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Tom DeLay's Hot Tub Party

A few more of the Bugman's cronies are in hot water over the ever-widening Abramoff scandal, this time (Oh sweet Jesus, thank you) Ralph Reed and John Cornyn:

In the Nov. 30, 2001, e-mail, Reed told Abramoff that 50 pastors led by Ed Young of Second Baptist Church in Houston would meet with Cornyn to urge him to shut down the Alabama-Coushatta tribe's casino near Livingston. He said Young would back up the request in writing.

"We have also choreographed Cornyn's response. The AG will state that the law is clear, talk about how much he wants to avoid repetition of El Paso and pledge to take swift action to enforce the law," Reed wrote. "He will also personally hand Ed Young a letter that commits him to take action in Livingston." (my emphasis throughout)

Abramoff at the time was working for the rival Louisiana Coushatta tribe who wanted to eliminate the competition from the Tigua and Alabama-Coushatta casinos. Cornyn did in fact shut them both down.

The previously released e-mails that showed in 2002 Abramoff and Scanlon secretly funneled millions to Reed to help fund the campaign to get the Tigua casino shut down. The lobbyists then persuaded the Tiguas to hire them to reopoen it.

McCain's Senate Indian Affairs Committee helpfully blocked out Cornyn's name when the emails were released last week, but in previous emails it was not.

Oops.

All in all the Indian tribes paid Abramoff and Scanlon nearly $80 million to be played off one against another. And in a final rat-fuck, after the Alabama-Coushatta casino finally closed, Reed sent this inspired missive to Abramoff highlighting what a bit fat con all this faith-based shit really is to them:

"This is total victory and should lead friends in TX to now want to launch the grassroots effort to insure that those elected officials who stood up for families and against the casino gambling have support this fall," Reed said.

He cannot get sucked down into the flames of hellfire fast enough, that one.

(graphic from, of course, Monk at Inflatable Dartboard)

posted by Jane Hamsher @ 11/12/2005 06:25:00 PM