Probing the Abramoff connection

Peter Kenney of Cape Cod Today reports tonight that the U.S. attorney’s office is very, very interested in possible ties between imprisoned former superlobbyist Jack Abramoff and the leadership of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, which seeks to build a casino in Middleborough. Kenney writes:

The letter from the U.S. Attorney’s office is eight pages long and lists specific documents to be delivered as well as specific areas of inquiry. One such area of inquiry, according to a source within the tribe, is correspondence to, from or about Jack Abramoff. Abramoff, who was convicted of defrauding clients of his Washington lobbying firm, is now serving a federal prison sentence. He has been linked to the lobbying efforts mounted by the Mashpee to gain federal recognition. Specifically, while he was employed by the Washington law firm Greenberg Traurig, two of his protégés — Kevin Ring and Michael Smith — worked directly with the tribe in their lobbying efforts before Congress and the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The Abramoff connection has not struck me as particularly strong, but it’s interesting to see that federal authorities are trying to get to the bottom of it. There’s much that we don’t know.

Abramoff illustration (cc) by swaters. Some rights reserved.

My standard disclosure.