Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Alaskan Catch Du Jour: Ted Stevens

I love fishing, but seeing federal authorities charge Senator Ted Stevens for false statements was on par with going out and landing actual fish. This all went down yesterday, but since I was flying all day, I still had to write about this now. So, the old, corrupt Senator from Alaska was found to have improperly taken gifts in exchange for favorable legislation....and get this, it concerns fishing laws that also helped his son. Nothing like a little father-son bonding time when unethically playing off your constituents.

From CBS News:

(CBS/AP) Sen. Ted Stevens, the longest-serving Republican senator and a figure in Alaska politics since before statehood, was indicted Tuesday on seven counts of failing to disclose thousands of dollars in services he received from a company that helped renovate his home.

Stevens, the first sitting U.S. senator to face federal indictment since 1993, has been dogged by a federal investigation into his home renovation project and whether he pushed for fishing legislation that also benefited his son, an Alaska lobbyist.

The investigation has upended Alaska state politics and cast scrutiny on Stevens - who is running for re-election this year - and on his congressional colleague, Rep. Don Young of Alaska, who is also under investigation.

Nearly every major Republican Alaskan legislator is in hot water of some form or another. Even the once-popular Governor Palin was found to have used the power of her office to get revenge for one of her family members.

Folks, this 'red' state is going to get a heavy dose of purple this year.