Abramoff Associate Was a 'Corrupter,' Not a Lobbyist, Prosecutors Tell Jury(Kevin Ring) [View All]

Source: WaPost

Federal prosecutors told jurors Friday that Kevin Ring, an associate of disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff's, lavished meals and tickets on lawmakers and public officials in the hopes of illegally influencing them.

"He was a lobbyist in name but a corruptor in reality," said Nathaniel B. Edmonds, a Justice Department prosecutor. "Ring is the sugar daddy, giving out the goodies to public officials over and over again."

Ring, 38, of Kensington, went on trial Friday in the District's federal court on conspiracy, fraud and obstruction of justice charges tied to the Abramoff lobbying scandal. His attorneys say he did nothing wrong.

"He pushed the envelope where Congress purposefully left the lines blurry," said his attorney, Andrew Wise. "Kevin Ring played by the rules of lobbying and government in a broken and sometimes ridiculous system."

But prosecutors said witnesses and Ring's e-mails will prove the lobbyist stepped well beyond legal limits in seeking to influence lawmakers, their staff members and government officials.



Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/11/AR2009091103728.html