Frank Smith
2005-12-21 08:52:26 UTC
Does anyone know what the Resort is? Anyone know why Hastert was there? Who else attended?
By LARRY MARGASAK and SHARON THEIMER
Associated Press Writers
Dec 20 2:03 PM US/Eastern
WASHINGTON - As Tom DeLay became a king of campaign fundraising, he
lived like one too. He visited cliff-top Caribbean resorts, golf
courses designed by PGA champions and four-star restaurants _ all
courtesy of donors who bankrolled his political money empire. Over
the past six years, the former House majority leader and his
associates have visited places of luxury most Americans have never
seen, often getting there aboard corporate jets arranged by lobbyists
and other special interests.
Public documents reviewed by The Associated Press tell the story: at
least 48 visits to golf clubs and resorts with lush fairways; 100
flights aboard company planes; 200 stays at hotels, many world-class;
and 500 meals at restaurants, some averaging nearly $200 for a dinner
for two.
Instead of his personal expense, the meals and trips for DeLay and
his associates were paid with donations collected by the campaign
committees, political action committees and children's charity the
Texas Republican created during his rise to the top of Congress.
Put them together and an opulent lifestyle emerges.
"A life to enjoy. The excuse to escape," Palmas del Mar, an oceanside
Puerto Rican resort visited by DeLay, promised in a summer ad on its
Web site as a golf ball bounced into a hole and an image of a sunset
appeared.
The Caribbean vacation spot has casino gambling, horseback riding,
snorkeling, deep-sea fishing and private beaches.
"He was very friendly. We always see the relaxed side of
politicians," said Daniel Vassi, owner of the French bistro Chez
Daniel at Palmas del Mar. Vassi said DeLay has eaten at his
restaurant every year for the last three, and was last there in April
with about 20 other people, including the resort's owners.
The restaurant is a cozy and popular place on the yacht-lined marina
at Palmas del Mar. Dishes include bouillabaisse for about $35.50,
Dover sole for $37.50 and filet mignon for $28.50. Palmas del Mar is
also a DeLay donor, giving $5,000 to DeLay's Americans for a
Republican Majority PAC in 2000.
Since he joined the House leadership as majority whip in 1995, DeLay
has raised at least $35 million for his campaign, PACs, foundation
and legal defense fund. He hasn't faced a serious re-election threat
in recent years, giving him more leeway than candidates in close
races to spend campaign money.
AP's review found DeLay's various organizations spent at least $1
million over the last six years on top hotels, restaurants, golf
resorts and corporate jet flights for their boss and his associates.
The spending shows how political power can buy access to the
lifestyles of the rich and famous. While it's illegal for a lawmaker
to tap political donations for a family vacation, it is perfectly
legal to spend it in luxury if the stated purpose is raising more
money or talking politics.
Until his recent indictment in Texas on political money laundering
charges, DeLay was the second most powerful lawmaker in the House and
as such, could command an audience of donors wherever he went.
DeLay attorney Don McGahn declined to identify which trips listed in
the reports were taken by DeLay and which by his associates. But he
said all the travel was legal and not done for DeLay's benefit.
"Raising political money costs money," he said.
"Mr. DeLay has done extensive fundraising, and traveled far and wide
to do so, but you would be hard-pressed to find someone who has
raised more for others, whether for candidates or political parties,"
McGahn said.
Special interests routinely make donations and attend fundraisers to
gain access to government decisionmakers. And while other
congressional leaders accepted trips and used political money to
cover travel, none compares with DeLay:
_Campaign and PAC reports filed by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist,
R-Tenn., show several payments to companies for travel, including
Cracker Barrel, Union Pacific, Schering-Plough and Home Depot. But
there were few visits to golf courses, and those were mostly close to
home.
_Reports from Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., show
expenses at resorts in South Carolina, New Mexico and Puerto Rico.
But he too holds most events closer to home, like Las Vegas casinos
and Lake Tahoe resorts.
_House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has held events at
ritzy hotels such as The Mark in New York and the Four Seasons in
Atlanta, but had few corporate flights or visits to resorts, her
reports show.
House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., comes closest to rivaling
DeLay's travels, reporting fundraisers at Walt Disney Parks and
Resorts in Florida, the Ritz-Carlton in Kapalua, Hawaii, the
Phoenician Resort in Scottsdale, Ariz., and the Waterfall Resort in
Alaska. Hastert's groups also paid for dozens of corporate jet
flights and restaurant meals.
