Say Anything Blog

I am so surprised!

WASHINGTON - The curtain lifts this morning on the results of Arizona Sen. John McCain's pledge two years ago to get to the bottom of an $82 million Indian lobbying scandal.

But the report being released today by McCain and his Senate Indian Affairs Committee may read more like a summer mystery novel with chapters missing than a tell-all account of former GOP lobbyist Jack Abramoff's corrupt influence in Washington.

McCain's committee is expected to steer clear of any money trails that lead from the now-convicted Abramoff to some of McCain's colleagues in Congress . . .

That includes the senior Democrat on the Indian Affairs Committee, Sen. Byron Dorgan of North Dakota. He has returned $67,000 in donations from tribes previously represented by Abramoff, received during the same period he was pushing for projects sought by Indian tribes.

Dorgan and other legislators are skating free, but that isn't stopping McCain from going after the Bush administration:

McCain's committee is not expected to elaborate on such dealings between Abramoff and individual lawmakers. But it is likely to delve into possible improprieties between Abramoff and current and former Bush administration officials in the Department of Interior, the subject of much testimony during the hearings.

But of course.

Really, though, is anyone surprised that this inquiry (by a committee that Dorgan co-chairs) failed to address Dorgan's connections to Jack Abramoff? In December of last North Dakota's biggest newspaper let Dorgan off the hook on Abramoff after he returned the money. Now Dorgan's committee, which he has refused to step down from, is ignoring Dorgan's connections to Abramoff.

Pretty convenient, no?

Here's what we know about Dorgan and Abramoff:

1. The Louisiana Coushattas has stated that Jack Abramoff directed them to make a $5,000 donation to Dorgan after the Senator wrote a letter in favor of some education legislation the tribe wanted.



2. In March of 2001 Dorgan had a fundraiser organized by one of Abramoff's lobbyists (Michael Smith) at Abramoff's suite at the MCI center.



3. Dorgan wrote a letter (along with Senator Conrad Burns) supporting exempting the Saginaw Michigan Choctaw law from federal regulations that would have prevented them from getting an education grant. Nine days after writing the letter Dorgan got $2,000 from that Choctaw tribe.



4. Dorgan collected $11,500 from Abramoff employee Michael Smith, who was representing the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe of Massachusetts right around the time Dorgan was pressuring to have that tribe given official federal recognition so that they could build a casino.



5. Dorgan has flat-out lied about taking money from Abramoff's firm. In addition to attending the MCI Center fundraiser organized by Abramoff employee Michael Smith and accepting $11,500 in contributions from the same (as detailed above) it has also been reported that Dorgan accepted at least part of $20,000 in contributions directly from Abramoff's firm (the rest coming from Indian tribes). This is in direct contradiction to an official statement from Dorgan claiming that he "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."
   
   Baloney. Dorgan took money directly from Abramoff's firm and directly from Abramoff's employees.

Strangely (or perhaps not-so-strangely), none of this stuff was deemed worthy of attention by McCain's committee. Which Dorgan co-chairs and didn't see the need to recuse himself from. The Fargo Forum even went so far as to say:

...there has been no credible suggestion of a quid pro quo regarding tribal donations to Dorgan – now or in his long career in the House and Senate.

Right. Just big donations made to Dorgan by Abramoff clients right around the same time he took favorable action for those same clients.

Again, very convenient.