Republican 'culture of corruption': Articles & Commentary 2005

The following are articles & commentary related to the main article Republican 'culture of corruption'.

Also see:
 * Republican 'culture of corruption': Articles & Commentary 2003-2004
 * Republican 'culture of corruption': Articles & Commentary 2006

January

 * David Adam, "Oil firms fund climate change denial," Guardian/UK, January 2005.
 * Gary Ruskin, "Enabling Corruption," Baltimore Sun, January 7, 2005. Posted on Common Dreams website.
 * Peter Dizikes, "The Scandal Sheet. Print it out, send it to Harry Reid, or just read it and weep. Here are 34 scandals from the first four years of George W. Bush's presidency - every one of them worse than Whitewater," Salon, January 18, 2005. Posted on Truthout.org website.
 * Katrina vanden Heuvel, "Annals of Outrage. The Bush administration's ten most outrageous scandals – an orgy of fraud, mismanagement and corruption," The Nation, January 19, 2005. Posted on AlterNet website.
 * Errol Lewis, "Wake up, Maggie. Another conservative columnist is clueless in pay-to-sway scandal," New York Daily News, January 28, 2005.
 * Suzanne Goldenberg, "Bush payola scandal deepens as third columnist admits being paid," Guardian/UK, January 29, 2005.
 * "3rd columnist paid by HHS to tout policy," Seattle Times, January 29, 2005.
 * Paul Berton, "Journalists or just flacks?" London Free Press (Canada), January 29, 2005.

February

 * Tom Engelhardt, "Mired in Denial, Lost in the Present," Znet, February 8, 2005.
 * Thomas B. Edsall, "Conservatives Join Forces for Bush Plans. Social Security, Tort Limits Spur Alliance," Washington Post, February 13, 2005.
 * Robert Higgs, "Bush’s New Defense Budget," Independent/UK, February 14, 2005.
 * Ben Frank, "$9 Billion is 'Missing', and Republicans Refuse to Investigate," Bella Ciao, February 17, 2005.

March

 * Marcia Angell, "What ails the FDA? Payola," Boston Globe, March 10, 2005.
 * Susanne Koelbl, Afghanistan: "The Aid Swindle," Der Spiegel, March 26, 2005: "The international community has sought to deliver quick success in rebuilding war-torn Afghanistan. But the country has become an El Dorado for international consultants and professional aid workers who ply the streets in Land Cruisers. Their methods have also fostered an atmosphere of corruption and sloppines that has left many Afghans feeling disappointed and cheated."

April

 * Charlie Cray and Jim Vallette, "Dancing with the Wolf. What did Wolfowitz know with regard to Halliburton's inside advantage in gaining Iraq contracts, and when did he know it?" AlterNet, April 2, 2005. Re Paul Wolfowitz.
 * Alex Knott, "The 'Fourth Branch' of Government. Shadowy lobbyists ignore rules and exploit connections -- and their industry of influence nets almost $13 billion," AlterNet, April 8, 2005.
 * Joel Wendland, "Republican Party's Corruption Problems Growing," Political Affairs Magazine, April 12, 2005.
 * Christopher Hayes, "Corruption: A Proven Winner," AlterNet, April 23, 2005: "Illinois is a bizarro-world inverse of the rest of the country, where Democrats dominate all branches of government, set the debate and drive policy, while Republicans grasp for a coherent message. Are there any lessons to be gleaned for Democrats elsewhere?"

May

 * "Meet the Chairman: Dean Verbatim from Meet the Press," US Newswire, May 22, 2005: "Today, on Meet the Press, Governor Howard Dean stood firm under tough questioning while laying out a clear new direction for the Democratic Party. In the style of Harry Truman, Gov. Dean showed that he will be a chairman who sticks to his guns, tells the truth and keeps the presure on Republicans and their culture of corruption."

