House of Representatives Outlook

Posted: November 4, 2006 in 2006 Elections, House of Representatives
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Looking at the state of the horse race less than a week before Election Day, the Bush Administration and its political allies in Congress have been unable to change the basic dynamic that will determine which party will control the House of Representatives.

During most election seasons right now, the playing field of competitive races is shrinking, with both parties allocating more resources to fewer races.

Of course, this isn’t your typical election season. Political observers are talking about a Democratic wave hitting the country, but of course the full impact of that wave won’t be known until after the ballots are counted.

Democrats seem to have adopted the Republican strategy of trying to lock its hold on ideologically friendly geographic areas (Republicans in the South, Democrats in the Northeast and parts of the Midwest). Some of the Democrats’ biggest targets this year are Republican incumbents in Connecticut (Chris Shays, et. al.), New York (Tom Reynolds, et. al.), New Hampshire (Charlie Bass), and Pennsylvania (Curt Weldon, et. al.), although there are also state and local issues that will play a role in whether they are re-elected or not.

If there is a wave, look for several, if not a majority of these blue state Republicans to fall victim to it. In the Midwest, expect Ohio to be ground zero for any Democratic wave, given the political woes of the state and national GOP. Democrats could pick up Republican seats in blue states like Illinois and Minnesota. The Rothenberg Political Report lists 40 House races as toss-ups, all but three of them held by Republicans.

Pickup opportunities seem to be expanding the map for the Democrats all across the country. Look at two examples:

To most political observers, the race to succeed retiring Rep. Tom Osborne shouldn’t even be a contest. Republicans have held Nebraska’s 3rd district for the last 48 years. Democrats are throwing money and resources into Scott Kleeb’s campaign. Republicans sent President Bush himself to hit the campaign trail for Republican nominee Adrian Smith. Nebraska voted for President Bush 66-33 in 2004.

A little farther out west, local and national Democrats are salivating at the possibility of picking up Dick Cheney’s old seat in Wyoming, a state which overwhelmingly voted for President Bush in 2004, 69-29. How concerned is the GOP? Concerned enough that the NRCC dropped over $241,000 on TV ads attacking Democratic candidate Gary Trauner, and they sent Cheney himself out to Wyoming about a month ago and again a few days before the election to rally the troops for incumbent Rep. Barbara Cubin, who took a hit in the polls after threatening to slap a wheelchair-bound Libertarian candidate for pointing out her campaign contributions from former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. CQ Politics is now ranking this race as a toss-up.

If Republicans lose these two seats, in solidly red states, then Election Day will be an unmitigated disaster for them. To put it into perspective by reversing the situation, that would be like a Republican candidate having a shot at winning a congressional race in a solidly blue district like Berkeley, Washington DC, or Boston. The fact that they’re even spending money and resources defending them should tell you a lot about the national dynamics for the GOP.

Look at President Bush’s campaign itinerary during the last week or so of the campaign. He is hitting states that voted for him during the last presidential election and with the exceptions of Colorado and Missouri, he is staying away from swing states where his presence could hurt Republicans on the ballot. On Saturday, he is stumping in Colorado for Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, one of the states where Democrats made gains in 2004 at the state level and are hoping to continue the trend this year.

This stop is interesting because Musgrave is one of the leading Congressional proponents of a federal amendment to ban gay marriage, and because of the Ted Haggard gay prostitute and meth bombshell which dropped in Colorado earlier this week. I should also point out that there is an amendment to ban gay marriage on the ballot in Colorado this year as well. Social conservatives might be more energized to get out the vote and try to get the bill passed in the aftermath of the recent New Jersey Supreme Court ruling. On the other hand, the initiative could fail in the aftermath of the Haggard allegations.

Whether the 2006 midterm elections will be like 1994, 1974, 1982, or 1964, or an entirely different animal altogether, is something we’ll find out in a few short days.

House Prediction: Democrats take over the House of Representatives, winning between 15-25 seats on Election Day.

Senate Outlook

Posted: November 4, 2006 in 2006 Elections, Senate
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Control of the Senate will hinge on ten races. The incumbents in all but three of them are Republicans. The Tennessee race is for the seat being vacated by Bill Frist to run for president in 2008, the Maryland seat is being vacated by retiring Democratic Senator Paul Sarbanes, and the New Jersey seat is the one that used to belong to Jon Corzine, now held by Bob Menendez who is defending it in his first Senate campaign.

