"Oh, how delicious, thought those politicians marked with the scarlet "D" in Republican-held Washington: Powerful GOP rainmaker Jack Abramoff has fallen, and landed dangerously close to House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.

Lobbyist Abramoff, now infamous for funneling money from Indian casino interests to conservative Christian Ralph Reed for organizing moral opposition to rival Indian casinos, is under no fewer than six federal investigations, according to The Dallas Morning News. Over the years, the onetime superstar of the lobbying firms of Washington's K Street has been very, very good to the ethically challenged DeLay. Democrats pulled out their carving knives and drooled.

But, The Washington Post reports, many Democratic, as well as Republican, lawmakers got money (albeit in smaller amounts) from the team of lobbyists Abramoff directed, 'a fact that could hinder the Democrats' efforts to turn the lobbyist's troubles into a winning partisan issue.'"

Get the Story:
Editorial: America Inc., up for sale (The Roanoke Times 6/6)

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