RKMBs Forums .::Important::. Politics and Current Events Abramoff sings the GOP blues

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Records of Abramoff's White House Visits

WASHINGTON - The Secret Service has agreed to turn over White House visitor logs that will show how often convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff met with Bush administration officials — and with whom he met.
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U.S. District Judge John Garrett Penn last Tuesday approved an agreement between the Secret Service and Judicial Watch, a public interest group, that requires the agency to produce records of Abramoff's visits from Jan. 1, 2001, to the present.

Judicial Watch filed suit in February after the Secret Service failed to respond to its request under the federal Freedom of Information Act.

Abramoff, who represented Indian tribes in their dealings with Washington politicians, once was one of the city's most successful lobbyists.

He pleaded guilty in January in Washington to federal charges stemming from an investigation into his ties with members of Congress and the Bush administration. He also pleaded guilty to fraud charges in Miami concerning a multimillion-dollar purchase of SunCruz Casinos gambling fleet in 2000.

Administration officials have refused to say how many times Abramoff, who raised at least $100,000 for President Bush's re-election, has been to the White House. Bush has said he doesn't know Abramoff.

Chris Farrell, Judicial Watch's director of investigations, said, "The documents will speak loud and clear on what Abramoff was doing in and out of the White House."

The visitor logs are to be delivered to Judicial Watch by May 10.

Bush's spokesman has said Abramoff attended "a few staff-level meetings" at the White House, as well as Hanukkah receptions in 2001 and 2002.

The president has said he does not know Abramoff personally. When a photo of Bush with Abramoff surfaced earlier this year, the president said he has his picture taken with "a lot of people." In the 2001 photo, Bush is shaking hands with a leader of an Indian tribe. Abramoff is in the background.

A few days after Bush made the remarks about the photo, Abramoff expressed surprise in e-mails to a magazine editor about the president's faulty memory. Abramoff told the Washingtonian magazine that he had met with Bush nearly a dozen times and that Bush knew him well enough to joke with him.
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Yahoo.com
I'm surprised Bush, Cheney, Libby & Rove didn't try to get these documents out to the public sooner

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Secret Service records of Abramoff visits to White House will be incomplete

WASHINGTON — The White House said Tuesday the list the Secret Service has been ordered to release concerning convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff's contacts with the Bush administration will be incomplete.

But spokesman Scott McClellan declined to say what is wrong with the Secret Service list, why it is inaccurate and whether it includes far fewer meetings than took place.

"I don't know exactly what they'll be providing, but they only have certain records and so I just wouldn't view it as a complete historical record," McClellan said.

Tom Mazur, a Secret Service spokesman, declined to comment on why the agency's records might be less than complete.
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wannabuyamonkey said:
You think Dems will come out of this looking clean?

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the G-man said:
Nope

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Pelosi Wants Ethics Panel to Probe Rep. Jefferson
WASHINGTON — Democratic Rep. William Jefferson should be investigated by the House ethics committee, Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said following the second guilty plea from a federal probe of alleged bribery involving the Louisiana congressman.

Pelosi, D-Calif., said at a news conference that she had not spoken directly to Jefferson about the investigation. "But he knows what is going on, and the ethics committee should investigate what is going on."

At the same time, Pelosi sought Thursday to differentiate the Jefferson case from what Democrats have labeled the "culture of corruption" linking the Republican majority and special interests represented by disgraced former lobbyist Jack Abramoff. "The Republicans are all tied together," she said. "Mr. Jefferson is his own behavior, he is responsible for it."
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Matter-eater Man said:
Your post illustrates the problem the GOP has with the Abramoff scandal. You edited out any reference to Republican Ney who is actually connected to the Abramoff!

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the G-man said:

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Matter-eater Man said:
Your post illustrates the problem the GOP has with the Abramoff scandal. You edited out any reference to Republican Ney who is actually connected to the Abramoff!

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So what are you saying?

That bribery and corruption unconnected to a single lobbyist is somehow more excusable?

