The John McCain/Bob Riley two step

[trof]

The Montgomery Independent website linked below has a copy of an email sent from Jack Abramoff to Mike Scanlon, a top aide to AL Governor Bob Riley when Riley was a congressman and who worked on Riley's gubernatorial campaign. It recently came to light as a result of a FOIA request and you can read it there.

It was suppressed by Sen. John McCain from the report on Abramoff and Scanlon's scam called "GimmeFive" that was aimed at ripping off Indian tribes. Both are now serving time. McCain also subsequently refused to make the email public after the report was released. McCain knew about the email a long time ago, but would not release it for obvious reasons, as you'll see.

But these paragraphs are of particular interest:

"In the late 1990s when he was in Congress Riley signed a fund raising letter for a nonprofit group closely tied to Abramoff's clients. The letter, written on behalf of the U.S. Family Network, announced a petition drive to block the Atmore(AL)-based Poarch Band of Creek Indians from building a casino in Alabama. That was potentially significant to Abramoff's tribal clients in Mississippi and Louisiana that already had casinos and did not want more competition.

And Riley has frequently talked tough on gambling, talk particularly aimed at the Poarch Creek Tribe that operates Class II gaming facilities in Wetumpka, Montgomery and Atmore. The governor has also refused to sign a compact with the Alabama tribes that would allow them to add Class III gaming, which would include real slots and table games, for which, in return they would pay the state a percentage in lieu of taxes. They currently pay no state or local taxes.

The new revelation of the governor's familiarity with Abramoff and Scanlon and the instructions given him by these two jailbirds, ought to cause some curiosity in the big time Alabama media, but I doubt it. Nonetheless, the governor owes an answer to those citizens who are curious. According to sworn statements the gambling interests in Mississippi spent $13 million to elect Riley governor. That's a lot of dough. If Riley didn't get any, there must have been a lot lost somewhere along the way.

McCain's huge lost e-mail favor didn't come without a quid pro quo and he got it last week with a resounding endorsement from our governor. The only question left is who arranged that deal?
http://www.al.com/opinion/independent/index.ssf?/base/columnists/1205705711199090.xml&coll=4