Former Congressman Gets Eight-Plus Years [Duke Cunningham]

One of 535 caught. Too bad.

This is a sad case, but he really deserved it.

I guess it's okay for defense contractors to OFFER bribes ... or, how does that work?

Then how come this one keeps on getting away with all sorts of stuff?

Why can't anyone catch this slippery snake?

Now if we can only get the Democrats who are crooks, but then I repeat myself.

But, tell me, did he have to return the money?

He also was ordered to pay $1.8 million in restitution for back taxes.

Light sentence. I expected the full ten years.

The longest term meted out to congressmen in the past four decades had been eight years, handed to former Rep. James Traficant, D-Ohio, in 2002 for taking payoffs, and to former Rep. Mario Biaggi, D-N.Y., in 1988 for extorting nearly $2 million from a defense contractor.

Defense contractor Mitchell Wade pleaded guilty last month to plying Cunningham with more than $1 million in gifts over four years.

http://www.ptreyeslight.com/stories/may08_03/miwoks.html< >Point Reyes Light - May 8, 2003< .......................... >Why Miwok can build casino<......................... By Ivan Gale<...................................... >Senator Barbara Boxer’s office this week told The Light how the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria became eligible to build a casino despite promising they would not do so if their tribal status was restored.< >On April 23, only four months after getting their tribal status back (supposedly to make them eligible for federal healthcare, education, and housing programs), the Miwok and Pomo Indians of the rancheria revealed they had struck a deal with a Las Vegas gambling enterprise to operate a casino on 1,679 acres at Lakeville Road and Highway 37 in Sonoma County.< ................................... >When Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey four years ago introduced legislation to restore the Miwoks’ tribal status, her bill explicitly prohibited its operating casinos. That was fine said tribal chairman Greg Sarris, who at the time assured Congress and the public the Miwok weren’t interested in getting into the gambling business.<.................. >When the Woolsey legislation stalled in Congress, it was reintroduced by Senator Barbara Boxer, this time without the gambling prohibition. Why did the senator leave the prohibition out of her bill?<......................... >"The Bureau of Indian Affairs and the chairman of the [Senate] Indian Affairs Committee would not move if it had a provision [prohibiting casino operations," said Boxer spokesman David Sandretti. "They looked at it from a sovereignty issue. If congress either proscribed or demanded certain things, it compromised the sovereignty of a tribe."<............................................. >In addition, Sandretti said, both the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Indian Affairs Committee notified Senator Boxer that prohibiting the tribe from operating a casino, which other tribes are doing, would be unconstitutional. Senator Boxer introduced legislation restoring tribal status to the Miwoks after similar legislation from Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey stalled.<................ >Even so, Boxer was assured by Sarris the Miwok would not seek to develop any casinos if their tribal status was restored, and Boxer publicly said she took the tribal chairman at his word.<................................ >Boxer’s legislation was signed into law by President Clinton in December 2000, but it wasn’t until December 2002 that the tribal status was officially reinstated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. <........................ >Sandretti said Boxer is "disappointed" the Miwok are not sticking to their assurances but added that the senator has no plans to fight the Miwoks’ plan.<................ Inverness resident Suzanne Rocca, who is partly of Miwok descent, on Wednesday said she has no problems with the tribe’s getting into gambling. "I’m all for it," Rocca said. "It should put a lot of people to work, Miwok and otherwise."<......................................... >However, she noted, her family members are not considered official members of the tribe.>........................................................................................................... >http://www.ptreyeslight.com/stories/may22_03/casino.html< ........................................................ >Point Reyes Light - May 22, 2003< ........................... >Supes to fight Miwok's casino<........................... >By Andrew Pridgen<.................................>Upset that the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria want to build a casino in Sonoma County or even Marin County, the County of Marin is hurriedly seeking state and local legislation to limit Indian tribes’ abilities to build casinos wherever they please.<............................. >Congress restored the tribal status of Marin and Sonoma Coast Miwok earlier this year after Rancheria chairman Greg Sarris vowed that the tribe would not get into the gambling business. All the Miwok wanted, he said, were the health, housing, and education benefits that other recognized tribes receive.