CNN/AP: Report: Abramoff used Grover Norquist to distribute funds

[DeepModem Mom]

Report: Abramoff used Norquist to distribute funds
Anti-tax advocate acted as a buffer for lobbyist's activities
Friday, June 23, 2006


Jack Abramoff arrives at the Federal Justice Building in Miami, Florida, in January to plead guilty to fraud.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- In Jack Abramoff's world, prominent Washington tax-cut advocate Grover Norquist was a godsend.

Moving money from a casino-operating Indian tribe to Ralph Reed, the Christian Coalition founder and professed gambling opponent, was a problem. Lobbyist Abramoff turned to his longtime friend Norquist, apparently to provide a buffer for Reed.

The result, according to evidence gathered by the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, was that Norquist's Americans for Tax Relief became a conduit for more than a million dollars from the Mississippi Choctaw to Reed's operation, while Norquist, a close White House ally, took a cut.

Without citing any specific group, the Senate panel found numerous instances of nonprofit organizations that appeared to be involved in activities unrelated to their mission as described to the Internal Revenue Service.

Thursday's 373-page Senate report on Abramoff's influence-peddling said some nonprofits channeled money from one entity to another in an effort to obscure the source of funds, the eventual use of funds and to evade tax liability....

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/06/23/lobbyist.probe.ap/index.html

[Virginia Dare]

1. Happy Friday everybody!!!

Looks like some more criminal Repukes are going down!

:bounce: :toast:

[sutz12]

3. We can only hope. nt

[Norquist Nemesis]

2. Happy feet! I've got those happy feet!

:toast:

[The_Casual_Observer]

4. Norquist has been an extremely influential member of jr's inner

circle of advisers regarding his social agenda.

[Julius Civitatus]

19. Norquist is the ideological leader of the new right

he's the guy that comes out with the new social engineering ideas, always based on the worst social Darwinism they can come up with.

Norquist provides the ideological base for the new right (compassionate conservatism, no taxes, fuck education, fuck the poor, fuck the elderly, punishment of the poor, Reagan is god, the rich need to be rewarded by the state, etc).

All the crazy neo-Republican crap that has come down in the last decade of so is the work of this prick.

[The_Casual_Observer]

21. It's fitting that he has been implicated in some cheap

scam. He is simply a little scroungy pig-man, the sort that bush attracts.

[katty]

62. yup, Grover and Rover!

[Hobo]

5. Frog March......I want a Frog March...eom

-Hobo

[Rose Siding]

38. No jail time for this, according to TPM Muck

Grover Faces Ruin, But No Jail Time
...
I called up Melanie Sloan, a former federal prosecutor and the Executive Director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. Her group filed a IRS complaint against ATR back in March.

The answer, it turns out, is no. The worst that could happen to Norquist, according to Sloan, would be for the IRS to crack down on ATR. His group would lose its 501(c)3 status. That would result in hefty fines, and his donors would be mighty upset, since their contributions would suddenly become taxable. One of the pillars of the modern conservative movement would be disgraced. Pretty bad. But there's not really a criminal case to make against Norquist. No jail time.

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/000988.php

[Carni]

Refresh my meory wasn't Grover tied to some 911 terror funded org?

It's been a while since I have attempted to follow the 911 money but I seem to recall Norquist being involved with CAIR (was that the charity?)

Anyone remember any more details on this?

[acmejack]

13. Your memory is excellent!

Here is an article from the New Republic:
snip>

On the afternoon of September 26, George W. Bush gathered 15 prominent Muslim- and Arab-Americans at the White House. With cameras rolling, the president proclaimed that "the teachings of Islam are teachings of peace and good." It was a critically important moment, a statement to the world that America's Muslim leaders unambiguously reject the terror committed in Islam's name.

Unfortunately, many of the leaders present hadn't unambiguously rejected it. To the president's left sat Dr. Yahya Basha, president of the American Muslim Council, an organization whose leaders have repeatedly called Hamas "freedom fighters." Also in attendance was Salam Al-Marayati, executive director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, who on the afternoon of September 11 told a Los Angeles public radio audience that "we should put the State of Israel on the suspect list." And sitting right next to President Bush was Muzammil Siddiqi, president of the Islamic Society of North America, who last fall told a Washington crowd chanting pro-Hezbollah slogans, "America has to learn if you remain on the side of injustice, the wrath of God will come." Days later, after a conservative activist
confronted Karl Rove with dossiers about some of Bush's new friends, Rove replied, according to the activist, "I wish I had known before the event took place."

