who served as member of the United States House of Representatives representing New Jersey's 7th congressional district from 2001 to 2009.-Life and early career:...
is not going to give back the $1,000 he received in 2001, according to his spokeswoman Abby Bird. http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050818/NEWS03/508180435/1007/BUSINESS
U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ)
New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
Republican Rep. Frank LoBiondo
Frank LoBiondo
Frank A. LoBiondo is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1995. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district is at the southern end of New Jersey, and by far the biggest Congressional District in the state...
has planned or has given back the $1000 contribution he had received in 2001.
U.S. Rep. Jim Saxton (R-NJ)
New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
Republican Rep. Jim Saxton
Jim Saxton
Hugh James "Jim" Saxton is an American Republican Party politician. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives. He represented from 1984 to 1993. From 1993 to 2009, he represented .-Life:...
has given back the 1000-dollar contribution he had received from Abramoff.
U.S. Senator Conrad Burns (R-MT)
Conrad Burns
Conrad Burns
Conrad Ray Burns is a former United States Senator from Montana. He is only the second Republican to represent Montana in the Senate since the passage in 1913 of the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and is the longest-serving Republican senator in Montana history.While in...
(R-Montana) is an alleged recipient of illegal favors and $136,000 in campaign contributions from Abramoff. As the chair of the Interior Subcommittee on Appropriations, Burns received over $136,000 in campaign contributions through Abramoff and then directed $3 million to the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe of Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, an Abramoff client and one of the wealthiest tribes in the country from a program intended to help the neediest tribes fix dilapidated schools.
After initially claiming credit for the appropriation, Burns subsequently denied knowledge of it. "A lot of things happened that I didn't know about. It shouldn't have happened, but it did."
Although initially refusing to return Abramoff's donations,http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?tl=1&display=rednews/2005/12/13/build/state/23-burns-abramoff.inc Burns ultimately said that he would return or give away $150,000 he received from Abramoff and his clients.
In December, 2005, a leader of a tribe which gave $22,000 in campaign contributions to Burns in 2002 stated that they had done so solely at the request of Abramoff and believed the senator was part of “Abramoff's group”.
U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX)
(R-Texas) On November 12, 2001, Reed sent Abramoff an e-mail stating, "get me details so I can alert cornyn
John Cornyn
John 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....
and let him know what we are doing to help him" [sic]. Similarly, on November 13, Reed wrote "I strongly suggest we start doing patch-throughs to perry and cornyn [sic]. We're getting killed on the phone." Also, on January 7, 2002, Reed sent Abramoff an e-mail stating "I think we should budget for an ataboy for cornyn" [sic].
When Cornyn ran for Senate, Abramoff contributed $1,000, the maximum amount legally allowed. Cornyn, who has spoken out against gambling, also received $6,250 in contributions from Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
casino interests who oppose Indian gaming, some of which were made at the same time Cornyn was pushing to close the Tigua's casino.
New Jersey State Senator William Gormley (R-Atlantic, NJ)
New Jersey State Sen. William Gormley
William Gormley
William "Bill" Gormley is an attorney and former New Jersey State Senator who served from 1982 to 2007, where he represented the 2nd Legislative District....
, R-Atlantic, got $1,000 from Abramoff when Gormley was running for the U.S. Senate in 2000. http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050818/NEWS03/508180435/1007/BUSINESS
Abramoff also gave $5,000 to the New Jersey Republican State Committee. New Jersey Democratic Party Chairwoman Bonnie Watson Coleman
Bonnie Watson Coleman
Bonnie Watson Coleman is an American Democratic Party politician, who has served in the New Jersey General Assembly since 1998, where she represents the 15th Legislative District....
hopes this money will be returned to Abramoff. http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050818/NEWS03/508180435/1007/BUSINESS
According to an analysis by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics
Center for Responsive Politics
The Center for Responsive Politics is a non-profit, nonpartisan research group based in Washington, D.C. that tracks money in politics and the effect of money and lobbying activity on elections and public policy and maintains a public online database of its information.Their database...
