Thursday, January 05, 2006

Let's Remember Whose Scandal This Is

Here's a link (via Andrew Sullivan) to pass along to your friends who say that the Jack Abramoff scandal is bipartisan and that "they're all involved." It's the complete list of Abramoff's campaign contributions compiled by the Federal Election Commission--some 200-odd donations totalling $261,918--and not a single Democratic recipient among 'em.

Caveat: Don't be confused by the fact that some clients of Abramoff's lobbying firm (including the famous Indian tribes) gave donations to some Democrats. As this article from The Washington Post explains,

Most lobbying firms here are bipartisan, to give their clients access to key lawmakers of both major parties. Abramoff's group was no exception. Although he was recognized as a Republican lobbyist who was close to DeLay and other party leaders, Abramoff was careful to add at least two Democratic lobbyists to his group during his five years at Greenberg Traurig. By the end, seven of his lobbyists were Democrats.

So some Democrats (including Harry Reid and Hilary Clinton) received campaign donations from the same Indian tribes that hired Abramoff. This is a far cry from beind part of the money-laundering system that Abramoff set up to benefit the Republican national machine and in particular his close friend Tom DeLay or the fraud and influence-peddling charges to which Abramoff has pleaded guilty.

But typically enough networks like MSNBC are lumping it all together under the heading of "Abramoff-related giving," leaving the impression that Democrats and Republicans are equally involved. It's just not so.

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