Abramoff lobby partner to appear in court on Congressional bribery charge News
Abramoff lobby partner to appear in court on Congressional bribery charge

[JURIST] Lobbyist Michael Scanlon [Wikipedia profile] is scheduled for a federal court appearance Monday on a single count alleged in a criminal information released by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) [official website] Friday. The information alleges that Scanlon provided "things of value" to a member of Congress, later identified as Representative Bob Ney (R-OH) [official website] by his lawyer, in exchange for favorable gambling legislation. Scanlon and partner Jack Abramoff [Wwikipedia profile] were paid $80 million between 2001 and 2004 by several indian tribes to represent their interests in Congress. Scanlon is a former aide to former House Majority Leader Tom Delay (R-TX) [official website], who was heavily criticized in the past for accepting trips abroad and the use of a sports arena skybox from Abramoff. AP has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Ku Klux Klan founded

The US hate group known as the Ku Klux Klan was founded on December 24, 1865 in Pulaski, Tennessee as a reaction to reconstruction efforts following the Union victory in the American Civil War. The group would later become notorious for its attacks on Black Americans, being targeted by the Enforcement Act of 1871, which imposed civil and criminal liability for deprivation of constitutional rights. Read the Enforcement Act of 1871.  

Hamid Karzai born

On December 24, 1957, Hamid Karzai was born in Karz, Afghanistan. He would go on to become in 2004 his country's first elected president after the end of Taliban rule in 2001.