Movie Reviews

Casino Jack and the United States of Money

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Written by Jonathan Jacobs

Have you folks ever heard of Barbara Boxer and Nancy Pelosi’s ties to family members who received billion dollar no-bid government contracts by virtue of their high-ranking Congressional offices? Have you heard about Harry Reid’s Nevada real estate deals? Charlie Rangel’s tax fraud? William Jefferson’s 90K cold cash in the freezer? If you have I guarantee all of the stories were short-lived and the documentaries investigating them may never be made. There is an obvious desideratum for Republican launched political attack videos but for reasons unapparent to me they are not and may never be leveled/made.

Now, for the main course of the evening, ladies and gentleman let’s get ready to rumble!!! The film expends a considerable amount of time highlighting the intriguing early achievements of Jack Abramoff. For instance, he played high school football and could squat 525lbs. In college and beyond he became active and then prominent in the College Republicans. By all standards Abramoff has led a colorful life. Eventually, the dynamic and coercive young man became a D.C. lobbyist, a job that he turned into a spectacle of many things. If this documentary is to be unabashedly believed he became the greediest, most self-centered, unfeeling and horrible human being imaginable (not to mention a murderer).

The most fascinating portions of this film focus on Jack’s involvement with Indian casinos (Native American with all due political correctness, but for some reason when referring to the casino industry "Indian" is the accepted racial designation). In tandem with his various consulting agencies, Native American interest groups, and congressmen (including Harry Reid which I give the filmmakers an awful lot of credit for finally pointing out), Abramoff stirred the boiling cauldron of special interest soup. In order to make millions of dollars, Jack allowed himself to be the conduit through which rival Indian casinos could buy influence in Washington and supplant competitors unwilling to match their offers. Unfortunately for many of the people on the reservations, their governors were duped. Often Abramoff and co. (Michael Scanlon and Bob Ney) would accept donations from one tribe to put another out of business and then return the favor in short order. The irony was Abramoff benefitted financially as he played one group against another without their knowledge of his nefarious practices. The good news for Abramoff’s various congressional lackeys had been massive campaign contributions funneled through various political action committees and holding companies. Even an unaffiliated lifeguard was made executive of a PAC. Again, ironically those who underwrote his activities were the same congressmen benefitting from the campaign contributions this brought to the foray. Senator Harry Reid and House majority leader Tom Delay among them.

It is hilarious to find out that John McCain during his presidential bid made such a spectacle of Abramoff while himself being the recipient of suspicious "bribes", just not from Jack himself. One of the democrats who questioned Abramoff in hearings on Capitol Hill had been photographed shaking hands with "Casino" Jack and had received campain funding from him, as had dozens of congressional leaders railing against the lobbyist’s shady practices.

Before watching this political theater I actually felt that Abramoff had been a complete crook. Against their greater intent, director/writer Alex Gibney has painted a human face on our super-lobbyist and made him into one of the most compelling political figures in the history of behind-the-scenes wheeling and dealing. Abramoff was always sordid in his practices, and yes he covered up severe abuses in Saipan among other places, but most of all he comes across as a survivor. He never gave up on his schemes and would subvert any law, or at least bend them to achieve his goals. By hook or by crook one has to admire his power, influence and drive. Few in history other than Emperor Palpatine from Star Wars could manage such backdoor debauchery and get away with it for so long. A four year prison sentence for everything he did (I am going by director Gibney’s portrayal of the man) seems like an infinitesimal sentence all things considered.

If anything has been proved by Gibney it is that Congress in and of itself is a corrupt body led not by constituents, but by wealthy special interest groups who purchase access to power and lawmakers. By his own admission Jack Abramoff was a blip on the radar screen announcing a much larger problem. This problem is that lawmakers seem to commit ethics violations and to underwrite federal and state law based on who is helping them maintain power. Keep in mind that congressmen are entitled to unlimited health care as are their immediate families. They retain a lifelong pension, free housing, considerable influence for which they are handsomely paid, and a modicum of popularity/celebrity status. Many congressmen such as Tom Daschle, and congressional aides become lobbyists after their time in office. Wielding an intimate network of powerful friends they can influence our government’s policy and direction. It is scary to think that laws are made in the United States not based on polls or the express wishes of constituents, but by those who simply buy politicians and their vote. Gibney is anything but even-handed but Abramoff did cavort primarily with Republicans. It is obvious that as Abramoff’s contributions to Delay’s campaign grew so to did the congressman’s influence and ability to help fellow republicans get elected.

Finally, Gibney’s cannonball shot across the bow that sunk the ship had to be a mixture of Delay’s unbelievable cowboy dancing on "Dancing with the Stars" and Abramoff’s e-mails read in front of a congressional investigation panel. It seems that Casino Jack was a genius and a master manipulator but he, much like so many others from his generation failed to understand that e-mails are subpoena-ble (public record as are "Tweets"). The blatant announcement of his avarice and hatred for the "monkeys" he scammed was truly something. Moreover, did Jack have anything to do with the owner of the Sun Cruz’s casino line's murder? Were republican congressmen to blame for accepting trips around the world, free skybox tickets to the Redskins’ games, and free golf for the price of minor political shifts? Probably. But again, if Abramoff’s absence has created a virtually limitless vacuum for lobbyists to become even more entrenched in our "democratic" system did his removal solve a problem or simply expand the problem and create more? Being a former professor of history and political science I would recommend this documentary for the History Channel, NPR, PBS, and possibly for the classroom provided it is prefaced with balance.

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