June

 * Paul Siegel "Republican Rings of Corruption," Democrats & Liberals blog, June 1, 2005.
 * Howard Dean, "Becoming the Party of Change," AlterNet, June 2, 2005 (excerpted from Howard Dean's June 2 speech at the Take Back America 2005 conference in Washington, D.C.): "Democrats have suffered a couple of serious defeats, but we're energized because we know that our vision for America is much better than the dark and difficult vision of the Republican Party." Read the full transcript of Dean's June 2, 2005, speech "Becoming the Party of Change" edited and posted by AlterNet.
 * Jill Lawrence, "Dean launches an anti-GOP 'missile'," USA Today, June 3, 2005: "Most of Dean's speech at the 'Take Back America' conference here was met with whoops, cheers and standing ovations as he attacked Republicans for 'the culture of corruption and the abuse of power' in Washington, and accused the Bush administration of ignoring corporate 'stealing' of pensions canceled during bankruptcy proceedings."
 * Andrew C. Revkin, "Bush Aide Softened Greenhouse Gas Links to Global Warming," New York Times, June 8, 2005.
 * Molly Ivins, "Turning Up the Sleaze. Government is fast becoming a transactional institution as money becomes more and more influential in politics," AlterNet, June 8, 2005.
 * Andrew C. Revkin, "White House Calls Editing Climate Files Part of Usual Review," New York Times, June 9, 2005.
 * Editorial: "A (White) House Party for Lobbyists," New York Times, June 9, 2005.
 * Lou Dubose, "The Pimping of the President. Jack Abramoff and Grover Norquist have been caught billing clients for face time with George W. Bush. Don't believe it? Just follow the paper trail," Texas Observer, June 9, 2005. Posted on AlterNet website.
 * Lew Rockwell, "Iraq and Moral Corruption," The Huffington Post, June 10, 2005.
 * "Tobacco Sellout," Washington Post, June 10, 2005.
 * Steve Eder, "Coin scandal concerns resonate to D.C.," Toledo Blade, June 12, 2005.
 * "George Bush's Wise Guys: Noe, Abramoff, Reed, and the Wyly Brothers," BuzzFlash, June 14, 2005.
 * Eric Lichtblau, "Lawyers Fought U.S. Move to Curb Tobacco Penalty" (abstract), New York Times, June 16, 2005: "Senior Justice Department officials reportedly ordered career lawyers running government's tobacco racketeering trial to reduce penalties sought at close of trial by $120 billion, over lawyers' objections."
 * "Holes in the Tanker Story," Washington Post, June 20, 2005.
 * "Republicans Passing the Torch of the 'Culture of Corruption' on to a New Generation," CollegeDems.com, June 24, 2005.
 * James V. Grimaldi, "Lobbyists, Clients Undeterred by Scandal. Alumni of Abramoff's 'Team' Still Collecting Fees, Trying to Influence Government," Washington Post, June 26, 2005.
 * Jim Drinkard, "Big contributors to GOP reap big post-election rewards," USA Today, June 28, 2005.

July

 * Scott Shepard, "Dean decries GOP's 'culture of corruption'," Cox News Service, July 4, 2005: "Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean is trying to get voters to hold the Republican Party responsible for the 'culture of corruption' he sees in Washington, but Dean is getting virtually no help from fellow Democrats in the House of Representatives."
 * Molly Ivins, "Pigging Out On Pork," AlterNet, July 5, 2005: "Folks, we are being eaten alive by corruption -- and it isn't pretty."
 * Robert Pear, "Democrats to Use Newspaper Ads to Accuse 6 Republican Congressmen on Ethics Issues," New York Times (TruthOut), July 6, 2005.
 * "Governor's deputy chief of staff among those indicted in hiring probe," WKYT 27 / Kentucky Television, July 6, 2005. Commented AMERICAblog, "Kentucky is a GOP cesspool now, too. That didn't take long. Fletcher was just elected in 2003."
 * John Byrne, "In call with bloggers, online media, Dean raises Rove, ethics," The Raw Story, July 7, 2005.
 * "100,000 dead Iraqis, nearly 2,000 dead American soldiers, and $182 billion taxpayer dollars spent on a war based on a lie (and 10 more years to go); meanwhile bin Laden goes free and homeland security is virtually nonexistent," Democratic Wings, July 8, 2005.
 * Donald G. McNeil, Jr., "Review Finds Scientists With Ties to Companies," New York Times, July 15, 2005.
 * "Dramatic new charges deepen link between Ohio's 'Coingate' Scandal and Election Problems," The Free Press, July 29, 2005.
 * Frank Smyth, "Bankrolling Beltway Badges." Meet the Law Enforcement Alliance that violates the law with IRS impunity," Texas Observer, July 30, 2005.

