TRMPAC Treasurer Fails To Disclose Amount of Cash ‘Gift’ He Took From Kingmaker Bob Perry

Watchdog group Texans for Public Justice today filed a complaint with the Texas Ethics Commission (TEC) alleging that William “Bill” Cerverha—the former treasurer of Tom DeLay’s defunct Texans for a Republican Majority PAC (TRMPAC) —failed to disclose the value of a check that Houston homebuilder Bob Perry, gave him as a gift in 2004. Perry was TRMPAC’s largest individual donor and is the top political donor in Texas.

TRMPAC Treasurer Fails To Disclose Amount of Cash ‘Gift’
He Took From Kingmaker Bob Perry

• Bill Ceverha Conceals How Much Houston Tycoon Gave Him.
• TPJ Files Complaint With Texas Ethics Commission.

For Immediate Release:	For More Information Contact:
January 19, 2006	Craig McDonald, Andrew Wheat
Download PDF	Ph: 512-472-9770

Austin, Texas: Watchdog group Texans for Public Justice today filed a complaint with the Texas Ethics Commission (TEC) alleging that William “Bill” Cerverha—the former treasurer of Tom DeLay’s defunct Texans for a Republican Majority PAC (TRMPAC) —failed to disclose the value of a check that Houston homebuilder Bob Perry, gave him as a gift in 2004. Perry was TRMPAC’s largest individual donor and is the top political donor in Texas.

As a Texas Employees Retirement System trustee, Ceverha files annual personal financial disclosures with the TEC. Ceverha filed his most recent statement, covering calendar 2004, on June 23, 2005. In that report Ceverha discloses that Bob Perry gave him a gift “check” but fails to disclose the dollar value of that payment.

“Mr. Ceverha’s disclosure is woefully inadequate,” said Texans For Public Justice Director Craig
McDonald. “Any reasonable interpretation of Texas disclosure laws would require Mr. Ceverha to report how much money Mr. Perry gave him. Ceverha needs to tell us more.”

As TRMPAC Treasurer during the 2002 Texas elections, Ceverha failed to report approximately a half-million dollars in TRMPAC contributions. Acting on a civil complaint against Ceverha, State District Judge Joseph Hart ruled on May 26, 2005 that Mr. Ceverha’s TRMPAC disclosure omissions violated state law. Judge Hart ordered Ceverha—who has since declared personal bankruptcy—to pay $196,660 in damages.

“Mr. Ceverha has a disturbing history of misleading the people of Texas through incomplete financial disclosures,” McDonald said. “We hope the Texas Ethics Commission will require him to tell the public whom he ostensibly serves how much money he took from Bob Perry.”

The TEC considers an incomplete filing to be a late filing. An individual responsible for filing a late statement is liable for a civil penalty of $500. Failure to file could also trigger a Class B misdemeanor criminal offense. (Government Code Sections 572.033 & 572.034.)

USA Today: Ties to Abramoff shadow Reed's run in Georgia

Races for lieutenant governor aren't usually the stuff of high drama. But they don't usually feature an ambitious Republican strategist with links to both the White House and a national corruption scandal. Ralph Reed, a former Christian Coalition leader and high-ranking Bush 2004 campaign official, mobilized Christian conservatives into a grass-roots army for Republicans in the 1990s and has helped crush Democrats in contests from president on down.

Ties to Abramoff shadow Reed's run in Georgia

1/18/06
By Jill Lawrence, USA TODAY

DANIELSVILLE, Ga. — Races for lieutenant governor aren't usually the stuff of high drama. But they don't usually feature an ambitious Republican strategist with links to both the White House and a national corruption scandal.

Ralph Reed, a former Christian Coalition leader and high-ranking Bush 2004 campaign official, mobilized Christian conservatives into a grass-roots army for Republicans in the 1990s and has helped crush Democrats in contests from president on down.

The mix of religion and hardball turned him into a lighting rod years ago. Now his longtime ties to fallen Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff are giving new fuel to his opponents and turning the race into a closely watched test of the Abramoff effect on the 2006 elections.

Abramoff has pleaded guilty to fraud, conspiracy and tax evasion and agreed to cooperate with federal prosecutors. Careers and reputations are on the line as investigators probe the financial and political activities of lawmakers, aides and Abramoff associates.

While the probe has created no legal problems at this point for Reed, now does not seem like the ideal moment for him to emerge from behind the scenes. He calls it "a perfect time" for his political debut.

"Given my profile, I was going to be the subject of personal attacks if I ever ran" for office, he said in an interview. "I wish it hadn't happened," he added, referring to revelations about his old friend's activities. "But I've got no problem dealing with it."

Reed, 44, recently told 50 people at a GOP breakfast here in north Georgia, "I don't have thin skin." He vowed to become the state's first Republican lieutenant governor, and beyond that, "I promise you I'm going to be an impact player."

