February 20, 2006
WASHINGTON - Three members of Congress went on a golfing junket to Scotland with lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Two of them are under investigation.
The third is Rep. Tom Feeney of Florida.
Feeney, a Republican from the Orlando area, says he thought that a conservative think tank was paying for the 2003 trip that included a few rounds of golf at the legendary St. Andrews.
No one has accused Feeney of illegal activity, but in Washington, where one scandal after another has made headlines for months, anyone with connections to Abramoff comes under a cloud of suspicion.
Feeney, 47, has tried to move past the allegations but, in typical fashion for him, has shown little regret, or caution.
He kept going to Abramoff's Washington restaurant, Signatures, long after others stopped. He defended former majority leader Tom DeLay even after the Texas congressman was indicted. He let a private group pay for his trip to China last month even though many in Congress are avoiding such travel because of bad publicity over questionable trips.
http://www.sptimes.com/2006/02/20/Worldandnation/Feeney_faces_more_scr.shtml