Or that bribery and corruption by a democrat is somehow more excusable?

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Who is "Kit" Murtha?

He's John Murtha's brother -- a Washington lobbyist whose firm reeled in more than $20 million for its defense contractor clients in the 2004 Defense appropriations bill. And the Pennsylvania congressman is the ranking Democrat on the Defense appropriations subcommittee, which he also chaired for six years before Democrats lost the House in 1994.

The Hill reported in October that John Murtha is the top House recipient of campaign contributions from the defense industry for the past three years. As of the October 31, 2005 Federal Election Commission report, Murtha had received over $200,000 from defense firms in the 2006 election cycle, surpassing the next highest recipient by over $60,000.

Kit Murtha has been lobbying for defense firms since at least 1986, when he became Westinghouse's chief lobbyist in Harrisburg. In 1994, National Journal reported, Westinghouse made Kit Murtha its director of state and local government affairs, in which role he would also lobby the Pennsylvania congressional delegation in Washington. At that time, John Murtha chaired the defense appropriations subcommittee.

And what's more, Murtha's no stranger to congressional corruption scandals. Though eventually cleared by the House ethics committee (which means nothing legally), John Murtha was an unindicted co-conspirator in the Abscam scandal. (Abscam was an FBI sting operation of members of Congress from 1978 to 1980 in which one senator and five representatives were convicted of bribery and conspiracy.) As the Cybercast News Service recently detailed, Murtha was videotaped telling an undercover FBI agent, "I'm not interested. I'm sorry... at this point." When the House ethics committee cleared Murtha in 1981, CNS reported, the committee's lead counsel, E. Barrett Prettyman Jr., quickly resigned. When asked by Roll Call if he had resigned because of the committee's Murtha vote, he said that would be "a logical conclusion." Prettyman has otherwise declined to comment on the Murtha case.

An ethically suspect member of Congress, with close, personal connections to lobbyists whose clients are benefited by his committee? What more could the Washington Post need to begin sniffing around? And now that John Murtha's a nationally prominent politician, he should naturally attract closer scrutiny.

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wannabuyamonkey said:
You think Dems will come out of this looking clean?

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the G-man said:
Nope

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the G-man said:
Again, MEM, you seem to expect us to accept the premise that any improper activity is somehow excusable if it isn't connected to Abramoff.

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Furthermore, as noted in the AP article, even if Reid's conduct was not technically illegal, it appears to have been a violation of Congressional ethics rules.

Are you saying that such an ethics violation does not trouble you?

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Reversing course, Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid's office acknowledged Wednesday night he misstated the ethics rules governing his acceptance of free boxing tickets and has decided to avoid taking such gifts in the future.

The announcement came after The Associated Press confronted Reid's office early Wednesday with conclusions from several ethics experts that the Senate leader misstated congressional ethics rules in trying to defend his actions.

Senate ethics rules ...specifically warn against taking normally permissible gifts if the giver may be trying to influence official action.

"The test under congressional ethics rules in these circumstances is ...whether the gift creates the appearance that the gift is motivated by a desire to influence the member or gain favorable official action. If the gift creates such an appearance, it should not be accepted."

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Matter-eater Man could have said:
Interesting to see me not jump on this as opposed to the daily "he's guilty" attitude I display when it comes to President Bush and the GOP. Interesting but not surprising

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Matter-eater Man said:
Nope. I know some Dems are going down for being corrupt. For some reason I don't blame the Republicans.

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This was me on page one. I've said other things to that effect in other threads. So either your just forgetting those posts G-man or your being very insincere. No skin off my back either way

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the G-man said:
So why, when WBAM and I say basically the same thing, do you immediately jump to the defense of whichever democrat we are discussing?

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Matter-eater Man said:
Off hand, Clinton's adultry,

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Micheal Moore on certain aspects...

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& John Kerry wind surfing.

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FEC finds Frist violated law by failing to disclose $1.4 million personal loan


Earlier today, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) received notice from the Federal Election Commission (FEC) indicating that in response to a complaint filed by CREW, the FEC found that Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist's 2000 Senate campaign committee, Frist 2000, Inc. violated federal campaign finance laws, RAW STORY can report. Their release follows.

