Former Interior Department deputy secretary J. Steven Griles was Jack Abramoff's "point man," former Bureau of Indian Affairs official Wayne Smith told CBS News in an exclusive interview.

Smith said Griles regularly advocated for the interests of Abramoff's tribal clients. "He would set up meetings, and you'd have a meeting with Abramoff and his clients where Steve would profess this was the appropriate way to go," Smith told CBS News.

In the wake of the election of George W. Bush, Smith said Abramoff and other Republicans wanted to "a killing inside the BIA" by representing wealthy gaming tribes. "They have no respect whatsoever for Native Americans. They're there to make a lot of money," he said in the interview.

Smith was the former number two official at the BIA and oversaw gaming, land-into-trust and federal recognition issues. He was fired after Republican lobbyists orchestrated a smear campaign against him that called into question his ethics.

Get the Story:
Dark Days For Bureau Of Indian Affairs (CBS News 6/21)

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