Campaigns & Elections' Politics - February 2008 - (Page 30) worst places to be in the dead of winter. This research exposed a plethora of shady business dealings and complex legal problems, not to mention the fact that Boulis had two families, as he’d fathered a couple of children with his wife, then a couple more with his mistress of 18 years. Clearly, Gus Boulis was a man with more balls than brains. My investigation reinforced my belief that Boulis was the bad guy in this SunCruz dispute, while Kidan and Abramoff were the good guys. After all, I found lawsuits the feds had filed against Boulis for racketeering and for fraudulently owning the casino boat company by using dummy corporations to hide his ownership (which was illegal since he never became a U.S. citizen). Boulis pleaded guilty to these serious charges but received no jail time, with the court sealing and closing his most damaging case. Getting such a cushy deal from the feds was bizarre, but not nearly as bizarre as what happened next. Right in the middle of my investigation of Boulis, he was suddenly assassinated mob-style in the streets of Fort Lauderdale. I assumed the hit was mob-related, since rumors were flying around that he might have been letting mobsters use SunCruz to launder money. If true, his deal with the feds could have involved his ratting out the mobsters. Almost four years later, Fort Lauderdale police finally arrested three mobsters for the murder, at least one of whom was connected to Kidan and SunCruz. Kidan, who denied any role in the murder, cooperated with the police. Only after the Abramoff scandal broke did I finally learn the real reason Boulis was trying to get out of the SunCruz sale. He realized that Kidan and Abramoff were politically connected frauds with bogus financial statements and were totally unable to pay Boulis for SunCruz. So Boulis feared he was going to get stiffed. In the end, despite all the shadiness in his business deals and personal life, Boulis proved to be the good guy—at least in this dispute. Without realizing it, I had gone to work for the bad guys. It gives me pause that I arrogantly believed I was in total control during this job, when now I know it was exactly the opposite: I was merely a pawn helping slimeballs break the law. Even more troubling is the fact that, to this day, I have no idea what events may or may not have been caused by my actions. Having said that, the opposition research that people like me are hired to do is a necessary evil in our politics. Most Americans, even those inside the Beltway, think of oppo guys as living in the shadows. While this may be true in a shallow sense, in a much more important and deeper sense, it’s the politicians who really live in the shadows. They are the ones who deceive at best, and lie at worst, about where they really stand on the issues and about their private and professional 30 Politics News that lobbyist Jack Abramoff pleaded guilty to conspiracy, fraud and tax evasion brought back memories of a “research” job that troubles Stephen Marks to this day. I thought I was in total control, but I was merely a pawn helping slimeballs break the law. lives. So when oppos are hired to dig up dirt, they are really digging up the truth about politicians who claim to be serving the public. I may not have had purely noble aspirations when I entered this profession—yes, I liked the money—but I didn’t set up shop as an opposition researcher because I wanted to destroy people’s lives for sport. I believe that public office is the noblest of professions, but I also believe we must hold public officials accountable. Exposing the full truth about them—the good and the bad—ultimately makes for bettereducated voters and a stronger democracy. February 2008 PHOTO: NEWSCOM.COM http://NEWSCOM.COM
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