State Sen. Ralph Hudgens, who hosted the breakfast, calls Reed a strong candidate and says he is satisfied with how Reed is handling the Abramoff situation. "You have to be willing to break the relationship and that's what Ralph has done," he says.

Democrats and some Republicans are alarmed by Reed's candidacy. Lieutenant governors here run separately from governors and are president of the state Senate, making the office more powerful in Georgia than in most states. It's also a frequent launchpad for future governors. And governors have a good record of becoming president; four of the last five came from state executive mansions.

"We believe that Ralph wants to be president. The only place to stop him is right now," says former state senator Greg Hecht, the leading Democrat in the race.

Hecht and state Sen. Casey Cagle, Reed's Republican rival in the July 18 primary, readily give Reed credit for smarts and good looks. They also say he is unqualified for statewide office and hypocritical about moral values. "This race is about honesty and integrity," Cagle says. "You can't say one thing and then do another."

Both men have set up websites devoted to negative information about Reed (www.stopralphreed.com and www.readaboutreed.com). The sites highlight Reed's work for Abramoff clients with gambling interests, despite Reed's longstanding opposition to gambling.

They also show what his opponents allege are conflicts between Reed statements and documents released in a Senate Abramoff investigation. Reed, meanwhile, has put up www.reedfacts.com to rebut his accusers.

What's undisputed is that Reed received several million dollars to help Abramoff shut down a Texas tribe's gambling casino on behalf of tribes with competing casinos. Reed says Abramoff assured him he would not be paid out of the competing tribes' gambling profits.

The criticism

But the tribes have few other resources, and Reed's critics say the ultimate source of his fees appear to have been casino revenue. "The amounts are so huge, there's no other explanation," says Craig McDonald, director of Texans for Public Justice.

McDonald's group and two others allege that Reed broke Texas law by not registering as a lobbyist there. Reed calls the lobbying accusations "utterly without merit." Travis County Attorney David Escamilla says he'll decide by month's end whether to bring charges.

Reed and Abramoff met more than 20 years ago and were so close that Reed introduced Abramoff to the woman who became his wife. More recently, Abramoff helped Reed get lobbying work, donated to his successful 2001 campaign for Georgia GOP chairman and took him golfing in Scotland with a congressman.

Reed is careful and choreographed when he discusses Abramoff. His most extensive remarks came Dec. 9 to Christian teens. He posted the comments on www.ralphreed.com.

"We will never know how many marriages and lives were saved, or how many children were spared the consequences of compulsive gambling, because of our work" to shut down casinos, he told the teens. But "had I known then what I know now, I would not have undertaken that work," he added.

Since then, Reed's public statements have tracked the speech text almost verbatim. At the breakfast here, he arranged to have Hudgens ask about Abramoff, according to Hudgens. Then Reed gave his standard response. He refused to talk about Abramoff on the record to USA TODAY.

Some non-partisan Georgia analysts say Reed should be more open. "He's going to have to answer a lot more questions if he's to survive this," says political scientist Merle Black of Emory University in Atlanta.

Reed stormed onto the field with a money take of nearly $1.4 million in the first half of last year. In the second half, he trailed both Cagle and Hecht. His rivals say that signals erosion in Reed's support. Reed calls the falloff expected after such a spectacular first half. He still has a huge financial advantage, he says, and 22 fundraising events scheduled through March.

Cagle, a sitting legislator, is barred from raising money for the first quarter while the state Senate meets, but says he expects a surge of money in April. A recent poll for TheAtlanta Journal Constitution found he did better than Reed against an unnamed Democrat.

Reed and Cagle oppose abortion and gay marriage and hold similar views on other social issues. "They're both fine Christian gentlemen," says Gerald Harris, editor of The Christian Index newspaper.

It's unclear whether Reed's link to Abramoff will turn off Christian voters. Sadie Fields of the Georgia Christian Coalition, says Reed will get a warm welcome when he and Cagle appear before the group Saturday.

"He has apologized for any disappointment anyone might have felt over Abramoff," she says. "It's time to move on."

Reed is a candidate now, but he's still a strategist to the core. When Hudgens joked to the breakfast group about an e-mailer calling him "a Republican thug," Reed interrupted him from the audience. "Don't repeat the negatives," he instructed with a laugh. He's following his own advice to the letter, and gambling it will work.


THE REED FILE
Age: 44. Born June 24, 1961, in Portsmouth, Va..
Family: Wife Jo Anne; four children.
Education: University of Georgia, B.A. in history, 1984; Emory University, Ph.D. in American history, 1989.
Career highlights: Executive director, Christian Coalition, 1989-97; president, Century Strategies (lobbying/consulting firm), 1997-present.
Political positions: Chairman of Georgia Republican Party, 2001-03; Southeast regional chairman of 2004 Bush campaign.

