Staying The Course In Arizona

Have you ever heard of that phrase that the friends you keep are in some ways a reflection of your own character? Well apparently John McCain just got the news, since he dumped Rick Renzi off his list of national co-chairs for his Presidential campaign (the less mirrors the better, right?). Of course the maverick only dropped him once he was indicted on thirty-five counts of wire fraud and other corruptive practices employed in upstate Arizona. Despite all that, the two still share more than just living in Washington, D.C> in the Grand Canyon state.

McCain is determined to stay the course in Iraq for a hundred years or however it takes. He'll bomb, bomb, bomb Iran and then try to take everything back after he pinned his hopes on convincing America that the surge worked (thats Mr. Straight-Talk Express for ya). Well Renzi is also determined to stay the course, that course would be the rest of his term in Congress, despite being an indicted man.

From RawStory:

An indictment unsealed Friday contends that Rick Renzi, a three-term Republican congressman, engineered a swap of federally owned mining land to benefit himself and a former business partner.

"I will not resign and take on the cloak of guilt because I am innocent," Renzi said through his press office in Washington, D.C. He added his lawyers will handle the accusations against him as he continues to serve his constituents.

The indictment was the result of a federal probe that put Renzi under a cloud of suspicion for more than a year.

In all, Renzi is charged with 35 counts including conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering, insurance fraud and extortion. His arraignment is scheduled for March 6.

"The cloak of guilt?" Whatever happened to respecting Congress by stepping aside while the court case is in progress? So much for honoring the Legislative branch and most importantly, his constituents in Arizona's first district. How would you like a suspected felon representing you in Congress? And how does McCain feel about someone closely connected to him being indicted over conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering, insurance fraud and extortion staying in office and subsequently keeping the story alive?

Well McCain has his own ethical/criminal problems to deal with, so the Renzi situation might have to take a back seat here.

Renzi Forgot To Mention A $200,000 Payment, Whoops!

Congressman Rick Renzi, who is under investigation for a shady land deal, tried to pull a fast one on prosecutors who are going over his history in the last few years. Renzi claims that the $200,000 he forgot to declare for the House Ethics Committee was a payment for an old debt that James Sandlin owed him previously. The problem is, the evidence is pointing to the money as a gift for an illegal land deal that Renzi made with a company called the Petrified Forest Group.

This story stinks like a pile of manure, which is exactly what Rick might find himself in soon enough. The real story looks a lot different than what he claims. A piece of land Sandlin owned hundreds of miles away from Renzi's old property was sold for $3 million more than he purchased it for a couple years prior. Renzi's big problem is that he was the one that helped facilitate the deal. Added on to that, the fact that Renzi failed to disclose the money shows an intent to conceal and that can lead to some serious justice for the Congressman. He may have voluntarily given up his committee assignment, but he still has a long way to fall before this is all over.

Republican Are Keeping The FBI Busy

The Federal Bureau of Investigations are meant to investigate dangerous criminals in the United States. Well they certainly have a treasure trove of them in the Republican caucus. Earlier this week they raided the businesses of John Doolittle for his connections with Jack Abramoff. After a quick rest the FBI went one state over to raid Rick Renzi's business (link to subscription-only Roll Call). Technically it was under his wife's name, but when it comes to the corrupt practices of sneaky Republicans it isn't hard to connect the dots.

From Roll Call via ThinkProgress:

Little is known about the inquiries into Renzi’s activities, but according to media reports the Justice Department has been running a two-track investigation into Renzi regarding a land deal, as well as a piece of legislation he helped steer that may have improperly benefited a major campaign contributor. It was not immediately clear which investigation the raid pertained to, and neither his attorney nor his spokesman could be immediately reached for comment.

As a result of the raid, Renzi is stepping down from his seat on the House Intelligence Committee, according to a statement from his office obtained Thursday evening by Roll Call.

“Today, the FBI came to my family’s business to obtain documents related to their investigation,” Renzi said. “I view these actions as the first step in bringing out the truth. Until this matter is resolved, I will take a leave of absence from the House Intelligence Committee. I intend to fully cooperate with this investigation.”

I am glad to hear he is mentioning the 'truth.' Stepping down from his committee is a good first step in taking responsibility for his unethical actions as a public servant. The truth is that he has only been serving his own interests up in Arizona's 1st Congressional district. Of course saying he will fully cooperate with the investigation and actually doing it are two totally separate things. If he truly wants to get squared up he should tell investigators about his illegalities (alleged of course), resign from office and take the punishment that is most fitting for his particular crimes, kinda like Duke Cunningham.