Administration Official Arrested

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It's been kinda slow on this board lately

Anyhow, from WP:

article here

To put this into context some more: his duty was to set purchasing policy for the entire government . That means (my reading ): provide government contracts for well-connected businesses. Apparently, this also implied he was in charge for "developing contracting policies for the multibillion-dollar relief effort after Hurricane Katrina." Another good tidbit:

(this is from NYT). So his wife was supposed to oversee him. Great government at work .

[ September 21, 2005, 00:18: Message edited by: Blackthorne TA ]

 

This is an interesting story. It highlights just how corrupt things have gotten inside the US government. While the Bush II adminstration and the Republican leadership (Tom Delay) have been at the center of this latest corruption scandal, even the Dems have connections with Abramoff. The entire system needs to be reformed. But don't count on it anytime soon.

 

Jeez, maybe I was young and naive at that time, but I do not rememebr things being so bad during the previous Democratic administration (Clinton, that is). Now, granted, some amount of nepotism/influence peddling/corruption is normal in a government, it's what's keeping things running smoothly more or less, but the current administration seems to have gone way over the top.

I remember reading some articles about the lobby business in Washington (which is influence peddling, basically). It used to be that those firms were more or less apolitical (both former Democrats and Republicans were hired, and this sort of keeped things under control). Now they pretty much take only Republicans, and this means there is much less incentive for openess and straight dealing, all the involved players get their bread buttered form only one side, and things can get much more ugly.

 

I tend to believe that's what you get when politics are mixed with business too much. It may be good to cut political parties from tax money but when they start feeding on business, they are going to make sure their feed lasts and keeps well, so to say. In short, when politicians and businessmen have too much of a common interest, things get screwed for people who belong in neither of the two groups.

 

So Safavian is arrested for lying to the prosecutors and trying to cover for his buddy Abramoff. Some more background on the guy (also from the WP :

As about Abramoff: I knew he was under investigation for his gambling permits/indian tribes shenanigans (just a matter of some 70 million dollars) and he was tied to the powerful Rep. congressman Tom DeLay. I did not realize he had contacts in the White House, too.

Some more fascinating details about how tight were the links between Abramoff and the GOP are here

 

Yes, it's amazing that this is what's become of our govenment these days. IMO, it all started with deregulation. There is nothing quite like putting the foxes in charge of the hen house. Some believed that deregulation would be "market driven" and self-correcting. Maybe in dreamland, or on some other world...

 

Some more developments on the Abramoff case Demotion of a Prosecutor Is Investigated (NYT).

From the article

note the timing:

I guess this needs no more comments.

 

Yeesh. Those of you who do not remember such things from the Clinton Administration have short memories indeed.

I am not going to defend the Bush Administration, but I will point out that Tom DeLay did nothing wrong.

 

Please provide some examples.

 

It was just his very good friends that "did something wrong" - I guess (just pretend it will be OK).

 

khaavern, remember WhiteWater?

Remember Chinese fundraising?

Webb Hubbell?

The Thomasons?

Mark Rich?

 

As luck would have it, Tom Delay was indicted by a Texas grand jury. He will be charged with criminal conspiracy.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9507677/

Yes, who can forget that sorry, gigantic waste of taxpayer money that proved nothing about the Clintons.

 

Wow, DeLay indicted. That is some big news.

About the Whitewater: I pretty much agree with Chandos. Much noise (how many special prosecutors have looked into this?) and not much to show for it. About the other guys: come on. One can argue about it, but in my opinion in no way it compares to what happens these days.

More about Abramoff businesses: some former employees of his arrested for gangland-style killing in Florida. NYT article

 

IIRC over 37 people were indicted in White Water.

Buying presidential pardons is not small stuff.

 

Yes, and not one of them were the Clintons. I do remember that much, for those who can't.

 

What is your point? Bush has not been arrested in Abramoff's case either.

 

Well, in my book Clinton giving pardons to his friends ranks about as Bush giving medals to the likes of Tommy Franks and Paul Bremer. I mean, is disgusting, but no point in getting much steamed about it

Its true that people have been indicted in Whitewater. But, what did they have to do with Clinton's administation? As far as I could tell, it was a local matter. They did not hold any important position in the federal government.

On the other hand, Safavian was responsible for oveseeing the spending of hundreds of billion of dollars of taxpayer's money. Given this, I find his involvment with a figure like Abramoff highly unsettling.

 

I never said that Bush was going to be arrested, unless they make it illegal to be an incompetent president.