, Abramoff has contributed more than $220,000 in New Jersey since 1995, almost exclusively to Republican candidates and committees and only a "smattering" of those who received donations from Abramoff have returned them. http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050818/NEWS03/508180435/1007/BUSINESS
U.S. Senator Jim Talent (R-MO)
U.S. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA)
In 2000, Abramoff gave $500 to Ed Royce
Ed Royce
Edward Randall "Ed" Royce is the U.S. Representative for , and previously the 39th, serving in Congress since 1993. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district lies in northern Orange County, including portions of Stanton, Cypress, Buena Park, Fullerton, Anaheim, Placentia, and Orange...
http://www.capitaleye.org/abramoff_recips_detail.asp?type=R&Name=Ed+Royce+(R-Calif).
Politicians with connections to Indian affairs and Greenberg Traurig
U.S. Rep. J.D.Hayworth (R-AZ)Rep.J.D. Hayworth the largest single recipient of Abramoff related money and co-chairman of the Congressional Native American Caucus, has received more than $150,000 from Indian tribes once represented by Abramoff.
U.S. Senator David Vitter (R-LA)
The Louisiana Jena Band of Choctaws offered testimony accusing Louisiana Senator David Vitter
David Vitter
David Vitter is the junior United States Senator from Louisiana and a member of the Republican Party. Previously, he served in the United States House of Representatives, representing the suburban Louisiana's 1st congressional district. He served as a member of the Louisiana House of...
(R) of being in cahoots with Abramoff and his attempts to stymie the tribe's casino plans.http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/washington/index.ssf?/base/news-1/112253289179960.xml
U.S. Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA)
Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) is chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, one of several committees investigating the scandal. From 2001 to 2004, Grassley received over $62,000 in donations from groups related to the scandal. In March 2002 he sent a letter to Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton opposing the Jena casino. In April he received a donation of $1000 from Abramoff's firm.
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/13189471.htm
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)
Between 2001 and 2004 Sen. Harry Reid
Harry Reid
Harry Mason Reid is the senior United States Senator from Nevada, serving since 1987. A member of the Democratic Party, he has been the Senate Majority Leader since January 2007, having previously served as Minority Leader and Minority and Majority Whip.Previously, Reid was a member of the U.S...
received $61,000 from donors with whom after the fact had hired Abramoff later on, Reid's office confirmed, and has decided not to return any donations. In a February 9, 2006 Washington Post article http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/09/AR2006020901208_pf.html, Reid's office acknowledged contacts with Greenberg Traurig
Greenberg Traurig
Greenberg Traurig LLP and Greenberg Traurig PA is an international law firm based in Miami, Florida.The firm has approximately 1,800 attorneys and governmental professionals in 32 locations in the United States, Europe and Asia. Its founding office is in Miami, Florida with its largest office in...
during this time.
Reid also intervened on government matters in ways that Abramoff's tribal clients might have deemed helpful, once opposing legislation on the Senate floor and four times sending letters pressing the Bush administration on tribal issues. Reid collected donations around the time of each action. Reid's office said none of the senator's actions were affected by donations or done for Abramoff.
Reid sent a letter they wrote on March 5, 2002, to Interior Secretary Gale Norton asking her to reject an application from the Jena Band of Choctaw Indians, which was seeking to open a casino outside its Louisiana reservation. An Abramoff client fighting the Jena casino, the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana, donated $5,000 to Reid's political action committee, the Searchlight Leadership Fund, the next day, at Abramoff's request. While Abramoff never donated directly to Reid, the lobbyist did instruct the tribe to send $5,000 to the fund. The Washington Post reported that Abramoff sent a list to the tribe titled "Coushatta Requests" recommending donations to campaigns or groups for 50 lawmakers. Alongside Reid's name, Abramoff wrote, "5,000 (Searchlight Leadership Fund) Senate Majority Whip." Reid was Democratic whip at the time.
About the same time, Reid sent a letter to the Interior Department helpful to the tribe, records show. His March 5, 2002, letter pressed the agency to reject a casino proposed by a potential rival to the Coushattas, the Jena Band of Choctaw Indians. Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) also signed the letter.
Future Abramoff coworker Edward Ayoob before he knew Abramoff worked for Reid from June 1997 to March 2002 variously as legislative counsel, tax counsel, appropriations manager, foreign affairs adviser and chief aide on judicial nominations, according to a biography on his employer's Web site. Ayoob in 2002 was hired as a lobbyist by Greenberg Traurig LLP, where his work included teaming with Abramoff and other lobbyists on client matters. According to the Greenberg Traurig website, Greenberg Traurig has over 1400 lobbyists.