Lobby Watch:Eight Congressional 'Revolvers' Aided Abramoff at Greenberg

As part of his recent plea bargain with federal prosecutors, crooked lobbyist Jack Abramoff pled guilty to using two congressmen’s former aides (Tom DeLay aide Tony Rudy and Bob Ney aide Neil Volz) to corrupt public officials. During four go-go years at Greenberg Traurig, Abramoff worked with eight ex-congressional aides on 53 annual contracts worth $62.6 million, federal lobby disclosures reveal.
Read the Lobby Watch

Dallas Morning News: Barton invites lobbyists all aboard

Despite recent hand-wringing over lobbying abuses, U.S. Rep. Joe Barton has no qualms about spending next weekend with lobbyists and other high-dollar backers. He's got a special time planned for anyone willing to spend $2,000 for a seven-hour private train ride Friday from Fort Worth to San Antonio. Read the article at the Dallas Morning News

Barton invites lobbyists all aboard

Sunday, January 15, 2006
Dallas Morning News

WASHINGTON – Despite recent hand-wringing over lobbying abuses, U.S. Rep. Joe Barton has no qualms about spending next weekend with lobbyists and other high-dollar backers. He's got a special time planned for anyone willing to spend $2,000 for a seven-hour private train ride Friday from Fort Worth to San Antonio.

"During the ride, we'll have lots of time to talk, play some Texas Hold 'Em, and enjoy some great down home Texas food," reads the glossy, six-panel invitation to "Joe Barton's 2006 Texas Train Ride." "This is about as good as it gets."

In San Antonio, donors will have brunch Saturday with the Ennis Republican, chairman of the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee and – since former Majority Leader Tom DeLay's fall from grace – the top-ranking Texan in the House. He and his guests will also have cocktails, an evening tour of the Alamo, dinner and breakfast on Sunday.

"Man, sounds like fun," said Craig McDonald, director of Texans for Public Justice. "Don't you usually give 'em just one chicken dinner? That's a pretty good return for $2,000."

He and other government watchdogs called the event remarkable for two reasons: the extended face time with Mr. Barton, and the timing, as Congress' image reels and GOP leaders develop plans to control the damage.

"It's an ingenious way to shake down money from the lobby and for the lobbyists to get almost 48 hours of uninterrupted attention from the chairman," said Tom Smith, executive director of Texas Public Citizen. "It certainly shows Barton's insensitivity to issues of propriety."

Barton campaign manager Craig Murphy was unapologetic.

"It's just a normal fundraiser," he said. "You've got to have a fundraiser if you're going to raise money and have a campaign. Everybody does it."

Lawmakers are always seeking more enticing formats than the typical stand-up cocktail party. Golf outings have been popular. Some offer ski trips or fishing excursions.

With 132 takers, the train ride will gross more than a quarter of a million dollars – far more than most lawmakers can command in one shot. But Mr. Barton's panel has jurisdiction over nearly half the issues Congress controls – such as oil policy, pro baseball, Medicare and environmental regulation.

Mr. Barton suffered a minor heart attack last month and recovered quickly. Elected with Mr. DeLay in 1984, he trails Rep. Ralph Hall in seniority by four years. But Mr. Hall was a Democrat until 2004. And with Mr. DeLay's fall amid allegations of corruption, Mr. Barton has emerged as de facto leader of Texas GOP members, urging them last week with mixed success to back Rep. Roy Blunt's bid for majority leader.

Powerful as he is, Mr. Barton is Texas' only chairman – a far cry from the influence Texas enjoyed for most of the past quarter-century. Democrat Jim Wright served as majority leader and speaker. Republican Dick Armey was majority leader from 1994 until three years ago. Mr. DeLay served as majority whip under him, then as majority leader for the last three years.

Redistricting forced out ranking Democrats on three committees. If Republicans can hang on to the majority, two more could be chairmen by this time next year.

Mr. Hall is in line to take over the Science Committee, and Rep. Lamar Smith of San Antonio is the top contender for the Judiciary Committee.

Just kidding

There's no nastier name one Democrat can call another these days than "Friend of Tom."

Former Rep. Ciro Rodriguez of San Antonio, touting the endorsement of former Sen. Bob Krueger in his bid to unseat Laredo Rep. Henry Cuellar, alleged that his opponent had a "tight relationship with Tom DeLay, from the favors he did as Rick Perry 's secretary of state to hosting fundraisers for DeLay's legal defense fund."

Mr. Cueller did serve the GOP governor. He did stump for President Bush.

And after ousting Mr. Rodriguez by a few dozen votes in 2004, he has voted with Mr. DeLay's side more often than nearly any other Democrat.

But host a DeLay fundraiser? Not true, as Rodriguez media consultant James Aldrete acknowledged after an inquiry.

