Former U.S. Congressman William J. Jefferson, 62, of New Orleans, La., was sentenced today to 13 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for using his office to corruptly solicit bribes. Jefferson was also ordered to forfeit more than $470,000.
"The court’s sentence today reaffirms the principle that all people – no matter what their title or position – are equal before the law," said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman. "In a stunning betrayal of the public’s trust, former Congressman Jefferson repeatedly used his public office for private gain. The lengthy prison sentence imposed on Mr. Jefferson today is a stark reminder to all public officials that the consequences of accepting bribes can and will be severe."
"This sentence should be a clear signal that our society will not tolerate bribery; it’s not just another cost of doing business in government," said Neil H. MacBride, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. "Mr. Jefferson’s repeated attempts to sell his office caused significant damage to the public’s trust in our elected leaders. This sentence will begin to repair that damage and to restore that trust."
On Aug. 5, 2009, Jefferson was convicted by a federal jury in Alexandria, Va., of 11 charged counts, including conspiracy to commit bribery, honest services wire fraud and to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), as well as substantive convictions of bribery, honest services by wire fraud and a violation of the Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organization Act. Jefferson was acquitted on three counts of honest services wire fraud, an obstruction of justice charge and of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
According to evidence at trial, from August 2000 to August 2005, Jefferson used his position as an elected member of the U.S. House of Representatives to corruptly seek, solicit and direct that things of value be paid to himself and his family members in exchange for his performance of official acts to advance the interests of people and businesses who offered him the bribes. The things of value, according to evidence at trial, included hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of bribes in the form of payments from monthly fees or retainers, consulting fees, percentage shares of revenues and profits, flat fees for items sold and stock ownership in the companies seeking his official assistance.
Evidence at trial showed that Jefferson performed a wide range of official acts in return for things of value, including leading official business delegations to Africa, corresponding with U.S. and foreign government officials, and utilizing congressional staff members to promote businesses and businesspersons. The business ventures that Jefferson sought to promote included telecommunications deals in Nigeria, Ghana and elsewhere; oil concessions in Equatorial Guinea; satellite transmission contracts in Botswana, Equatorial Guinea and the Republic of Congo; and development of different plants and facilities in Nigeria.
Others involved in this scheme included Vernon L. Jackson, a Louisville, Ky., businessman, and Brett M. Pfeffer, a former congressional staff member for Jefferson. Both men pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit bribery and the payment of bribes to a public official and were sentenced to 87 months and 96 months in prison, respectively.

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Baby daddy confessing - finally!

National Enquirer, 2008

Raleigh North Carolina Television station WRAL is reporting that former Senator John Edwards is set to admit that he is the father of his former mistress's 18-month old baby girl.
Edwards, a two-time Democratic presidential candidate, confessed last August to having an affair with Rielle Hunter, who served as a videographer on Edwards' 2008 campaign. He has denied fathering her daughter, saying his relationship with Hunter ended before the child was conceived.

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Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Color Daily Politics

Sarah Palin, the 2008 Republican nominee for vice president, says she will not run for re-election and will step down later this month as governor of the state of Alaska.Palin's announcement has fueled speculation about her political future.Governor Palin says she will resign on July 26, and that she will try to "affect positive change" from outside government. "I have never believed that I nor anyone else needs a title to do this, to make a difference, to help people. So I choose for my state, and for my family, more freedom to progress, all the way around. So that Alaska may progress, I will not seek re-election as governor," she said.

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U.S. District Court Judge James Zagel  has scheduled a start date of June 3, 2010, for former Gov. Rod Blagojevich's federal corruption trial.

Mr. Blagojevich was absent from the courtroom when Judge Zagel set the date.
The trial's start date was scheduled at prosecutors' request. Judge Zagel had previously established a window that ran from April 1 to July 1, 2010 for the start of the trial.

Color Daily Extra

"He puts out this image as a good Christian male and model citizen, saying that he is a very God-fearing man, and he does something like this."

Republicans are reeling in the wake of another sex scandal, this one involving South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford. He had been discussed as a possible presidential contender in 2012, but his admission of an extramarital affair with a woman in Argentina has put his political future in doubt and is the latest blow for a party trying to find its political footing after last year's election losses. Politics can seem like a spectator sport at times, and this week South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford was the featured attraction.After days of speculation about his whereabouts, Sanford returned from a secret trip to Argentina and held a tearful news conference in which he admitted having an extramarital affair. "And as a consequence I hurt her, I hurt you all, I hurt my wife, I hurt my boys," Sanford said.Sanford previously served as a congressman from South Carolina and was twice elected governor as a conservative Republican.

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 Leakers in New York’s publishing community say former John Edwards’s aide Andrew Young has been shopping a “tell all” book proposal. The proposal is alleged to have tales of a steamy sex tape starring Edwards and his mistress, Rielle Hunter. Young also apparently admits that he is not the father of Hunter’s infant daughter. No surprise here – Young allegedly claims Edwards is the father.


A real bombshell is that Hunter and Edwards allegedly discussed musical selections for their wedding in the event Elizabeth Edwards passed away.