<...................... >However, within four months after tribal status was restored, Sarris announced the tribe had been working with Las Vegas-based Station Casinos Inc. to erect a huge casino on 1,679 acres at Lakeville Road and Highway 37. Sonoma County supervisors immediately went on record against the proposal but promised to make a "good-faith effort" to help the Miwok find a suitable casino site in Marin or Sonoma county. Sarris did not rule out Marin County as a casino site if plans to build in southern Sonoma County fall through.<......................>Alarmed that the Miwoks’ casino might end up here, Marin Supervisor Steve Kinsey will hold an emergency meeting this week with the county’s lobbyist in Sacramento, Cathy Christian, and with US Senator Dianne Feinstein to introduce state and federal legislation to put restrictions on where Indian casinos can be built.< >Kinsey sympathetic but...<................................... >Kinsey "is very sympathetic to the historical persecution they have faced though he’s not interested in supporting a casino in Marin County or Sonoma County," his aide Liza Crosse told The Light Wednesday.<....................... >Along with Kinsey, Marin Supervisor Cynthia Murray of Novato this week expressed strong opposition to the casino. With Station Casinos Inc. bankrolling the casino (in exchange for 25 percent of its take), Sarris said it could be built anywhere from Sausalito to Santa Rosa. With one of the largest amounts of open space in the tribe’s traditional territory being in West Marin, Kinsey wants to draft legislation that "would be important to Marin residents should there be any talk of building a casino here," Crosse said.< ............................. >New legislation would also unite counties like Sonoma and Marin in a fight against this state’s loose tribal-gambling privileges, Supervisor Murray said Tuesday. Environmental damage<............................... >"The consequences of the state and federal government denying local governments’ land use authority causes great fiscal, social, and environmental damage that are funded on the backs of taxpayers," Murray added.< >However, whether state or federal law could be passed before ground is broken on the Graton Rancheria casino is uncertain.<............................................ >"Maybe it would be too late," Crosse admitted. "That’s just something we’ll have to wait and see. The sooner [Kinsey] acts, the sooner we find out more. And the sooner different counties and the state start working together, the better."<....................................... >Sonoma County supervisors on Tuesday announced they and several other California counties will also lobby Gov. Gray Davis to force gaming tribes to adhere to state environmental standards, local health and safety issues, as well as local authorities.<......................... >A pro-gambling governor<................................ >Whether such lobbying can succeed is unknown. As governor, Davis has presided over the largest expansion of gambling in US history, legalizing slot machines, casino-style card games, on-line betting, and high-stakes card rooms. Such card rooms are the biggest revenue producers for tribes but in other states have attracted criminal activity.<............................................ >Indian gambling interests in California have contributed $2 million to Davis’ political campaigning and spread another $121 million among other legislators.< > In addition, the Graton Rancheria casino has hired attorney Doug Boxer, son of Sen. Barbara Boxer, lobbyist Darius Anderson, and former Clinton spokesman Chris Lehane as advocates.<...................................... >Both Boxer and Anderson own part of Kenwood Investments, the company that will help broker the land sale in Sonoma to the tribe.<....................................... >Meanwhile, grassroots opposition met Tuesday night at the Novato City Council chambers. More than 60 residents, including members of the ad hoc group No Las Vegas in Northbay, spoke against building a casino in Sonoma or Marin.<............................................ Point Reyes Light Cover | News | Coastal Traveler

I hate corruption whether it comes with a D or an R after it's name. This is only the tip of the iceberg. There are dirty pols on both sides still firmly entrenched.

TERM LIMITS

The only way to make it too expensive to bribe an ever changing set of Congress Critters

Make it LESS ATTRACTIVE to be a Congress Critter, ELIMINATE lifetime pensions.

Serving in Congress should NOT be a lifetime career...
Nor, should it become a "family enterprise".....

If Congress Critters REALLY want to "give back to society" -- then they should give back their constantly increasing salary, pensions and benefits, that are FAR BEYOND what the average taxpayer can achieve for themselves..

In most cases, we're paying for Thoroughbreds and getting feral Mongrels.

Semper Fi

Now if they'd ever nail hillary! for that 100g she took in the commodities trading scam.

Can anyone tell me if he's a R or D?

This is so well hidden by the MSM that I'll bet he's a Semorat.

I agree. I think Medved is dead wrong on this issue. He'd like to see the 2-term limit for the Pres lifted. I'd say there would be no better way to reduce our government to look like India's...pure graft and corruption and separated forever from the people.

8 years?

That's all?

R

Without term limits, Bill Clinton would have been reelected in 2000.