"I inserted it from memory," he said. "I'm going to back off on that."

Todd J. Gillman covers Congress and the Texas delegation.

E-mail tgillman@dallasnews.com

LA Times: 2 Calif. Congressmen Tried to Stop Probe of Texas Businessman

In a case that echoes the Jack Abramoff influence-peddling scandal, two Northern California Republican congressmen used their official positions to try to stop a federal investigation of a wealthy Texas businessman who provided them with political contributions. Read the article at LA Times

A Donor Who Had Big Allies

DeLay and two others helped put the brakes on a federal probe of a businessman. Evidence was published in the Congressional Record.

By Richard A. Serrano and Stephen Braun, Times Staff Writers
January 8, 2006

WASHINGTON — In a case that echoes the Jack Abramoff influence-peddling scandal, two Northern California Republican congressmen used their official positions to try to stop a federal investigation of a wealthy Texas businessman who provided them with political contributions.

Reps. John T. Doolittle and Richard W. Pombo joined forces with former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay of Texas to oppose an investigation by federal banking regulators into the affairs of Houston millionaire Charles Hurwitz, documents recently obtained by The Times show. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was seeking $300 million from Hurwitz for his role in the collapse of a Texas savings and loan that cost taxpayers $1.6 billion.

The investigation was ultimately dropped.

The effort to help Hurwitz began in 1999 when DeLay wrote a letter to the chairman of the FDIC denouncing the investigation of Hurwitz as a "form of harassment and deceit on the part of government employees." When the FDIC persisted, Doolittle and Pombo — both considered proteges of DeLay — used their power as members of the House Resources Committee to subpoena the agency's confidential records on the case, including details of the evidence FDIC investigators had compiled on Hurwitz.

Then, in 2001, the two congressmen inserted many of the sensitive documents into the Congressional Record, making them public and accessible to Hurwitz's lawyers, a move that FDIC officials said damaged the government's ability to pursue the banker.

The FDIC's chief spokesman characterized what Doolittle and Pombo did as "a seamy abuse of the legislative process." But soon afterward, in 2002, the FDIC dropped its case against Hurwitz, who had owned a controlling interest in the United Savings Assn. of Texas. United Savings' failure was one of the worst of the S&L debacles in the 1980s.

Doolittle and Pombo did not respond to requests for interviews last week. They publicly defended Hurwitz at the time, saying the inquiry was unfair. Hurwitz's lawyer said Friday that the FDIC had been overzealous. This summer, a judge in Texas agreed and awarded Hurwitz attorney fees and other costs in a civil suit he filed. "They sought to humiliate him," U.S. District Judge Lynn N. Hughes, said in the ruling. The government is appealing the decision.

In key aspects, the Hurwitz case follows the pattern of the Abramoff scandal: members of Congress using their offices to do favors for a politically well-connected individual who, in turn, supplies them with campaign funds. Although Washington politicians frequently try to help important constituents and contributors, it is unusual for members of Congress to take direct steps to stymie an ongoing investigation by an agency such as the FDIC.

And the actions of the two Californians reflect DeLay's broad strategy of cementing relationships with individuals, business interests and lobbyists whose financial support enabled Republicans to extend their grip on Congress and on government agencies as well. The system DeLay developed and Abramoff took part in went beyond simple quid pro quo; it mobilized whatever GOP resources were available to help those who could help the party.

In the Hurwitz case, Doolittle and Pombo were in a position to pressure the FDIC and did so. Pombo received a modest campaign contribution. In another case, Pombo helped one of Abramoff's clients, the Mashpee Indians in Massachusetts, gain official recognition as a tribe; the congressman received contributions from the lobbyist and the tribe in that instance.

Andrew Wheat, research director for Texans for Public Justice, a nonpartisan electoral reform group based in Austin, put it this way: "DeLay and Hurwitz seem like natural allies in that they have geographic and ideological proximity. Mr. Hurwitz is a guy who has a reputation of being willing to pay to play. And DeLay likes to play that game too, so there's a natural affinity."

DeLay announced Saturday that he was giving up his efforts to regain the majority leader position. He was majority whip when he first became involved in helping Hurwitz.

In the Abramoff scandal, members of Congress allegedly did favors for the politically connected lobbyist's clients — including Indian casinos — and received campaign contributions and lavish free entertainment. Last week, the lobbyist pleaded guilty in separate cases in Miami and Washington in a deal that government investigators hope will lead to more prosecutions. Others involved have also made deals to cooperate, and Washington is braced for new criminal charges to come.

The episode involving Hurwitz and the two California congressmen took place with little public notice just before the Abramoff scandal began to escalate. The Sacramento Bee published a story when Doolittle inserted FDIC investigative documents into the Congressional Record, noting that it occurred at a time when Congress was distracted by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and the anthrax episode.

