Didn't get much attention, but there was another conviction in an Abramoff-related case.  A top Republican operative, Jared Carpenter, pleaded guilty to tax evasion --  he didn't file income taxes from 2001 through 2003.  Interesting that Mr. Carpenter worked for a group founded by the leader of the right wing anti-tax movement, Grover Norquist.  Interesting and ironic:

Another Republican environmental activist has pleaded  guilty to tax evasion charges uncovered as part of the investigation of now-imprisoned lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
            
Jared Carpenter was the vice president of the Council of Republicans for Environmental Advocacy (CREA), which derived from a group founded by former Interior Secretary Gale Norton, anti-tax activist Grover Norquist and Italia Federici.
            
Federici pleaded guilty last month to tax evasion and  obstruction charges and is to be sentenced Nov. 14.
            
Carpenter pleaded guilty to one count of income tax  evasion on July 6 in a plea that was not publicized by the Justice  Department and was first reported Friday by Greenwire.

Yesterday, as noted below, the Senate Republicans shut down movement on S. 1, the ethics reform legislation.   The specter of Jack Abramoff looms large over this debate.  Yet, in an interesting twist, a leading ally of Abramoff, Grover Norquist, is leading the charge against a provision inspired by Abramoff's antics according to The Washington Post:

And interest groups would have had to reveal the money they spend on campaigns to rally voters for or against legislation, a provision that had raised the ire of conservative activists such as Grover Norquist of Americans for Tax Reform as well as the National Right to Life Committee. Proponents of the provision said it would combat activities brought to light during the Jack Abramoff scandal. Abramoff, a once-powerful Republican lobbyist now in federal prison, channeled millions of dollars from Indian gambling clients through nonprofit groups run by former Christian Coalition head Ralph Reed and Norquist to fund campaigns against rival tribal interests.

Late last year, a Senate report found that Norquist had laundered money for Abramoff.  In March 2006, CREW filed a complaint with the IRS alleging that Norquist's organizations laundered money for the notorious lobbyist:

The complaint alleges that Norquist used either or both ATR and ATR Foundation as commercial enterprises by laundering money derived from Indian casino clients of former lobbyist and convicted felon Jack Abramoff. The casinos made contributions to ATR, which then skimmed a fee off the top before passing the money on to former Christian activist Ralph Reed and other anti-gambling activists. In this way, Norquist, Reed and Abramoff were able to disguise the fact that the money used to fund anti-gambling activities was generated through Indian gambling. The point of the anti-gambling campaigns was to prevent competition to the Indian casinos.

In March of this year, CREW filed a complaint with the IRS against Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) and the ATR Foundation. Both groups are headed by Grover Norquist. We alleged that the groups were laundering money for clients of Jack Abramoff.

Today, the Senate Finance Committee Democrats issued a report which accuses Norquist's group and four others of "perpetrating a fraud" on taxpayers. The ranking Democrat on the Committee said the FBI and IRS should investigate the groups. The Washington Post has the story:

Five conservative nonprofit organizations, including one run by prominent Republican Grover Norquist, "perpetrated a fraud" on taxpayers by selling their clout to lobbyist Jack Abramoff, Senate investigators said in a report issued today.

The report includes previously unreleased e-mails between the now-disgraced lobbyist and officers of the nonprofit groups, showing that Abramoff routed money from his clients to the groups. In exchange the groups, among other things, produced ostensibly independent newspaper op-ed columns or press releases that favored the clients' positions.

The report also accuses the groups of laundering money:

The report states that the groups probably violated their tax-exempt status "by laundering payments and then disbursing funds at Mr. Abramoff's direction; taking payments in exchange or writing newspaper columns or press releases that put Mr. Abramoff's clients in a favorable light; introducing Mr. Abramoff's clients to government officials in exchange for payment; and agreeing to act as a front organization for congressional trips paid for by Mr. Abramoff's clients."

Maybe now the IRS will investigate.

There has been enormous press coverage this week on the release of information about the number of visits to the White House made by Grover Norquist and Ralph Reed, both close associates of Jack Abramoff. However, CREW knows it's not the full story:

The government watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington also sued for the records. The group disclosed Thursday that it was told during settlement discussions that the actual number of meetings for Reed and Norquist was much higher - closer to 200.

Executive Director Melanie Sloan said her group was not satisfied with the release of the documents so far and intends to continue pursuing its case.

"We believe there are more records out there," Sloan said, adding that her group will ask permission from the court to interview officials and gather documents on the administration's recordkeeping practices. "Mere documents won't settle our questions."