Another bribery charge for Dollar Bill?
posted at 8:20 am on May 28, 2008 by Ed Morrissey
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Patterico digs deeply into a civil complaint quietly filed in Louisiana involving Rep. William Jefferson, the man who had $90,000 hidden in his freezer and facing a federal corruption investigation. The new complaint details another charge of bribery apart from his current woes, Patterico reports. This time, though, the feds may also be on the hotseat:
The background: last month, guest blogger DRJ and I reported on a motion by indicted Louisiana attorney James G. Perdigao. Perdigao’s motion leveled serious accusations of wrongdoing by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana — and raised new accusations of bribery of then-U.S. Attorney Eddie Jordan and U.S. Representative William Jefferson.
Perdigao’s allegations may help Governor Edwin Edwards challenge his conviction for taking bribes, in return for issuing valuable riverboat casino licenses. Businessman Robert Guidry made about $100 million from one of those licenses, and then testified against Edwards. But Guidry’s plea bargain raised eyebrows across the state. Not only did Guidry receive only five months in a halfway house, but prosecutors also allowed him to keep more than $96 million of the $100 million he made from the illegally obtained license.
As a local columnist opined: “The abiding mystery of the Edwards trial is how come Guidry got such a sweet deal.”
Perdigao says he can solve the mystery: Guidry bribed the feds. And, Perdigao says, he did so through William Jefferson.
Don’t stop there. Patterico has plenty more on this development, including a caveat or two about accepting anything in Louisiana at face value. That is a great reminder of just how much work Bobby Jindal has on his plate in reforming the state government on the bayou.
Meanwhile, where is the Democratic-led Congress on this issue? Why have they not expelled Jefferson yet, or at least conducted an ethics investigation into his activities? Nancy Pelosi certainly fought hard to keep the FBI from doing its work on Dollar Bill, claiming that only Congress had jurisdiction to conduct investigations that involved legislative offices. Where is Pelosi’s investigation? (via Michelle)
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How much you want to bet that the new Ethical Congress Of Nancy Pelosi is going to do two things about Dollar Bill, namely Diddly and Squat? After all, a vote is still a vote, and Heaven forbid the Democrats lose yet another Congressional seat from Louisiana.
Yes he is a Bill,
he is only a Bill,
and he’s living large on Capital Hill.
pilamaye on May 28, 2008 at 8:25 AM
Bribery and corruption in Louisiana politics? I’m shocked.
raiderdav on May 28, 2008 at 8:33 AM
You want to neither go nor go there…
GeneSmith on May 28, 2008 at 8:44 AM
What’s really frightening about all this is just how corrupt our federal legislature must have been considering this is the most ethical Congress ever.
12thman on May 28, 2008 at 8:44 AM
The most ethical Congress evah!
WisCon on May 28, 2008 at 8:44 AM
Denny Hassert was unavailable for comment.
Maquis on May 28, 2008 at 8:49 AM
I’d buy that t-shirt.
regal on May 28, 2008 at 9:00 AM
When you are an elected Democrat and an African American to boot, you are entitled to some sugar. Anything else would simply be racist.
I think he deserves a title promotion to “Five Dollar Bill”.
It’s good to the elected.
Hening on May 28, 2008 at 9:27 AM
Dare I venture to say “if Jefferson were a white person”…
Keemo on May 28, 2008 at 9:41 AM
[Keemo on May 28, 2008 at 9:41 AM]
… his name would be Rostenkowski?
Dusty on May 28, 2008 at 9:49 AM
Dare I venture to say “if Jefferson were a
white personrepublican”…Vntnrse on May 28, 2008 at 9:56 AM
Cold cash Jefferson
abinitioadinfinitum on May 28, 2008 at 10:13 AM
This one hits closest to the mark.
techno_barbarian on May 28, 2008 at 10:20 AM
First this is old news. It’s been in the papers for a month or more.