Some say DeLay pushes the limits, and risks alienating donors.
"I don't think the people that contributed to me would believe it was
a good expenditure of their hard-earned dollars for me to go and play
golf and enjoy life anywhere," said former Rep. Charlie Stenholm, a
fiscally conservative Texas Democrat who lost his House seat
following DeLay-led redistricting.
DeLay's travels with recently indicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff are now
under criminal investigation. But those trips were paid by special
interests directly under the banner of congressional fact-finding.
DeLay's own political empire has underwritten far more travel.
The destinations for DeLay or his political team include a Ritz-
Carlton hotel in Jamaica; the Prince Hotel in Hapuna Beach, Hawaii;
the Michelangelo Hotel in New York; the Wyndham El Conquistador
Resort & Golden Door Spa in Fajardo, Puerto Rico; and the Phoenician
Resort in Scottsdale, Ariz., built by Charles Keating before he
became the most public face of the savings and loan scandal in the
early 1990s.
There's also the Ritz-Carlton in Naples, Fla., offering "dazzling
views of the Gulf of Mexico, warm golden sunsets and three miles of
pristine beach" plus golf, a spa, goose-down comforters, marble
bathrooms and private, ocean-view balconies. Rooms run from about
$389 to more than $3,000 a night in December, the month DeLay's PAC
spent $4,570 on lodging there in 2004.
"He liked to talk to people," said Pedro Muriel, a waiter at Puerto
Rico's El Conquistador Resort. Muriel recalled DeLay staying in an
enclave of privately owned red tile-roofed villas.
The villas have up to three bedrooms, kitchens, living rooms and
French doors that open onto terraces or balconies facing the
Caribbean. A moon-shape pool hugs the edge of a steep cliff, its
waters spilling over and appearing to blend into the sea. Villa
prices average about $1,300 a night.
Guests get their own butlers. The resort offers six swimming pools
and an 18-hole championship golf course. Its casino served as the
setting for the last scene in the James Bond movie "Goldfinger."
DeLay's donors have also financed visits to country clubs and
tournament-quality golf courses, including the exclusive Baltusrol
Golf Club in Springfield, N.J., site of this summer's PGA
Championship; Nemacolin Woodlands Resort in Farmington, Pa., home of
another PGA event; and Harbour Town Golf Links, a Jack Nicklaus-
designed course on Hilton Head Island, S.C.
"World class. Dynamic. Luxury resort. Spend a day, spend a week,
spend a lifetime," another DeLay fundraising spot, the ChampionsGate
golf resort near Orlando, Fla., invites on its Web site.
The resort, where a round of golf typically costs $70 to $80 per
player, has two championship courses designed by pro golfer Greg
Norman and offers players a Global Positioning Satellite system it
boasts "acts as a professional caddie."
Dining at fine restaurants also is routine. The stops for DeLay and
his associates include Morton's of Chicago, where the average dinner
for two goes for about $170 before tax and tip, and "21" in
Manhattan, a longtime glamour spot where American caviar goes for $38
for a taste.
When DeLay wants to head somewhere without the hassle of commercial
travel, he often asks a company for its jet and uses donations to pay
for it.
Dozens of businesses have loaned DeLay their planes, from tobacco
giants UST, RJ Reynolds and Philip Morris to energy companies like El
Paso, Panda, Reliant and Dynegy.
R.J. Reynolds let DeLay use a company plane at least nine times since
once joining Philip Morris in making jets available for a DeLay PAC
fundraiser at a Puerto Rican resort in winter 2002. R.J. Reynolds
spokesman David Howard said planes are loaned usually at lawmakers'
request and are only done if jets aren't needed for company business.
"It's much more convenient as opposed to your regular commercial
travel," Howard said, noting there is no need to go through airport
security.
On R.J. Reynolds' planes, smoking is allowed and there are usually
beverages and deli-style food. There's more leg room and the
convenience of phones.
The smoking rule suits DeLay, who likes to chomp on cigars while
golfing and reported spending at least $1,930 in PAC money on cigar-
shop purchases. The cigars were reported to the Federal Election
Commission as donor gifts.
DeLay's political committee also reported a $2,896 shopping spree at
the Amelia Marche Burette gift shop on Amelia Island, Fla., for donor
gifts. The shop carries "gourmet cookware, Sabatier cutlery and
gadgets for your every need."
