3 Alaska Republican lawmakers accused of taking oil bribes

It doesn't matter anymore because it happened a long time ago, mm. And this Craig guy resigns for tapping his foot in a restroom, but Barney can have a male prostitution operation going out of his residence and that doesn't matter either, probably too long ago.

He resigned for pleading guilty in court to lewd behavior. Let's not try and put lipstick on the pig here, Okie.

Once again, I ask you: other then the Scumbag Jefferson, do you have anything less then a decade old to complain about?

Cycloptichorn

Lets not forget Jeff Gannon. He may not have been in the administration, but he was IN the administration if ya now what I mean. :wink:

Craig cooked his own goose in my opinion, but I don't care if it was yesterday or ten years ago. Don't you think a prostitution operation out of your residence is just as serious?

I don't sit around constantly googling Democrat criminals, but if you want another example, what about Representative Filner and his assault in the airport? Don't you think that is over the top? If he were a Republican, he would probably be gone by now. If I get time, I could dig up alot more I'm sure, but the point is that for the ones that are obvious, nothing ever happens to them. The news gets old, they never admit anything, and the party welcomes them back with open arms, and I heard in the case of Gerry Studds, they gave him a standing O.

Testimony: Sen. Stevens' Son Took Bribes
Testimony: Sen. Stevens' Son Took Bribes
DAN JOLING
September 13, 2007
ANCHORAGE, Alaska

The former head of an oil field service company admitted Thursday in court that he bribed three Alaska legislators, including the son of a U.S. senator who is the target of a federal investigation.

Former VECO Corp. CEO Bill Allen, 70, testified Thursday in the federal corruption trial of former state House Speaker Pete Kott. Allen and a former company vice president, Rick Smith, have pleaded guilty to bribing lawmakers, and await sentencing.

Allen said he bribed Kott, former state Senate President Ben Stevens and former Rep. Vic Kohring. He also testified that he recruited Stevens in 1995 for work on behalf of VECO, well before Stevens was appointed to the state Senate in 2002, and that Stevens maintained a consulting contract with the company through 2006.

Stevens, the son of U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, is under federal investigation but has not been charged.

"Mr. Stevens has consistently said he's not engaged in any of the illegal activity that is alleged by Mr. Allen. He denies it," John Wolfe, Stevens' attorney, told The Associated Press.

The FBI also is investigating remodeling done to the elder Stevens' home in Girdwood. According to at least one contractor, invoices were first sent to VECO. Ted Stevens has said he paid all bills on the home that he received.

Kohring faces trial next month. Allen did not mention another lawmaker facing bribery charges, Bruce Weyhrauch.

Allen also testified he agreed to cooperate in the corruption investigation of Alaska lawmakers after the FBI promised that his three adult children would not be indicted.

Kott, whose trial began Monday, is charged with doing the bidding of VECO in exchange for money and the promise of a job.

He is accused of turning in a $7,993 invoice, purportedly for flooring work done on Allen's home, when in fact the money was used to hire his son as his re-election campaign manager.

The former speaker is accused of taking a check for $1,000 as reimbursement for a campaign donation in the same amount to former Gov. Frank Murkowski. Kott also is accused of accepting a political poll in his re-election bid paid for by VECO.

Kott is charged with conspiracy to solicit financial benefits for his service as a legislator, extortion "under color of official right," bribery and wire fraud, which involved improperly discussing legislative business by phone.

Defense attorney James Wendt says that Kott was not aware of the poll and that the flooring check was an advance payment for work that would have been done in late 2006 if the federal investigation had not occurred.

Kott committed no crime by working with businessmen and lobbyists toward a goal shared by most Alaskans: passing legislation that would lead to construction of a natural gas pipeline, Wendt said.

Secret electronic recordings played in the trial's first three days show Kott working closely with Allen and Smith over a proposed change in Alaska's crude oil tax.

The tax proposal, which dominated the 2006 legislative session, was considered a gateway measure that had to be passed before the Legislature would consider measures leading to construction of a pipeline to tap the state's vast natural gas reserves.

That mega-project, on the scale of the 30-year-old trans-Alaska oil pipeline, would have presented VECO with the opportunity to bid on hundreds of millions of dollars worth on contracts.

Allen said in the secret recordings and in court that he considered the pipeline essential to the continued prosperity of not only his company but to Alaska as oil production filling the trans-Alaska pipeline continues to diminish.