#

CREW's complaint alleged -- and the FEC agreed -- that Frist 2000, Inc. failed to disclose a $1.44 million loan taken out jointly by Frist 2000, Inc. and by Frist's 1994 campaign committee, Bill Frist for Senate, Inc. The result of the discrepancy was to make it appear that Frist 2000, Inc. had significantly more money that it actually had.
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Reed Concedes Defeat Ga. Lt. Gov Primary

ATLANTA (AP) -- Former Christian Coalition leader Ralph Reed, unable to overcome his ties to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, conceded defeat Tuesday in Georgia's Republican race for lieutenant governor.

It was a stunning turnaround for Reed, who was making his first bid for elective office after working for years as a behind-the-scenes campaign strategist and leading the Christian Coalition and the state Republican Party. He vied with state Sen. Casey Cagle for the GOP nomination in a primary race that appeared closer than expected in recent months because of Reed's work with Abramoff, who pleaded guilty to fraud and corruption earlier this year.

In attack ads and televised debates, Cagle hammered away at Reed's connections to Abramoff, and asked whether Reed could face criminal charges for accepting more than $5.3 million from two Indian tribes.

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the G-man said:
You always accuse the republicans of that. However, we've repeatedly cited examples of where the "GOP wing" of the board (myself, Wonder Boy, WBAM, PJP, etc) have criticized our own.

I honestly can't think of a single example where you've been anything but a cheerleader for the democrats.

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the G-man said:
Or is your posting an example of blind partisanship and feckless loyalty on the democrats' part which helps foster a (wait for it) culture of corruption?

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Law may complicate plans to replace Ney

The leading Republican candidate to replace scandal-scarred Rep. Bob Ney (news, bio, voting record) on the November ballot may be ineligible, party officials said Tuesday, complicating GOP efforts to assure a smooth transition for the fall campaign.

"As far as I know, I have a green light," said state Sen. Joy Padgett, as party lawyers reviewed a state law that bars politicians who lose one primary from entering another one during the same year.

The developments came one day after Ney announced he would abandon his race for re-election, acting under pressure from party officials who feared the loss of his seat. The six-term lawmaker has come under scrutiny for his ties to Jack Abramoff, a lobbyist at the center of a congressional corruption scandal.

Ney has not been charged, and denies all wrongdoing.

In stepping down, Ney threw his support to Padgett, who also said she had been encouraged by House Majority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, to run.

One Republican strategist, speaking on condition of anonymity, said lawyers had concluded Padgett was likely covered by the so-called political sore loser's law and thus would not be eligible to run.
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Washington — Ohio Republican Rep. Bob Ney has agreed with the Justice Department to plead guilty to at least one criminal charge in a deal that could be announced as early as Friday, Capitol Hill sources said Thursday.

The Justice Department and Ney’s attorney would not discuss whether a deal has been reached.

“I don’t have anything I can share with you right now,” said William Lawler, a lawyer for Ney. Ney’s congressional office did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

But Capitol Hill sources close to Ney said the plea agreement was ready to be publicized on Thursday, but an announcement was delayed to avoid influencing a special election in Ney’s congressional district.

Ney’s woes stem from dealings with convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff that became public in 2004. A Texas Indian tribe told the Senate Indian Affairs committee that Ney agreed to help them re-open a closed casino in exchange for political donations and a trip to Scotland to play golf.
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Abramoff fallout: Ney to resign; Prosecutors seek 30 to 37 months for ex-Bush aide Safavian

RAW STORY
Published: Friday October 13, 2006
The fallout from the Abramoff lobbying scandal continues, as Ohio Republican Congressman Bob Ney pleads guilty in federal court to conspiracy charges and prepares to resign from Congress, while at the same time a former Bush Administration official faces a possible two-and-a-half year prison sentence.

