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BREAKING: FBI Raids Stevens Alaska Home
From the Anchorage Daily News:
Federal law enforcement agents are currently searching the Girdwood home of Alaska U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, an FBI agent said."All I can say is that agents from the FBI and IRS are currently conducting a search at that residence," said Dave Heller, the assistant special agent in charge of the FBI's Anchorage office. The search began this afternoon, he said.
That's the same home, of course, that was doubled by a renovation undertaken in 2000 -- the contractor, curiously, was Veco, the corrupt oil company. Veco, prosecutors have pointed out "was not in the business of residential construction or remodeling." And that's not all that's curious about the renovation.
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Comments (26)
Sullynyc wrote on July 30, 2007 6:56 PM:Where's that confounded bridge?
sec word: Amount. As in too much is never enough...
Tom in AZ wrote on July 30, 2007 7:02 PM:Must be looking for the toobz!
Tom in AZ wrote on July 30, 2007 7:03 PM:Must be looking for the toobz!
Dave Bowman wrote on July 30, 2007 7:17 PM:evidently, Bill Allen watches the Simpsons:
Hank Scorpio: Homer! Boy am I proud of you, when you go home tonight, there's gonna be another story on your house!
regular lurker wrote on July 30, 2007 7:19 PM:Josh,
Your server takes fooooorrrrreeeeeevvvvvveeeeeerrrrr to load comments. Just sayin'
Love,
Steve5117 wrote on July 30, 2007 7:26 PM:Regular Lurker
The big question is why has the DoJ executed a search of a Republican US Senator's home?
What is the political advantage to the administration to throw one of their own to the wolves? Unless it is a diversionary tactic...
KYJurisDoctor wrote on July 30, 2007 7:32 PM:A TOTAL embarrassment!
http://osi-speaks.blogspot.com/2007/07/breaking-news-fbi-and-irs-raid-home-of.html#links
Anonymous wrote on July 30, 2007 7:32 PM:Karl Rove just last week told House members to run on the "clean up DC" ticket and say they are outsiders to the Beltway
Karl & Co want to throw the old boys out b/c they lost on corrupt Congress issues in 2006 not Iraq
Karl knows what is up with Ted & Don. Hell everyone in DC knows they are corrupt mofos. Look for Republicans running on the Goldwater/Reagan less spending, less gov w/o out any hint of Christian conservative bs. Family values served their short term purpose.. next throw old boys out. Ted & Don are under Karl's bus
Reverend J wrote on July 30, 2007 7:42 PM:That makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
paulc wrote on July 30, 2007 7:55 PM:Now Bobby Mueller is really gonna get the cold shoulder at Dick & Fredo's next barbecue
Jim wrote on July 30, 2007 7:56 PM:Alaska's US Attorney may be a Loyal Bushie, but he's probably not a Loyal Stevie.
"I am just furious at the way the attorney general handled this," the aide quoted Stevens as saying (about the new US Attorney for Alaska).
http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/8116780p-8009218c.html
God help Ted Stevens, the IRS is after him now. I bet Osama breathes a sigh of relief every day knowing the people after him aren't tax collectors.
ryan wrote on July 30, 2007 8:00 PM:I just mentioned this thing in the open thread, but if you want more info go to the Anchorage Daily News website at www.adn.com
SSA wrote on July 30, 2007 8:38 PM:I agree with you Jim. If I was Stevens I would be much more worried about the IRS than the FBI.
How long before Stevens is identified by Fox as a (D)?
Bill wrote on July 30, 2007 9:10 PM:THE INTERNET? IT'S A SERIES OF TUBES!
Anna S. wrote on July 30, 2007 9:22 PM:DJ TED STEVENS REMIX VIDEO
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtOoQFa5ug8
One of the things I still don't understand about this is what Veco got out of the whole deal. They obviously went to a great deal of trouble to bribe not only the state's top legislator (Stevens had more influence than Young or Merkowski), but also the younger Congress-persons from that state. They got oil contracts, sure, but everybody and his cousin gets oil contracts when your senator is as influence-heavy as Stevens. I would think that one senator in your pocket is enough for some plush contracts. So why the attempt to shore up the state's entire Washington delegation? It seems like a lot of effort for not much increased payoff, and a lot more risk of discovery.