August

 * Matthew D. LaPlante, "Utah GI exposed abuses at prison. His reports were brushed off until fellow Utahn stepped in," Salt Lake Tribune, August 1, 2005.
 * Joseph L. Galloway, "Soul of Republican Party at stake in prison-abuse scandal debate," Knight Ridder Newspapers, August 3, 2005.
 * Dana Priest and Josh White, "Before the War, CIA Reportedly Trained a Team of Iraqis to Aid U.S.," Washington Post, August 3, 2005.
 * Tom Loftus, "Druen charged with 21 felonies. Ex-highway official indicted in jobs case," The Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY), August 4, 2005: It is alleged that former Transportation Cabinet commissioner Dan Druen "shredded and altered records and tampered with a witness. ... Also indicted was Tim Hazlette, transportation agency personnel director, on one misdemeanor count of criminal conspiracy."
 * James Drew and Mike Wilkinson, "Workers' Comp Inquiry: 3rd grand jury to begin review of state agency," Toledo Blade, August 4, 2005.
 * Jonathan Weisman, "In Congress, the GOP Embraces Its Spending Side," Washington Post, August 4, 2005.
 * Steve Eder, "Noe lavished gifts on political bigwigs. Reports show ex-Taft aide benefited," Toledo Blade, August 4, 2005.
 * Editorial: "An Old Scandal Returns," Washington Post, August 4, 2005.
 * Andrew Gumbel, "A firewall for democracy. Two California secretaries of state have refused to certify a touch-screen voting machine, and for good reason," Los Angeles Times, August 4, 2005.
 * Dan Eggen and Jamie Stockwell, "U.S. Indicts 2 in Case Of Divulged Secrets. Both Worked for Pro-Israel Lobby," Washington Post, August 5, 2005: "The 26-page indictment, handed up in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, represents the first formal allegations of criminal wrongdoing against the former employees of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee." Indictments were brought against Lawrence A. Franklin, "a Defense Department analyst who had already been charged with disclosing secret information about possible attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq and other topics"; former "AIPAC director of foreign policy issues Steven J. Rosen ... on two counts related to unlawful disclosure of 'national defense information' obtained from Franklin and other unidentified government officials since 1999 on topics including Iran, Saudi Arabia and al Qaeda"; and "former AIPAC analyst, Keith Weissman ...on one count of conspiracy to illegally communicate classified information."
 * Dave Wedge and Maggie Mulvihill, "Your cash is trash: Gov, Reilly return thousands to questionable donors," Boston Herald, August 8, 2005: "As they prepare their next political moves, Gov. Mitt Romney and Attorney General Tom Reilly have been purging their campaign war chests, giving back thousands in donations that could be questioned by rivals."
 * Mike Robinson, "Investment firm's payments to Republican fundraiser under scrutiny," Associated Press (Belleville News Democrat), August 9, 2005: "The subpoena calls for documents related to the fund, the Carlyle Group and Robert Kjellander..."
 * Steve Eder and James Drew, "Noe used company credit card to charge $10,000 contribution for California governor,"Toledo Blade, August 9, 2005: "Transaction records released yesterday from the $50 million funds that Mr. Noe managed for the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation included a credit-card statement for Thomas Noe, Inc., containing a pair of $5,000 charges from March 9, 2004, for 'political contributions' to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger."
 * Faiz Shakir, "Pentagon Conducts Bogus Poll to Distort Iraq Opinion," Think Progress, August 10, 2005.