"Rep. Bob Ney's lawyer Mark Tuohey said in court this morning during his guilty plea hearing that Ney will not be resigning from Congress immediately – but rather 'in the next few weeks,'" Paul Kiel reports for TPM Muckraker.

The attorney said that Ney had "constituent issues he wanted to tie up" and wanted to ease the transition for his staff.

"The judge set Ney's sentencing for January 19th," Kiel writes. "Ney faces a maximum of ten years, but prosecutors have said that they'll recommend a sentence of 27 months."

"After announcing in August he would not run for re-election, Ney checked himself into an alcohol rehabilitation facility in mid-September and resigned his House committee posts," reports Roll Call. "But he did not give up his House seat at the time, despite calls from Democrats to do so."...

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wannabuyamonkey said:
You think Dems will come out of this looking clean?

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the G-man said:
Nope

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Judge Orders Cheney Visitor Logs Opened

Oct 19, 12:53 PM (ET)
By MATT APUZZO
WASHINGTON (AP) - A federal judge has ordered the Bush administration to release information about who visited Vice President Dick Cheney's office and personal residence, an order that could spark a late election season debate over lobbyists' White House access.

The Washington Post asked for two years of White House visitor logs in June but the Secret Service refused to process the request. Government attorneys called it "a fishing expedition into the most sensitive details of the vice presidency."

U.S. District Judge Ricardo M. Urbina ruled Wednesday that, by the end of next week, the Secret Service must produce the records or at least identity them and justify why they are being withheld.
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Throughout 1998, there was a controversy over Clinton's relationship with a young White House intern, Monica Lewinsky. Clinton initially denied the affair while testifying in the Paula Jones sexual harassment lawsuit. The opposing lawyers asked the president about it during his deposition. He stated "I have never had sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky. I've never had an affair with her." Four days later he also said, "There is not a sexual relationship, an improper sexual relationship, or any other kind of improper relationship."[6]

Clinton then appeared on national television on January 26 and stated: "Listen to me, I'm going to say this again. I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky." However, after it was revealed that investigators had obtained a semen-stained dress as well as testimony from Lewinsky, Clinton changed tactics and admitted that an improper relationship with Lewinsky had taken place: "Indeed I did have a relationship with Miss Lewinsky that was not appropriate. In fact, it was wrong. It constituted a critical lapse in judgment and a personal failure on my part for which I am solely and completely responsible."

Faced with overwhelming evidence, he apologized to the nation, agreed to pay a $25,000 court fine, settled his sexual harassment lawsuit with Paula Jones for $850,000 and was temporarily disbarred, for a period of five years, from practicing law in Arkansas and before the U.S. Supreme Court. He was not tried for perjury in a court. However, he did admit to "testifying falsely" in a carefully worded statement as part of a deal to avoid indictment for perjury.



The Lewinsky scandal
(Main article: Lewinsky scandal)
In 1998, as a result of allegations that he had lied during grand jury testimony regarding his sexual relationship with Monica Lewinsky, a young female White House intern, Clinton was the second U.S. president to be impeached by the House of Representatives. The House held no serious impeachment hearings before the 1998 mid-term elections: Republican candidates rarely mentioned the issue of impeachment, but Democrats generally came out strongly against impeachment. In spite of the allegations against the President, his party picked up seats in the Congress. The Republican leadership called a lame duck session in December 1998 to hold impeachment proceedings.

Although the House Judiciary Committee hearings were perfunctory and ended in a straight party line vote, the debate on the Floor of the House was lively. The two charges that were passed in the House (largely on the basis of Republican support but with a handful of Democratic votes as well) were for perjury and obstruction of justice. The perjury charge arose from Clinton's testimony about his relationship to Monica Lewinsky during a sexual harassment lawsuit brought by former Arkansas-state employee Paula Jones. The obstruction charge was based on his actions during the subsequent investigation of that testimony.


Impeachment trial in the Senate
(Main article: Impeachment of Bill Clinton)
The Senate refused to convene to hold an impeachment trial before the end of the old term, so the trial was held over until the next Congress. Clinton was represented by Washington powerhouse law firm Williams & Connolly.