Abramoff left Greenberg Traurig in March 2004 after the Senate and the FBI began investigating his activities while Ayoob left Greenberg Traurig in spring 2005. Ayoob is now a senior lobbyist at Barnes & Thornburg
Barnes & Thornburg
Barnes & 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...
LLP.
Reid downplayed Ayoob's role, saying Ayoob was a legislative assistant on his staff and not an adviser.
Ayoob and Reid met "from time to time" after Ayoob became a lobbyist, according to a Reid spokesperson. She said she did not know when they last spoke or how Reid would characterize their relationship today.http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2006/Jan-04-Wed-2006/news/5194840.html The Washington Post has reported that the aide later helped throw a fundraiser for Reid at Abramoff's firm that raised money from several of Abramoff's lobbying partners. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/09/AR2006020901208_pf.html, http://mediamatters.org/items/200602100013, http://mediamatters.org/items/200602100013, http://mediamatters.org/items/200602100001, http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/007651.php.
U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND)
Senator Byron Dorgan
Byron Dorgan
Byron Leslie Dorgan is a former United States Senator from North Dakota and is now a senior policy advisor for a Washington, DC law firm. He is a member of the North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party, the North Dakota affiliate of the Democratic Party. In the Senate, he was Chairman of the Democratic...
, the senior Democrat on the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, had received at least $79,300 from associates and clients who later hired Abramoff to work for them.
After several news articles appeared detailing the tribal donations http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/04/AR2005120401158.html, Dorgan wrote a news release replying to several claims he said were erroneous, including the allegation he received money directly from Abramoff. In the release, Dorgan said, "The fact is I have never met Abramoff and have never received a campaign contribution from him. If he was directing any of his clients to make a political contribution to me, it was done without my knowledge."http://dorgan.senate.gov/newsroom/record.cfm?id=249445
Dorgan says, in the release, that his activities in support of several tribal programs are continuing his trend of supporting Native American issues since being elected, and do not stem from Abramoff-related campaign contributions.
In December 2005, Dorgan returned tribal donations totaling $67,000.http://www.in-forum.com/articles/index.cfm?id=111260§ion=Newshttp://washingtontimes.com/national/20051213-111244-2879r.htm
U.S. Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA)
According to the FEC, Sen. Tom Harkin
Tom Harkin
Thomas Richard "Tom" Harkin is the junior United States Senator from Iowa and a member of the Democratic Party. He previously served in the United States House of Representatives ....
(D-Iowa) failed to account properly for two fundraisers he held in Abramoff’s skybox at Washington’s MCI Center in 2002 and 2003, according to filings with the FEC and the Iowa Democrat's spokeswoman.http://www.hillnews.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/102005/news3.html
Campaign contributions returned or donated
Many politicians have returned or donated all or part of the money received from Abramoff or his clients though only two lawmakers have given some of this money back to Native AmericansNative Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
.
According to CBS, over 100 lawmakers have donated Abramoff related money to charity. It is not yet clear if donating the money will give them tax advantages in a way that returning the money would not or if these charities have a history of donating money or aiding favorable lawmakers in other ways.
President George W. Bush (R)
On January 4, 2005 President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George 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....
announced that his campaign will donate $6000 to the American Heart Association
American Heart Association
The American Heart Association is a non-profit organization in the United States that fosters appropriate cardiac care in an effort to reduce disability and deaths caused by cardiovascular disease and stroke. It is headquartered in Dallas, Texas...
. The $6000 is the sum of the donations by Abramoff, Abramoff's wife, and the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan. The more than $100,000 in Bush Pioneer
Bush Pioneer
Bush Pioneers are people who gathered $100,000 for George W. Bush's 2000 or 2004 presidential campaign. Two new levels, Bush Rangers and Super Rangers, were bestowed upon supporters who gathered $200,000+ or $300,000+, respectively, for the 2004 campaign, after the 2002 McCain–Feingold campaign...
money raised by Abramoff, but not directly contributed by Abramoff will not be returned http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/01/04/lobbyist.fraud.ap/index.html.
Republican Governors Association
Republican Governors Association
The Republican Governors Association is a Washington, D.C.-based 527 organization founded in 1963, consisting of U.S. state and territorial governors affiliated with the Republican Party.Its Democratic Party counterpart is the Democratic Governors Association...
On January 12, 2006, The Boston Globe reported paraphrased Massachusetts Governor, Mitt Romney
Mitt Romney
Willard Mitt Romney is an American businessman and politician. He was the 70th Governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 and is a candidate for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination.The son of George W...