The races are:

  • Arizona
  • Maryland
  • Missouri
  • Montana
  • New Jersey
  • Ohio
  • Pennsylvania
  • Rhose Island
  • Tennessee
  • Virginia

A state-by-state analysis follows:

Arizona
Incumbent – Sen. Jon Kyl (R)
Challenger – Fmr. Arizona Democratic Party Chairman Jim Pederson (D)

The race had been written off by both parties until recently when the DSCC dropped $1 million on TV ad time in Arizona markets and sending in Bill Clinton following what they say are promising early voting numbers. This could just be a bluff to make Republicans commit money and resources to defend another Senate seat. The Republicans are doing the same thing with last minute ad buys in Michigan to try to take out Debbie Stabenow.

Although Democratic governor Janet Napolitano is cruising to re-election, I don’t think Pederson is going to be able to ride her coattails.

Prediction: Kyl wins by 5-10 points.

Maryland
Incumbent Party – Rep. Ben Cardin (D)
Challenger – Lt. Gov. Michael Steele (R)

Republicans are enthusiastic about this race, but I think New Jersey is a better pickup chance for them as far as blue states go. There may also be a down ballot effect at play here, because of Steele’s role as Gov. Bob Ehrlich’s deputy. Ehrlich is behind in the polls to Democratic challenger Martin O’Malley, and some of that may be rubbing off on Steele.

Prediction: Cardin wins by 7-12 points.

Missouri
Incumbent – Sen. Jim Talent (R)
Challenger – State Auditor Claire McCaskill (D)

This race has been in the news a lot recently because of the recent Michael J. Fox ad on stem cell research supporting Claire McCaskill which drew the ire of Rush Limbaugh, who proceeded to make it a national issue by attacking Fox on his radio show.

The race is a true tossup, with recent polls showing both candidates leading within the margin of error. President Bush hit the campaign trail for Talent today, and it might help him. This one will go down to the wire, and might be the race that ultimately decides which party controls the Senate next year.

Prediction: Talent wins by 1-2 points.

Montana
Incumbent – Sen. Conrad Burns (R)
Challenger – State Sen. Jon Tester (D)

This race had been written off by the Republicans until the last week or so, when polls showed the race tightening. Now, Senate campaign committees and outside groups from both parties are dumping dollars into Montana airwaves for a round of last minute ad buys. Check out this amusing anti-Tester ad from the Free Enterprise Fund: “Brokebank Democrats.”

The problem with Burns is that he has one of the highest disapproval ratings of any U.S. Senator, and Democrats are hammering away at him over his Jack Abramoff connection. Montana has been tilting towards the Democrats for the past several years, with a popular Democratic governor and a Democratic majority in both houses of the state legislature.

Given the state’s political climate, along with the widespread “throw the bums out” attitude that seems to be building across the country, I think Burns is done.

Prediction: Tester wins by 1-5 points.

New Jersey
Incumbent – Sen. Robert Menendez (D)
Challenger – State Sen. Tom Kean Jr. (R)

This is the most endangered Democrat-held seat. State Republicans (and perhaps to a similar degree, the electorate at large) are not happy with the Democratic party. People still remember the scandals from Jim McGreevey’s administration, which came back into the news after McGreevey published a memoir and the state supreme court voted in favor of gay marriage.

Kean has been good at making ethics and corruption an issue against Menendez, and that has certainly hurt him in the polls, most likely among independents.

This shouldn’t be a close race, but there are three things working in Menendez’s favor. 1) Remember polls in 2004 showing New Jersey a toss up? Both Bush and Kerry sent surrogates to fight it out, but New Jersey went to Kerry 53-46, 2) Governor Jon Corzine has a 60 percent approval rating according to a recent poll, in spite of having raised taxes, and 3) The anti-incumbent, anti-Republican mood in the country, combined with the fact that New Jersey is a blue state, Menendez should be able to hang on.

Prediction: Menendez wins by 5-10 points.

Ohio
Incumbent – Sen. Mike DeWine (R)
Challenger – Rep. Sherrod Brown (D)

In less than two years since Ohio voters secured President Bush’s re-election by about 110,000 votes, the state has become politically hostile territory to state and national Republicans.