On February 12, the Senate concluded a 21-day trial with the vote on both counts falling short of the Constitutional requirement of a two-thirds majority to convict and remove an office holder. The final vote was generally along party lines, with all of the votes to convict being cast by Republicans. On the perjury charge 55 senators voted to acquit, including 10 Republicans, and 45 voted to convict; on the obstruction charge the Senate voted 50-50.[68] Clinton, like the only other president to be impeached, Andrew Johnson, served the remainder of his term.

INDICTMENT

In 2002, Traficant was indicted on federal corruption charges for taking campaign funds for personal use. Again, he opted to represent himself, insisting that the trial was part of a vendetta against him dating to his 1983 trial. During the trial, Traficant frequently argued with the judge and screamed at prosecutors and witnesses. On April 15, he was convicted of ten felony counts including bribery, racketeering and tax evasion. Once convicted, he was stripped of his right to vote in the House under the chamber's rules. The House Ethics Committee recommended that he be expelled from the House, and on July 25 the House voted 420-1 to expel him. Gary Condit was the lone no vote and there were 9 members who voted 'present'. Traficant was the first representative to be expelled since Michael Myers's expulsion in 1980 as a result of the Abscam scandal.

After his expulsion, Traficant ran as an independent candidate for another term in the House while incarcerated in a federal prison in White Deer, Pennsylvania. He received 15 % of the vote (27,487 votes) and became one of only a handful of individuals in the history of the United States to run for a federal office from prison. The election was won by one of his former aides, Tim Ryan.

In March 2004, the Federal Bureau of Prisons moved Traficant to a federal prison near Ray Brook, New York. As of April 2005, the Federal Bureau of Prisons listed Traficant at the Federal Medical Center, Rochester, an administrative facility providing specialized mental health services. Traficant has taken up artwork while in prison [2].

The FBI set up "Abdul Enterprises, Ltd." in 1978 and FBI employees posed as Middle Eastern businessmen in videotaped talks with government officials, where they offered money in return for political favors to a non-existent sheik. A house (4407 W. St. NW, Washington, DC), along with a yacht in Florida and hotel rooms in Pennsylvania and New Jersey - was used to set up meetings between various public officials and a mysterious Arab sheik named Abdul who wanted:

• To purchase asylum in the U.S.
• To involve them in an investment scheme
• To get help in getting his money out of his country
  
  Much of the operation was directed by Melvin Weinberg, a convicted con artist who was hired by the FBI for that purpose. It was the first major operation by the FBI to trap corrupt public officials; up until 1970 only ten members of Congress had ever been convicted of accepting bribes.
  
  On February 2, 1980 reports surfaced that FBI personnel were targeting members of Congress in a sting operation. The media dubbed the operation Abscam after the name of the company.
  
  
  
  Of the thirty-one targeted officials, one senator, Harrison A. Williams (D-NJ), and five members of the House of Representatives (John Jenrette (D-SC), Richard Kelly (R-FL), Raymond Lederer (D-PA), Michael "Ozzie" Myers (D-PA) and Frank Thompson (D-NJ)) were convicted of bribery and conspiracy in separate trials in 1981. Another, John M. Murphy (D-NY), was convicted of a lesser charge. While most of the politicians resigned, Myers had to be expelled and Williams did not resign until the vote on his expulsion was almost due. Five other government officials were convicted, including the mayor of Camden, New Jersey, Angelo Errichetti; members of the Philadelphia City Council; and an inspector for the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

In May 2001, Condit became the subject of national news coverage, after the disappearance of Chandra Levy, a Washington, D.C. intern originally from Condit's district. Condit admitted having an affair with Levy. [1]

While Condit was never an official suspect in the disappearance, Levy's family (and subsequently the national media) suspected that Condit was withholding important information about the intern's disappearance. Suspicion was deepened when Condit tried to avoid answering direct questions during a televised interview with news anchor Connie Chung on August 23, 2001. This followed news reports that Condit had an affair with flight attendant, Anne Marie Smith .[2]

He faded from the news following 9/11, only to reappear during his announcement to run for an 8th term on December 7.