But what lay behind Doolittle's action, and the actions of Pombo and DeLay, did not become clear until recently, when the government documents and copies of letters between the congressmen and FDIC officials were obtained by The Times.

J. Kent Friedman, the general counsel for Hurwitz's vast Houston-based holding company, said last week that the FDIC was overzealous in its dealings with his boss.

"Their case was weak from the start. They had a terrible case," Friedman said. He said anyone trying to connect the congressmen to the fact that the case fell apart would be "attempting to put a bow on a pig."

The Texas S&L in which Hurwitz held a controlling interest of about 25% collapsed in 1988 as part of a financial fiasco that took federal regulators years to untangle. The investigation of Hurwitz began in 1995 and continued for about seven years before it was dropped.

After DeLay's 1999 letter attacking the investigation failed to dissuade the FDIC, Doolittle weighed in with a statement on the House floor in 2001, saying the FDIC investigators were "clearly out of control" and should have "dropped the case, period."

Pombo, in his own 2001 floor statement, suggested that the banking regulators were using strong-arm methods against Hurwitz, or what Pombo called "tools equivalent to the Cosa Nostra — a mafia tactic."


Doolittle, 55, an eight-term congressman, represents California's fourth district, the Sierra Foothills region and the eastern suburbs of Sacramento. He has a consistent conservative voting record, opposing gun control and abortion and siding with property rights, timber and utility interests against environmental groups.

By 2000, he had grown close to DeLay, working with the Republican leader to oppose proposed changes to campaign finance law and restrictions on fundraising. When DeLay was indicted in Texas last year, Doolittle distributed about 100 lapel pins in the shape of tiny hammers as a tribute to the man nicknamed the "Hammer" for his ability to pound congressional Republicans into line.

Doolittle also was closely aligned with Abramoff. Records show that Abramoff gave Doolittle tens of thousands of dollars in contributions and employed the congressman's wife for other fundraising activities.

Pombo, the son of cattle ranchers, plays up his cowboy roots, often appearing in his district wearing a ranch-hand's hat and ostrich-skin boots. Forty-five years old, a seven-term congressman, he represents the fertile farming expanse of the Central Valley.

He had impressed DeLay with his fundraising prowess, garnering about $1 million for his 2002 House reelection, which he won easily.

And not long after his role in helping Hurwitz, the GOP House caucus — led by DeLay — helped get Pombo elected chairman of the Resources Committee over several more senior Republicans.

Hurwitz has been a prolific campaign donor since the early 1990s.

He has contributed personally and with funds provided by his Houston-based flagship company, Maxxam Inc., through subsidiaries such as Kaiser Aluminum, and through a company political action committee, Maxxam Inc. Federal PAC.

In the last three federal elections cycles, those entities have given about $443,000 in political contributions — most of it to conservative politicians, including President Bush, for whom Hurwitz pledged to raise $100,000 in the 2000 campaign and also helped during that year's vote tally deadlock in Florida.

Hurwitz has been generous with DeLay too.

Starting in the 2000 election cycle, the businessman and his committees have distributed at least $30,000 to DeLay and his federal causes, including $5,000 for his current legal defense fund in the Texas money-laundering case.

Hurwitz also contributed $1,000 to Pombo for his 1996 reelection campaign. And through the Maxxam PAC, Hurwitz gave Doolittle $5,000 for his 2002 reelection campaign and then followed up with $2,000 more for his 2004 race.

When DeLay went to bat for Hurwitz, he was particularly critical of reported internal government discussions that would have pressed Hurwitz to settle his obligations for the collapsed S&L by selling the government vast forest areas and redwood trees in Northern California near Scotia. The forest land was owned by Hurwitz's Pacific Lumber company

"I am extremely concerned," DeLay told then-FDIC Chairwoman Donna A. Tanoue, "about the apparent abuse of governmental power and what appears to be misconduct in the form of harassment and deceit on the part of government employees."

Tanoue responded by telling DeLay "we can assure you that the FDIC lawsuit against Mr. Hurwitz was not filed for political reasons."

The investigation pressed on, and a year later the House Resources Committee, which had jurisdiction because of the forest area, set up a special Headwaters Forest Task Force and launched its own review. Doolittle was appointed task force chairman, and Pombo one of its members.

Duane Gibson, the committee's general counsel who later went to work for Abramoff, was named the chief investigator. They immediately subpoenaed internal records from the FDIC and the Office of Thrift Supervision, which also had responsibilities for S&Ls.

Both agencies were wary and, although complying with the subpoenas, repeatedly urged the lawmakers not to make the documents public or share them with Hurwitz.

William F. Kroener III, general counsel at the FDIC, warned the committee that Hurwitz and his lawyers were not entitled to see many of the documents.

