Jack Abramoff

GAMING & WARGAMES

Jack Abramoff admitted his GOP operatives “wargamed” Siegelman to defeat his run for Governor in Alabama and put Bob Riley(R) into that office to protect the gambling interests of Mississippi.

The Senate Indian Affairs Committee issued a lengthy report . . . [saying] that Mississippi Choctaw Chief Phillip Martin had spent the money “to get the governor of Alabama [Bob Riley] elected to keep gaming out of Alabama so it wouldn’t hurt . . . his market in Mississippi.” More at Decatur Daily.

THE INDIAN LOBBYING SCANDAL

The Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal is a political scandal relating to the work performed by lobbyists/GOP operatives Jack Abramoff, Ralph E. Reed, Jr., Grover Norquist and Michael Scanlon on behalf of Indian casino gambling interests for an estimated $85 million in fees. Two governors agreed to protect Mississippi gambling interests at the expense of their own state’s economic interests in exchange for sizable illegal campaign contributions: Haley Barbour of Louisiana and Bob Riley of Alabama.

Former Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff was sentenced to five years and 10 months in prison on March 29, 2006 after pleading guilty to fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to bribe public officials.

CAPITOL CRIMES

After 3½ years in jail, Jack Abramoff was released and wrote a tell-all biography, Capitol Punishment, in which he admits that he laundered $20 million into front organizations to defeat Don Siegelman.

“GIMME FIVE” - INVESTIGATION OF TRIBAL LOBBYING

The Committee on Indian Affairs - 2006 PDF (Bob Riley & the Governor's race mentioned on page 48.)

Quid Pro Quo for Governor Riley

Shut Down Poarch Creek Gambling Operation PDF (2 pages)

Mississippi Choctaw's - Abramoff's Largest Lobbying Client

The Choctaw's Donations were illegally laundered through organizations like Tom DeLay's U.S. Family Network. Learn more at WaPo.

Washington Post: Pulitzer Prize Investigative Reporting

The Washington Post's Susan Schmidt, James V. Grimaldi and R. Jeffrey Smith won the Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting of the Jack Abramoff scandal. Read their coverage here:

Review of Capitol Crimes

Mary Orndorff Troyan writes for AP that "He [Abramoff] devoted four pages of his new book to his work in Alabama. The heart of the scheme was stealth -- funneling money from gambling interests in Mississippi through nonprofits and into anti-gambling groups to help defeat the competition across the state line." They considered Don Siegelman's proposed education lottery a serious threat to the Mississippi Choctaw's bottom line. Read more at Al.com.