Donald L.
02-14-2006, 11:55 PM
Abramoff Charged Malaysia for Meeting With Bush (http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-abramoff15feb15,0,5644434.story?coll=la-home-headlines)
When the government of Malaysia sought to repair its tarnished image in the U.S. by arranging a meeting between President Bush and its controversial prime minister in 2002, it did what many other well-heeled interests in Washington did: It called on well-connected lobbyist Jack Abramoff for help.
It was a tall order. The prime minister, Mahatir Mohamed, had been chastised by the Clinton administration for repeated anti-Semitic statements and for jailing his political opponents. But it was important to the Malaysians, according to an Abramoff associate who attended meetings with the Malaysian ambassador and Abramoff.
and at the end of the article:
On one occasion, Abramoff, an orthodox Jew and avid supporter of Israel, was asked whether he was comfortable representing a country led by a man known for anti-Semitic comments.
Abramoff responded, "They pay their bills on time."
When the government of Malaysia sought to repair its tarnished image in the U.S. by arranging a meeting between President Bush and its controversial prime minister in 2002, it did what many other well-heeled interests in Washington did: It called on well-connected lobbyist Jack Abramoff for help.
It was a tall order. The prime minister, Mahatir Mohamed, had been chastised by the Clinton administration for repeated anti-Semitic statements and for jailing his political opponents. But it was important to the Malaysians, according to an Abramoff associate who attended meetings with the Malaysian ambassador and Abramoff.
and at the end of the article:
On one occasion, Abramoff, an orthodox Jew and avid supporter of Israel, was asked whether he was comfortable representing a country led by a man known for anti-Semitic comments.
Abramoff responded, "They pay their bills on time."