Rep. Bob Ney pleaded guilty to corruption charges and resigned from Congress today before beginning to serve a jail sentence next year. Democrats are running challengers to Republican incumbents all over the state, including Deborah Pryce, the fourth highest ranking House Republican.

The Toledo Blade uncovered a major scandal involving a prominent Republican fundraiser with ties to Governor Bob Taft. Taft now has an astonishing 80 percent disapproval rating in a recent Quinnipiac poll.

Secretary of State Ken Blackwell is running for governor and is falling behind his Democratic rival Ted Strickland by nearly 30 points according to the same Quinnipiac poll.

The RNC and RNSC have seemingly given up on DeWine, having pulled all advertising from the state airwaves during the final two weeks of the election. Another issue which will fire up state Democrats is a ballot initiative to raise the minimum wage.

The writing is on the wall clear for all to see – Ohio is not the place to be if you’re a Republican this year. Besides taking over the governor’s mansion, I’d say it’s likely that the Democrats are going to take the majority of the state’s congressional delegation, effectively laying the political groundwork for 2008.

Prediction: Brown wins by 5-10 points.

Pennsylvania
Incumbent – Sen. Rick Santorum (R)
Challenger – State Treasurer Bob Casey (D)

Santorum has one of the highest negative ratings in the country, only slightly ahead of Conrad Burns. He has trailed Casey by double digits in most polls this year and he has been unable to change the dynamic of the race or make his case to Pennsylvania voters.

Issues about his state residency, a Republican effort to collect signatures and finance a Green Party candidate to siphon Democratic and liberal votes off from Casey, Santorum crowing about having found weapons of mass destruction, and making a bizarre analogy comparing the Iraq war to the Lord of the Rings have energized state Democrats.

Santorum should start updating his resume and look for a lobbying job.

Prediction: Casey wins by 8-12 points.

Rhode Island
Incumbent – Sen. Lincoln Chafee (R)
Challenger – Rep. Sheldon Whitehouse (D)

Chafee narrowly survived a primary challenge from conservative Cranston mayor Steve Laffey earlier this year. As the other New England centrist to face a primary challenge this year [behind the more high-profile race in Connecticut] Chafee has to run a delicate balancing act. He had to convince primary voters that he was genuinely a team player and a loyal Republican, and once he was re-nominated, he had to convince the electorate at large that he could be independent of the Senate Republican leadership and President Bush on issues such as the John Bolton nomination and global warming.

Rhode Island is not friendly territory to Republicans or President Bush, and voters may simply want to send a resounding “NO!” message to Washington, regardless of whether they like Chafee or not. Chafee said as much in one of his most recent ads.

Prediction: Whitehouse wins by 7-12 points.

Tennessee
Incumbent Party – Mayor Bob Corker (R)
Challenger – Rep. Harold Ford Jr. (D)

This race has been looking competitive for the past few weeks, and has the dubious distinction of having been the focus of one of the most controversial ads of this political season. I think that Ford will come close but I don’t think he’ll be able to pull it off.

Prediction: Corker wins by 1-5 points.

Virginia
Incumbent – Sen. George Allen (R)
Challenger – Former Secretary of the Navy James Webb (D)

This has been one of the most interesting Senate races to watch this year, in the same way that you can’t help watch or stare at the scene of an accident when you’re driving in your car. This race should have been a slam dunk for Allen, a springboard for the 2008 presidential campaign. Instead, he is fighting for his political life and he should be considered damaged goods by GOP activists, operatives, and fundraisers when it comes to his political ambitions. Bob Novak recently wrote he thinks Allen is going to lose because he let the race devolve into a “circus campaign,” and I think he’s right. All of Allen’s major problems in this race are self-inflicted, either by himself (i.e. the Macaca incident) or his people (the Mike Stark incident).

Prediction: Webb wins by 1-5 points.

One politically interesting scenario which would be amusing to watch and incredibly frustrating to both parties is if Joe Lieberman is re-elected as an independent and we have a tied Senate at 49-49-2 [the other independent in that formula would be Vermont’s Bernie Sanders who is replacing retiring independent James Jeffords].

Given the amount of Republican money and volunteers he’s taken during the general election, I think it’s almost a given that they will call in favors if Lieberman gets re-elected, regardless of whether the Democrats take over the Senate or not.

