“To be honest, she’s more valuable to us than a rank-and-file house member.”
According to the AP, the author of this sentence is Todd Boulanger, Jack Abramoff’s former deputy who yesterday pled guilty to influence-peddling, admitting to a federal judge that he’d bribed congressional staffers — including “she,” AKA “Staffer E,” Thad Cochran’s longtime aide Ann Copland — with tens of thousands of dollars worth of lavish entertainment to buy their help.
… Another Senate staffer sent an e-mail to Boulanger’s colleague, Kevin Ring, asking for tickets to see Paul McCartney, Green Day, NSYNC, ice skating, the circus and a hockey game, detailing how many tickets she needed and where she would like to sit. An attorney with knowledge of the case, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation, identified her as Ann Copland, a former aide to Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., who could help with legislation benefiting a client, the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians.