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Corruption Tag

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on January 17, 2016 8 Comments
Former Virginia governor Bob McDonnell was indicted back in January of 2014 for accepting gifts in exchange for political influence, and now the Supreme Court will be reviewing his case. The Washington Post reports:
The McDonnells, who were convicted in 2014, were accused of intervening with state officials on Williams’s behalf in exchange for $177,000 in loans, vacations and luxury goods. The former governor was sentenced to two years in prison; Maureen McDonnell received a year and a day. . . . . The Supreme Court will decide whether former Virginia governor Robert F. McDonnell was rightly convicted of corruption for his efforts on behalf of a businessman who bestowed money and gifts on the governor and his family. The court announced Friday that it would intervene in the long-running saga of McDonnell and his wife, Maureen, and the case provides the justices a fresh opportunity to define what kind of political conduct crosses the line into criminal behavior.
McDonnell issued a statement in response to the Supreme Court's announcement.

Posted by Jonathan Levin on January 05, 2016 9 Comments
Corruption is inimical to rule of law and rule of law is the sine qua non of good governance and a free society.  So it is that the FCPA Blog's list of the eight most important developments from 2015 that provides insight into the state of U.S. efforts to promote good governance abroad. FCPA stands for the "Foreign Corrupt Practices Act" (15 U.S.C. § 78dd-1, et seq.), the principle tool for the U.S. government to penalize companies engaged in corrupt practices abroad.  The FCPA Blog was founded and is run by Richard Cassin, a former law partner with wide experience in Asia.  While Asia may not be the most susceptible to graft, it is at least competitive with South America and Africa.  But Asia's vastly greater economic relevance make its endemic corruption the most serious. FCPA Blog's Top-Eight:

