Today,
reporting the indictment of Michael Scanlon, the Houston Chronicle goes out of its way to reinforce the ties between the Abramoff scandal and Houston's own Tom DeLay.
For those of you outside Houston rightly questioning the animus of the Chronicle towards DeLay, the rift goes way back to the first efforts to build rail mass transit in Houston. The Chronicle, a major stakeholder downtown, rightly advocated Houston address its larhe problems with traffic and smog. DeLay brazenly denied Houston funds in an overt pander to his racist constituency. The Chronicle's crusade retains its legs because there are a lot of decent people who live in inner Houston and who work for the Chronicle, despite the fact the Chronicle is, of course, an important cog in the corrupt Republican corporate cabal that runs Houston.
The lead to the story- count how many times DeLay is brought in:
Lobbyist is charged with conspiring to bilk Indians
Former DeLay aide, who may be cooperating in case, is likely to plead guilty
By MICHAEL HEDGES
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON - A two-year federal probe into the business affairs of two lobbyists with political ties to U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay produced criminal charges Friday against one of them, former DeLay aide Michael Scanlon.
Scanlon, who partnered with controversial lobbyist Jack Abramoff after leaving DeLay's staff five years ago, was accused of conspiring to defraud Indian tribe clients of millions of dollars.
The former DeLay aide has a court appearance scheduled for Monday at which he is expected to plead guilty. Issuing a criminal information rather than an indictment is a strong indicator that Scanlon has been cooperating with federal officials and that the charges are a result of negotiations, legal experts said. The charges carry punishment of between 51 and 63 months in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.
DeLay, who once publicly called Abramoff his best friend, was not charged or implicated in the allegations by the U.S. Justice Department. A spokesman for DeLay said the lawmaker has not been contacted by federal prosecutors in the case.
But DeLay's connections with Scanlon, his press secretary from 1998 to 2000, and Abramoff, who accompanied DeLay on a lavish golf outing to Scotland, have prompted critics to call for an ethics investigation. DeLay has said he would welcome such a probe to "clear my name."
DeLay, the Sugar Land Republican, was forced to step down as House majority leader when he was indicted in Texas on campaign finance charges unrelated to Abramoff and Scanlon.
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