Kroener told the panel that, should the material end up in their hands, it "could significantly injure our ability to litigate this matter and reduce damages otherwise recoverable to reimburse taxpayers."


Carolyn J. Buck, chief counsel at the Office of Thrift Supervision, also wrote the committee emphasizing that "we note our objection to any publication or release of these documents."

The task force was set up for six months, and disbanded in December 2000. It held one hearing, and called FDIC and Office of Thrift Supervision officials as witnesses.

At that hearing, Tanoue defended the FDIC's investigation.

"I have listened to and considered the arguments made directly to me by representatives of Mr. Hurwitz," she testified. "However, I have found no compelling reason to take the extraordinary step of … taking this case out of the hands of the judicial system."

Kroener testified that the FDIC was not interested in a trees-for-debt swap, saying his agency "has expressed its preference for a cash settlement."

Six months later, in June 2001, Pombo submitted a portion of the subpoenaed documents that filled 14 pages in the Congressional Record.

Six months after that, in December 2001, Doolittle did the same, even though he was no longer a member of the committee. And his submission was much larger — filling 111 pages.

The documents were so voluminous that Doolittle and Pombo had to pay a total of about $20,000 from their congressional accounts to cover the extra printing costs.

The FDIC was outraged over the documents' release.

Its chief spokesman, Phil Battey, said in a statement to the Sacramento Bee at the time that the publication of the materials was a "subordination … and a seamy abuse of the legislative process."

Not long afterward, the FDIC dismissed its case, and the Office of Thrift Supervision settled with Hurwitz for about $200,000 in administrative costs.

*Times staff writer Ted Rohrlich contributed to this report.

AP: Group calls on Bush to release source of contributions

A Texas watchdog group on Thursday called on President Bush to disclose the sources of the at least $100,000 in campaign contributions that lobbyist Jack Abramoff collected for Bush's 2004 campaign. Abramoff was one of Bush's fundraising "Pioneers," a name the campaign gave to fundraisers who collected at least $100,000.

TPJ seeks disclosure of Abramoff Pioneer contributions

By SUZANNE GAMBOA / Associated Press
January 6, 2006

A Texas watchdog group on Thursday called on President Bush to disclose the sources of the at least $100,000 in campaign contributions that lobbyist Jack Abramoff collected for Bush's 2004 campaign.

Abramoff was one of Bush's fundraising "Pioneers," a name the campaign gave to fundraisers who collected at least $100,000.

Craig McDonald, director of Texans for Public Justice, said Americans have the right to know who gave the lobbyist money to pass on to Bush's campaign in light of Abramoff's guilty pleas to federal charges in a congressional corruption investigation.

As a pioneer, Abramoff would have solicited donations of $2,000 apiece from individuals and $5,000 from political action committees and sent them to the Bush campaign in bundles. He was credited with any contributions he collected.

"Let's see if they are from Abramoff's clients," McDonald said. "Let's see if they were seeking something. We have a right to know where that money came from in the midst of this scandal."

A White House spokesman referred calls to the Republican National Committee. RNC spokesman Tucker Bounds said the Bush/Cheney campaign has made contributors public. But McDonald said the campaign does not link the donors to people like Abramoff who collected contributions from several donors.

Earlier this week, White House press secretary Scott McClellan said past practice of the campaign has been to return money contributed by people involved in wrongdoing or donate it to a charity.

Bush's campaign is donating $6,000 to the American Heart Association because of donations received from Abramoff, his wife and the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan, one of Abramoff's former clients.

McDonald's group pressured the Bush-Cheney campaign in 2000 to release the names of its "Pioneers" and the campaign did so.

The Austin-based watchdog group has long been critical of the fundraising method, saying it allowed the campaign to circumvent campaign contribution limits, which were then $1,000 per individual. The Bush campaign has denied that contention in the past.

Abramoff pleaded guilty Tuesday to charges of fraud, corruption and tax evasion charges in Washington. He then pleaded guilty in Miami on Wednesday to fraud charges stemming from his purchases of a Florida gambling boat fleet.

The Washington charges stem from an investigation into tens of millions of dollars he and a former partner charged Indian tribes with casinos or gaming interests.

Abramoff has pledged to cooperate with investigators looking into the lavish trips, golf outings, meals and other gifts Abramoff said he provided to public officials "in exchange for a series of official acts."

Several Texas lawmakers have joined the president in returning Abramoff-connected contributions or giving them to charity, although some have chosen to keep the money.

Rep. Sam Johnson, R-Plano, planned to give $2,000 to the USO in Dallas Fort Worth, spokeswoman McCall Cameron said Thursday. The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians and Tiguas of Texas, both Abramoff clients, gave $1,000 each to Johnson in 2002.

