The Abramoff Scandal
One of the things we're trying to do here at Donkey Path is to cover things that other blogs and the media aren't necessarily focused on. We're also trying to take the long view on things, which is difficult since our nation is in the middle of a major leadership crisis, perhaps the deepest crisis in our nation's history. But some stories need to be watched closely simply for the symbolic nature of what they represent.
The Abramoff scandal has been brewing for months and represents Washington's rotten core. There are already attempts to drag the Democrats into this scandal, and while some Democrats have been guilty of some things in years past and have usually faced the music, this is purely a Republican scandal in the sense that people like Abramoff don't waste much time on people who aren't in power. The current crop of Republicans in Congress seem particularly susceptible to his kind of persuasion. We just saw Representative Cunningham take a fall after receiving bribes from a different but similarly motivated set of high rollers.
This is a story worth following, so here's some recommendations on who to read beyond the mainstream media. I just posted a story that Laura Rozen of War and Piece mentioned. She's always worth reading. I suspect Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo will be following this story closely. Firedoglake is worth checking because of their legal expertise. Steve Soto of The Left Coaster has been following the Abramoff debacle on its own merits and also in terms of the 2006 elections. Americablog, brilliant some days and erratic on others, has already debunked some Republican talking points. Former Republican, Arianna Huffington of The Huffington Post, will be paying close attention. If you want the latest, Eschaton has a knack of catching things early or noticing others who are first to catch a story.
It can't be said often enough that 2006 will be a critical year.
The Abramoff scandal has been brewing for months and represents Washington's rotten core. There are already attempts to drag the Democrats into this scandal, and while some Democrats have been guilty of some things in years past and have usually faced the music, this is purely a Republican scandal in the sense that people like Abramoff don't waste much time on people who aren't in power. The current crop of Republicans in Congress seem particularly susceptible to his kind of persuasion. We just saw Representative Cunningham take a fall after receiving bribes from a different but similarly motivated set of high rollers.
This is a story worth following, so here's some recommendations on who to read beyond the mainstream media. I just posted a story that Laura Rozen of War and Piece mentioned. She's always worth reading. I suspect Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo will be following this story closely. Firedoglake is worth checking because of their legal expertise. Steve Soto of The Left Coaster has been following the Abramoff debacle on its own merits and also in terms of the 2006 elections. Americablog, brilliant some days and erratic on others, has already debunked some Republican talking points. Former Republican, Arianna Huffington of The Huffington Post, will be paying close attention. If you want the latest, Eschaton has a knack of catching things early or noticing others who are first to catch a story.
It can't be said often enough that 2006 will be a critical year.
posted by Craig at 9:25 PM
2 Comments:
I notice that over at ThinkProgress, they're also covering this stuff.
It'll be interesting to see what Bush does to try and limit the damage through the Justice Dept. This is a corrupt era.
I suppose it will depend on how well Abramoff "sings" as to the outcome. Hell,he could probably implicate half of the congress...
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