Jack Abramoff, a former political lobbyist, was at the root of a scandal that involved lying, cheating and stealing.
On Jan. 3, Abramoff pleaded guilty to conspiracy, fraud and tax evasion.
However, he did the right thing. He admitted that he was wrong and stepped down from his position. It was the best thing he could have done in his situation.
But the damage he has done isn't going to go away with his resignation.
He took money from clients and used it to try to bribe Republicans in the House and Senate by taking members on trips to the Super Bowl, golf outings and out to expensive dinners.
Although ties to Abramoff's money lead to many other big-name government officials, Tom DeLay resigned Jan. 7 from his position as House majority leader after he went to trial for allegedly laundering campaign funds in Texas.
Coincidentally, Abramoff paid expenses for DeLay and his wife on a trip to Scotland for a golf outing.
President Bush was also among the politicians that gave away some of the Abramoff money to charity.
Although many of the upper-status politicians are scrambling to get rid of their Abramoff money, Republicans aren't the only party being scrutinized. Democrats too are trying to ditch the money that Abramoff or people connected to Abramoff have donated to them.
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, also a Democrat, donated $2,000 in Abramoff-related cash to charity. Others such as Harry Reid, a Democratic leader in the Senate, plan to keep the money, saying there's nothing wrong with keeping it.
Republican representative John Doolittle announced that he will also not return any of the money that was donated by Abramoff.
It's really a bad time for the administration with all these scandals emerging, including DeLay and the CIA probe.
But Abramoff's scandal reaches to both parties, causing people to lose faith in their government. Citizens have to be willing to not vote for politicians that have been involved in fraud or falsification.
Even if voters aren't paying much attention right now in hopes that it will all blow over, they should research and know who was involved in what.
These politicians don't just disappear.
If voters aren't informed, government officials involved will cycle through high-ranking offices unchecked. In that case, we are only cheating ourselves.