, saying that "the Republican Governors Association
Republican Governors Association
The Republican Governors Association is a Washington, D.C.-based 527 organization founded in 1963, consisting of U.S. state and territorial governors affiliated with the Republican Party.Its Democratic Party counterpart is the Democratic Governors Association...
would donate to charity $500,000 in contributions it received from a donor entwined in the Abramoff investigation."
U.S. Rep. J.D.Hayworth (R-AZ)
Rep.J.D. Hayworth, the largest single recipient of Abramoff related money and co-chairman of the Congressional Native American Caucus, has received more than $150,000 from Indian tribes once represented by Abramoff. Hayworth has said he will keep these donations because they were given independently of Abramoff's influence. He donated to charity $2,250 he got directly from Abramoff. The charity's name is unavailable, but was claimed to be related to Hurricane Katrina relief.
U.S. Senator Mel Martinez (R-FL)
Returned $2,500 contribution he received from Bob Ney
Bob Ney
Robert 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...
. He has so far refused to return a quarter million dollars raised at a fundraiser co-chaired by Abramoff http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/columnists/orl-maxwell2606jan26,0,4941874.column?coll=orl-news-col.
U.S. Senator Jim Talent (R-MO)
On October 26, Sen. Jim Talent
Jim Talent
James Matthes "Jim" Talent is an American politician and former senator from Missouri. He is a Republican and resided in the St. Louis area while serving in elected office. He identifies with the conservative wing of the Republican party, being particularly outspoken on judicial appointments,...
returned a $2,000 contribution made to his 2002 Senate campaign by Abramoff. Talent also returned a $1,000 contribution that Abramoff's former law firm made to Talent's re-election campaign earlier this year. http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/tallahassee/news/politics/13003623.htm
U.S. Senator Max Baucus (D-MT)
Sen. Max Baucus
Max Baucus
Max Sieben Baucus is the senior United States Senator from Montana and a member of the Democratic Party. First elected to the Senate in 1978, as of 2010 he is the longest-serving Senator from Montana, and the fifth longest-serving U.S...
gave $18,892 in Abramoff-related money he received to tribal colleges in Montana.
U.S. Senator Conrad Burns (R-MT)
Sen. Conrad Burns
Conrad Burns
Conrad Ray Burns is a former United States Senator from Montana. He is only the second Republican to represent Montana in the Senate since the passage in 1913 of the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and is the longest-serving Republican senator in Montana history.While in...
, the fourth largest recipient of Abramoff related money, some $60,000, announced that he would return or donate $150,000 he received from Abramoff and his clients. Via his spokesman he had previously claimed that the money could not be returned as the committee that received it was shut down and the money was "already spent".http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?tl=1&display=rednews/2005/12/13/build/state/23-burns-abramoff.inc
Burns attempt to make a $111,000 "donation" to the Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council was rejected by the tribe who said the money was tainted because it originally came from Abramoff and his clients.
Julia Doney, president of the Fort Belknap Indian Community Council, and a member of the tribal leaders council, explained that the tribes are "tired of being used" and don't want help Burns with his political troubles.
"it's tainted money" said Doney http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/13660751.htm
The Blackfeet Community College has also refused to accept money Burns because it came from Jack Abramoff. James St. Goddard, a Blackfeet council member, told The Great Falls Tribune
that taking the money "would have made it look like the money is clean. We do not want Mr. Burns to use the tribes any more for his political gain." http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060119/NEWS01
U.S. Rep. Dennis Rehberg (R-MT)
Rep. Dennis Rehberg returned $20,000.http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051221/NEWS01/512210303/1002
U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND)
On December 13, 2005 Sen. Byron Dorgan
Byron Dorgan
Byron Leslie Dorgan is a former United States Senator from North Dakota and is now a senior policy advisor for a Washington, DC law firm. He is a member of the North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party, the North Dakota affiliate of the Democratic Party. In the Senate, he was Chairman of the Democratic...
reported that he would return $67,000 in questionable donations from Abramoff's clients (the entirety of his "Abramoff-related money"). Dorgan was quoted as saying he would not "knowingly keep even one dollar in contributions if there is even a remote possibility that they could have been the result of any action Mr. Abramoff might have taken." http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/1205/285514.html
U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ)
On August 18, 2005, Rep. Frank LoBiondo
Frank LoBiondo
Frank A. LoBiondo is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1995. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district is at the southern end of New Jersey, and by far the biggest Congressional District in the state...
said he plans to give back the $1,000 contribution he received in 2001 from Abramoff.
