It’s hard to keep up with every angle and development in Jack Abramoff’s scandalous saga, though Josh Marshall seems to be staying on top of them, but I’ve been anxiously watching GOP lawmakers with close ties to Abramoff to see how they respond to his indictment. So far, Republicans have been rather shy.
With former GOP lobbyist Jack Abramoff now indicted on federal wire- and mail-fraud charges, Republicans close to the once-powerful lobbyist are mostly laying low amid a harsh media spotlight, while a few reiterated their support.
Most Republican lawmakers who received personal contributions from Abramoff or his wife in recent years ducked questions about whether they would keep the cash in the 24 hours after the indictment was announced in Miami.
So far, no Members appear to have returned recent contributions from the lobbyist. On top of millions of dollars he helped raise for key lawmakers, Abramoff has shelled out $300,000 in personal contributions since 1995.
Spokesmen for lawmakers contacted for this story mostly cited the August lull and the trouble that causes for tracking down their bosses in declining to comment.
As a short-term approach, that may be relatively successful. But with Abramoff going down hard, Republicans will only be able to use the August excuse in, well, August. After Labor Day, the questions about why these lawmakers haven’t returned contributions from Abramoff and his clients, among other queries, will likely grow more intense.
To their credit, Dems aren’t waiting to use this to their advantage.
Democrats, meanwhile, wasted no time trying to score political advantage with the development in the scandal, which had already been a rallying point for the party as it crafts an ethics-based message heading into the 2006 elections.
Former Rep. Nick Lampson (D-Texas), for example, used the news to launch a fresh attack on House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas), a close Abramoff associate being challenged in 2006 by Lampson.
“Sometimes the old adage, ‘You tell a person by the company he keeps,’ is very appropriate,” Lampson said in a statement. “I think it certainly applies here. Southeast Texans have had enough. We’re tired of the shady activity from Tom DeLay, and it’s time for a change.”
See? Even during the “August lull,” some folks can be tracked down for comment.