The nightmare scenario for Democrats would be if both parties lock up their caucuses in a vote for a contentious issue [i.e. Iraq, a Supreme Court nomination]. Sanders will vote with the Democrats, but if Lieberman wavers to the Republican side, that would put the vote at 50-50 and give Cheney the tie-breaking vote.

If that scenario happens, Lieberman would wield enormous political influence in the Senate. He would be a de facto second Senate president, with the ability to play kingmaker on a variety of bills.

Senate Prediction: Democrats win 8 out of the 10 races I discussed, for a net gain of 6 seats (the number they need to take control of the Senate) and a Senate tally of 49 Democrats, 49 Republicans, and 2 Independents.

I will have my assessment on the races for the House of Representatives done soon.

George Allen is Screwed

Posted: November 2, 2006 in 2006 Elections, October Surprise
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By now, I’m sure you’ve all seen or heard about this incident involving George Allen, his supporters, and liberal blogger Mike Stark.

I’m suspecting this tape has been leading local newscasts in Virginia for the past few days. The video has gotten national airplay on cable news when discussing the final days of the Allen-Webb Senate race.

This image, of campaign supporters getting into a physical altercation with a political opponent, is the worst nightmare for a candidate or political strategist. The last thing they want voters to read or hear about in the days before the election are the words “police,” “investigation,” and “criminal charges” in connection with their campaign.

The race was already tight enough as it is, and Allen is being very careful with what he says and who he talks to in the aftermath of the Macaca incident and all of the other mistakes that have made what should have been a shoo-in re-election campaign into a toss-up.

This is one hell of an October surprise, one that the Webb campaign couldn’t have planned any better themselves. If they had the time and money, I’m pretty sure this footage would be used in a political ad for the final days of the race, although it might not even be necessary given the amount of media coverage of the incident. If Allen loses next week, this incident might have been the final nail in the coffin for Virginia voters, even if it didn’t involve Allen himself.

Insulting the Troops

Posted: November 2, 2006 in 2006 Elections
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This story is completely overblown.

By now you’ve all heard the controversy over John Kerry’s widely cited comments during a campaign event with Phil Angelides earlier this week.

Kerry has said that he messed up the punchline for the joke. I have no reason to doubt that, because to think the contrary would imply that he planned those comments in advance, which no rational person would think was the case.

But between the event on Monday and Kerry’s two apologies today [the first being a half-hearted “apology” during a phone interview with Don Imus], the Republicans dusted off the Anti-Kerry Machine that worked so well for them in 2004 and turned him into a political piñata.

The only real upside effect to this for Republicans is firing up the base, which it did to great effect in 2004 every time Kerry stuck his foot in his mouth. Remember how they hammered him to great effect over “I voted for the $87 billion before I voted against it”? Other than the red meat value of energizing their base, I see no benefit to Republicans in trying to keep this story alive. However, there is no down ballot effect on the Democrats, since Kerry is not on any ballot this year.

This might have been an issue in the Tennessee Senate race, where Harold Ford was Kerry’s campaign co-chairman two years ago and Bob Corker might have tried to make an issue out of it at the last minute. Ford defused that possible scenario by criticizing Kerry and calling for him to apologize. Jon Tester also criticized him.

The only real damage to this is that it neutralized Kerry as a surrogate or campaigner during the final week. Politically, Kerry did the correct thing by removing himself from the equation and not becoming a distraction to the Democratic candidates he was going to be campaigning for. If this had happened weeks or months ago, Kerry’s absence as a fundraiser would have hurt the Democrats. You can argue over whether the apology was or was not necessary, but in giving it Kerry has taken away the Republicans’ ability to continue to push the story. By neutralizing the issue and removing himself from the races, Kerry is doing the right thing for his party.

That would have been the end of it, but along came John Boehner and the Democrats figured out very quickly that two can play at that game.

Howard Dean and Harry Reid immediately entered the fray, putting out statements calling on Boehner to apologize. I doubt this will get anywhere near the amount of traction that Kerry’s comments got, but Republicans made it fair game as an issue and Democrats are fighting back.

And Now For Something Completely Different

Posted: October 31, 2006 in Music, Pop Culture
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I would like to congratulate my friends in the DC band the reserves, for finishing their first album. They’ve scheduled a release party/performance at Iota Club and Cafe this Friday. I’ve seen them several times in bars and clubs around DC, and on one weekend trip up to New York City and friendship aside, I can vouch that they are good. You can pick up the album on iTunes or CD Baby. Check them out.