Posted by Amy Miller on November 30, 2015 6 Comments
One of the favorite opposition tactics of operatives on both sides of the aisle is to present the actions of a politician in an out-of-context format. It's effective; you want that first public reaction to your enemy's various foibles and power plays to sprout from a place of distrust. This is why, even in 2015 when we have candidates like Donald Trump and Ted Cruz who, at least on the surface, don't give a damn what the opposition has to say, operatives are so careful to advise their clients about how this looks. It's not fair, but it's important. Hillary Clinton, by and large, has broken every rule in the book covering how this looks. The woman has spent a great deal of valuable campaign time defending her tenure as Secretary of State as it relates to the Benghazi attacks, defending her use of a private, unsecured email server, and defending the Clinton Foundation's financial practices, when she could have saved herself a lot of trouble if she would have bothered to care about public perception from the get-go. The Associated Press has obtained calendars used during Clinton's tenure as Secretary of State that show she opened her office to Democratic party fundraisers, former Clinton administration and campaign allies, and corporate donors to the family's Foundation. According to the AP, these meetings were "formally scheduled" and many of them occurred between Clinton and power players seeking to influence Obama Administration policy. What she did was not out of the ordinary, but it does fall into her pattern of doing exactly as she pleases while assuming a zero-consequences end game.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on September 01, 2015 4 Comments
You have to love the ingenuity of San Diegans, who are attempting to roll back the tide of liberalism that has has swept over the entire state of California. First, we organized one of the biggest and most effective tea party groups in the state. Now, a local businessman has organized one of the most creative protests I've ever seen, right on the steps of our capitol.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on April 01, 2015 17 Comments
A years long investigation into New Jersey's Democratic Senator Robert Menendez resulted in a federal indictment for corruption charges today. Sen. Menendez denies any wrong doing. According to the New York Times:
WASHINGTON — Senator Robert Menendez was indicted on federal corruption charges on Wednesday, according to The Associated Press, setting the stage for a bitter court fight and putting his political future in doubt. The charges had long been expected and Mr. Menendez, a 61-year-old Democrat of New Jersey, has promised to fight them. He has offered no indication that he plans to step down or relinquish any power while he goes through that process. The case involves Mr. Menendez’s longtime friendship with Dr. Salomon Melgen, a wealthy Florida eye surgeon and political benefactor. The two men became friends in the 1990s and have spent holidays together in the Dominican Republic, where Dr. Melgen, 60, has a home in the gated oceanfront resort of Casa de Campo.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on March 06, 2015 25 Comments
Allegations of corruption and scandal have swarmed New Jersey Democratic Senator Menendez for years now. That the DOJ waited until now to pull the trigger is... interesting. Just four days ago, Menendez said he would only support a deal that dismantled Iran's nuclear program, according to NJ.com:
"As long as I have an ounce of fight left in me, as long as I have a vote and a say and a chance to protect the interests of Israel, the region, and the national security interests of the United States, Iran will never have a pathway to a weapon," Menendez said, bringing the delegates to their feet. "It will never threaten Israel or its neighbors, and it will never be in a position to start a nuclear arms race in the Middle East. Not on my watch." Menendez is one of the most outspoken supporters of increasing sanctions if negotiations fail to curb Iran's nuclear program. The issue has pitted Menendez against President Obama, a fellow Democrat. Obama has threatened to veto new sanctions legislation, saying it would give Iran an excuse to walk away from negotiations and leave a military solution as the only option to prevent the Islamic Republic from developing nuclear weapons.
Though it's worth noting Menendez has a history of supporting AIPAC, and fighting with the White House over the proper course of action on Iran. Today, CNN reports the DOJ is moving forward with criminal corruption charges:
Washington (CNN)The Justice Department is preparing to bring criminal corruption charges against New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez, a Democrat, alleging he used his Senate office to push the business interests of a Democratic donor and friend in exchange for gifts. People briefed on the case say Attorney General Eric Holder has signed off on prosecutors' request to proceed with charges, CNN has learned exclusively. An announcement could come within weeks. Prosecutors are under pressure in part because of the statute of limitation on some of the allegations. The case could pose a high-profile test of the Justice Department's ability to prosecute sitting lawmakers, having already spawned a legal battle over whether key evidence the government has gathered is protected by the Constitution's Speech and Debate clause.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on February 26, 2015 21 Comments
About a year ago, the biggest political headache Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber faced was explaining why there wasn't a single enrollee in Covered Oregon ,after spending over $300 Million on the state health insurance exchange. This year, however, Kitzhaber is Oregon's former chief executive after resigning in response to reports indicating his finacee, Clivia Lynne Hayes, advised the governor and state employees on energy policy while getting paid by a group advocating on the issue. In the wake of that resignation, officials have started digging into Kitzhaber's other advisors...including the self-designated "Princess of Darkness", who was tasked with fixing Covered Oregon.
...Kitzhaber handed oversight of the Cover Oregon mess to a secretive campaign consultant who liked to call herself the Princess of Darkness. By her own admission, Patricia McCaig knew virtually nothing about health care reform or the reasons Cover Oregon had crashed. Her primary mission was not to save a beleaguered state program but to get Kitzhaber re-elected. Emails that Kitzhaber’s office tried to delete from state computers show McCaig was effectively in charge of all decision making for Cover Oregon beginning in February 2014.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on February 21, 2015 14 Comments
Brian Williams' tragic exit meant that a right-leaning media behemoth must too, suffer the same fate, according to the leftist code of retribution. Last week, David Corn and Daniel Schulman of Mother Jones set their crosshairs on Fox New's Bill O'Reilly attempting to settle the score. MJ and crew accused O'Reilly of lying about his reporting of The Falklands War in 1982. As we discussed:
Their ‘scoop’ seems to revolve around how Mother Jones is defining, “war action” and other semantics they themselves haven’t yet pieced together. Namely that to cover The Falklands War and reporting directly from The Falklands are not mutually exclusive.
O'Reilly responded callng, David Corn a “despicable guttersnipe” and “a liar.” He denied any discrepancy, and called the entire Mother Jones reprt “a piece of garbage.” Yesterday, O'Reilly directly addressed Corn's accusations. He produced memos and letters from 33 years ago. He also addressed the issues that we pointed out above, as well as the obvious Brian Williams retributive angle.

Posted by Amy Miller on September 04, 2014 17 Comments
A federal jury has convicted former Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell on eleven of fourteen counts of conspiracy, bribery, and extortion. The trial, which lasted more than a month and spurred 17 hours of jury deliberation, laid bare charges that Governor and First Lady McDonnell used their power and influence to promote the Anatabloc supplement company, owned by Jonnie Williams, in exchange for money and gifts including a shopping spree and a $6,000 Rolex watch.
Via the New York Times:
“This is a difficult, disappointing day for the Commonwealth,” said Dana J. Boente, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, whose office prosecuted the McDonnells, who are facing years in prison. “When public officials turn to financial gain for official actions we have little chance but to prosecute the case.” Asked whether Mr. McDonnell will appeal, his lawyer, Henry W. Asbill, said “Of course.” He said he was “shocked” by the verdict. The McDonnells were indicted on 14 counts of conspiracy, bribery, extortion and related charges stemming from what prosecutors said was a scheme to sell the office of governor, which Mr. McDonnell occupied through January this year, for $177,000 in gifts and cash from a dietary supplements executive.
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