Allen spent just minutes Thursday under direct examination by federal prosecutor James Goeke. Unlike his first day on the stand, prosecutors played no wiretapped phone conversations or images and conversations secretly recorded in a room rented by VECO in Juneau's Baranof Hotel.

Goeke asked Allen to recall how FBI agents approached him on Aug. 30, 2006, just before agents raided the legislative offices of a half-dozen Alaska legislators and VECO offices.

Allen was told that the investigation did not need him, but that if he cooperated, he would receive considerations, he testified.

"Your kids won't be indicted, and they would help VECO," said Allen, who added that he has cooperated with the investigation from that day on.

During cross examination, defense attorney Wendt tried to establish that Kott had never overtly asked Allen for a job. Allen said that he would not have hired Kott while he remained a legislator but that he understood that Kott wanted to be hired as a lobbyist by VECO after he retired.

Wendt questioned Allen about hiring other legislators, and Allen revealed that VECO _ reluctantly _ had two other lawmakers on the payroll: Ben Stevens and state former state Rep. Tom Anderson, an Anchorage Republican convicted in July of bribery and conspiracy in an unrelated case.

Another VECO official had hired Anderson for legal work, Allen said, and he found out after the fact. In retrospect, Allen said, he should have canceled Anderson's contract.

He held a higher opinion of Stevens. Allen said he was impressed with Stevens in 1995 when he was a married college student attending George Washington University while working two jobs to support his family.

After Stevens graduated, Allen recruited him to approach the World Bank for money VECO needed on a spill cleanup job in Russia, then kept him on contract until 2006, Allen testified. Stevens had the potential to be an excellent executive because of his attention to detail and hard work, he said.

He had no inkling Stevens would be appointed to the state Senate in 2002, Allen said, but he did not feel right cutting VECO's ties to him. By then, Allen said, Stevens had a fourth child.

"How am I supposed to say, 'Now that you're a senator, I can't give you any more money,'" Allen said.

Stevens, 48, was among several lawmakers whose Anchorage legislative offices were searched by FBI agents a year ago. Federal prosecutors have made reference to a "State Senator B" who took $243,250 in bogus "consulting" fees from VECO.

In a court filing last month, U.S. District Court Judge John Sedwick linked the two, saying the identification of Stevens had "already been reported in the press," based on comparing the money paid by Allen and Stevens' financial disclosure reports.

Allen says Veco staff worked on Ted Stevens home remodel
Allen says Veco staff worked on Ted Stevens home remodel
By DAN JOLING
The Associated Press
Published: September 14, 2007

Ex-Veco Corp. CEO Bill Allen admitted in court Friday that he had company employees work several months on a remodeling project at the Girdwood home of U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens.

The former head of the oil field services company made the admission Friday while testifying in the federal corruption trial of a former state lawmaker.

Allen and former Veco vice president Rick Smith in May pleaded guilty to extortion, conspiracy and bribery of legislators.

Under cross-examination by defense attorney James Wendt, representing former state Rep. Pete Kott, Allen acknowledged that the more than $400,000 he admitted spending in the bribery charge was for other legislators - and for work done at the Girdwood home of Stevens, the longest-serving Republican in the U.S. Senate.

"I don't think there was a lot of materials," Allen said. "There was some labor."

The workers were Veco employees, probably one to four at a time, Allen said. He said the work on the home lasted for "probably a couple of months." Later, he said it might have been as much as six months.

The remodeling work in summer and fall 2000 more than doubled the size of the house, a four-bedroom structure that is Stevens' official residence in Alaska.

Stevens has said while the contracting bills were first sent to Veco for accuracy checks, he paid all bills on the home that he received.

Stevens' spokesman, Aaron Saunders, had no comment on Allen's testimony. He referred to an earlier statement, which said Stevens was not commenting because Stevens does not want to appear to be trying to influence the case.

Allen said he also gave Stevens some old, used furniture.

He would visit the remodeling every month or two, he said.

"Most of the time I was gone with Veco business," Allen said.

Prosecutors asked Allen whether he was aware that other contractors, non-Veco employees, worked on Stevens' house and were being paid by Veco.

Allen said he knew of at least two, a plumber and a carpenter.

The remodeling job at Stevens' home was fraught with problems at the start. He estimated it would cost about $85,000 and told city building officials he would be his own contractor.

