Archived Article Establishes that Abramoff Was Not a Bipartisan Problem

Billmon provides a wonderful summary of statements regarding Jack Abramoff and his connection to the Republican Party, as well as a few choice efforts to fan some of the stink over to the Democrats, most notably this one by George Bush:

I'm not, frankly, all that familiar with a lot what's going on over at Capitol Hill, but it seems like to me that [Abramoff] was an equal money dispenser, that he was giving money to people in both political parties.

However, adding to Billmon’s theme, I found this great article in the archives of Washington Business Forward. Published in the Nov/Dec 2002 issue, the article was written well before Abramoff’s current legal predicament by an obviously conservative magazine. It is a glowing, almost bragging, account of Abramoff’s successes, complete with extensive quotes from Abramoff himself. It is accessed through a link entitled “The Right Wing's Right-Hand.” on their special section page entitled “Government, Inc.” A bipartisan problem? Here are a few choice snippets (with my emphasis) to help you decide.

The Teaser:

Abramoff has emerged as an insider’s insider, with close ties to top Republicans and a hefty book of business. But even with his ally Tom DeLay poised to become House Majority Leader, Abramoff’s still found time to go into the restaurant business. Don’t bet against him. (Now there's a hot tip I'll bet some conservatives wish they had passed)

The Money Quote:

Along with (Haley) Barbour, former Republican Hill staffer and George W. Bush confidante Ed Gillespie, ex-Rep. Bill Paxon (R-NY), Tom Korologos of Timmons and Co., and one-time White House Chief of Staff Kenneth Duberstein, Abramoff is considered among the elite of GOP lobbyists. “He’s definitely in the top tier,” says Dan Cohen of Loeffler, Jonas & Tuggey, himself a former top House Republican staffer on Capitol Hill. “He’s a real power player, but he’s also one of the few guys on the right who has real credibility when he says he won’t work for just anybody.” It doesn’t hurt that he raises between $4 million and $6 million annually for Republicans, and makes sure his clients give millions more to the party and prominent conservative groups that help mold opinion within the GOP. He hires only Republicans, although Greenberg Traurig has plenty of Democrats on its payroll . . .“Jack Abramoff is the face of Republican lobbyists in the future,” says one K Street influence peddler. “He can get anybody to do just about anything he wants.”

Some Background:

Then came a pivotal moment for Abramoff — the November 1994 Republican Revolution. Led by former Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA), the GOP took control of the House for the first time in 40 years, and overnight, every lobbying firm in town desperately wanted people who were tight with the newly installed Republican leadership. Thanks to his own strong conservative credentials, Abramoff was able to make the transition easily. “When the Republicans won the Congress, my across-the-street neighbor was the managing partner of Preston Gates,” he recalls. “I think a lot of K Street law firms were a little nervous about conservatives. When I went to work at Preston Gates, I think they looked at me like some exhibit from the zoo.”

(snip)

The crucial relationship with DeLay began well before 1994 . . . We had a lot of mutual friends as well,” says Abramoff of DeLay. . . .“The DeLay thing is played up a lot in terms of our relationship. The fact is when I pitch a client, I never mention Tom DeLay. I never say I know Tom DeLay.” Abramoff says he’s just as close to other Republicans, like Reps. Roy Blunt (MO), Christopher Cox (CA), John Doolittle (CA), Phil Crane (IL) and Dana Rohrabacher (CA).

On the Lighter Side:

Abramoff has other plans in the works. He wants to get back into the movie business, an industry he left eight years ago to become a lobbyist. Abramoff hopes to form a production company soon and turn out a couple of sports-themed movies for children each year. “There’s an absence of sports movies for kids that aren’t childish,” Abramoff says. “There’s a real niche there I think nobody is doing.”
Abramoff says he’s “looking at an incredibly well-done script” by a British director about cricket but hasn’t made a final decision yet about whether to go ahead with the project. He envisions a Rocky-like film with poor kids matched against their wealthy counterparts battling for dominance on the cricket pitch. (I’m guessing that his “feel good” ending involves the rich kids triumphing over the adversity of playing the welfare-aided poor kids)

(snip)

His Judaism is clearly central to his identity, and it’s becoming central to his efforts in Greater Washington, too. Abramoff is starting a school catering to Orthodox Jewish boys in the seventh to eleventh grades called the Eshkol Academy, and getting it up and running is eating up his normally very expensive time . . . This new academy will “combine the aspects of a fine prep school with a yeshiva. This is something unheard of in the Orthodox world,” Abramoff says . . . Beyond the political world, it’s Abramoff himself who’s a bit unheard of, but that won’t last for long. (Little did they know!)

Funny how when Abramoff was simply an up-and-coming power broker who was raking in piles of money, the Republicans wanted to claim him as their own! Free of spin, I’m guessing that this is a much more accurate depiction of Mr. Abramoff’s partisanship than the Republicans now want us to believe. I would have expected it to be purged from the archives by now!

Front Paged at ePluribus Media