Second, Perdigao has less than zero credibility. He stole 30 million from him own law firm partners for goodness sake.
Which one of the convicted liars is lying today? Hard to tell isn’t it.
Will it result in more charges against Jefferson? Doubtful. All you have is a civil complaint from a convicted liar.
–If you really want to mine this for news, the name Letten is much more important than Jefferson.
google awaits.
Diogenes of Sinope on May 28, 2008 at 10:35 AM
I wonder if Jindal is going to have his brilliant future derailed in Louisiana. It’s a bottomless pit.
misterpeasea on May 28, 2008 at 10:38 AM
@misterpeasea -
I wish all y’all who think Jindal has a “brilliant future” would take a realistic look at his record as governor to date. So far it’s a Potemkin governorship. His ethics reform is toothless; his hiring freeze is pretty warm; he’s proposing huge expansions in entitlements without proposing any cuts; and he’s fighting tooth and nail for his office and his administration to be exempted from records review. It’s only been five months - he can still turn this around and be the guy he was when he was in the House, but as of right now, I’m really hoping he’s NOT the future of the GOP because it’s just more of the same.
Laura on May 28, 2008 at 10:51 AM
Sounds like the ghost of Huey Long is alive and well…
Wanderlust on May 28, 2008 at 10:59 AM
Why this man was allowed to stay in Congress after what they found in his freezer, (and did during the aftermath of Katrina), is beyond me, but we’re dealing with Democrats here.
It’s ok to be a crook if you’re a black Demo. Just imagine what would have happened if he had an R next to his name.
Christine on May 28, 2008 at 11:26 AM
Jindal removes any doubt that McCain has serious judgement problems. Jindal is even more incompetent to fill the VP slot than Obama is to be president (if that is possible). The leadership in this country is bought and sold to the highest bidder. Rookies like Jindal and Obama have smaller price tags and not enough experience to do anything but what they are told to do.
volsense on May 28, 2008 at 11:31 AM
Like I said before, if Jindal can turn around LA he can easily survive in DC. Of course it will take some time, you can’t turn around that much corruption overnight. He is going to be attacked by those that have entrenched power and you will hear many UNSUBSTANTIATED claims. I believe he can survive if he stands strong(and stays legal) against those in the establishment. I hope and pray he will stand tall through it all and becomes the leader the conservatives are looking for.
And Laura, look at his overall record not just the last 5 months. It will take time to struggle through the Louisiana mud
Corsair on May 28, 2008 at 11:32 AM
Corsair, I’ve got links for each one of those items and more - if I had added them it would have kicked my comment into the moderated queue. They are certainly NOT unsubstantiated. La conservatives who follow politics closely are fairly agitated. I know Jindal’s record well, I’ve been voting and campaigning for him for years. And I also know the Louisiana mud. Right now he’s doing nothing to dry it out; he’s adding to it.
Laura on May 28, 2008 at 11:35 AM
Corsair you should heed Laura’s words rather than dismiss them. You know not of what you speak.
If the “national conservatives” knew what Jindal was up to, they’d quit calling him the future of the party.
Full Disclosure: I’ve worked on several of his past campaigns.
I would not say I’m “disillusioned” yet. But I will say my support for him is now in jeopardy. — And disillusionment is on the horizon.
If he where a Dem, the first 5 months of his administration would be making conservatives howl like stuck pigs.
Please brush up on your facts.
Diogenes of Sinope on May 28, 2008 at 1:48 PM
The man’s name is Cold Cash Jefferson for a reason.
Iblis on May 28, 2008 at 2:36 PM
Meh. I still say Chicago overwhelms them on corruption, if only on a volume basis.
Jaibones on May 28, 2008 at 3:22 PM
Jaibones, I happily cede the “honor” to y’all. We’re still the murder capitol, after all. Shall we buy Jefferson a one-way ticket up to Chi-town?
Laura on May 28, 2008 at 3:47 PM