The plan was to raise Stevens' single-level home and, beneath it, construct a new first floor with two bedrooms, a game room and sauna. Complete with a wraparound porch, the project would be twice the size of the original, modest house.

Building records don't indicate how things went wrong, but somehow the framing was botched and help was called in to fix it.

Allen also said the plea agreement he signed admitted payments to Stevens' son Ben, whom Allen had hired as a consultant after Ben Stevens left college in 1995. The consulting work continued after Ben Stevens was appointed to the Alaska state Senate in 2002.

"It was $4,000 per month," Allen said.

Wendt closely questioned Allen whether the amount to the younger Stevens exceeded $200,000. Allen said the amount he paid Stevens before he was a state senator should not be counted.

"I don't think you can count that," he said.

Allen stepped down from his job as Veco chairman after his plea agreement. The sale of the company to CH2M Hill was completed last week.

Veco was one of the state's largest oil field services companies, with more than 4,000 employees. The company operated around the world but more than half its work was in Alaska, supporting the oil industry with service and maintenance contracts, according to Allen.

Allen for more than two decades was a behind-the-scenes political force, supplying campaign money to lawmakers sympathetic to the petroleum industry.

Over the past six years, Veco executives and the company itself contributed more than $119,000 to Ted Stevens' political organizations, according to tracking by Political Money Line, an Internet database. Of that amount, Allen contributed $20,000. Stevens and Allen also are longtime friends and partners in a race horse investment.

Stevens served in the Army Air Corps in World War II in China from 1943 to 1946, according to his official congressional biography.

He graduated from Harvard Law School in 1950 and, as a young attorney later that decade, forged important political ties working on Alaska statehood. Stevens was elected to the Alaska House of Representatives and on Dec. 24, 1968, was appointed o the U.S. Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of E.L. "Bob" Bartlett.

He was elected to the Senate in a special election on Nov. 3, 1970, to complete the unexpired term ending Jan. 3, 1973. He has not faced significant election opposition since.

Over the years, Stevens has held powerful positions on the Appropriations Committee. Stevens is revered in Alaska for the number of public works projects he has secured for the state. Anchorage's international airport is named for him.

Pete Kott, whose trial began Monday, is charged with doing the bidding of Veco in exchange for money, nearly $9,000, a political poll for his re-election bid and the promise of a job with Veco. Kott was a seven-term state representative from Eagle River. He is a former state House speaker.

FBI Tapes Stevens Calls As Part of Sting
FBI Tapes Stevens Calls As Part of Sting
MATT APUZZO
September 20, 2007

The FBI, working with an Alaska oil contractor, secretly taped telephone calls with Sen. Ted Stevens as part of a public corruption sting, according to people close to the investigation.

The secret recordings suggest the Justice Department was eyeing Stevens long before June, when the Republican senator first publicly acknowledged he was under scrutiny. At that time, it appeared Stevens was a new focus in a case that had already ensnared several state lawmakers.

The recorded calls between Stevens and businessman Bill Allen were confirmed by two people close to the case who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is still under way. They declined to say how many calls were recorded or what was said.

Allen, a wealthy businessman and Stevens' political patron, agreed to the taping last year after authorities confronted him with evidence he had bribed Alaska lawmakers. He pleaded guilty to bribery and is a key witness against Alaska legislators. He also has told prosecutors he paid his employees to renovate the senator's house.

In July, FBI agents raided that house in the Anchorage suburb of Girdwood. Stevens has denied any wrongdoing and said he paid every bill he received for the project. Spokesman Aaron Saunders declined to comment Thursday. Stevens has said he won't discuss the investigation for fear it will look like he's trying to influence it.

FBI spokesman Richard Kolko said the agency would not discuss any aspect of the ongoing investigation.

Allen testified in federal court last week that he called several people at the FBI's behest.

"It's been a lot of work," Allen said of his efforts for the FBI.

A judge had previously ruled that Allen could not discuss politicians currently under investigation.

Allen is the founder of VECO Corp., an oil services firm that made nearly $1 billion in annual revenue. The company was a powerful lobbying force and its employees donated heavily to federal and state campaigns.

One example of Allen's calls surfaced last week in the trial of former Alaska House Speaker Peter Kott. While working with the FBI, Allen called Kott and asked how Kott's son resolved his financial problems. Kott replied: "It was your check."