President Bush Urged To Disclose His Abramoff Fundraising Web

Watchdog group Texans for Public Justice called today on President Bush to fully disclose all the campaign contributions that his reelection campaign received from lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Mr. Abramoff’s guilty pleas on federal corruption charges earlier this week made clear that the public has a powerful interest in knowing the details of Mr. Abramoff’s fundraising activities for President Bush.“Jack Abramoff seems to have corrupted everything he came in contact with,” said Texans For Public Justice Director Craig McDonald. “Full disclosure is the best way to dispel concerns that Abramoff used his Bush Pioneer bundling operation to curry special treatment from the White House, just as he did in countless other incidents. What does President Bush have to hide?”

President Urged To Disclose His Abramoff Fundraising Web

Citing Lobbyist’s ‘Criminal Profile,’ Group Says This Elite Bush “Pioneer”
Donor Used Money as a Tool of Political Corruption.

For Immediate Release:	For More Information Contact:
January 5, 2006	Craig McDonald, Andrew Wheat
Download PDF	Ph: 512-472-9770

Austin, Texas: Watchdog group Texans for Public Justice called today on President Bush to fully disclose all the campaign contributions that his reelection campaign received from lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

The 2004 Bush reelection campaign identified Jack Abramoff as a “Pioneer” fundraiser who raised between $100,000 and $200,000 for the campaign by bundling together contributions of up to $2,000 apiece from individuals or $5,000 from PACs. While the Bush campaign presumably disclosed the amounts, sources and dates of these Abramoff-associated contributions, it has never revealed which contributions Mr. Abramoff bundled together for Bush—much less the contributions associated with the 661 other elite fundraisers who helped Bush win the White House in 2000 and 2004.

Mr. Abramoff’s guilty pleas on federal corruption charges earlier this week made clear that the public has a powerful interest in knowing the details of Mr. Abramoff’s fundraising activities for President Bush. The criminal profile described in the Abramoff indictment is one of a crooked lobbyist who used “campaign contributions” and other “lavish” favors as a tool of political corruption to bribe and corrupt at least one Washington public official (the federal investigation in ongoing). Mr. Abramoff has pled guilty to the indictment, which further alleges that he engaged in such bribery to forward the agendas of his lobby clients.

Through the so-called “K Street Project,” Mr. Abramoff and other powerful Washington lobbyists are known to have leaned on their clients to deliver campaign money to political committees and candidates. The public needs to know who provided the more than $100,000 that the 2004 Bush campaign credited to Mr. Abramoff to find out which of these contributions came from

Abramoff clients who may have sought or received special treatment from the White House.
Yesterday White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the President was donating a total of $6,000 from Abramoff, his spouse and an Abramoff client (the Chippewa Indian Tribe) to a charity. But Bush will not return the bulk of the money that Abramoff raised as a Pioneer from undisclosed sources, said McClellan, who rhetorically asked the media, “Are you suggesting that there are others that were involved in wrongdoing?”

Given how the K Street Project operates, the criminal profile outlined in Abramoff’s indictment, and the ongoing nature of that investigation, there is a distinct possibility that some cronies and clients that Abramoff recruited to contribute to Bush’s reelection campaign may have been involved in wrongdoing.

“Jack Abramoff seems to have corrupted everything he came in contact with,” said Texans For Public Justice Director Craig McDonald. “Full disclosure is the best way to dispel concerns that Abramoff used his Bush Pioneer bundling operation to curry special treatment from the White House, just as he did in countless other incidents. What does President Bush have to hide?”

Given that more than 100 lobbyists served as elite Pioneer or Ranger fundraisers for Bush’s two
presidential campaigns, Texans For Public Justice further calls on President Bush to fully disclose all the campaign contributions associated with each and every one of the Pioneers and Rangers who bundled money for his 2000 and 2004 campaigns. The Bush campaign first released the identities of its Pioneer “bundlers” in 1999 following a call for disclosure from Texans for Public Justice.

Rolling Stone "Troublemakers"

TPJ Director Craig McDonald was selected by Rolling Stone Magazine as one of it's fifteen "Mavericks, Renegades and Troublemakers of 2005." McDonald is joined by Mick Jagger, George Clooney, Cindy Sheehan, Congressman John Murtha and other notables.
Read the feature in Rolling Stone.

Lobby Watch:Polluters Stuff Pols' Stockings With Filthy-Coal Cash

In October, Texas Governor Rick Perry ordered his state environmental appointees to expedite applications to build new coal-fired power plants in Texas—the first such polluting plants to be built here for 17 years. Four of the six entities seeking new coal plants have given more than $750,000 to Texas PACs and politicians since 2003.
Read the Lobby Watch

Prosecutors Urged to Investigate Ralph Reed’s Covert Lobbying

Texans for Public Justice, Common Cause Texas and Public Citizen today petitioned Travis County Attorney David Escamilla to investigate the Texas lobby activities of Ralph Reed. According to state records, Reed did not register as a Texas lobbyist in 2001 or 2002, when he reportedly received $4.2 million to lobby Texas state officials to shut down two Indian casinos in Texas.

