WASHINGTON — Whatever his shortcomings, Jack Abramoff still has connections — more than 250 of them, to be precise — including prominent lawyers, religious leaders and even a member of Congress.
They are encouraging a federal judge to give the disgraced lobbyist a reduced sentence Wednesday in a Miami fraud case. They have written letters to U.S. District Judge Paul C. Huck, saying that the picture of Abramoff that has emerged through the news media is a gross distortion, and that he deserves a break.
Far from the image of the greedy Beltway operator who stole from Indian tribes, defrauded the Internal Revenue Service and tried to bribe public officials, they say, Abramoff is a man of charity and good works. In their letters, they cite his generosity to others, his deep religious faith and his devotion to his family.
Abramoff boarded underprivileged children in his home, they said. He opened a kosher deli in Washington "so that Jews would have a place where they could dine in comfort."
The sole member of Congress who wrote on Abramoff's behalf is a longtime friend, Republican Rep. Dana Rohrabacher of Huntington Beach.
"I think when he is being punished for the things he did that were wrong, some of the things that he did that were right and admirable in the past should be taken into consideration," Rohrabacher said in an interview. "I think that balance is necessary for justice. I think even Jack Abramoff deserves that."
In his letter to the judge, Rohrabacher described "a far different Jack than the profit-seeking megalomaniac portrayed in the press."
"Jack was a selfless patriot for most of the time I knew him," the congressman wrote, recalling his friend as an ardent anti-communist during the Cold War.
Rohrabacher said he was concerned that an inordinately stiff sentence might prevent Abramoff from eventually starting a new life with his wife and children.
This is almost laughable. Here is a man who has defrauded hundreds of millions of dollars from his clients--mainly the Indian casinos. Through his lobbying efforts, he has forced the citizens of the Northern Mariana Islands to work in sweatshop conditions with less-than-minimum wages. How much harm did Abramoff give in providing in all those fundraising dinners at his Signatures Restaurant for his Republican friends in Congress--especially for his good buddy Tom DeLay?
I'm sorry, I don't buy it.
Abramoff committed some serious white-collar crimes. And he should go to jail for his crimes--no matter how pious he may seem to be, now that he was caught. In one sense, I can see a lot of hypocrisy among Abramoff's friends--especially those who have connections within the Republican Party. The Republican Party loves to tout how they want to get tough on crime--throw the book at the rapists, murderers, robbers, and others who commit violent street crimes. Three strikes and you're out! But when one of their own members is caught in a white-collar crime, then they will rally around their own and plead to the judge to be lenient--he didn't mean to. He's really a good guy. He has learned his lesson--let him pick up the pieces of his shattered life and live with his family. If you want to get tough on crime, then you have to get tough on both street crime, and white-collar crime. And that includes getting tough on Jack Abramoff. What Abramoff did was to be the instigator in destroying the trust between the American public and its leaders in government. In crimes like these, monetary fines are not enough to deter such criminals--jail time is. And Jack Abramoff is going to have to go to jail for his crimes. If there is going to be any reduced sentence for Abramoff, it is going to have to be up to the federal prosecutors and how much cooperation and information Abramoff is giving to the feds. That is the only way to deter white-collar crime.
And we have been seeing a lot of white-collar crime these days.
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