Tom Rodgers

Rodgers was born and raised on the Great Plains near Glasgow, Montana, considered to be the most isolated community in the U.S. and located in "the middle of nowhere."[7] Rodgers obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Economics, J.D. and L.L.M in Taxation at the University of Denver. He went on to obtain a Masters in International Public Policy with an emphasis in China Studies at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. He also attended the Georgetown University McDonough School of Business Executive MBA program.[8] Rodgers commitment to education includes regularly speaking before high school and college students.

From 1990 to 1993, Rodgers served as tax legislative counsel to Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus. Before that, he served as tax counsel to United States Tax Court Judge Marvin F. Peterson. Rodgers went on to form Carlyle Consulting.[1] He has written about persistent poverty and high unemployment in Native American communities.[9] Rodgers established a scholarship at his alma mater, The University of Denver Sturm College of Law, named the Tom C. Rodgers O-tee-paym-soo-wuk Ethics in Government Scholarship, to benefit Native American law students, “O-tee-paym-soo-wuk” means “a man who owns himself” in the Cree language.[10] The purpose of the scholarship is to develop the legal and advocacy skills necessary to participate in the debate surrounding public policy and its creation, using ethics as their guiding value. The total scholarship value is around $160,000 over three years.[11] Rodgers has raised more than $1.2 million in charity for Native American youth, tribal governments, Native American financial literacy programs, and Native American voting rights efforts.

After years of advocating for "Indian Country", Rodgers was approached in early 2002 by tribal leaders from The Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana and The Saginaw Chippewa of Michigan to discuss threats that had been made to them by their lobbyist Jack Abramoff. They expressed concern as to the services they were receiving in exchange for the large amount being charged.[1]

Rodgers worked with the tribal members to gather internal invoices and documents, and leak the documents to reporters. They were instrumental in exposing Abramoff's criminal activities, which subsequently led to the arrest of former Rep. Bob Ney (R-Ohio), helping to force then-Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) from office. During this time, Rodgers was represented by whistle-blowers' advocate, Houston attorney Philip H. Hilder. In the aftermath, Congress passed the most sweeping new ethics rules since Watergate.[1]

Rodgers has continued to track Abramoff to criticize his reform claims,[12] to question the intentions of organizations that have shown support for Abramoff’s recent reform efforts,.[13] and the extent to which Abramoff’s influence reached into the media.[14] Rodgers appeared in the documentary, ‘’Casino Jack and the United States of Money’’, by Alex Gibney about the career and corruption scandal surrounding Jack Abramoff.[15] He received an ethics award from the University of Denver for his role in bringing to light Abramoff’s criminal actions.[11]

Rodgers has been interviewed on the Abramoff case, as well as on Native American rights, for media outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, USA Today, The Hill, The Huffington Post, BBC, The Nation, CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell, The Atlantic, Roll Call, Financial Times, Bloomberg News, Talking Points Memo, Washingtonian, Indian Country Today, Democracy NOW, and the National Press Club newsmakers series.