This statement responds to the article dated, February 9, 2006, by John
Solomon of the AP [1] attempting to create a link between Jack Abramoff and
Senator Harry Reid (D. Nev.).

The allegations and implications in Mr. Solomon’s story are false, which he
would have understood had he bothered to contact me prior to publication.
Rather than discuss these issues with me, Mr. Solomon apparently relied on
Jack Abramoff’s billing records to his clients that have already been
legally determined to be fraudulent. Though I do not have access to these
bills, I believe that the references in the AP story to my time are
inaccurate.

Moreover, Mr. Solomon’s article distorts the context of my “contacts,” with
Senator Reid’s staff. These contacts were incidental, insofar as I simply
bumped into Reid staffers at Democratic Party functions or occurred
incidental to discussions regarding my clients, not Abramoff’s. Any
contacts that I may have had in regards to Abramoff’s tribal clients would
have been similarly incidental. In addition, I have no recollection of ever
discussing contributions or fundraising issues with Senator Reid, Susan
McCue or Jim Ryan as implied by Mr. Solomon’s story.

When Abramoff first arrived at Greenberg Traurig, I did a new colleague a
favor by simply asking Reid staffers about when the minimum wage legislation
affecting the Mariana Islands would be voted upon by the Senate. I
communicated this to Abramoff. At no time, did I ever lobby or advocate on
this issue or for this Abramoff client. The reason for this is quite
simple‹Senator Reid, throughout his public career, has been a strong
advocate of a fair and decent minimum wage for all Americans. I was fully
aware of his strong support for and sponsorship of Senator Kennedy’s bill to
ensure that the Marianas Islands would not be exempted from the minimum wage
laws applicable to all other American citizens. Therefore, at no time did I
ever discuss the substance of this issue with Senator Reid or his office.
Nor did I ever ask that the bill be delayed. I only asked about the timing
of when the bill would come to the Senate floor. This inquiry was routine.

Mr. Solomon’s story also seems to cast suspicion on my contributions to
Senator Reid’s campaigns. Again, this is a gross distortion. I have been
supporting and contributing to Harry Reid for over twenty years. My support
and contributions are based solely on my belief that he is an exemplary
public official whose values and ideals I share.