Jack Abramoff, the gift that will just keep giving

The biggest present under every progressives Christmas tree is also the Republicans worst nightmare. Is it a singing bird, no, it's Jack Abramoff. As we reported here it looks like Mr Abramoff is going to sing like a bird so he will spend a little less time in the cage. AP reports that a deal could be announced on Tuesday. Ron Gunzberger gives us the rundown on who Abramoff will take down with him.

There must be lots of very nervous people on Capitol Hill this weekend -- elected officials and key GOP staffers alike. According to numerous news sources, indicted Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff's lawyers and federal prosecutors in Miami have reportedly agreed upon nearly all the terms of a plea deal. Both sides met briefly with the federal judge on the case on Friday to go over some key elements of the deal. They are expected to formally announce the completed plea deal on Tuesday. In related news, Congressman John Doolittle (R-CA) appears now to actually be one of the purported targets of the investigation. What does this mean for the 2006 elections? Former US House Majority Leader Tom DeLay still runs for re-election, especially as he's already qualified for the ballot (and filing in Texas closes on Monday) -- but I'd be surprised if he attempts to regain his leadership spot in January. As for Congressman Bob Ney (R-OH) -- and a likely looming federal indictment -- I'd peg the odds a 50/50 that Ney decides to retire. US Senator Conrad Burns (R-MT) and Doolittle? About a 1-in-3 chance that either or both decide to retire, too. And, if Abramoff talks about former Christian Coalition Executive Director Ralph Reed's purported collusion in Abramoff's questionable Indian gaming activities, Reed's campaign for Georgia Lieutenant Governor will be fatally wounded. Who else will be implicated or indicted? Who knows ... but this is clearly the biggest Hill corruption scandal since ABSCAM broke in 1980 ... and this is going to get very interesting very soon.

The Washington Post has all the dirt on the relationship between DeLay's U.S. Family Network and Jack Abramoff.

The U.S. Family Network, a public advocacy group that operated in the 1990s with close ties to Rep. Tom DeLay and claimed to be a nationwide grass-roots organization, was funded almost entirely by corporations linked to embattled lobbyist Jack Abramoff, according to tax records and former associates of the group.

During its five-year existence, the U.S. Family Network raised $2.5 million but kept its donor list secret. The list, obtained by The Washington Post, shows that $1 million of its revenue came in a single 1998 check from a now-defunct London law firm whose former partners would not identify the money's origins.

There is a lot more detail in the Post article and it's worth a read.

So while it may be a happy New Year for many of us it won't be for Tom DeLay and his henchmen. Add that to the fact that the timing is just about perfect for the 2006 mid terms it may not be a good year for the Republicans in general.