By LARRY MARGASAK and SHARON THEIMER
Associated Press Writers
Dec 20 2:03 PM US/Eastern
WASHINGTON - As Tom DeLay became a king of campaign fundraising, he
lived like one too. He visited cliff-top Caribbean resorts, golf
courses designed by PGA champions and four-star restaurants _ all
courtesy of donors who bankrolled his political money empire. Over
the past six years, the former House majority leader and his
associates have visited places of luxury most Americans have never
seen, often getting there aboard corporate jets arranged by lobbyists
and other special interests.
Public documents reviewed by The Associated Press tell the story: at
least 48 visits to golf clubs and resorts with lush fairways; 100
flights aboard company planes; 200 stays at hotels, many world-class;
and 500 meals at restaurants, some averaging nearly $200 for a dinner
for two.
Instead of his personal expense, the meals and trips for DeLay and
his associates were paid with donations collected by the campaign
committees, political action committees and children's charity the
Texas Republican created during his rise to the top of Congress.
Put them together and an opulent lifestyle emerges.
"A life to enjoy. The excuse to escape," Palmas del Mar, an oceanside
Puerto Rican resort visited by DeLay, promised in a summer ad on its
Web site as a golf ball bounced into a hole and an image of a sunset
appeared.
The Caribbean vacation spot has casino gambling, horseback riding,
snorkeling, deep-sea fishing and private beaches.
"He was very friendly. We always see the relaxed side of
politicians," said Daniel Vassi, owner of the French bistro Chez
Daniel at Palmas del Mar. Vassi said DeLay has eaten at his
restaurant every year for the last three, and was last there in April
with about 20 other people, including the resort's owners.
The restaurant is a cozy and popular place on the yacht-lined marina
at Palmas del Mar. Dishes include bouillabaisse for about $35.50,
Dover sole for $37.50 and filet mignon for $28.50. Palmas del Mar is
also a DeLay donor, giving $5,000 to DeLay's Americans for a
Republican Majority PAC in 2000.
Since he joined the House leadership as majority whip in 1995, DeLay
has raised at least $35 million for his campaign, PACs, foundation
and legal defense fund. He hasn't faced a serious re-election threat
in recent years, giving him more leeway than candidates in close
races to spend campaign money.
AP's review found DeLay's various organizations spent at least $1
million over the last six years on top hotels, restaurants, golf
resorts and corporate jet flights for their boss and his associates.
The spending shows how political power can buy access to the
lifestyles of the rich and famous. While it's illegal for a lawmaker
to tap political donations for a family vacation, it is perfectly
legal to spend it in luxury if the stated purpose is raising more
money or talking politics.
Until his recent indictment in Texas on political money laundering
charges, DeLay was the second most powerful lawmaker in the House and
as such, could command an audience of donors wherever he went.
DeLay attorney Don McGahn declined to identify which trips listed in
the reports were taken by DeLay and which by his associates. But he
said all the travel was legal and not done for DeLay's benefit.
"Raising political money costs money," he said.
"Mr. DeLay has done extensive fundraising, and traveled far and wide
to do so, but you would be hard-pressed to find someone who has
raised more for others, whether for candidates or political parties,"
McGahn said.
Special interests routinely make donations and attend fundraisers to
gain access to government decisionmakers. And while other
congressional leaders accepted trips and used political money to
cover travel, none compares with DeLay:
_Campaign and PAC reports filed by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist,
R-Tenn., show several payments to companies for travel, including
Cracker Barrel, Union Pacific, Schering-Plough and Home Depot. But
there were few visits to golf courses, and those were mostly close to
home.
_Reports from Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., show
expenses at resorts in South Carolina, New Mexico and Puerto Rico.
But he too holds most events closer to home, like Las Vegas casinos
and Lake Tahoe resorts.
_House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has held events at
ritzy hotels such as The Mark in New York and the Four Seasons in
Atlanta, but had few corporate flights or visits to resorts, her
reports show.
House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., comes closest to rivaling
DeLay's travels, reporting fundraisers at Walt Disney Parks and
Resorts in Florida, the Ritz-Carlton in Kapalua, Hawaii, the
Phoenician Resort in Scottsdale, Ariz., and the Waterfall Resort in
Alaska. Hastert's groups also paid for dozens of corporate jet
flights and restaurant meals.
