If you have been following this
growing scandal, you will know that a grand jury has been investigating illegal campaign contributions to the Bush cheney campaign.
the basic plot outline is that a top Ohio Republican, Tom Noe was giving $50 million to invest in whatever he liked apparently (rare coins and collectibles), and upto $12 million is missing.
where did it go ? We are left to find out, but the pieces over the last 48 hours are falling into place.
First,
Noe gave governor Taft top aide doug Talbot thousands of dollars, to hlep this aid buy a home. they claimed it was a loan, but nothing has ever been repaid, no records of it exist, and no ethics filings were made.
Talbot is now a lobbyist, and has been "renting out" his home on the cheap to a veritable who's who of Ohio GOP pols, including Betty Montgomery, candidate for Gov and current Auditor !
Well a whole host of prominent GOP politicos in Ohio have been coming and going in and out of the grand jury the last 48 hours, one of which is Mr Talbot.
The Plain Dealer is now reporting the following:
H. Douglas Talbott, a former top aide to two Ohio governors, told federal authorities that
Republican coin dealer Tom Noe persuaded him to contribute $2,000 to President Bush's re-election campaign - then reimbursed him for the donation, The Plain Dealer has learned.
Talbott appeared Wednesday before a federal grand jury in Toledo that is investigating whether Noe illegally reimbursed as many as two dozen contributors to a Bush fund-raiser in October 2003. The grand jury is looking into whether Noe made the reimbursements to circumvent campaign finance laws, which limit individual contributions to $2,000.
the bolded section means it was illegal, and folks looking at 2 years jail time sing, and it appears this guy is starting to do, as the GOP party machine tries to distance itself.
There is much more to this story, and the rats are starting to squeal on each other, as the Toledo Blade reports.
State Sen. Jeff Jacobson, a Republican from suburban Dayton, said officials must fill out their ethics forms "correctly.''
"The big issue is, 'Is it unusual to get the loan from somebody you worked with previously?' Certainly, it is not something I've heard of before, and it is the kind of situation that, while not illegal, is something that should be avoided as the appearance of impropriety."
...
Neil Clark, a former GOP Senate staffer and now among the most powerful Statehouse lobbyists, said Mr. Talbott's decision to accept $39,000 from Mr. Noe was "poor judgment.''
"I hope this isn't indicative of a culture that has been occurring," he said.
Before long, who knew what when, who told whom to do what etc will all be out there. No one wants ot go to jail, and it's getting close to the time to sing like a canary and save your own hide. going ot jail for a couple of years because someone talked you into this Bush fundraiser ponzi scheme is no ones idea of a good time, not for lame duckie