0 for 22

Posted: October 31, 2006 in 2006 Elections, Media
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Ouch!

Nelson Sweeps Editorial Endorsements

By Larry Lipman | Sunday, October 29, 2006, 11:26 PM

There are 22 daily newspapers in Florida.

All 22 have endorsed Bill Nelson for re-election to the U.S. Senate.

The first was The Palm Beach Post, the latest two on Sunday were The Orlando Sentinel and the Jacksonville-based Florida Times-Union.

The only newspaper that has endorsed Republican candidate Harris is ironically named the Polk County Democrat, published four days a week in Harris’ girlhood hometown, Bartow.

A Foot-in-Mouth Disease Outbreak in Ohio

Posted: October 29, 2006 in 2006 Elections, Nukes
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Would you want one of these in your congressional district?

D’oh!

Schmidt considers nuke waste
BY HOWARD WILKINSON | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

This doesn’t happen every day: An incumbent member of Congress, in the middle of a re-election battle, says that storing nuclear waste shipments from around the world in her district may be a good idea.

U.S. Rep. Jean Schmidt does say that, and her support for studying the idea has become an issue in her re-election campaign, especially in rural Pike County, in the far eastern end of her sprawling Southern Ohio District, where the nuclear wastes would be stored.

“I’m not advocating for it one way or the other,” Schmidt told The Enquirer. “I’m saying it is something we need to look at.”

Schmidt said she sees potential to create “hundreds, maybe thousands of jobs” in an economically distressed part of the state, where double-digit unemployment rates are the norm.

Schmidt has signed on to an effort by the Southern Ohio Diversification Initiative (SODI) and a Cleveland-based company called SONIC to seek a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) grant of up to $5 million for a study of whether the former Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion plant should be a site for temporary storage and recycling of spent nuclear fuel rods. The 3,400-acre site near Piketon produced highly enriched uranium through the Cold War years for military purposes and for civilian reactors until 2001, when that activity was consolidated at the similar Paducah plant.

A decision on the grant could come this week.

The idea of nuclear waste storage on a site that is still being cleaned up from its previous use has infuriated environmentalists and neighbors of the plant in Pike County and nearby Scioto County, prompting a communitywide petition drive and vows to fight the storage plan to the bitter end.

That and the fact that Schmidt’s Democratic opponent, Victoria Wulsin of Indian Hill, has come out against the idea, mean that the issue could have an impact on Schmidt’s re-election – meaning it could help determine who represents 650,000 constituents from Greater Cincinnati to Portsmouth.

“All I can tell you is that when it became known that she supports this, every Jean Schmidt yard sign in the county went down overnight,” said Geoffrey Sea, a writer whose home abuts the Piketon plant.

While in most towns and congressional districts, outside business investors coming in is usually considered a good thing, I have no idea why the hell Schmidt thought it would be a good idea to have a nuclear waste facility in her district. Maybe she’s getting campaign advice from Mr. Burns? Yucca Mountain is a no-brainer for people and politicians in Nevada, regardless of their political stripes. In a close re-election race, a gaffe like this could be costly for Schmidt.

NOTE: The photo is of a radioactive waste facility in Chernobyl, taken by a Ukrainian TV news station.

Something is Rotten in the State of New Jersey

Posted: October 29, 2006 in 2006 Elections, October Surprise
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Another October surprise, this one possibly bigger in impact than the one in the Florida governor’s race because if it becomes an issue in the Kean-Menendez race, it could affect which party controls the Senate next year.

Menendez added to corruption lawsuit
Friday, October 27, 2006

By OSHRAT CARMIEL
STAFF WRITER

Complete coverage: Election 2006

U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez has been added as a defendant in an ongoing lawsuit being brought against Hudson County by a Union City psychiatrist.

The revised federal suit, filed Wednesday by psychiatrist Oscar Sandoval, says that Menendez, as a congressman in the late 1990s, spearheaded a coordinated campaign by Hudson County officials to squeeze political donations and favors from Sandoval, a county contractor.

Sandoval is a controversial figure who was ensnared in a Hudson County corruption investigation that led to the conviction of former County Executive Robert Janiszewski in 2003.