If the administration was caught unaware, it may be because they placed their trust in one of the right's most influential activists: Grover Norquist. As president of Americans for Tax Reform, Norquist is best known for his tireless crusades against big government. But one of Norquist's lesser-known projects over the last few years has been bringing American Muslims into the Republican Party. And, as he usually does, Norquist has succeeded. According to several sources, Norquist helped orchestrate various post-September 11 events that brought together Muslim leaders and administration officials.
snip>

http://www.islamicsupremecouncil.org/media_center/leaders/TNR_110101.htm

Great article, I recommend reading if you are at all interested in this topic!

[Carni]

23. Thanks!

Now I know why we are seeing a bunch of half witted guys who like to threaten and blather on the net trotted out as a main *terra* threat today!

[LiberalFighter]

65. Republicans knowlingly conspired with terrorists?

[panader0]

6. Ralph Reed --- what a slimeball

Why is it that EVERY ONE of those "christian" types are hypocrites?

[RaleighNCDUer]

7. I just saw this, and I am shocked, shocked, I tell you.

It's much too early in the day for the Friday news dump.

Who screwed up?

[Jacobin]

8. grover, grover, grover...

Pointy Headed RW theoreticians shouldn't be handling the nasty green stuff.

:rofl:

:rofl:

[WestHoustonDem]

9. Maybe this will reduce Norquist's influence to a size we can

was down the bathtub drain!

[Judi Lynn]

10. Norquist fits so well among the other PNACkers it's hard to tell where

one leaves off and he begins. They are all such giants, aren't they? :eyes:

He'll always be remembered for, besides his criminality, his brilliant wish to see gummint made so small he can drown it in a bathtub. Simply amazing!

[alfredo]

11. Love to see Reed and Grover frog marched.

[grasswire]

12. I hope Ed Gillespie is implicated somehow.

That chickenshit weasel.

[UpInArms]

14. sounds like racketeering, money laundering, tax evasion

mmmmm - RICO anyone?

[HootieMcBoob]

15. I know it's become cliche to say it but...

THIS IS HUGE! :woohoo: :applause: :applause: :woohoo:

[Jackpine Radical]

41. You mean Hugh??//??/? Are you series?/??

The problem with no jail time is that everybody already knows the Puggies are all sleazeballs, but no jail time means he's "cleared," just like Rove was on Plame. Cleared. Shit. These bastards are so dirty that when they fall into the sludge tank they come out cleaner than they were when they went in.

[gully]

47. The media seems oddly silent.

:eyes:

[peacetalksforall]

16. I am THRILLED! This is the guy who had a partership with Mahfouz at

the same time Mahfouz was being investigated by the FBI for transferring money to 'terrorists' (ncluding 9-11 terrorists?).

This is your Ronald Reagan Airport guy. This is your Ronald Reagan coin and dollar guy. This is your Mt. Rushmore guy. And this is your bathtub government guy.

This is the arrogant, smartxxx, know-it-all, droll, and vile bathtub guy.

SOME PEOPLE DO LAUNDER IN A BATHTUB!

[HootieMcBoob]

17. If this doesn't get 90 recommendations...

I'll be very disappointed!

Rove wasn't frogmarched but it looks like we might see Norquist and Reed indicted!

In the meantime I will continue with the celebration.:toast: :woohoo:

[RaleighNCDUer]

26. Maybe Rover wasn't frogmarched becaused he squealed like the

little piggie he is, and that is where this stuff is coming from?

Delightful!

[Julius Civitatus]

18. Wait until Norquist's links to extremist Islamist groups start to come out

Pass the pop corn indeed.

:popcorn:

[KansDem]

20. The whole ****ing GOP needs to be RICOed out of existence...

Let me see if I understand this:

Moving money from a casino-operating Indian tribe to Ralph Reed, the Christian Coalition founder and professed gambling opponent, was a problem. Lobbyist Abramoff turned to his longtime friend Norquist, apparently to provide a buffer for Reed.

The result, according to evidence gathered by the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, was that Norquist's Americans for Tax Relief became a conduit for more than a million dollars from the Mississippi Choctaw to Reed's operation, while Norquist, a close White House ally, took a cut.

1) Christian Coalition founder Ralph Reed took casino money to rile against gambling?
2) Gover Norquist acted as middle man for the payoff, taking a percentage himself?