Kott, like Stevens, is Allen's longtime friend. Kott's corruption trial is under way in Anchorage.

Beyond the calls Allen made while cooperating, prosecutors also have thousands of conversations the FBI recorded while secretly wiretapping phones belonging to Allen and fellow VECO executive Rick Smith. Agents also secretly videotaped meetings between contractors and state politicians at a hotel suite in Juneau, Alaska's capital.

In addition to work on Stevens' house, a former employee also said VECO workers also helped run the senator's fundraisers while on company time, a practice that appears to violate campaign finance laws.

Alaska Verdict Has Wider Implications
Alaska Verdict Has Wider Implications
The Associated Press
Wednesday 26 September 2007

Anchorage - A former state legislator's conviction for taking bribes from an oil services firm has wider implications: the FBI is investigating whether Ted Stevens, the U.S. Senate's longest-serving Republican, also received illegal gifts from the same company.

Former Rep. Pete Kott, a Republican who was House speaker for part of his 14-year tenure, was convicted Tuesday of conspiracy to solicit financial benefits, extortion and bribery, but was acquitted of wire fraud. He did not comment as he left the federal courthouse.

The two-week trial included testimony by VECO Corp. chief Bill Allen that he doled out more than $400,000 in bribes to various officials and had company workers remodel the Stevens' home.

Stevens has not been charged and has said he paid all the bills he received for the remodeling project. Stevens' office had no comment Tuesday on the Kott verdict.

Allen and a company vice president, Rick Smith, have pleaded guilty to bribing Kott and other lawmakers. VECO stood to make millions in contracts if the state Legislature approved a revised crude oil tax that encouraged investment. The Legislature passed the tax.

Gov. Sarah Palin, a Republican who has urged Stevens to better explain his connections to Allen, issued a news release commending the jurors for their "careful consideration" of the evidence.

"I was shocked by some of the revelations that came out in the trial, and I can understand why many Alaskans feel betrayed," she said.

Palin called again for another look at the revised crude oil tax approved by the legislature when Kott and other lawmakers were being investigated.

"I am more committed than ever to seeking a fair, untainted solution to our petroleum tax system," she said, again calling for another look at the revised crude oil tax.

Advocates of the tax said it was needed to make major petroleum companies commit to helping build a pipeline. It was to tap Alaska's vast natural gas reserves on the North Slope and ship them to the Midwest.

The project, which state officials still support, would cost an estimated $20 billion to $30 billion.

The government's case against Kott was based on wiretaps of three phones belonging to Allen and Smith, plus video recordings the FBI secretly obtained from a hotel room in Juneau rented by VECO during the 2006 legislative session.

The recordings show Kott, Allen and Smith discussing legislative strategy, often in sessions fueled by alcohol and laden with profanity.

Kott's attorney, Jim Wendt, contended that claims Kott made of his influence on behalf of VECO were merely drunken boasts and that his voting record contradicted claims that he had sold out constituents in favor of VECO.

Federal prosecutors say the seven-term former lawmaker from Eagle River, north of Anchorage, accepted nearly $9,000, including a $7,993 check that he used to pay his son to work as his campaign manager. The company also paid for a poll at a cost of a $2,750, prosecutors said.

Also, prosecutors said, VECO promised Kott a job after he left office in exchange for his support of their political agenda.

Kott faces up to 20 years in prison on the extortion charge, up to 10 years on the bribery charge and up to five years on the conspiracy charge, said Department of Justice spokesman Bryan Sierra. Sentencing was set for Dec. 7 by U.S. District Judge John Sedwick, who allowed Kott to remain free until then.

"This verdict is an important victory for the people of Alaska, who deserve to expect honest, ethical representation from their elected officials," Assistant Attorney General Alice S. Fisher said.

Stevens has served since 1968 and is Alaska's most powerful elected official, responsible for bringing home billions in federal dollars in a state short on infrastructure, from roads to basic sewer and water systems in remote villages. Anchorage's international airport is named for Stevens, and he has faced only token opposition in recent elections.

Last year, FBI raids on the offices of several Alaska lawmakers included Stevens and his son, former Alaska Senate President Ben Stevens. The younger Stevens also has not been charged.
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Associated Press writer Matt Apuzzo in Washington, DC contributed to this report.