Democrats' Travel Costs Linked to Lobbyist

"What happened was airline tickets were sent to our offices," he said. "I was assured that they had been paid for entirely by the . . . government, and the government would pay for all of the lawmakers' expenses."

He also said that "if I did not inform Rep. Clyburn and Thompson of the funding situation, it was a mistake" that he now regrets.

Clyburn said in an interview yesterday that he responded to the letter of invitation and had no idea that Abramoff or Preston Gates paid at the outset. He said he and Thompson had a one-night stopover in Honolulu, stayed on the islands for two nights, met with the governor and his aides, and discussed workplace conditions with immigrant laborers.

Clyburn said that he never met Abramoff and that no legislative action resulted. "I played seven to eight holes of golf" during the trip, he said, adding that the rest of the Saipan course was flooded at the time. Thompson, through an aide, gave an identical account, but said he did not play golf.

One of the memos published on the Internet, a note to Abramoff from his secretary dated May 20, 1997, describes the cost of the two lawmakers' trips as $15,657, including about $5,000 apiece in airfare and $227 for hotel rooms. Another memo to Abramoff, dated May 6, 1997, describes expenses for a separate Marianas trip involving Rudy and Buckham from Dec. 4 to Dec. 12, 1996. It shows they were accompanied by Abramoff and lists Buckham's hotel bill as $2,028. It also shows Abramoff paid two unspecified "upgrades" for Buckham and Rudy at $52 apiece, and covered a $387 cell phone bill, a $403 car rental and $468 for food.

Jennifer Senft Hamann, who wrote the memos, confirmed their authenticity. Hamann, who said she worked for Abramoff from December 1995 to October 1997, said Abramoff typically paid bills for such trips himself and then was reimbursed by Preston Gates, which in turn billed its clients. A source close to the incidents, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, confirmed her account was correct in these instances.

The source also said the firm has discovered that most of the bills that Abramoff submitted for reimbursement were paid by the firm's headquarters in Seattle without being scrutinized for compliance with House ethics rules. Preston Gates managing partner Jonathan Blank said it was the firm's policy that all lobbyists were responsible for ensuring that congressional travel complied with House rules.

As congressional staff members, Buckham and Rudy were covered by the same House ban on a lobbyist's payment of travel expenses. Neither responded to an e-mail and telephone call requesting comment.

Dan Allen, a spokesman for DeLay, said "the office's understanding is that both of them traveled to [the Marianas] at the invitation of the commonwealth" and noted that House rules permit the acceptance of travel "paid by a governmental entity."

Research editor Lucy Shackelford contributed to this report.