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The Sunlight Foundation was founded in 2006 with the goal of using technology to enable citizens to learn more about what their elected representatives are doing, to help reduce corruption, ensure greater transparency and... [more]
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Duke Cunningham
Ex-CIA official in bribery case might face additional charges
Written by Paul Blumenthal on March 25, 2008 - 10:47am.
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham | K. Dusty Foggo (see all terms)
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham | K. Dusty Foggo (see all terms)
Source Name
San Diego Union Tribune
Snippit
A federal prosecutor from San Diego signaled yesterday that the government is considering bringing new charges, including an additional conspiracy allegation, against Kyle “Dusty” Foggo, the former No. 3 official in the CIA who became ensnared in the bribery scandal involving Randy “Duke” Cunningham.
Defense Contractor Sentenced to 12 Years for Bribery
Written by Paul Blumenthal on February 20, 2008 - 12:01pm.
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham (see all terms)
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham (see all terms)
Source Name
Washington Post
Snippit
Brent R. Wilkes, a California defense contractor and prominent GOP campaign contributor, was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison yesterday for lavishing a Republican congressman with money, prostitutes and other bribes in exchange for nearly $90 million in work from the Pentagon.
Corruption case against Foggo moved to Virginia; Wilkes charges dropped
Written by Paul Blumenthal on February 15, 2008 - 11:27am.
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham | K. Dusty Foggo (see all terms)
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham | K. Dusty Foggo (see all terms)
Source Name
San Diego Union Tribune
Snippit
Federal prosecutors agreed Thursday to move the corruption case of former Central Intelligence Agency official Kyle “Dusty” Foggo to Virginia and hinted he will face more charges in the future. In addition, prosecutors said they will drop charges in that case against Foggo's lifelong friend and co-defendant, former Poway defense contractor Brent Wilkes.
Feds call for 60-year sentence for Wilkes
Written by Paul Blumenthal on January 22, 2008 - 11:37am.
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham (see all terms)
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham (see all terms)
Source Name
San Diego Union Tribune
Snippit
Federal probation officials are recommending that Brent Wilkes, the Poway defense contractor who was convicted of bribing former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham, should be sentenced to 60 years in prison, according to court records.
Judge proposes moving Wilkes, Foggo trial to Virginia
Written by Paul Blumenthal on November 20, 2007 - 10:37am.
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham | K. Dusty Foggo (see all terms)
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham | K. Dusty Foggo (see all terms)
Source Name
San Diego Union Tribune
Snippit
The second criminal case of a Poway defense contractor convicted of bribing former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham may head to the East Coast.
Walk the Scandal Walk
This morning the Washington Post featured a great article and video by Dana Milbank highlighting all the locations in the district that hot spots in the current pantheon of political scandals. From Abramoff's restaurant Signatures to the Capitol Yacht Club, where Sens. Ted Stevens and Larry Craig slept while Duke Cunningham ran amok, this scandal tour has everything. So, I decided to do the Web 2.0 thing and turn this tour into a Google Map. I whittled the list of locations down to congressional scandals. (Make sure to zoom in on the D St. locations. That's a central point of muck.) Check it out and let me know what I missed.
Written by Paul Blumenthal on November 9, 2007 - 4:22pm.
Read more: Duke Cunningham | Google Maps | Jack Abramoff | Scandal Tour | Tom DeLay (see all terms)
Boom Shaka Laka - Justice
The San Diego Union Tribune, without whom this would not have happened, is reporting that corrupt contractor Brent Wilkes was found guilty by a jury on 13 of 13 counts related to his bribery of imprisoned ex-Rep. Duke Cunningham. The story of Brent Wilkes is perhaps one of the more telling tales of political corruption for our time. Here is a man who set up a series of bogus companies, many which appeared to be nothing but a name with similar addresses, and received million dollar contracts for important work including the bottling of water for troops in Iraq and providing “commercial cover for CIA operations,” despite having no background in air cover. This is the story of the atmosphere of corruption, embodied by the wanton abandon to cash in on political connections, which must have permeated Congress in the late-90s and early-00s.
Written by Paul Blumenthal on November 5, 2007 - 4:28pm.
Read more: Brent Wilkes | CIA | Corruption | Duke Cunningham | K. Dusty Foggo | Mitchell Wade (see all terms)
Cunningham-linked contractor paying big campaign finance fine
Written by Paul Blumenthal on November 1, 2007 - 9:56am.
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham | Katherine Harris | Mitchell Wade | MZM | Virgil Goode (see all terms)
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham | Katherine Harris | Mitchell Wade | MZM | Virgil Goode (see all terms)
Source Name
San Diego Union Tribune
Snippit
Defense contractor Mitchell Wade, who pleaded guilty to bribing former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham, is now paying the second-largest campaign finance penalty in the history of the Federal Election Commission.
Defense Contractor Denies Bribery
Written by Paul Blumenthal on October 29, 2007 - 9:51am.
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham (see all terms)
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham (see all terms)
Source Name
Washington Post
Snippit
A defense contractor emphatically denied bribing former U.S. Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham as he took the stand in his own defense Friday.
Bali Hai!
Out of all the congressional corruption scandals that have engulfed Washington since 2005 my personal favorite was and still is the Duke Cunningham bribery case. This scandal had it all, a bribery menu, a yacht named "Buoy Toy" illegally gifted to a member of Congress, quid pro quos of hookers for earmarks, and of course a cartoonishly corrupt contractor who liked to randomly yell "Boom shaka laka!" That contractor, Brent Wilkes, pled "not guilty" to the bribery charges that both his underling Mitchell Wade and the bribed Cunningham have admitted to, leading to the only trial in the sprawling corruption investigation. The trial has led to some terrific moments including testimony from the hookers hired by Wilkes for Cunningham and the ludicrous argument by the defense that all Wilkes was engaged in was aggressive lobbying. Now we get treated to this hilarious video of Wilkes and his team hosting Cunningham for a scuba diving trip. Wilkes is seen at the end doing his random shouting thing. Bali Hai!
