Surprise surprise! Pretty Boy Ralph is just a cheap sleazy ho. At least Jeff Gannon never pretended to be a devout Christian when he sold his "wares."

Abramoff Scandal Threatens to Derail Reed's Political Ambitions

The Washington scandal over lobbyist Jack Abramoff may claim a casualty outside the nation's capital: Ralph Reed, a former presidential-campaign adviser who once headed one of the U.S.'s largest Christian activist groups.

Disclosures that Reed once ran an anti-gambling campaign that was secretly financed by casino-owning clients of his friend Abramoff have damaged his ability to raise funds for a bid to become Georgia's next lieutenant governor, other Republicans say. That may undercut his chances of winning an office that he could use as a steppingstone to national political ambitions, they say...

Reed's image as someone more interested in Christian causes than his own financial well-being has been tarnished by a stream of e-mails released by a Senate committee that investigated Abramoff's bilking of Indian-tribe clients.

"I need to start humping in corporate accounts," Reed wrote to Abramoff in 1998. "I'm counting on you to help me with some contacts."

In 2001 alone, he received more than $2.5 million from entities connected with Abramoff and partner Michael Scanlon, according to documents released by the Senate Indian Affairs Committee.

Abramoff and Scanlon used the organizations so Reed wouldn't be paid directly by their clients, who wanted to block new gambling competition. The e-mails show that Reed knew casino-owning tribes were the ultimate clients, though he says he wasn't paid with gambling proceeds.

"Had I known then what I know now, I would not have undertaken that work," Reed said in the text of a Dec. 9 speech to a Georgia youth group. "On reflection and with the benefit of hindsight, it is clear it associated my longstanding opposition to gambling with those who did not share it and has caused difficulty for the faith community with whom I worked."