U.S. Rep. Jim Saxton (R-NJ)
On August 18, 2005 Rep. Jim Saxton
Jim Saxton
Hugh James "Jim" Saxton is an American Republican Party politician. He was a member of the United States House of Representatives. He represented from 1984 to 1993. From 1993 to 2009, he represented .-Life:...
also returned a $1,000 contribution Abramoff made in 2001. http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050818/NEWS03/508180435/1007/BUSINESS
U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY)
On January 5, 2006, Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign announced that it would contribute $2,000 in donations from American Indian tribe clients of lobbyist Jack Abramoff to a New York charity. http://1010wins.com/topstories/local_story_005075047.html
U.S. Rep. & Former Chairman of the House Transportation Committee Ernest Istook (R-OK)
On January 9, 2006, Rep. Ernest Istook
Ernest Istook
Ernest James Istook Jr. is a former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from Oklahoma's 5th congressional district. He held his congressional seat for 14 years, completing seven terms in the House...
announced he is giving $23,000 that was donated to his re-election campaign or his PAC to the Boy Scouts of America. This is in addition to $6,000 in Abramoff-related donations given to Indian health research last month. In December 2005, Rep. Ernest Istook
Ernest Istook
Ernest James Istook Jr. is a former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from Oklahoma's 5th congressional district. He held his congressional seat for 14 years, completing seven terms in the House...
, said he would donate a $1,000 campaign donation he received from Abramoff to the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation for Indian health research. A $5,000 donation to a political action committee Istook was involved with will also be given to the OMRF.
http://www.normantranscript.com/cnhi/thenormantranscript/opinion/local_story_011002337?keyword=topstory
U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio(D-OR)
On January 9, 2006, the office of Rep. Peter DeFazio
Peter DeFazio
Peter Anthony DeFazio is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1987. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes Eugene, Springfield, Roseburg and part of Corvallis. As Oregon's most senior member of Congress, he is the dean of Oregon's House of Representatives delegation...
announced he will return $1,500 he received from out-of-state Indian tribes represented by disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff.http://www.newsreview.info/article/20060109/NEWS/60109001
U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor (R-VA)
As the Virginia Democratic Party called on all Virginia Republicans in Congress to dump Abramoff's contributions, Virginia Representative and chief deputy Republican whip Eric Cantor
Eric Cantor
Eric Ivan Cantor is the U.S. Representative for Virginia's 7th congressional district, serving since 2001. A member of the Republican Party, he became House Majority Leader when the 112th Congress convened on January 3, 2011...
announced that he would donate almost 10,000 of Abramoff money to charity on January 4.
U.S. Rep. Thomas M. Davis, III (R-VA)
At the same time, the Richmond Times-Dispatch
Richmond Times-Dispatch
The Richmond Times-Dispatch is the primary daily newspaper in Richmond the capital of Virginia, United States, and is commonly considered the "newspaper of record" for events occurring in much of the state...
reported that "Rep. Thomas M. Davis
Thomas M. Davis
Thomas Milburn "Tom" Davis III was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Virginia's 11th congressional district in Northern Virginia. Davis was considering a run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by five-term incumbent and fellow Republican John...
III, R-11th, planned to give to charity money from the Abramoffs and tribal clients, possibly totaling $4,500, according to an aide who was uncertain of the exact amount.
U.S. Rep. J. Randy Forbes (R-VA)
Rep. J. Randy Forbes planned to give to charity $1,000 from the Abramoffs;
U.S. Senator John W. Warner (R-VA)
and Sen. John W. Warner, $1,000, from an Indian tribe." http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD%2FMGArticle%2FRTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1128769109214&path=!news&s=1045855934842
Campaign contributions to be kept
Some politicians who received campaign contributions from Abramoff's clients, but not from Abramoff himself, have decided to keep donations.President George W. Bush (R)
On January 4, 2005 President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George 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....
announced that his campaign will donate $6000 to the American Heart Association
American Heart Association
The American Heart Association is a non-profit organization in the United States that fosters appropriate cardiac care in an effort to reduce disability and deaths caused by cardiovascular disease and stroke. It is headquartered in Dallas, Texas...
