Former Aide to Rep. Ney Pleads Guilty (one big scandal)

[ProSense]

Seriously, Ney's story highlights all the scandals: all the players from Abramoff to the WH (even phone jamming Barbour) are involved. The Bush cabal's crime of the century!

May 8, 2006, 4:30PM

Former Aide to Rep. Ney Pleads Guilty

By PETE YOST Associated Press Writer

The criminal investigation of Abramoff's lobbying operation has now claimed Abramoff and three former congressional staffers: Neil Volz on Monday, as well as Tony Rudy and Michael Scanlon, who both worked for former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas.

All four are now government witnesses whose prison terms may depend in part on how cooperative they are with federal prosecutors in the investigation involving lawmakers, their aides and members of the Bush administration.

Snip...

"Guilty, your honor," Volz replied. Volz faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The court papers did not detail the conduct of other congressmen, but it said that Ney, acting with Volz and others, agreed to:

_Sponsor legislation to lift a ban against commercial gambling by the Tigua Indian tribe, an Abramoff client in Texas.

_Sign a letter opposing creation of a commission to study Indian gambling.

_Assist Abramoff in obtaining government property for Abramoff's private school in Maryland.

Snip...

In a conference phone call with reporters, Ney's lawyers acknowledged that the congressman met with Abramoff about a wireless contract for the House buildings. The lawyers added that Ney, then chairman of the House Administration Committee, also met with Haley Barbour, now the governor of Mississippi, who was lobbying for a competing firm at the time. Ney has said he would have been within his rights to award the contract on his own, but instead held an open competition and awarded it based on merit to the firm represented by Abramoff, Foxcom Wireless.

"The Department of Justice has now appeared in federal court four times and has been unable to even allege that Congressman Ney was bribed," Ney spokesman Brian Walsh said in a defiant statement.

The conspiracy charge that Volz pleaded guilty to states that in exchange for a "stream of things of value" supplied to Ney, the congressman agreed to take favorable official action on behalf of clients of Abramoff and Volz.

more...

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/politics/3848936.html

[C_U_L8R]

1. Someday one of these clowns

is gonna finger the President.

[Imagine My Surprise]

3. What a horrid visual

[TahitiNut]

4. !

:rofl:

[OldLeftieLawyer]

2. Another break in the dam

Ah, this is where all the best information comes from, the low-level weasels who get caught. They sing like .... uh ..... weasels and bring down their bosses.

Don't forget that the whole Jack Abramoff scandal was revealed because his buddy Scanlon screwed over a girlfriend who then called a Washington Post reporter.

I love it.

[ProSense]

5. BREAKING NEWS: GOP fund-raiser asks to change not-guilty plea

GOP fund-raiser asks to change not-guilty plea

Ohio coin dealer accused of evading limits on contributions to Bush run

Updated: 6:46 p.m. ET May 10, 2006
TOLEDO, Ohio - A coin dealer and major GOP fund-raiser has asked to change his not guilty plea to federal charges that he illegally funneled donations to President Bush's re-election campaign.

Tom Noe had denied illegally funneling $45,400 in contributions to President Bush's re-election bid. He was accused of giving money directly or indirectly to 24 friends and associates, who then made the campaign contributions in their own names.

Federal prosecutors said he did that to skirt the $2,000 limit on individual contributions.

more...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12727007/from/RSS