2008: The Year of Political Corruption

The past year saw so many villains and corrupt politicians in public life that news shows should have converted broadcasts to something like: CSI: Swampland. Or Law & Order: Election Edition. Some of the scandalous pooh-bahs are still with us - regardless of their ill gotten gain - they are surviving and keeping their public posts and profiles.

1) Senator Christopher Dodd (D-CT). Dodd, who was briefly a Presidential candidate until he placed below 1 percent in the Iowa Caucuses, remains at the centerpiece of a national scandal. His home state papers say he was the biggest story of 2008. Meanwhile, the national media has largely ignored the mess he created; their indifference seemingly an outgrowth of their friendliness with him and the complexities of his ethical breaches. Dodd is Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee where he reportedly stopped reform proposals to put increased accountability and regulation on Fannie and Freddie Mac. Incidentally, Dodd received more campaign cash from these failed organizations than any other Member of Congress. It was also disclosed Dodd accepted preferential treatment for a home mortgage from another organization he was tasked with regulating - Countrywide Financial. Dodd is still in his leadership post and a U.S. Senator.

2) Congressman Charles Rangel (D-NY). Rangel, Chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee has not been paying his taxes. Or put another way, the guy chiefly responsible for how the Federal government spends tax-dollars, didn't think he should have any skin in the game. In addition to not paying taxes on his 75,000 rental income on his rent controlled property, Rangel is under investigation due to concerns he used his federal office to boost fund raising for his nonprofit (a.k.a. tax-exempt) organization and may have even traded votes to a oil drilling business to further his "nonprofit" interests. Rangel is still in his leadership post and is still a U.S. Congressman.

3) Congressman William "Dollar Bill" Jefferson (D-LA). Jefferson was caught in a FBI sting operation accepting $100,000 bribe to broker businesses deals in Africa. Jefferson was not returned to Congress.

4) The SEIU. The Service Employee International Union is found a member growth success by pursing home-based health care workers. But the SEIU union bosses - along with the family heads of most large union mobs - see "Card Check" as a scheme to dramatically reverse shrinking numbers. It's a simple concept. Eliminate the secret ballot. Then thuggish intimidation they can coerce would-be member into a public petition for their organizing. But where this turned from bad policy to scandal was when they allegedly offered the Illinois Governor $300,000 to get a pro-Card Check vote in the U.S. Senate. To date, none of the $85 million dollars in campaign cash the SEIU gave to get similar influence has been returned by the politicians who took their money.

5) The SEIU 2. SEIU-California, the Golden State's largest union, started up a nonprofit to help build low-income housing. The problem? It's been four years and not a dime has been spent fulfilling their purported mission. Instead, it has become a money-laundry scheme to get more cash into the pockets of top union bosses and into the hands of politicians (including Barack Obama).

PM'ers Ris have note in the Sexiest Scandals a few worth double noting that include: Governor Elliot Spitzer (D-NY), Congressman Vito Fossella (R-NY), Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and Governor Jim Gibbons (R-NV).

The culture of corruption remains so pervasive in local and national politics that the real opportunity for a clean-up in 2009 remains in the hands of intrepid net-investigators who can log-on and provide the public with a greater accountability and transparency to our government.