Dishonoring the work
of others
By Molly Ivins,
dfw.com from the Web, January 11, 2006
Austin, TX -- We live in a
great nation. The police blotter of the Mill Valley Herald in California
informs us that the constabulary there had to be called out on account of a
citizen "dressed like a penguin" who was "standing on a street corner playing a
ukulele." Makes me proud to be an American.
What does not make me proud to be an American is a specific twist in the Jack
Abramoff/Tom DeLay scandal -- in fact, this makes me want to urp despite the
fact that I have a strong stomach when it comes to political corruption.
Practice, practice, practice, that's what Texas provides when it comes to sleaze
and stink.
But this is a reach too far. Abramoff, DeLay and many in their web of
colleagues have consistently used nonprofit organizations -- ostensibly formed
for charitable purposes -- to launder money, move peculiar proceeds or pay for
high-flying perks.
Give us a break -- if you're going to make a mockery of democracy and show your
mastery at flipping money, wiring the system and fixing the odds, please don't
use charitable organizations designed to help crippled children to do it.
That's Bad Taste.
According to The Associated Press, Tom DeLay "visited cliff-top Caribbean
resorts, golf courses designed by PGA champions and four-star restaurants -- all
courtesy of donors who bankrolled his political empire."
"Over the past six years," according to the report, "the former House majority
leader and his associates have visited places of luxury most Americans have
never seen, often getting there aboard corporate jets arranged by lobbyists and
other special interests.
"Public documents reviewed by The Associated Press tell the story: at
least 48 visits to golf clubs and resorts; 100 flights aboard company planes;
200 stays at hotels, many world-class; and 500 meals at restaurants, some
averaging nearly $200 for dinner for two.
"Instead of his personal expense, the meals and trips for DeLay and his
associates were paid with donations collected by the campaign committees,
political action committees and children's charity the Sugar Land Republican
created during his rise to the top of Congress."
How cynical does that make you? When I hear that House Speaker Dennis
Hastert is returning his campaign contributions from Abramoff or "donating it to
charity," I wonder which little charmer of a Republican campaign fund
masquerading as a charity he's sending it to.
The DeLay Foundation for Kids was set up 18 years ago and works on behalf of
foster children. But it is also a way for companies to give unregulated
and undisclosed funds: It's a way for companies to get into DeLay's good
graces or, as Fred Lewis from Campaigns for People says, "another way for donors
to get their hooks into politicians."
Meanwhile, Abramoff was even more cavalier about "charity." He created the
Capital Athletic Foundation, supposedly to help inner-city children through
organized sports. There is no evidence that any of the money ever went to
that purpose, but The Washington Post reports that some went to a sniper school
for Israelis on the West Bank, a golf trip to Scotland for Rep. Bob Ney, R-Ohio,
and a Jewish religious academy in Columbia, Md.
Abramoff's hapless Indian clients were generous contributors. I wonder if
he thought it was funny that Indians might more likely identify with
Palestinians than Israelis.
There are nonprofit organizations in this country where the CEO barely makes
more than the janitor, where nickels and pennies are saved so the clients or the
cause can get a little more.
There are nonprofits where good and faithful servants have spent decades
devoting their entire lives to helping those less fortunate than themselves --
without ever going to a cliff-top Caribbean resort.
There are nonprofits where extra-bright young people from top schools work for
peanuts because they want to make a better world.
While Abramoff padded his bills and falsified expenses to tribal clients, there
are people who work for minimum wages on Indian reservations to help some of the
poorest people in America get a minimally decent chance at life.
Abramoff and DeLay and their crummy hangers-on haven't just cheated and lied.
They have dishonored the work of many people who are devoted to helping others
without even expecting a decent salary.
Molly Ivins, based in Austin, writes for Creators Syndicate.
5777 W. Century Blvd., Suite 700, Los Angeles, CA 90045.
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