Abramoff Investigation Continues Apace
Last week, another former associate of Jack Abramoff’s pled guilty to charges of trying to corrupt a public office. Todd Boulanger, a former staffer in the office former Sen. Bob Smith, worked in Abramoff’s lobbying team from 1999 to 2004. (He also hilariously appears in this Daily Show clip as a CNN talking head.) Boulanger’s guilty plea provides information on more unnamed congressional staffers coming into investigation. These staffers are now known as “Staffer D,” a Transporation and Infrastructure Committee staffer; “Staffer E,” a top aide with Sen. Thad Cochran; “Staffer F,” an unknown legislative director.
“Staffer E” has been identified as Ann Copland, a former aide to Sen. Cochran now working (Copland is apparently no longer working at MPB, see the comment below) at Mississippi Public Broadcasting. Copland appears in the court documents as receiving a stream of tickets to events (NSYNC, Paul McCartney, Green Day, ice skating, and more) in exchange for using her official position to do the bidding of Abramoff and his lobbying team. She appears in the guilty pleas of both Boulanger and Kevin Ring, another lobbyist indicted in the scandal.
Below is an updated list of all the figures in the Abramoff scandal who have either pleaded guilty, been convicted, indicted, named in court documents, or had their career brought to an abrupt end by being mentioned in the scandal.
Jack Abramoff | Lobbyist, Preston Gates, Greenberg Traurig | Convicted; Sentenced to 13 Years 4 Months |
Michael Scanlon | Former Comm. Director to Rep. Tom DeLay; Public Relations Executive | Pleaded Guilty |
Rep. Bob Ney (R-OH) | House of Representatives; Chair of Committee on House Administration | Pleaded Guilty; Released from prison after serving 17 months |
J. Steven Griles | Deputy Secretary of the Interior | Pleaded Guilty; Sentenced to 10 months in prison |
Tony Rudy | Deputy Chief of Staff to Rep. Tom DeLay; Lobbyist, Greenberg Traurig | Pleaded Guilty |
David Safavian | General Services Administration, Chief of Staff; Office of Management and Budget, Top Procurement Officer | Convicted; Sentenced to 18 months in prison |
Neil Volz | Chief of Staff to Rep. Bob Ney | Pleaded Guilty |
Italia Federici | President of Council of Republicans for Environmental Advocacy | Pleaded Guilty |
Mark Zachares | Aide to Rep. Don Young | Pleaded Guilty |
John Albaugh | Chief of Staff to Rep. Ernie Istook | Pleaded Guilty |
Trevor Blackann | Lobbyist and former staffer for Sen. Kit Bond | Pleaded Guilty |
Will Heaton | Chief of Staff to Rep. Bob Ney | Pleaded Guilty |
Todd Boulanger | Lobbyist and former staffer to Sen. Bob Smith | Pleaded Guilty |
Robert Carpenter | Deputy Chief of Staff, Criminal Division, US Department of Justice | Pleaded Guilty |
Roger Stillwell | Desk Officer in charge Marianas Islands, Department of Interior | Pleaded Guilty |
Adam Kidan | Business Partner, SunCruz Casinos | Pleaded Guilty; Sentenced to 5 years, ten months in prison |
James Hirni | Lobbyist and former staffer for Sens. Tim Hutchinson, Bill Frist, and Jeff Sessions | Indicted on one count “conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud” |
Kevin Ring | Lobbyist, Greenberg Traurig | Indicted on ten counts |
Rep. Tom DeLay (R-TX) | House of Representatives; Majority Leader | Named in guilty pleas; Under investigation; Retired after the guilty plea of former staffer Tony Rudy |
Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA) | House of Representatives | Named in guilty pleas; Under investigation; Houses raided by FBI; Retired from Congress |
Rep. Ernie Istook (R-OK) | House of Representatives | Named in guilty pleas; Under investigation; No longer in Congress |
Rep. Tom Feeney (R-FL) | House of Representatives | Named in guilty pleas; Under investigation; Defeated for reelection |
Ed Buckham | Chief of Staff to Rep. Tom DeLay; Lobbyist | Named in guilty pleas; Under investigation |
Ann Copland | Staffer for Sen. Thad Cochran | Named as “Staffer E” in guilty pleas |
Rep. J.D. Hayworth (R-AZ) | House of Representatives | Linked to Abramoff scandal; Defeated in 2006 election; Since acknowledged not under investigation |
Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT) | U.S. Senate | Linked to Abramoff scandal; Defeated in 2006 election; Since acknowledged not under investigation |
Ralph Reed | Former head of Christian Coalition; Lobbyist | Named repeatedly in reports of Abramoff’s Indian tribe swindles; Lost 2006 Lt. Gov. race; Reputation in tatters |
Susan Ralston | Special Assistant to the President; Deputy to Karl Rove | Resigned her job; Sought immunity to testify before House committee; Justice Department still reviewing granting of immunity |