Is Mark Green Under Investigation As Well?

Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Joe Wineke today called on Congressman Mark Green to answer whether he, his campaign manager Mark Graul, or any members of his staff are under investigation by the U.S. Justice Department for taking ticket freebies from indicted Washington, D.C. lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

Abramoff’s partner, Michael Scanlon, pleaded guilty last week to bribery, admitting that he and Abramoff offered and provided items of value to public officials in exchange for official acts. According to the Wall Street Journal, investigators are looking into whether Abramoff and his associates made illegal payoffs to lawmakers and their aides in the form of campaign contributions, sports tickets, meals, travel, and job offers, in exchange for helping their clients. [Wall Street Journal, 11/25/2005] Prosecutors are also investigating at least 17 current and former congressional aides.

Records show that Graul, as Green’s Washington Chief of Staff, repeatedly took ticket freebies for Abramoff’s skybox in D.C. for NBA games, concerts, and a WWF event. [TalkingPointsMemo.Com, 10/10/2005]
“The people of Wisconsin deserve to know what Mark Green and his staff did to earn the freebies Abramoff repeatedly gave to Green’s congressional office,” Wineke said. “Considering the number of favors Green’s office received, it is hard to believe these gifts were anything other than a reward for votes that benefited Abramoff and his clients, instead of Wisconsin families.”

After initially denying taking any freebies from Abramoff’s firm, Graul finally admitted to receiving gifts, excusing the behavior as just the way business is done in Washington. “I believe it’s illegal in Madison” to take freebies, Graul told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “It’s legal in Washington.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 10/21/2005] Graul also admitted he was the contact person to receive freebies.

“Mark Green seems to think it is okay for his staffers in Washington to take freebies from an indicted lobbyist,” Wineke said. “In Wisconsin, we call that bribery, and the U.S. Justice Department apparently agrees that it’s bribery in Washington as well. Green has shown that he is a Washington politician caught up in the culture of corruption that has plagued Republicans in the nation’s capital.”

The Justice Department is also looking into Abramoff’s interactions with the indicted former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay and Rep. Bob Ney of Ohio. Green has close relationships with both Congressmen, taking more than $30,000 in tainted cash from DeLay and requesting that Ney bring his congressional committee to Wisconsin to help his campaign for Governor. Prosecutors have told Ney and his former chief of staff that they are preparing a possible bribery case against them, The Washington Post has reported.