Is there any credibility left with these guys?

[IthinkThereforeIAM]

36. I have said that for years...

... and finally the proof needed for it comes out into the open.

[Demeter]

54. Amen! RICO Was Made For This!

There's got to be a way--probably even a legal one. Since Bush doesn't do legal, he'd be completely aken by surprise, and his little pitbull Cheney, too.

[warrens]

22. Maybe they can be roomies for the next 10 years or so

The thought of that fat fuck Norquist in stripes makes me smile.

[RedEarth]

24. Great, maybe both grover and ralphie will end up in prison

[librechik]

25. "Let's go get those Bush Bastards!"

yeehah!

[Up2Late]

27. It would be my dream come true to see Grover Frog marched!

PLEASE SAY IT'S GONNA HAPPEN!!!!

Hey Grover!

[peacetalksforall]

28. It's time to find out once and for all - can you be pardoned before you

go on trial?

If Bush tries to pardon all of the hard and soft criminals who are being caught - it'g going to be most of the Republican Party.

Norquist beats the drums for States' Rights. It's time for as many people who are disgusted with this Republican regime to get their States to impeach Bush and force Cheney out. The people can do it. It may be the only way if our vote is stoen again. Let's go for it.

[Lasher]

50. It's been done before

Ford pre-pardoned Nixon and Poppy did the same with Iran/Contra conspirators to shut down an investigation that likely would have implicated him.

[peacetalksforall]

29. Do you think that the protectors of the regime keep a list of members who

are about to be exposed.

Let's see - this week -

Hastert and Norquist moved over from the 'still secret' list to the 'outed' list.

And Savafian was sentenced?

And there was kind of a break in the Casino boat murder case involving people Abrahoff 'knows'.

[Le Taz Hot]

30. Interesting the timing of this story

the same day as we caught the "terrorists" in Florida -- it's all the M$M is talking about. This one's not even a blip on the radar.

[chieftain]

31. What % of Ave. K money ended up in political advertising?

I know these greedy bastards kept a lot of money for themselves, but my bet is that millions of bucks went into groups like the Swifties and other Rove creations.There's a Pulitzer Prize waiting for the enterprising reporter that connects these dots. Would that such a person existed.

[hyphenate]

32. Oh, this is good

Perhaps we can take down Norquist as well? What a delight that would be!!

[Check12]

33. Sweet Sweet Irony!

To watch Grover, the head of Americans for tax reform go to prison for tax evasion.

BWAHHAHAHAHA!

[EVDebs]

34. Greg Palast reports NSA's 'pre 9-11 policy shift' re funding

Khan Job: Bush Spiked Probe of Pakistan’s Dr. Strangelove, BBC reported in 2001
http://www.gregpalast.com/detail.cfm?artid=312&row=0

"...A top-level CIA operative who spoke with us on condition of strictest anonymity said that, after Bush took office, "There was a major policy shift" at the National Security Agency. Investigators were ordered to "back off " from any inquiries into Saudi Arabian financing of terror networks, especially if they touched on Saudi royals and their retainers. That put the Bin Ladens, a family worth a reported $12 billion and a virtual arm of the Saudi royal household, off limits for investigation. Osama was the exception; he remained a wanted man, but agents could not look too closely at how he filled his piggy bank. The key rule of any investigation, "follow the money," was now violated, and investigations-at least before September 11-began to die. ""

Bush's pre-9/11 policy shifts now may tie directly to Grover and those other Islamic funding outfits. Verrrrry interesting.

[roguevalley]

35. proof there is a god.

[Rose Siding]

37. Grover's a sleaze, duh, but there's nothing here about any charges

What am I missing? I wanna be happy too!

[TexasLawyer]

39. When are these guys going to JAIL?

I know they're going to hell eventually, but they should also suffer while still on earth.

[TexasLawyer]

40. Spot the phony non-profit

Here's one, mentioned in the article, which sounds like the money laundering cover for RNC gangsters.

Council of Republicans for Environmental Advocacy

[Gregorian]

42. Wiki already had this. Why is this just now being discovered?

From the guy who's been waterboarding America since 1983.

I found this in a paragraph on Norquist in Wikipedia-

"... Norquist worked with Abramoff and Ralph Reed on fundraising and lobbying on behalf of Indian gambling tribes. Emails released by federal investigators in June 2005 suggest that Norquist was involved a scheme in which Reed secretly accepted payments from Abramoff to lobby against Indian casino gambling while Abramoff was being paid to promote Indian casino gambling."