 * John Solomon, "GOP Paying Legal Bills of Bush Official," Associated Press (Guardian/UK), August 11, 2005: "Despite a zero-tolerance policy on tampering with voters, the Republican Party has quietly paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to provide private defense lawyers for a former Bush campaign official charged with conspiring to keep Democrats from voting in New Hampshire." Read comment by Hoffmania.
 * David G. Savage and Maura Reynolds, "Bush Order Lets Him Control Roberts' Memos. A 2001 decree gives him the power to block the release of papers from presidential libraries, among them those of the high court nominee," Los Angeles Times, August 11, 2005.
 * Suzanne Gamboa, "FEC Finds Misreporting by DeLay Committee," Associated Press (Yahoo! News), August 11, 2005.
 * Curt Anderson, "Lobbyist is charged in federal fraud indictment," Associated Press (Daily Bulletin), August 11, 2005. re Jack Abramoff.
 * "Ethics panel concludes investigation into Taft golf outings," Ohio News Network, August 12, 2005: Ohio Governor Bob Taft "a Republican, has acknowledged the commission is investigating his golf outings but has repeatedly declined to comment until the process was complete." See: Alan Johnson, "Taft details golf outings," The Columbus Dispatch, August 5, 2005, for details.
 * James Drew and Steve Eder, "Inquiry could lead to 1st conviction of governor in office. Senator urges Taft to reveal all gifts," Toledo Blade, August 13, 2005.
 * Peter Phillips, "Election Fraud Continues in the US. New Data Shows Widespread Vote Manipulations in 2004," Common Dreams, August 13, 2005.
 * "If words, deeds collide, deeds are better compass," Atlanta Journal-Constitution, August 14, 2005.
 * "Fletcher Subpoenaed In Hiring Investigation," Associated Press/WCPO 9 (Frankfort, KY), August 13, 2005.
 * Charles R. Babcock, "Lawmaker Asks to Use Donations For Defense," Washington Post, August 14, 2005: "Rep. Randy 'Duke' Cunningham (R-Calif.) is asking his contributors -- including the Washington defense contractor at the center of a federal grand jury probe -- for permission to use their campaign donations to pay for his legal defense."
 * Taegan Goddard, "Lott Dishes Dirt," Political Wire, August 15, 2005: "Sen. Trent Lott (R-MS) 'accuses two GOP colleagues of helping mastermind his fall from power in 2002, in a tell-all memoir set for release next week,' Roll Call reports." Also see: Mark Preston, "Book Dishes a Lott of Dirt," Roll Call, August 15, 2005 (requires subscription).
 * Lynn Grant, "Hastert’s Turkish Allies Tied to Bin Laden," The International Post, August 15, 2005: "Reports of former FBI translator Sibel Edmonds’ allegations concerning improper financial ties between House Speaker Dennis Hastert and Turkish officials and businessman have become a source of discontent for beltway insiders on both sides of the aisle."
 * Randall Chase, "Sen. Biden Says Bush Should Fire Rumsfeld," Associated Press (Yahoo! News), August 15, 2005.
 * James Drew and Steve Eder, "Taft says he'll take the blame for golf 'errors'. 'It's my responsibility to file a correct report,' governor says," Toledo Blade, August 15, 2005.
 * "CREW Files FEC Complaint Requesting Investigation into Foreign Donations to Hastert's Campaign," CREW, August 16, 2005.
 * Alan Johnson and Mark Niquette, "Governor Taft Charged," Ohio News Now, August 17, 2005.
 * Joel Mathis, "Taff indicted for misuse of campaign contributions," Lawrence Journal-World, August 17, 2005.
 * "Bush Names Secretaries of Navy and Air Force," Los Angeles Times, August 17, 2005. *Marty Graham, "U.S. prosecutors claim home of Calif. lawmaker," Reuters (Yahoo! News), August 18, 2005.
 * Thomas B. Edsall, "Firm Fined for Channeling Donations to GOP," Washington Post, August 19, 2005. re Westar Energy Inc.
 * Mark Pitsch and Tom Loftus, "Fletcher computer files copied. Stumbo also warns against pardons," The Courier-Journal (Frankfort, KY), August 20, 2005.