. The $6000 is the sum of the donations by Abramoff, Abramoff's wife, and the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan. The more than $100,000 in Bush Pioneer
Bush Pioneer
Bush Pioneers are people who gathered $100,000 for George W. Bush's 2000 or 2004 presidential campaign. Two new levels, Bush Rangers and Super Rangers, were bestowed upon supporters who gathered $200,000+ or $300,000+, respectively, for the 2004 campaign, after the 2002 McCain–Feingold campaign...
money raised by Abramoff, but not directly contributed by Abramoff will not be returned.
U.S. Rep. J.D.Hayworth (R-AZ)
Rep.J.D. Hayworth the largest single recipient of Abramoff related money and co-chairman of the Congressional Native American Caucus, has received more than $150,000 from Indian tribes once represented by Abramoff. These donations Hayworth has said he will keep because they were given independently of Abramoff's influence. He donated to charity $2,250 he got directly from Abramoff.
U.S. Senator Mel Martinez (R-FL)
Senator Martinez has so far decided not to return $250,000 raised at a fundraiser co-chaired by Abramoff.
U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA)
Sen. Patty Murray
Patty Murray
Patricia Lynn "Patty" Murray is the senior United States Senator from Washington and a member of the Democratic Party. Murray was first elected to the Senate in 1992, becoming Washington's first female senator...
received $35,000 from tribal donors who once used Abramoff's services. Murray will not return the donations, saying in a letter to the Seattle Times, "I will not rush to scapegoat those tribes who have already been victimized by Jack Abramoff."
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)
Sen. Harry Reid
Harry Reid
Harry Mason Reid is the senior United States Senator from Nevada, serving since 1987. A member of the Democratic Party, he has been the Senate Majority Leader since January 2007, having previously served as Minority Leader and Minority and Majority Whip.Previously, Reid was a member of the U.S...
received $61,000 from Indian tribes represented by Abramoff's firm, Reid's office confirmed, and has decided not to return any donations. http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2006/Jan-04-Wed-2006/news/5194840.html
U.S. Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY)
Rep. Charles Rangel of Harlem, who received $36,000 in donations from Abramoff clients, says he's keeping the money. A Rangel spokesman says Abramoff's guilty pleas won't affect Rangel's decision.
U.S. Rep. John Doolittle
John Doolittle
John 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...
(R-CA)
Rep. John Doolittle
John Doolittle
John 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...
, who is the fifth highest recipient of Abramoff-directed money and has gotten more money from this source than any two Democrats combined, has refused to return the donations, explaining that the money is his.
U.S. Rep. Randy Forbes (R-VA)
Rep. Randy Forbes
Randy Forbes
James Randy Forbes is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2001. He is a member of the Republican Party.-Early life, education and career:...
was not a major receiver of funds, but has kept the $2,000 from the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana, $1,000 from the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, and $1,000 from the Tigua Indian Reservation. http://www.capitaleye.org/abramoff_recips_detail.asp?type=R&Name=J%2E+Randy+Forbes+%28R%2DVa%29
U.S. Rep Charles H. Taylor
Charles H. Taylor
Charles Hart Taylor is an American politician; a Republican, he represented North Carolina's 11th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives. He began serving in 1991 and continued through January 3, 2007....
(R-NC)
Over several years, Taylor's campaign received approximately $3,000 total [need source] in donations from now convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff, his firm, and one of his clients. Several editorials in the Asheville Citizen-Times have called on Taylor to explain his relationship with Abramoff, which he has so far chosen not to do, other than to claim he did nothing wrong and wasn't going to give up the money he received from Abramoff.
Quotations
John McCainJohn McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
"Even in this town, where huge sums are routinely paid as the price of political access, the figures are astonishing."
Howard Dean
Howard Dean
Howard Brush Dean III is an American politician and physician from Vermont. He served six terms as the 79th Governor of Vermont and ran unsuccessfully for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination. He was chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 2005 to 2009. Although his U.S...
"There are no Democrats who took money from Jack Abramoff, not one, not one single Democrat. Every person named in this scandal is a Republican. Every person under investigation is a Republican. Every person indicted is a Republican. This is a Republican finance scandal. There is no evidence that Jack Abramoff ever gave any Democrat any money. And we've looked through all of those FEC reports to make sure that's true." http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0601/08/le.01.html