The best places to follow the Cunningham case and the trial are TPM Muckraker, Seth Hettena's blog, and the San Diego Union Tribune. Hettena and the writers from the Union Tribune have both written their own books about Duke's corruption.
Written by Paul Blumenthal on October 26, 2007 - 10:52am.
Read more: Brent Wilkes | Duke Cunningham | Mitchell Wade (see all terms)
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Today's Ethics Watch
Senator’s Ties to Real Estate Draw Criticism: He has made millions as a title insurance executive, landlord and real estate developer in this college town, where the economy, despite trouble nationwide, is still growing nicely. Now, as a United States senator, with the mortgage mess fueling a national economic slowdown, Richard C. Shelby has more say over the revamping of housing finance laws than almost anyone else in Congress. (New York Times)
Oil Lobby Reaches Out to Citizens Peeved at the Pump: Faced with a national outcry over the high price of gasoline and soaring profits for energy companies, the oil and gas industry is waging an unusually pricey campaign to burnish its image. (Washington Post)
Lawmakers Accused of Flouting Rules on Use of Staff: Democratic Reps. Jane Harman and Neil Abercrombie spent more than $2 million on their 2006 reelection campaigns but paid only $5,000 to campaign workers, according to campaign finance reports. (Washington Post)
NAM discloses member list: The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) disclosed certain member companies on Thursday after failing to win a reprieve from the U.S. Supreme Court. (The Hill)
Clinton introduces bill to post contractor violations on the Web: Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., has introduced a bill that would force contractors to self-report criminal actions or government overpayments to agency inspectors general under the threat of potential disbarment or suspension. The misconduct would then be made publicly available on a searchable Web site. (GovExec)
Rep. Abercrombie questions ethics of ethics bill handling: Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) is challenging actions by his Democratic leaders and plans to ask the ethics committee to determine whether House rules were broken during a recent ethics vote. (The Hill)
A futile walk down Coconut Road?: The House agreed Wednesday to ask the Justice Department to investigate the now infamous Coconut Road earmark, but don’t hold your breath waiting for indictments. (Politico)
Young, Jefferson quiet as Coconut Road earmark nears vote in House: Reps. Don Young (R-Alaska) and William Jefferson (D-La.) are keeping mum on whether they will vote for a bill that includes language calling on the Department of Justice (DoJ) to investigate the notorious Coconut Road earmark when that measure comes to the House floor Wednesday. (The Hill)
Ethics Complaints Sheathed: Even though both Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) recently called for the ethics committee to investigate members of the other’s party — fighting words by any standard — neither took the next step of triggering an investigation, effectively pulling their punches. (Roll Call)
New disclosure reports lack clarity: The much-touted new lobbying disclosure reports are now available. But beware: They do little to make it easier to track the nation’s influence class. (Politico)
Lawmakers Want Hearing on Ties Between Sect, Defense Contracts: The Defense Department has contracted with three companies that are closely tied to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and some lawmakers want to know if money from those deals supported the sect, whose ranch was raided this month after allegations of child abuse. (Washington Post)
[ More in the Archive ]
Oil Lobby Reaches Out to Citizens Peeved at the Pump: Faced with a national outcry over the high price of gasoline and soaring profits for energy companies, the oil and gas industry is waging an unusually pricey campaign to burnish its image. (Washington Post)
Lawmakers Accused of Flouting Rules on Use of Staff: Democratic Reps. Jane Harman and Neil Abercrombie spent more than $2 million on their 2006 reelection campaigns but paid only $5,000 to campaign workers, according to campaign finance reports. (Washington Post)
NAM discloses member list: The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) disclosed certain member companies on Thursday after failing to win a reprieve from the U.S. Supreme Court. (The Hill)
Clinton introduces bill to post contractor violations on the Web: Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., has introduced a bill that would force contractors to self-report criminal actions or government overpayments to agency inspectors general under the threat of potential disbarment or suspension. The misconduct would then be made publicly available on a searchable Web site. (GovExec)
Rep. Abercrombie questions ethics of ethics bill handling: Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) is challenging actions by his Democratic leaders and plans to ask the ethics committee to determine whether House rules were broken during a recent ethics vote. (The Hill)
A futile walk down Coconut Road?: The House agreed Wednesday to ask the Justice Department to investigate the now infamous Coconut Road earmark, but don’t hold your breath waiting for indictments. (Politico)
Young, Jefferson quiet as Coconut Road earmark nears vote in House: Reps. Don Young (R-Alaska) and William Jefferson (D-La.) are keeping mum on whether they will vote for a bill that includes language calling on the Department of Justice (DoJ) to investigate the notorious Coconut Road earmark when that measure comes to the House floor Wednesday. (The Hill)
Ethics Complaints Sheathed: Even though both Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) recently called for the ethics committee to investigate members of the other’s party — fighting words by any standard — neither took the next step of triggering an investigation, effectively pulling their punches. (Roll Call)
New disclosure reports lack clarity: The much-touted new lobbying disclosure reports are now available. But beware: They do little to make it easier to track the nation’s influence class. (Politico)
Lawmakers Want Hearing on Ties Between Sect, Defense Contracts: The Defense Department has contracted with three companies that are closely tied to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and some lawmakers want to know if money from those deals supported the sect, whose ranch was raided this month after allegations of child abuse. (Washington Post)
[ More in the Archive ]