Ken Mehlman, Abramoff’s “Rock Star”RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman did so many favors for Jack Abramoff, the lobbyist’s team viewed him as a “rock star.”
In an email exchange from November 2001 (you can see it here), Abramoff associate Tony Rudy writes Abramoff, “Mehlman said he would ‘take care of this.’ He was a rock star.” Abramoff replies: “He’s great.”
The two were referring to Mehlman’s agreement to get Abramoff’s client the Mississippi Choctaw millions in federal funds to build a new jail — but Mehlman, who had Sabbath dinner at Abramoff’s house and visited his restaurant Signatures, did more than that to gain rock star status.
In a January 2001 email (posted here), Rudy reports that Mehlman had agreed to get an Abramoff foe “fired” at the State Department. The House Report details other instances of Mehlman’s help, such as providing Abramoff with a White House endorsement for Republican candidates close to Abramoff on Guam; and making sure that a Republican running in the Northern Mariana Islands did not get an endorsement in the governor’s race there, since he was opposing Abramoff crony Ben Fitial.