Condit lost the primary elections in March 2002 to his former aide, then-Assemblyman Dennis Cardoza, and left Congress at the end of his term in January 2003.

After an extensive search, Levy's remains were discovered a year after her disappearance by a man hunting for turtles with his dog in a secluded area of Rock Creek Park in Washington, D.C. In May 2002 a medical examiner officially declared that Levy's death was the result of homicide. The case remains unsolved.

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Wonder Boy said:




Bill Clinton

Throughout 1998, there was a controversy over Clinton's relationship with a young White House intern, Monica Lewinsky. Clinton initially denied the affair while testifying in the Paula Jones sexual harassment lawsuit. The opposing lawyers asked the president about it during his deposition. He stated "I have never had sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky. I've never had an affair with her." Four days later he also said, "There is not a sexual relationship, an improper sexual relationship, or any other kind of improper relationship."[6]

Clinton then appeared on national television on January 26 and stated: "Listen to me, I'm going to say this again. I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky." However, after it was revealed that investigators had obtained a semen-stained dress as well as testimony from Lewinsky, Clinton changed tactics and admitted that an improper relationship with Lewinsky had taken place: "Indeed I did have a relationship with Miss Lewinsky that was not appropriate. In fact, it was wrong. It constituted a critical lapse in judgment and a personal failure on my part for which I am solely and completely responsible."

Faced with overwhelming evidence, he apologized to the nation, agreed to pay a $25,000 court fine, settled his sexual harassment lawsuit with Paula Jones for $850,000 and was temporarily disbarred, for a period of five years, from practicing law in Arkansas and before the U.S. Supreme Court. He was not tried for perjury in a court. However, he did admit to "testifying falsely" in a carefully worded statement as part of a deal to avoid indictment for perjury.



The Lewinsky scandal
(Main article: Lewinsky scandal)
In 1998, as a result of allegations that he had lied during grand jury testimony regarding his sexual relationship with Monica Lewinsky, a young female White House intern, Clinton was the second U.S. president to be impeached by the House of Representatives. The House held no serious impeachment hearings before the 1998 mid-term elections: Republican candidates rarely mentioned the issue of impeachment, but Democrats generally came out strongly against impeachment. In spite of the allegations against the President, his party picked up seats in the Congress. The Republican leadership called a lame duck session in December 1998 to hold impeachment proceedings.

Although the House Judiciary Committee hearings were perfunctory and ended in a straight party line vote, the debate on the Floor of the House was lively. The two charges that were passed in the House (largely on the basis of Republican support but with a handful of Democratic votes as well) were for perjury and obstruction of justice. The perjury charge arose from Clinton's testimony about his relationship to Monica Lewinsky during a sexual harassment lawsuit brought by former Arkansas-state employee Paula Jones. The obstruction charge was based on his actions during the subsequent investigation of that testimony.


Impeachment trial in the Senate
(Main article: Impeachment of Bill Clinton)
The Senate refused to convene to hold an impeachment trial before the end of the old term, so the trial was held over until the next Congress. Clinton was represented by Washington powerhouse law firm Williams & Connolly.

On February 12, the Senate concluded a 21-day trial with the vote on both counts falling short of the Constitutional requirement of a two-thirds majority to convict and remove an office holder. The final vote was generally along party lines, with all of the votes to convict being cast by Republicans. On the perjury charge 55 senators voted to acquit, including 10 Republicans, and 45 voted to convict; on the obstruction charge the Senate voted 50-50.[68] Clinton, like the only other president to be impeached, Andrew Johnson, served the remainder of his term.