Prosecutors Urged to Investigate Ralph Reed’s Covert Lobbying

Reed Reportedly Received Millions to Lobby In Texas
—But He Never Registered With State as Required

For Immediate Release:	For More Information Contact:
December 1, 2005	Craig McDonald, 512-472-9770
Download PDF	Suzy Woodford (512) 474-2374
Read the complaint	Tom “Smitty” Smith (512) 477-1155

Austin, Texas - Texans for Public Justice, Common Cause Texas and Public Citizen today petitioned Travis County Attorney David Escamilla to investigate the Texas lobby activities of Ralph Reed.

According to state records, Reed did not register as a Texas lobbyist in 2001 or 2002, when he reportedly received $4.2 million to lobby Texas state officials to shut down two Indian casinos in Texas. Embattled gambling lobbyists Jack Abramoff and Michael Scanlon—working for a tribe that operated a competing casino in Louisiana—reportedly paid Reed to pressure Texas officials to close the Texas casinos. The watchdog groups contend that available evidence, including
Reed’s own electronic correspondence, indicates that Reed was engaged in lobbying activities that would have required him to register as a Texas lobbyist.

With Abramoff’s aid, Reed helped convert the remains of televangelist Pat Robertson’s 1988 presidential campaign into the fundamentalist Christian Coalition. Nine years later, Reed started his own lobby firm in Georgia called Century Strategies. A U.S. Senate probe into Abramoff’s Indian gambling activities has documented that Abramoff hired Reed in 2001 to:

• Kill a 2001 Texas bill (HB 514) that sought to keep the El Paso-based Tigua tribe’s
Speaking Rock Casino open; and
• Ensure that then-Attorney General John Cornyn shut down Speaking Rock (in part by
generating support for such a policy).

The ultimate source of Reed’s multimillion-dollar fees for this lobby work appears to be a casino operated by the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana, which wanted to eliminate competition from Speaking Rock and a small Alabama Coushatta casino in East Texas. The Louisiana tribe hired Abramoff and Scanlon in April 2001, ultimately paying them $32 million.

As soon as Cornyn shut down Speaking Rock in February 2002, team Abramoff pulled off an extraordinary double play. Playing on their close ties to indicted former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (who once had employed Scanlon as a press secretary), the same lobbyists who had worked behind the scenes to shutter Speaking Rock sold themselves to the Tigua tribe as the lobbyists who could press Congress to reopen that casino. The Tiguas—who hired Abramoff’s team for an initial fee of $4.2 million—have since accused Abramoff, Scanlon and Reed of fraud.

“Apart from abandoning every scintilla of ethical behavior, Mr. Reed’s Texas lobbying activity also appears to have broken Texas law,” said Craig McDonald, director of Texans for Public Justice. “If Mr. Reed crossed the legal line when he crossed the Texas border to lobby for gambling interests, he must be held fully accountable.”

Under Texas law, Reed was required to register as a lobbyist and disclose his client and his fees if he was compensated more than $1,000 in a calendar quarter for lobbying Texas officials. Reed was reportedly paid many times that amount. Failure to register is a Class A misdemeanor and can bring a civil fine of up to three times the amount of unreported compensation.

“Mr. Reed’s own correspondence appears to indict him,” said Suzy Woodford, director of Common Cause Texas. “At a minimum, Mr. Reed should return to Texas to disclose all
communications that he had with state officials and to explain why he was not required to register like other lobbyists.”

In electronic correspondence released by the U.S. Senate, Reed repeatedly told Abramoff that he was in direct contact with Cornyn’s office, including the head of Cornyn’s criminal division, over the casino closure battle. Reed’s correspondence also indicates that he was in direct contact with Gov. Rick Perry’s office and with unnamed state lawmakers who were willing to introduce helpful legislation.

The Texas Observer has reported that a 2003 Abramoff memo credits Reed with persuading then-Lt. Gov. Bill Ratliff to kill a 2001 bill that would have kept the Tigua casino in business. Ratliff acknowledged speaking with Reed but said that they discussed redistricting rather than gambling legislation.

The media have reported that internal Abramoff and Scanlon documents reveal that Reed
received up to $4.2 million for his lobbying work in Texas in 2001 and 2002. Such compensation would rank Reed’s lobby contract among the largest to ever come to light in Texas.

“This case connotes the closing chapter of a corrupt crusader,” said Tom “Smitty” Smith, director of Public Citizen’s Texas office. “This case reveals how the public and press have been conned by this cover-up of Reed’s corrupt contracts. Who knows how many others there are?”