With no more campaigns to raise money for it seems that the Bush machine has set its sites on the Bush Presidential Library.
In the spirit of Sacha Baron Cohen the Sunday Times of London arranged and recorded an interview between a leading GOP activist Stephen Payne and two men thought to be acting on behalf of the exiled former president of Kyrgyzstan.
Payne, who also sits on the Homeland Security advisory board, is heard offering meetings with high-level officials of the Bush Administration in return for a hefty donation to the Bush Presidential Library. For somewhere between $600,000 and $750,000, with about a third of it going directly to the Bush library, Payne promised face to face meetings with a variety of Bush’s cronies.
“Cheney’s possible, definitely the national security adviser [Stephen Hadley], definitely either Dr Rice or . . . I think a meeting with Dr Rice or the deputy secretary [John Negroponte] is possible …The main thing is that he [the Asian politician] comes, and he’s well received, that he meets with high-level people . . . and we send positive statements made back from the administration about ‘This guy wasn’t such a bad guy, many people have done worse’.” said Payne.
Keith Olbermann has coined this latest fiasco Library-Gate and the House Oversight and Government Relations Committee lead by Henry Waxman has begun to investigate. In the meantime, the White House is distancing itself, Payne was fired from the Homeland Security advisory board and a Bush spokesman for library foundation said that no additional monies will be accepted from foreign sources while Bush is still in office.
See the Sunday Times of London video here
The story here
Other coverage:
Houston Chronicle piece, “Houstonian denies he tried to sell access to Bush aides.”
Dallas Morning News story, “Lobbyist promised White House access in return for Bush library”
Post at Majikthise, “Stephen Payne continues to make Jack Abramoff look like a piker”
Huffington Post story via Politico, “Henry Waxman Launches Probe Into Lobbyist Stephen Payne Who Allegedly Traded Access For Bush Library Donations.”
Previously on Book Patrol:
The Dark Side of the Bush Presidential Library
And the Envelope Please: Designs for the George W. Bush Presidential Library