If you’re a lawmaker, or former CIA official, caught in a corruption investigation there are many different ways to get... View Article
Continue readingIn Broad Daylight: Massage Chairs and Sled Dogs
Lawyers allege that Sen. Ted Stevens received additional gifts outside of the over $250,000 in labor and renovations to his... View Article
Continue readingNew Investigations and Suitcases of Money
Now boarding, El Al nonstop flight to Israel. Please make sure your suitcases of money are properly secured in the Prime Minister's house. William Jefferson eat your heart out. An investigation into corruption in Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's office led to a search of Olmert's house where suitcases of money were found. The suitcases, containing hundreds of thousands in American dollars (I know what you're thinking, American dollars, aren't they worthless now), came from New York businessman Morris Talansky, referred to in coded transmissions as "the Laundry Man." Olmert denies any wrong doing, claiming that the money was for campaign purposes. Judah Grunstein at World Politics Review makes about the only observation one can:
I don't know a whole lot about Israeli campaign finance laws, but I imagine that suitcases full of cash that go undeclared until a police raid on your home probably violate them.
Back here in the states, the Department of Justice opened a new investigation into the possible misuse of congressional staff by two offices. Reps. Jane Harman and Neil Abercrombie were accused of using congressional staff to do campaign work by a former staffer who recently plead guilty to fraud charges. It is a violation of House rules for congressional staff to do campaign work unless it is on their own time. This may also violate federal law statutes regarding the solicitation of political contributions from employees.
Both Harman and Abercrombie denied using staff for campaign work. It should also be noted that these violations rarely go anywhere. If anything, members get a slap on the wrist, which in congressional terms is a politely worded letter that stops short of admonishment. The House Ethics Committee should investigate this alleged misuse of campaign staff. They did recently when Rep. John Conyers was alleged to have forced a staffer to do campaign work and they should do so again. I'm not holding my breath though. (Sigh.)
Continue readingEthics Reforms in Action
The hedge fund industry is courting U.S. Rep. Richard Baker (R-La.) to head their lobbying efforts, according to a report over the weekend from The Washington Post. Baker said he has not decided to take the position as president of the Managed Funds Association (MFA), but did admit that the nearly million-dollar-a-year job did "look very interesting." He informed the House Ethics Committee Friday of his talks with MFA as members of Congress are now required to do as a result of the lobbying law passed last year. Baker is the first member to meet this new requirement.
Continue readingGetting Serious About Earmarks
Looks like our colleagues over at Taxpayers for Common Sense are getting fed up about earmarks. In the case of Rep. Don Young’s $10 million earmark to benefit a Florida political contributor, they have filed a complaint with the House Ethics Committee. TCS raises the question over how the earmark found its way onto the 2005 transportation bill after it had passed both houses of Congress.
Continue readingEthics v. Prudery
Over the past week or two I’ve learned two things: do not tap your foot in the bathroom and that prudery is more prevalent on Capitol Hill than a true ethical fiber. Apparently it is more worrying that a Senator may be a deeply closeted gay man than it is that another Senator is deeply tied into a massive FBI-led corruption investigation or that a senior congressman is being investigated for perhaps the shadiest earmark ever. I read this article by Norm Ornstein today and couldn’t agree more with what he has to say. With so many corruption scandals, not just tawdry sex scandals, “Who believes that the ethics committee will act proactively to investigate allegedly scandalous behavior before stories garner headlines or result in announcements by prosecutors that Senators are targets or subjects of investigations?”
Continue readingPelosi to Allow Outside Groups to File Ethics Complaints
Over the past two days The Hill and Congressional Quarterly have reported that Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) intends to allow outside groups to file ethics complaints against members of Congress. This would be a restoration of the policy that was abolished in 1997. Since 1997 only sitting members of Congress have been allowed to file ethics complaints. This policy led to an ethics truce between the two parties where an ethics complaint to the Committee by one party would result in retaliation by the opposing party. The truce has effectively shut down all internal accountability in the House of Representatives. Allowing citizens and organizations to take part in the ethics process in Congress is not only a sensible way to engage the public in yet another part of government but it also is a good policy in terms of reducing ethics violations and corruption.
Continue readingDomenici In Trouble; What About Wilson?
