The Corrupt Bastards Club

Yesterday I posted about the FBI raids in Alaska. Today, I will expand on that and update with the newest information. Give this a read, and normally I dont ask, but a a recommend. This is the new Cunningham/MZM story, and another chance to highlight corruption before the elections.

But anyways, a quick review of what we learned yesterday, and then the new stuff. Skip the first blockquote if you read yesterday's diary.  

*Federal agents swarmed legislative offices around the state Thursday, executing search warrants in a coordinated series of raids that appeared to target the longstanding relationship between the oil-field service company Veco and leading lawmakers.

*The Offices of Senate President Ben Stevens (son of Ted 'Tubes' Stevens) and Senate Rules Committee Chairman John Cowdery where searched, as well asRep. Vic Kohring, R-Wasilla, the chairman of the House Special Committee on Oil & Gas. And Reps. Pete Kott of Eagle River and Bruce Weyhrauch of Juneau, and Sen. Donny Olson of Nome. Kott, a former House speaker, and Weyhrauch are Republicans. Olson is the only Democrat in the group.

*In disclosures he was required to file as a legislator, Stevens said he was paid $243,000 over the last five years as a "consultant" to Veco. Whenever he was asked to describe what he did for the money, Stevens refused to answer. The company also refused to say.

*Warrants were executed in Girdwood, where Ted Stevens has a home and offices.

*Agents left Stevens' Capitol office Thursday evening with 12 boxes of documents labeled "Evidence" and loaded them into a vehicle waiting them outside.

*In 1985 just a few years after the company had emerged from bankruptcy and boosted its political involvement, Veco was fined more than $72,000 for a scheme that funneled secret donations to a select slate of candidates through an employee payroll deduction plan

*One of VECO President Pete Leathard's sons, Scott, is on the Ted Steven's Staff.

Ok now what we've learned in the past 24 hours.

Anchorage Daily News provides the following:

agents served a warrant at VECO's headquaters and raided the offices of six legislators this week, looking for financial ties between the company and lawmakers, and documents having to do with Murkowski's proposed gas pipeline contract and a related rewrite of Alaska's production tax laws.

Possible misdoings in a pipeline contract between VECO and Alaskan Republicans? Gee, makes you 'wonder' why Ted Stevens put a hold on Obama'sGovernment Transparency Bill. More on what VECO would want to influence:

Among the items to be seized, according to the warrant, "from the period of October 2005 to the present, any and all documents concerning, reflecting or relating to proposed legislation in the state of Alaska involving either the creation of a natural gas pipeline or the petroleum production tax.

Its about damn time that someone noticed something fishy about Steven's son worked for Veco, And the Veco Presidents son working for Stevens.

Also The warrant called for seizure of documents "concerning, reflecting or relating to any payment" to lawmakers by VECO executives Allen and Richard Smith. Agents also looked for documents about contracts, agreements or employment of legislators provided by VECO, Allen, Smith and company president Peter Leathard.

Besides VECO and its executives, agents were authorized to seize any documents related to The Petroleum Club, Republican pollster David Dittman or his company, Dittman Research and Communication Corp., pollster Marc Hellenthal or his company, Hellenthal and Associates, Roger Chan, VECO's chief financial officer, and Olson Air Service, according to the warrant.

Oil Groups, Pollsters, Politicans and Air Services involved in a scandal, so very original... Throw into the mix that VECO was a one-time owner of the now defunct Anchorage Times, and that VECO continues to pay for the production and publication of Voice of the Times, a half-page editorial section that runs in the Daily News, and you have quite the interesting read.

But hold-up, I saved the best for last:

This should get your attention:

A specific item named in the search for seizure: "Any physical garments (including hats) bearing any of the following logos or phrases: `CBC,' `Corrupt Bastards Club,' `Corrupt Bastards Caucus,' `VECO.'"

The Corrupt Bastards Club started as a barroom joke last spring among Alaska legislators whose names were linked to large campaign contributions from oil field services company VECO Corp. Hilarious right? This is STRANGELY SIMILAR to Cunningham and Wilkes joking about being in 'The Poway Mafia'. But thats not the only similarity between the scandals, as you've probably noticed.