The Mother Lode

They have email. A lot of email. Looks like Senator John Cornyn (R - TX) now has some 'splainin' to do. AP (11.11.05), via Josh Marshall:

"Former Christian Coalition director Ralph Reed claimed in a 2001 e-mail to a lobbyist that he choreographed John Cornyn's efforts as Texas attorney general to shut down an East Texas Indian tribe's casino. The lobbyist was Jack Abramoff, who is under federal investigation, along with his partner Michael Scanlon, on allegations of defrauding six Indian tribes of about $80 million between 2001 and 2004." E-mails show link between Cornyn, lobbyist under investigation

"The e-mail, along with about a dozen others, were released last week as part of the investigation." My, my, my. Where to begin? Back in 2001, our boy Jack was a lobbyist for the Louisiana Coushattas, who were running a casino in Texas. Also running casinos in Texas were the Alabama Coushattas and the Tiguas. As in one pie, three slices. Jack hired Ralph as a "consultant". Ralph's job was do what he could to shut down the Alabama Coushatta and Tigua casinos in Texas. If successful, we'd have one pie, one slice. Yummy! "In the Nov. 30, 2001, e-mail, Reed told Abramoff that 50 pastors led by Ed Young, of Second Baptist Church in Houston, would meet with Cornyn to urge him to shut down the Alabama-Coushatta tribe's casino near Livingston, Texas. He said Young would back up the request in writing." "'We have also choreographed Cornyn's response. The AG will state that the law is clear, talk about how much he wants to avoid repetition of El Paso and pledge to take swift action to enforce the law,' Reed wrote. 'He will also personally hand Ed Young a letter that commits him to take action in Livingston.'" Nope. Doesn't sound like coordination there, eh? As for the Tiguas, "Cornyn, now a Republican U.S. senator, had filed a lawsuit in 1999 to shut down a casino operated by the Tigua tribe in El Paso, saying it violated the state's limited gambling laws. In 2002, federal courts shuttered the Tiguas' casino and Cornyn used that ruling to shut down the Alabama-Coushuttas' casino." My, how convenient. "Cornyn, who has not been accused of any wrongdoing, has denied knowing Abramoff. He also has said he was unaware of Reed's work with Abramoff. He said he did not remember receiving a letter from Young or Reed, or providing a letter to Young, although he acknowledged meeting with the minister." "When the Alabama-Coushatta casino finally closed, Reed summed up the political rewards in an e-mail to Abramoff. 'This is total victory and should lead friends in TX to now want to launch the grassroots effort to insure that those elected officials who stood up for families and against the casino gambling have support this fall,' Reed said." Well not counting the Louisiana Coushattas casino gambling operation of course. Wonder what Ralph meant when he said "to insure that those elected officials...have support this fall"? Oh and the Tiguas? This is pretty funny. "The previously released e-mails that showed in 2002 Abramoff and [Jack's partner Michael] Scanlon secretly funneled millions to Reed to help fund the campaign to get the Tigua casino shut down. The lobbyists then persuaded the Tiguas to hire them to reopoen it." Jesus. We're running out of links keeping track of Jack: Someone Has To Go First (This has a bunch of other links) Jack J. Steven Has A Bad Day I Wuz Duped Getting Closer To Home J. Steven Might Have Some 'Splainin' To Do