Abramoff-White House-CNMI Connection Outlined in US House Committee Report Released Today

June 9, 2008

The US House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform released a report entitled, "Jack Abramoff's Contacts with White House Officials" today. The report outlines some very direct links between the CNMI, Jack Abramoff, and the White House. It noted that the committee's investigation and the scope of the committee's conclusion was limited for several reasons including: individuals who refused to cooperate on Fifth Amendment grounds; the Department of Justice felt some depositions by the committee (including Mr. Abramoff's) could undermine ongoing investigations; the DOJ asked the committee to withhold some documents because of ongoing investigations; and some individuals interviewed or deposed stated they could not recall the details of matters under investigation.

The report revealed six photographs of Mr. Abramoff and members of his family meeting with President Bush, "each on different occasions." After Jack Abramoff pleaded guilty in 2006, President Bush was quoted as saying, "I don't know him."

Plot Against Allen Stayman
According to the report, White House officials were involved in removing Allen Stayman from his position in the State Department:

"The documents show that Mr. Abramoff and his associates influenced some White House actions. In one instance, the Abramoff team persuaded White House officials to intervene to remove from office a State Department official, Alan Stayman, who had advocated reforms in the Northern Mariana Islands that Mr. Abramoff opposed. In one exchange, Mr. Schlapp e-mailed Monica Kladakis, the deputy associate director of presidential personnel, to ask “how do we fix this?” Ms. Kladakis responded: “I think we can do something about it, but I’m trying to figure out what is the best way to go about it. I don’t want a firing scandal on our hands.” Both Karl Rove, the President’s top political advisor, and Stephen Hadley, the deputy National Security Advisor, were informed of Mr. Abramoff’s opposition to Mr. Stayman."

Starting on page 13 of the report are the details of how Mr. Stayman was ousted from a position at the State Department. It supports the strategy of the "secret memo" between Ben Fitial, Willie Tan, Eloy Inos, and Abramoff. The memo outlined the lobbying strategy which included "impeaching" Stayman; preparing hearing questions and factual backup for the friendly Senators and Congressman; arranging junkets to the CNMI; and cutting funding for the pro-federalization Department of Interior. Today's report confirms the conspiracy to go after Mr. Stayman:

"The White House documents show that Mr. Abramoff, Mr. Rudy, and Kevin Ring pressed the Stayman case with White House officials. At the White House, Matt Schlapp, Monica Kladakis, and Susan Ralston had the most frequent communications on this issue. However, the White House discussion of Mr. Stayman’s position ultimately involved Karl Rove and even reached top National Security Council staff. And in the internal White House communications about Mr. Stayman’s case, White House officials repeatedly noted they would be giving status reports to Abramoff lobbyists."

Details about the whole disgusting plot continues for 7 pages. The report reveals that there was a conspiracy to take a job from a dedicated and qualified government employee to prevent him from telling the truth, and working to ensure reform. If it's any consolation, at least the report showed that the people at the State Department had the highest regard for Mr. Stayman and his work.

Zachares for DOI
While Abramoff, the CNMI administration, members of Congress, and the White House were plotting to oust Mr. Stayman, at the same time they were also plotting to give CNMI Department of Labor and Immigration Secretary and Abramoff pal, Mark Zachares a position in the Department of Interior. You can read about this on page 20 of the report.

I recently read correspondence that former DOLI Secretary Mark Zachares sent to the Department of Interior complaining about former ombudsperson Pamela Brown. Governor Fitial and his administration follow that established pattern of complaining about those who disagree with their agenda or expose corruption with the intent of damaging reputations or removing persons from their positions. They have attacked the current ombudsman, Jim Benedetto because he isn't always aligned with the administration's way of thinking. One such attack is illustrated in a 2007 Saipan Tribune article, "Fitial Calls for Benedetto's Head". It appears that whenever someone credible disagrees with the CNMI government and their lobbyists, the plan is to discredit or oust them. This behavior reminds me of playground bullies.

No Endorsement for Babauta
The report also outlined how Abramoff's team worked to ensure that the White House didn't endorse Juan Babauta for governor:

"Mr. Abramoff and his team also succeeded in persuading the White House to refrain from issuing a presidential endorsement of Juan Babauta, the Republican gubernatorial candidate in
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) in 2001, who was running against a third party candidate favored by Mr. Abramoff."

Any endorsements from Washington came in the form of political ads and press releases placed in the Saipan Tribune and they supported Ben Fitial and Rita Inos. These endorsements were from Abramoff's foot soldiers including US Representatives John Doolittle, Bob Schaffer, Dana Rohrabacher, and Chris Cannon.























The Committee report concludes:

"The documents and testimony obtained by the Committee in this investigation confirm that that Mr. Abramoff and his associates had access and influenced some actions at the White House."

You can read more comments about this report at Talking Points Memo.