Edit- Oh yeah...WOO HOO!

[stevedeshazer]

43. I must boast about the sigline I've had for the last few months

:)

[Swede]

44. I wish we could shrink Grover so small we could drown him in a bathtub.

I kid,I kid.

[stevedeshazer]

46. While I'm tempted to reply,

"Karl Rove wouldn't be able to lower himself face down to the level of water in my bathtub without the help of specialized equipment," I shall bid you a good day.

:hi:

[Reckon]

45. Ok, here's the deal.

Yahoo news is reporting this story {Washington tax-cut advocate aided Abramoff} but to keep it in the public view we need to {RECOMMEND THIS STORY}

The forces of DU can help by going to this link and emailing {RECOMMEND THIS STORY} to a friend or any email address. That will keep it on the "most popular page"

http://news.yahoo.com/i/964;_ylt=Aov74MepLFVJBeVi_vIDd9Rhr7sF;_ylu=X3oDMTA2NWJlcmlsBHNlYwN0bg--

Let us DUers make a difference!

K&R

[jean]

48. The GOP is collapsing from its rotten core outward. The bad guys

cannot remain standing for long.

[MagickMuffin]

49. I guess it's finally getting somewhat of media coverage

But I'm sure it won't last long.

[bklyncowgirl]

51. Thursday's 373-page Senate report--carefully timed to come out Friday

We've known for some time that he was involved. I did a cartoon with Bathtub Grover and his pal Holy Roller Ralph as happy recipients of Abramoff's money.

Nice to see it confirmed.

Needless to say the release of the report was timed in order to bury it.

[MagickMuffin]

52. I added the link below to GD Politics

So far no one has linked to it. Ah well....:shrug:

I have been reading it and it is quite evident that Ralphie boy knew that the money was being funneled through his good Friend Grover's firm. When he plays up the innocent victim, NO ONE should believe that double crossing fundie. Perhaps that is the cross he worships.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2694423

[leftchick]

53. I wonder if this will disrupt Norquists Wed. Meetings with the media?

Every Wed. morning he has a sit down with reps. from the M$M and WH officials. I hope that little party has been broken up by this revelation.

[robbedvoter]

57. And what will Ralph Nader do with his Wednesdays now?

[mitchum]

55. It would be glorious if Norquist dies in prison

[robbedvoter]

56. Oh, Nooo! The great castrator himself? remember this quote?

"Once the minority of House and Senate are comfortable in their minority status, they will have no problem socializing with the Republicans. Any farmer will tell you that certain animals run around and are unpleasant, but when they've been fixed, then they are happy and sedate. They are contented and cheerful. They don't go around peeing on the furniture and such."

Grover Norquist -NOW, Nov 5 2004

[WhiteTara]

58. yeah! I am so glad they busted this ugly pig

fortunately for us, he didn't get to drown the courts before they got to him. THen for that creepy Ralph Reed.

[samsingh]

59. how deep does the repug corruption go?

or how high?

[cally]

60. This made my day and week

I want norquist taken down. He´s the architect of much of the plan to dismantle government.

[durrrty libby]

61. Haven’t people been trying to imprison Norquist for years?

Wasn’t he involved with money laundering…the RNC...…Newt...…a bunch of damning evidence that went where?


I’ll try and stay optimistic.

[katty]

63. yeah, he's been around FOREVER

[durrrty libby]

64. So people truly believe we can get this guy strung up?

Isn't he the proud daddy of poppy's

"Read my lips, no new taxes."

[DoYouEverWonder]

66. He's been very involved with Islamic 'charities'

that have direct ties to terrorism.

Grover is one of the key architects of BushCo's scheme to defraud America.

[SoCalDem]

67. THIS is a story that NYT should latch onto and run with it

every day...

Instead of going on tv accepting lumps for their "actions", they should get right back in his face and ballyhoo every republican ass-kisser's transgressions..

If they are to be painted with the brush of bias...they should run with it... CNN & MSGOP are prime examples of what happens when you try too hard to "be fair"..

Does Fox "play fair".. They have ratings because they are not wishy washy.. people know exactly where they stand.. The Times needs to announce that the gloves are OFF.. They should just become the liberal paper they are accused of being.. Their subscriptions would go up and they might actually break some interesting stories if they were'nt always looking to "be fair"//

[Check12]

68. Site for the 2008 RNC Convention has been determined