Via Reuters: House Speaker Hastert under investigation: ABC
he Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Dennis Hastert, is under investigation by the FBI, which is probing corruption in Congress, ABC News reported on Wednesday.[...]
Part of the investigation involves a letter Hastert wrote three years ago, urging the Secretary of the Interior to block a casino on an Indian reservation that would have competed with those of other tribes.
Sounds Abramoff-y.
Of course, I suspect a lot of members of Congress are “under investigation” because of Abramoff.
Still, not good–and I mean that generically. One sound never want the Speaker (arguably the second most powerful member of our government) to potentially be involved with corrupt practices.
Of course, this just makes the squawking about the Jefferson office raid seem even more unseemly.
According to another ABC story, the DOJ says he isn’t under investigation, although the Abramoff angle is confirmed:
The Justice Department denied a news report Wednesday that it was investigating House Speaker Dennis Hastert.The statement by department spokeswoman Tasia Scolinos came in response to a report by ABC News that Hastert was under investigation by the FBI to determine his role in a public corruption probe centered around convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
And, of course, there’s this:
Between 2001 and 2004, Hastert collected more than $100,000 in donations from Abramoff’s firm and tribal clients. He also had used Abramoff’s restaurant to hold fundraisers.
The main story from ABC’s “The Blotter” can be found here.
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