Political pressure

The suit accuses Menendez and his political allies of pressuring Sandoval to give political contributions as a condition of keeping his psychiatric services contracts with Hudson County — and a condition of getting new ones. The pressure came after they learned that the psychiatrist was an FBI informant in the Janiszewski corruption probe, the suit says.

The lawsuit also hitches Bergen County to the tangled ordeal. It claims that Menendez was playing a behind-the-scenes role in 1999 in awarding a contract to provide psychiatric services to the Bergen County Jail. The psychiatrist who made the proposal, however, did not get a contract.

The legal accusations come in the final sprint of an acrimonious — and close — U.S. Senate race between Menendez and Republican Tom Kean Jr., who has made Menendez’s ethics the central issue in his campaign.

The Ghost of Jim McGreevey

Posted: October 28, 2006 in 2006 Elections, October Surprise
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An October surprise in the Florida governor’s race, perhaps?

Crist Denies Trysts
GOP frontrunner: I have never had sex with a man
By Bob Norman

A young rising star in the Republican Party has boasted to witnesses of his sexual relationship with Charlie Crist, the frontrunner in the Florida governor’s race who has repeatedly denied that he is gay.

The GOP staffer, 21-year-old Jason Wetherington, told friends at separate social functions in August that he had sex with Crist, according to two credible and independent sources who heard Wetherington make the claim first-hand.

Wetherington, who recently worked as a field director for U.S. Senate candidate Katherine Harris and currently works for state representative Ellyn Bodganoff’s reelection campaign, also named a man whom he said is Crist’s long-term partner, a convicted thief named Bruce Carlton Jordan who also recently worked for Harris in her long-shot Senate bid.

Jordan made headlines recently when the Miami Herald learned that the felon was working as Harris’s travel aide. The newspaper noted that Jordan, 42, was reported to be close friends with Charlie Crist, whom he convinced to attend an annual Florida Funeral Directors Association meeting in 2003.

Jordan was charged in 2003 with stealing thousands of dollars from two organizations for whom he worked, including the Tallahassee-based Florida Funeral Directors Association, where he served as executive director. He completed a 60-day jail sentence in February and will be on probation until the year 2011, according to state records.

When the Herald questioned Crist about Jordan this past August, the frontrunner in the governor’s race told the newspaper that he doesn’t remember the man. “I don’t know who Bruce Jordan is,” he said at the time. “It doesn’t mean I haven’t met him. I don’t know who you are speaking about.”

I asked Crist during a phone interview on Monday morning if he had ever had sex with Jordan.

“No,” he said. “I don’t recall the name.”

I’ve seen no poll evidence indicating Crist is losing support in the Florida governor’s race over this. However, the fact that Crist is even being forced to deny it isn’t good for him politically. If the allegations are true, then in post-Mark Foley Florida it might become an issue. Not only that, but the man believed to be his partner is a convicted felon and he’s denying [not very convincingly I think, if you read further into the article] any ties to him.

I Love the Way You Put Me in the Big House…

Posted: October 28, 2006 in Uncategorized
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The first judicial victim of the Abramoff scandal gets jail time.

A federal judge sentenced a former Bush administration official to 18 months in prison in the Jack Abramoff lobbying case Friday — after delivering a 30-minute eulogy for good government in Washington.

“There was a time when people came to Washington because they thought government could be helpful to people,” said U.S. District Judge Paul L. Friedman. “People came to Washington asking not what government could do for them and their friends but what they could do for the public.”

David Safavian, the former chief of staff for the General Services Administration, was sentenced on obstruction and concealment charges for lying to investigators about his relationship with Abramoff.

Safavian wept in court as he asked for leniency, but Friedman said the ex-bureaucrat had become part of Washington’s culture of corruption, where congressmen listen to campaign donors and lobbyists while farming out to staff members the job of writing laws.

Abramoff, the once-powerful lobbyist, shook Pennsylvania Avenue from the Capitol to the White House when he pleaded guilty to corruption in January and began cooperating with an FBI investigation.

The Justice Department and FBI are just getting warmed up. They got Bob Ney to plead guilty, and they gave Abramoff a desk at the FBI because he is cooperating so much (and presumably dishing out the dirt on anything and anybody he had dealings with). The Abramoff story is not over by a long shot. Safavian was small-time, the feds are still going after the big fish.

Note: The title of this post is a lyric from Interpol’s song “Specialist.”

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