The Washington Post reports that the Senate ethics committee is investigating Sen. Pete Domenici's (R-NM) role in the alleged pressuring and subsequent firing of Attorney David Iglesias. Domenici announced that he has hired K. Lee Blalack, the former defense attorney for Randy "Duke" Cunningham, to represent him. The revelations in the committee hearings on Tuesday clearly have pushed this story further as it appears that, despite constantly changing excuses, two Members of Congress put unprecedented pressure on a U.S. Attorney to bring down indictments to help the re-election campaign of Rep. Heather Wilson (R-NM).
Continue readingDaylight AM:
The rain is gone so I can stop building that ark I was planning on using to escape. Instead of floods and flag burning amendments we're back to good old fashioned earmarks, lobbyists, investigations, and congressmen being naughty. Let's go to the news:
- An investigative report by the New York Daily News on Sunday revealed that since 2000 Staten Island Rep. Vito Fossella (R-N.Y.) spent $53,142 of his campaign cash on personal vacations, sometimes followed by his wife and children. The family travelled to Las Vegas, Colorado, and Florida while Fossella also spent campaign cash on 18 holes of golf at Key Biscane and even went to a Jets game in Pittsburgh. Fossella asserts that "all expenses are for legitimate campaign events or fact-finding missions that are part of his duties in Congress." What kind of facts was he trying to find at a Jets-Steelers game? Which player should be honored with a congratulatory resolution? Fossella says that he made "mistakes" but that everything was legal. Ian Stirton of the Federal Election Commission thinks otherwise. Stirton said that "violaters could face penalties of thousands of dollars" and that "the Justice Department could open a criminal probe because putting campaign donations to personal use is a crime."
- Senate Democrats are planning to force a minimum wage raise by attacking the annual congressional cost of living adjustment in members salaries. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) announced, "we’re going to do everything to stop the Congressional pay raise being put in — the right way, the wrong way or any way." Members currently make $165,170 a year. The pay raise would increase their salary to $168,500.
- The Boston Globe reports that "four Massachussets congressmen have attended luxurious Fourth of July weekends at Cape Cod's exclusive Wequassett Inn in Chatham with representatives of various interest groups, courtesy of a little-known nonprofit group started by a longtime lobbyist." The nonprofit, Invest to Compete, was started by Washington lobbyist Jeanne Campbell of the firm Campbell-Crane. At issue are the ties between Invest to Compete an Campbell-Crane. Both share the same south-east Washington address, the same fax number, and the same email address. The July Fourth celebrations also highlight the ties between the firm and the nonprofit as clients of the firm are often in attendence, along with members of Congress, at the event paid for by the nonprofit. Lobbyist and lobbying firms are not allowed to pay for travel and lodging for members of Congress.
- Watchdog groups have not been too pleased with the performance of House Ethics Committee ranking Democrat Howard Berman (D-Calif.). Berman is accused of "codify[ing] ... a very negligent system" by "displaying a warm rapport with Chairman Doc Hastings (R-Wash.)". Democrats may be looking for a new ranking member or Chairman for the Ethics Committee after the election. Continue reading
House Ethics Committee vs. Justice Department:
On Wednesday, the House Ethics Committee announced that it was launching two probes into lawmakers and a third probe wide-ranging probe into possible violations by staffers and other lawmakers in the Duke Cunningham scandal. However, these probes may interfere with the current investigations that the FBI and Department of Justice Public Integrity Unit have underway. The Washington Post looks at whether the Ethics Committee is too late to the game:
The Justice Department has traditionally opposed such parallel inquiries by congressional committees for fear that lawmakers might complicate its collection of testimony and information. The Senate's ethics panel, for instance, regularly steps aside when another enforcement agency is looking into the behavior of senators. But House officials indicated yesterday that they hope the continuing conversations between the Justice Department and the ethics committee will avert conflicts. A spokesman for the department declined to comment.It is doubtful that the Justice Department is happy about this development. Previously, Justice had asked the House and Senate Ethics Committees to steer clear of any investagtion relating to Jack Abramoff. The House's investigation into Bob Ney, who is alleged to have accepted things of value from Abramoff in exchange for favorable action, clearly goes against Justice's recommendations. A March article in Roll Call notes that the ethics committee's rule 15(f) states that the committee "may defer action on a complaint against a Member, officer, or employee of the House of Representatives when the complaint alleges conduct that the Committee has reason to believe is being reviewed by appropriate law enforcement or regulatory authorities, or when the Committee determines that it is appropriate for the conduct alleged in the complaint to be reviewed initially by law enforcement or regulatory authorities." An expert interviewed in the Post article states, "I can't imagine that they will pursue subpoenas and testimony and get in the way of the Justice Department; that hasn't happened in the past." Continue reading
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