Some say DeLay pushes the limits, and risks alienating donors.
"I don't think the people that contributed to me would believe it was
a good expenditure of their hard-earned dollars for me to go and play
golf and enjoy life anywhere," said former Rep. Charlie Stenholm, a
fiscally conservative Texas Democrat who lost his House seat
following DeLay-led redistricting.
DeLay's travels with recently indicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff are now
under criminal investigation. But those trips were paid by special
interests directly under the banner of congressional fact-finding.
DeLay's own political empire has underwritten far more travel.
The destinations for DeLay or his political team include a Ritz-
Carlton hotel in Jamaica; the Prince Hotel in Hapuna Beach, Hawaii;
the Michelangelo Hotel in New York; the Wyndham El Conquistador
Resort & Golden Door Spa in Fajardo, Puerto Rico; and the Phoenician
Resort in Scottsdale, Ariz., built by Charles Keating before he
became the most public face of the savings and loan scandal in the
early 1990s.
There's also the Ritz-Carlton in Naples, Fla., offering "dazzling
views of the Gulf of Mexico, warm golden sunsets and three miles of
pristine beach" plus golf, a spa, goose-down comforters, marble
bathrooms and private, ocean-view balconies. Rooms run from about
$389 to more than $3,000 a night in December, the month DeLay's PAC
spent $4,570 on lodging there in 2004.
"He liked to talk to people," said Pedro Muriel, a waiter at Puerto
Rico's El Conquistador Resort. Muriel recalled DeLay staying in an
enclave of privately owned red tile-roofed villas.
The villas have up to three bedrooms, kitchens, living rooms and
French doors that open onto terraces or balconies facing the
Caribbean. A moon-shape pool hugs the edge of a steep cliff, its
waters spilling over and appearing to blend into the sea. Villa
prices average about $1,300 a night.
Guests get their own butlers. The resort offers six swimming pools
and an 18-hole championship golf course. Its casino served as the
setting for the last scene in the James Bond movie "Goldfinger."
DeLay's donors have also financed visits to country clubs and
tournament-quality golf courses, including the exclusive Baltusrol
Golf Club in Springfield, N.J., site of this summer's PGA
Championship; Nemacolin Woodlands Resort in Farmington, Pa., home of
another PGA event; and Harbour Town Golf Links, a Jack Nicklaus-
designed course on Hilton Head Island, S.C.
"World class. Dynamic. Luxury resort. Spend a day, spend a week,
spend a lifetime," another DeLay fundraising spot, the ChampionsGate
golf resort near Orlando, Fla., invites on its Web site.
The resort, where a round of golf typically costs $70 to $80 per
player, has two championship courses designed by pro golfer Greg
Norman and offers players a Global Positioning Satellite system it
boasts "acts as a professional caddie."
Dining at fine restaurants also is routine. The stops for DeLay and
his associates include Morton's of Chicago, where the average dinner
for two goes for about $170 before tax and tip, and "21" in
Manhattan, a longtime glamour spot where American caviar goes for $38
for a taste.
When DeLay wants to head somewhere without the hassle of commercial
travel, he often asks a company for its jet and uses donations to pay
for it.
Dozens of businesses have loaned DeLay their planes, from tobacco
giants UST, RJ Reynolds and Philip Morris to energy companies like El
Paso, Panda, Reliant and Dynegy.
R.J. Reynolds let DeLay use a company plane at least nine times since
once joining Philip Morris in making jets available for a DeLay PAC
fundraiser at a Puerto Rican resort in winter 2002. R.J. Reynolds
spokesman David Howard said planes are loaned usually at lawmakers'
request and are only done if jets aren't needed for company business.
"It's much more convenient as opposed to your regular commercial
travel," Howard said, noting there is no need to go through airport
security.
On R.J. Reynolds' planes, smoking is allowed and there are usually
beverages and deli-style food. There's more leg room and the
convenience of phones.
The smoking rule suits DeLay, who likes to chomp on cigars while
golfing and reported spending at least $1,930 in PAC money on cigar-
shop purchases. The cigars were reported to the Federal Election
Commission as donor gifts.
DeLay's political committee also reported a $2,896 shopping spree at
the Amelia Marche Burette gift shop on Amelia Island, Fla., for donor
gifts. The shop carries "gourmet cookware, Sabatier cutlery and
gadgets for your every need."