WP pg1 exposes GOP lobbyist, "attached" to DeLay, in charity scam

Foundation's Funds Diverted From Mission
Records Detail Spending By GOP Lobbyist Abramoff

By R. Jeffrey Smith
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, September 28, 2004; Page A01

The Capital Athletic Foundation's Web site portrays youths at play: shaking hands over a tennis net, learning how to hold a bat, straining for a jump ball. Its text solicits donations for what it describes as "needy and deserving" sportsmanship programs.

In its first four years of operation, the charity has collected nearly $6 million. A gala fundraiser last year at the International Spy Museum at one point attracted the Washington Redskins' owner as its chairman and was to honor the co-founder of America Online.

But tax and spending records of the Capital Athletic Foundation obtained by The Washington Post show that less than 1 percent of its revenue has been spent on sports-related programs for youths.

Instead, the documents show that Jack Abramoff, one of Washington's high-powered Republican lobbyists, has repeatedly channeled money from corporate clients into the foundation and spent the overwhelming portion of its money on pet projects having little to do with the advertised sportsmanship programs, including political causes, a short-lived religious school and an overseas golf trip.

The foundation's brief history -- now the subject of a federal investigation -- charts how Abramoff attached himself to House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) and, in so doing, became a magnet for large sums of money from business interests. It also demonstrates how easily large amounts of such cash flowed through a nonprofit advocacy group to support the interests of a director....

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A55283-2004Sep27.html

My computer is giving off smoke right now just having those two words in the same post.

40 years of running the place and they were pretty bad. 10 years or Republicans and they are just as bad.

They spread the wealth. In fact, the Dems were much better at distributing the wealth via the trickle down effect, than the Republicans will ever be with their 400 Billionaires in a population of 300,000,000 people.

I bet they get their hand slapped for this one. Only 1% of their charitable organization went into sports activity??!!

That's just incredible. But if they're this bold, then you know how bad it really is.