"Great White Father" article

The Scanlon and Abramoff Scam was one of the stories we were following during the Autumn of 2004. We've also referred our readers to the Cobell vs Norton website, which is mentioned in the following column as well. To read more about Cobell vs Norton, click HERE

Great White Father Has a New Scam
The GOP's fleecing of tribal casinos is just the latest in a long line of scandals that spark outrage but rarely solutions
by Paul VanDevelder

On long winter nights beside the Knife and Little Big Horn rivers, tribal elders still sit around fires and tell their grandchildren stories to help them make sense of the world. It's a custom as old as silence.

Here's a story: A black man, a white man and an Indian arrive at the Pearly Gates, and after welcoming them to heaven, St. Peter invites each man to pick the afterlife of his dreams. The black man asks for great music and lots of friends. St. Peter grants his wish and sends him on his way.

Up steps the Indian, who asks for beautiful mountain streams, deep forests and plenty of food to eat. "Say no more, chief" says St. Peter, and sends him off. Lastly, he turns to the white man and asks: "What do you want heaven to look like?" And the white man says, "Where did that Indian go?"

Ever since Columbus waded ashore, say the elders beside the Knife and the Little Big Horn, white men have been asking, "Where'd that Indian go?" In this context, there's the recent scandal involving Jack Abramoff and Michael Scanlon, lobbyists who fleeced six casino tribes out of some $80 million by promising them, well, a little slice of welcoming heaven in Washington, D.C.

Scanlon and Abramoff stand accused of mocking tribal leaders as "morons" and "monkeys" at the same time they were stealing tribes blind. Each man pocketed about $10 million for his services, then distributed the rest to Republican Party coffers. During a preliminary hearing before the Senate's Indian Affairs Committee last fall, Arizona Sen. John McCain said this was the most "sordid affair" he had encountered in his political career. full column