Alexander Strategy Group
The Alexander Strategy Group (cached link) was a lobbying firm staffed with a number of former aides to Rep. Tom DeLay (R-TX), and known for its access to the once powerful Majority Leader. The flagship enterprise of DeLay's Democrat-purging K Street Project, Alexander Strategy Group (ASG) was the gatekeeper to DeLay for moneyed clients.
ASG was founded in 1998 by former DeLay chief of staff Edwin A. Buckham largely on the strength of a lobbying contract with Enron, which DeLay secured for the fledgling company.
In its early days, ASG rented a room at the "safe house," a DC townhouse purchased by the US Family Network and financed by Jack Abramoff's clients, including the Choctaw Indian tribe, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands and the Russian oil and gas conglomerate, Naftasib. ARMPAC, DeLay's indicted political action committee, also rented a room in the house. Later, ASG relocated to Georgetown.
ASG's revenue grew twenty-fold between 2000 and 2004. (Significantly, DeLay was elected the House Majority Leader in 2002.) By 2005, ASG was one of the top 25 lobbying firms in DC, earning $8 million - a 34 percent jump from 2004. ASG maintained strong ties to the GOP, giving over $376,000 to GOP candidates and fundraising organizations since 2001.
The firm recently closed its doors because of its close connections to DeLay and Jack Abramoff. It is widely believed that one or more principals in the defunct firm are targets of the Justice Department's Abramoff investigation.
Key Points:
Jack Abramoff Worked Closely with ASG.
ASG head Ed Buckham controlled the US Family Network, which was pumped full of money by Abramoff's clients. The clients allegedly gave in exchange for help from DeLay.
Abramoff also shared clients with ASG, including Malaysian interests, the Mississippi Choctaw Indian tribe, and online gambling firms.
Tony Rudy, a lobbyist for ASG, is identified in the Abramoff plea as "Staffer A."
According to the plea, Rudy used his influence as a DeLay staffer to help Abramoff's clients in exchange for the $50,000 in payments to his wife, Lisa, from Toward Tradition. The money was provided by Abramoff's clients.
Christine DeLay, wife of Tom DeLay, was employed by ASG from 1998 to 2002.
ASG was receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees from the US Family Network, which was being financed by Abramoff clients whom Delay was helping with business before Congress. ASG, in turn, hired his Delay's wife, Christine, for $3,200 a month.
Julie Doolittle, wife of Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA), was also employed by ASG.
Buckham hired the congressman's wife to do some bookkeeping work for a non-profit he created, the Korea-U.S. Exchange Council. In 2004, her records were subpoenaed in connection with the Abramoff investigation.
Jim Ellis, indicted in association with ARMPAC, worked for ASG.
Ellis was a lobbyist for ASG. He was indicted in September 2004 as the head of ARMPAC, DeLay's political action committee. Ellis was accused of laundering money to candidates for the House of Representatives through ARMPAC and the RNC. ARMPAC paid ASG $338,000 between 2000 and 2003.
Brent Wilkes - who, according to Duke Cunningham's guilty plea, bribed Cunningham - created a lobby shop called Group W Advisors, which hired ASG to gain access to DeLay.
Group W paid ASG $620,000 for its work.
Research by Ryan Chiachiere
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