September

 * T. Christian Miller, "Pentagon Investigator Resigning," Los Angeles Times, September 3, 2005: General "Joseph E. Schmitz, the Defense Department's inspector general, is suspected of blocking investigations of senior Bush officials. ... Schmitz told staffers this week that he intended to resign as of Sept. 9 to take a job with the parent company of Blackwater USA, a defense contractor."
 * "Texas grand jury indicts DeLay committee. Two groups charged, but no individuals," Associated Press (CNN), September 8, 2005.
 * Raphael Lewis, "State Republican Party's embattled vice chairman resigns," Boston Globe, September 15, 2005.
 * DavidNYC, "KY-Gov: Fletcher All Alone," Daily Kos, September 17, 2005.
 * Ben Feller, "Ex-education chief to give paid advice on own policies," Associated Press (Boston Globe), September 19, 2005: "Former education secretary Rod Paige and his former top aides at the Education Department have organized a consulting group to offer paid advice on policies they helped create and later enforced, including the No Child Left Behind Act."
 * Philip Shenon and Anne E. Kornblut, "Ex-White House Aide Charged in Corruption Case," New York Times, September 20, 2005.
 * "Abramoff associate arrested," The Hill, September 20, 2005. See David Safavian.
 * R. Jeffrey Smith and Susan Schmidt, "Bush Official Arrested in Corruption Probe," Washington Post, September 20, 2005.
 * Dan Froomkin, "Scandal Visits the White House," Washington Post, September 20, 2005.
 * "Frist sold shares in hospital corporation," USA Today, September 20, 2005. See Bill Frist: Inside Trader article for details.
 * R. Jeffrey Smith and Jeffrey H. Birnbaum, "Frist Stock Sale Raises Questions on Timing," Washington Post, September 22, 2005.
 * Robert Scheer, "Corrupt Connections. Widening Abramoff scandal exposes GOP cronyism," robertscheer.com, September 27, 2005.
 * Richard S. Dunham, Lee Walczak, and Eamon Javers, "DeLay's Woes: The GOP's Tipping Point? The House Majority Leader's indictment is the latest in a rash of problems for Republicans. Voters may start seeing them as aloof and arrogant," Business Week, September 29, 2005.
 * Josephine Hearn, "Dems decry 'culture of corruption'," The Hill, September 29, 2005.
 * Joe Conason, "The GOP's spreading plague. Voters are notoriously slow in voting out politicians accused of corruption, but they may reach the tipping point with the latest revelations," Salon, September 30, 2005. Preview or subscription required.

October

 * Carl Hulse, "In Raucous House Vote, G.O.P. Oil Refinery Bill Squeaks By," New York Times, October 8, 2005. "'House Republicans have taken the lead in providing America with price stability and a bold plan for this nation's energy future,' said Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, who along with Mr. DeLay and other senior lawmakers buttonholed and browbeat resistant Republicans as the clock ticked on the vote. Democrats attacked the substance of the bill and the process that the Republicans employed to force it through. The Democrats accused the majority of abusing House rules by stretching what should have been a five-minute vote to deliver a bill that Democrats said would benefit profitable oil companies but do little for American drivers."

November

 * Andrew Wheat, "DeLay's Corporate Defenders," Texas Observer, November 18, 2005.
 * Holly Yeager and Stephanie Kirchgaessner, "Threat of federal charges against DeLay grows," Financial Times, November 22, 2005.
 * "Four congressmembers role in Abramoff lobbying scandal probed," The Raw Story, November 25, 2005: Tom DeLay, Bob Ney, Conrad Burns, and John Doolittle.
 * Elliot Spagat, "Calif. Congressman Admits Taking Bribes," Associated Press (Yahoo! News), November 28, 2005.

December

 * Michael Kinsley, "Corrupt Intentions. What Cunningham's misdeeds illustrate about conservative Washington," Slate, December 2, 2005.
 * Alan Lichtman, "The DeLay Scheme. Blatantly Buying Our Government," CounterPunch, December 3/4, 2005.
 * April Castro, "DeLay's Money Laundering Charges Upheld," Associated Press (Newsday), December 6, 2005.
 * Joe Conason, "California's 'Duke' heads to the pokey. Washington infected with a culture of corruption," New York Observer (Working for Change), December 6, 2005.
 * Joshua Boak, "Criminal probes entangle numerous fund-raisers. 8 Pioneers and Rangers face wide range of allegations," Toledo Blade, December 18, 2005. re Bush's Rangers
 * Jim Tankersley, Joshua Boak and Christopher D. Kirkpatrick, "Presidential Pipeline", Toledo Blade (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette), December 18-20, 2005: Part 1: "Bush's top fund-raisers see spoils of victory"; Part 2: "Bush's backers gain contracts, policy changes"; and Part 3: "No rewards for donors on Kerry-Edwards side."