West wrote on July 30, 2007 9:29 PM:prison bars...just a series of tubes
Kuparuk wrote on July 30, 2007 9:40 PM:Anna -- for nearly two decades, Veco pushed for *every* republican in the state. This behavior was known for a long time, but the GOP Majority in the legislature had the Alaska Public Offices Commission sewn up by budget cuts, and had the Ethics Committee sewn up by procedure (any finding of the ethics committee -- a bi-partisan committee -- can be and has been overturned by the Rules Committee -- usually chaired by the Speaker, highly partisan).
All of this has been going on for years, right out in the open, despite complaints by Alaskans. The FBI finally listened and stepped in when Alaska's watchdogs were being kept on a short leash.
Tom D. wrote on July 30, 2007 11:07 PM:Yawn. Talk about small potatoes. I might be pretty old fashioned but in the old days, it was ok for politicians to skim a little off the top in exchange for bringing good things back to the district or state. I don't mean bridges to nowhere but useful things like real highways. For example, Dan Rostenkowski (D - IL) is responsible for the construction of the entire major highway system in Chicago (6 major interstate freeways terminate in Chicago). That's been very good for the Chicago economy. While sitll under investigation (but not yet indicted) for helping himself to a few goodies on capitol hill, he won the democratic primary but lost the general election (he was one of 34 democrats who lost house seats in the '94 bloodbath). He treated his constituents well over a 30+ year career and so many could easily look past Dan getting caught with his hands in the cookie jar now and again.
I'm not asking anyone to excuse Ted Stevens for the house remodel but let's be realistic: Ted's been good for the oil industry in Alaska and that's been good for Alaskans. If he's taken a bit of graft here and there, so what.
Given the real money being pissed away in Iraq ($10 billion a month according to Henry Reid), I can't get real worked up over a house remodel from a grateful business constituent.
Yawn.
Dr. Wu wrote on July 31, 2007 12:13 AM:Check the freezer.
johnnydoughey wrote on July 31, 2007 12:45 AM:"Karl Rove just last week told House members to run on the "clean up DC" ticket and say they are outsiders to the Beltway"...
He might just find out there are no Republicans in Washington if they are all allowed to be investigated...
Just a note:
regular lurker wrote on July 31, 2007 12:52 AM:I see that important people get to have their attorneys notified before searching their homes, whereas us unimportant people just get notified when the door is opened. Supposed we can get back a little equal treatment under the law while the Dems are still in power. Every time I see these articles, the words "Animal Farm" comes to mind with a vision of a more equal pig...
We will continue to have rampant corruption in Washington until those folks the same laws and penalties as the resat of us common folk....
Stevens is afraid of sunlight.
Stevens was the Senator who placed the hold on legislation that would have created a searchable database of federal contracts.
He's a coward.
bobh wrote on July 31, 2007 1:32 AM:Well if the IRS is involved TS is in deep and will be ferked right quick.
psyberdawg wrote on July 31, 2007 2:11 AM:johnnydoughey -
"I see that important people get to have their attorneys notified before searching their homes, whereas us unimportant people just get notified when the door is opened."
That pissed me off, too. WTF? Why tip someone off the day before you conduct a raid? I guess fat cat pols are on the honor system. The rest of us rubes? Not so much.
714Day wrote on July 31, 2007 5:40 AM:Tom D.
OleHippieChick wrote on July 31, 2007 11:01 AM:I imagine they are trying to hang Stevens for the smaller potatoes rather than the Matanuska Valley hundred pounders he REALLY has baked. Clearly, you don't know much about this guy. Or Alaskan politics.
I agree with earlier posters that Karl Rove is re-running the Newt Gingrich B>S> about "cleaning up" politics. This means, "Put a good face on it, and fly below the radar". Stevens could fly below the radar only if the monitor fell on the floor. There are plenty of sore thumbs sticking out of the Republican mutant hand. They're noticeable, so they'll be publicly lopped.
This puts a "non-partisan" face on the thoroughly politicised DOJ, too.
See how clever Karl is.
Can't resist:
Ted: NO! NO! NO!
Tom D. wrote on July 31, 2007 6:45 PM:741Day:
You are right that I'm not generally familiar with Alaska politics. But if the "Matanuska Valley hundred pounders" relates to Ted lining his pockets with constituent money, my view of this issue wouldn't change. I'm not condoning bribery but its like bringing coal to New Castle: it goes on all the time in some form or another and it only gets attention when the stupid ones get caught. Ted lives so far away from the beltway that he probably thought he would never get caught. He should have used a bagman for the remodel.