[. . .]

The grand jury that issued his indictment took more than two years to return a true bill. It's unlikely that it will be able to hit him with additional charges out of spite. Furthermore, the man President Bush used to call "Kenny Boy" is already a pariah in Houston, a town he used to own. He has become something of a recluse -- shuttling between his lavish condo in the heart of Houston's exclusive River Oaks neighborhood and a lavish office nearby. He'll never get another job in corporate America. As a political player, his future prospects are nonexistent. So why not provide an inside look at the way politics is really played in a place like Enron -- a company that, for years, was Bush's biggest career patron?

Lay could dish the dirt on several important topics: the Karl Rove-brokered push that resulted in Enron paying Christian conservative turned super-lobbyist Ralph Reed $300,000; Lay's dealings with secretary of state turned super-lobbyist James Baker; why Enron hired Ed Gillespie, the man who now heads the Republican National Committee; the reason for Lay's decision to allow the Bushes to use Enron's fleet of airplanes as their own; what happened in those meetings with Dick Cheney and his energy task force; and what really happened with the California energy crisis.

In 1997, Rove, Texas Gov. Bush's closest political advisor, went to someone at Enron and asked that person to hire Reed, who was just leaving his job as head of the Christian Coalition. The Enron gig was very important for Reed. As one of his first clients, Enron gave his new outfit, Century Strategies, instant credibility. It also put Reed squarely on the Bush/Rove/Lay team. And in those days, as Bush was cranking up his presidential run, having Reed on his side was critically important.

Lay could explain why Enron decided to hire Reed. He could tell us whether Rove offered him any quid pro quo. He could also offer his opinion on whether Reed was worth the expense and describe exactly what Reed did for Enron. Finally, he could explain why, just a few months before Enron filed for bankruptcy, Reed was given an additional contract, this one paying him $30,000 per month plus expenses.

While Reed was a good ally for Enron, the really big-name lobbyist was Baker.

[. . .]