Finally, a democratic party member in congress is being indicted. I hope, that if Jefferson is found guilty, he is punished to the full extent of the law for his crimes, or at least as harshly as Scooter Libby is gonna be, for his crimes.
I do not believe that Jefferson has committed crimes that rise to the same level as those committed by Randy Cunningham were, since no funds that the DOD could have used to "support the troops", were diverted by Jefferson, as in Cunningham's case.
I do not believe that Jefferson committed crimes that rise to the same level as those that Tom Delay is accused of, or Bob Ney was convicted for. I predict that there will be renewed cries that "both parties" are equally corrupt, but I don't see much evidence to justify that opinion, do you?
Quote:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...060400683.html
Indictment Sought Against Rep. Jefferson
FBI Probes Allegations Lawmaker Took Bribes to Promote Business Ventures
By Jerry Markon and Allan Lengel
Washington Post Staff Writers
Monday, June 4, 2007; 12:46 PM
Federal prosecutors are seeking an indictment today against Rep. William J. Jefferson (D-La.) in a longstanding FBI corruption probe centering on allegations that he took bribes to promote high-tech business ventures in Africa, sources familiar with the investigation said.
Prosecutors are presenting the case to grand jurors in Alexandria today, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because no charges have yet been filed.
If filed, the indictment would cap a long and tumultuous investigation that was stalled for months because of a legal battle over the constitutionality of an FBI raid on Jefferson's office last May. The raid came after the FBI found $90,000 in the freezer of his Capitol Hill home.
A political and legal maelstrom followed the raid, prompting President Bush to intervene and seal the seized documents for 45 days. In July, U.S. District Judge Thomas F. Hogan, who had signed the search warrant, ruled that the raid was constitutional. The U.S. Court of Appeals has yet to rule on the matter.
Jefferson, 60, is a potential political embarrassment for Democrats, just months after they took over control of Congress. Democrats had campaigned last year on the theme that Republicans had created a culture of corruption. In July, the House officially expelled Jefferson from the prestigious Ways and Means Committee.
At the time, then House Minority leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said the allegations against Jefferson were too egregious to wait for a legal resolution.
"This isn't about proof in the court or law; this is about an ethical standard," she said.
News of the FBI probe hurt Jefferson in his reelection bid last fall, but he managed to win in a runoff, garnering 30 percent of the vote in a crowded primary field of 12 candidates. His campaign ads emphasized that he had not been charged with any crime.
The investigation began in March 2005 when Virginia investor Lori Mody, went to the FBI to complain that Jefferson and her business associate were trying to scam her in a high-tech business venture in Africa in which a copper wire technology would be used to deliver the Internet and cable television.
Mody agreed to wear a listening device for federal authorities, previously issued court documents said.
During an undercover sting, on July 21, 2005, Jefferson told Mody that he needed to give Nigerian Vice President Atikua Abubakar $500,000 "as a motivating factor" to make sure they obtained contracts.
Mody eventually agreed to give Jefferson $100,000 -- in marked bills from the FBI, court records have indicated. A few days later, $90,000 was found in Jefferson's freezer.
Eventually, Mody's business associate Brett Pfeffer and Vernon L. Jackson, the president of iGate, a Louisville based high tech firm, pleaded guilty to bribing Jefferson to use his political influence to push through a lucrative contract in Africa to sell technology for the Internet and cable television. Both are serving time in prison.
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