James Traficant

INDICTMENT

In 2002, Traficant was indicted on federal corruption charges for taking campaign funds for personal use. Again, he opted to represent himself, insisting that the trial was part of a vendetta against him dating to his 1983 trial. During the trial, Traficant frequently argued with the judge and screamed at prosecutors and witnesses. On April 15, he was convicted of ten felony counts including bribery, racketeering and tax evasion. Once convicted, he was stripped of his right to vote in the House under the chamber's rules. The House Ethics Committee recommended that he be expelled from the House, and on July 25 the House voted 420-1 to expel him. Gary Condit was the lone no vote and there were 9 members who voted 'present'. Traficant was the first representative to be expelled since Michael Myers's expulsion in 1980 as a result of the Abscam scandal.

After his expulsion, Traficant ran as an independent candidate for another term in the House while incarcerated in a federal prison in White Deer, Pennsylvania. He received 15 % of the vote (27,487 votes) and became one of only a handful of individuals in the history of the United States to run for a federal office from prison. The election was won by one of his former aides, Tim Ryan.

In March 2004, the Federal Bureau of Prisons moved Traficant to a federal prison near Ray Brook, New York. As of April 2005, the Federal Bureau of Prisons listed Traficant at the Federal Medical Center, Rochester, an administrative facility providing specialized mental health services. Traficant has taken up artwork while in prison [2].

Abscam scandal

The FBI set up "Abdul Enterprises, Ltd." in 1978 and FBI employees posed as Middle Eastern businessmen in videotaped talks with government officials, where they offered money in return for political favors to a non-existent sheik. A house (4407 W. St. NW, Washington, DC), along with a yacht in Florida and hotel rooms in Pennsylvania and New Jersey - was used to set up meetings between various public officials and a mysterious Arab sheik named Abdul who wanted:


• To purchase asylum in the U.S.
  
• To involve them in an investment scheme
  
• To get help in getting his money out of his country
  
  Much of the operation was directed by Melvin Weinberg, a convicted con artist who was hired by the FBI for that purpose. It was the first major operation by the FBI to trap corrupt public officials; up until 1970 only ten members of Congress had ever been convicted of accepting bribes.
  
  On February 2, 1980 reports surfaced that FBI personnel were targeting members of Congress in a sting operation. The media dubbed the operation Abscam after the name of the company.
  
  
  
  Of the thirty-one targeted officials, one senator, Harrison A. Williams (D-NJ), and five members of the House of Representatives (John Jenrette (D-SC), Richard Kelly (R-FL), Raymond Lederer (D-PA), Michael "Ozzie" Myers (D-PA) and Frank Thompson (D-NJ)) were convicted of bribery and conspiracy in separate trials in 1981. Another, John M. Murphy (D-NY), was convicted of a lesser charge. While most of the politicians resigned, Myers had to be expelled and Williams did not resign until the vote on his expulsion was almost due. Five other government officials were convicted, including the mayor of Camden, New Jersey, Angelo Errichetti; members of the Philadelphia City Council; and an inspector for the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

Gary Condit/Chandra Levy

In May 2001, Condit became the subject of national news coverage, after the disappearance of Chandra Levy, a Washington, D.C. intern originally from Condit's district. Condit admitted having an affair with Levy. [1]

While Condit was never an official suspect in the disappearance, Levy's family (and subsequently the national media) suspected that Condit was withholding important information about the intern's disappearance. Suspicion was deepened when Condit tried to avoid answering direct questions during a televised interview with news anchor Connie Chung on August 23, 2001. This followed news reports that Condit had an affair with flight attendant, Anne Marie Smith .[2]

He faded from the news following 9/11, only to reappear during his announcement to run for an 8th term on December 7.

Condit lost the primary elections in March 2002 to his former aide, then-Assemblyman Dennis Cardoza, and left Congress at the end of his term in January 2003.

After an extensive search, Levy's remains were discovered a year after her disappearance by a man hunting for turtles with his dog in a secluded area of Rock Creek Park in Washington, D.C. In May 2002 a medical examiner officially declared that Levy's death was the result of homicide. The case remains unsolved.

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r3x29yz4a said:...
i'm never clear on why a man cheating on his wife and then lying about it is somehow a justification for a man stealing millions from indian tribes and getting favors from political cronies.

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