Political Scandal Bigger Than CIA Leak

There is a bigger political scandal floating around out there which dwarfs the Valerie Plam CIA leak case involving the President's closest advisers. This scandal threatens to change how politics is done in Washington.

And for that reason, I fear the story won't get much traction.

Jack Abramoff is a lobbyist on what is called "K Street," or the address of most lobbying firms in Washington, D.C. He has also been friendly with largely conservative causes and has friends high up in the conservative movement. However, he has gotten into some trouble lately. Apparently, he has been soliciting funds from certain Indian Tribes to represent their gambling interests to Congress. So far, this is typical of how this relationship works. A special interest, such as Indian Tribes, pays tens (if not hundreds) of thousands of dollars to lobbyists to pressure Congressmen to vote for their interests. If this sounds like bribing officials, that is because in any other walk of life, it would be. However, this is how politics is done in Washington, D.C. and is perfectly legitimate.

Where Abramoff got into trouble is that he attempted to increase the purview of his interests by laundering the funds to other lobbyists with political influence. This was done to skirt campaign finance rules and increase the scope of support to pressure politicians.

With this money, the lobbyists don't actually write a check to the politicians. Rather, they take the politicians on fancy trips (sometimes out of the country), to pressure the politicians to see their point of view. This is the bribe. These trips can be golf outings or ski trips, cruises or other general vacations, but they are all done for the same reason.

It is tremendously unfortunate this does not receive more press, because these are the people who are influencing votes by politicians. If you thought your $2,000 contribution or your letter does it, you are mistaken. The fact is, Representatives and Senators go on hundreds of these trips each year. This is where power is in politics and all campaign finance legislation is worthless unless it addresses this graft.

Fortunately, all of these trips are required to be reported, so you can see who is buying your Senator or Representative's vote.