On Tuesday, I wrote about the fact that the House Intelligence Committee is Essentially "Dysfunctional". I described how disgraced former congressman Randall "Duke" Cunningham – before being charged, tried and found guilty of bribery-related offenses – intimidated, coerced, and generally used his congressional seniority to keep fellow committee members silent about his cozy and corrupt relationship with military contractors. Cunningham pleaded guilty to conspiracy and tax evasion, and was later sentenced to eight years and four months in prison for accepting more than $2.4 Million in bribes. It so happens that he’s now changed his tune in recent FBI interviews, and has actually turned into quite the songster.
During two days of interviews conducted back in February of this year at the federal prison near Tucson, Arizona, Cunningham described to agents a level of corruption on his part much more extensive than previously known. In divulging the new information, the former California congressman has dealt a potentially devastating blow to the defense waged by lawyers for one of the defense contractors alleged to have bribed him.
According to an 11-page FBI summary obtained by Copley News Service (subscription only), Mr. Cunningham was quite the initiator of his illegal dealings, demanding money, accepting envelopes with cash, and displaying an insatiable appetite for even more money, more cars, fine food and drink, and many more expensive goods. His esurient greed was only hampered by the time he was allowed to indulge in it.
So it's no surprise then that Cunningham’s latest lyrical compositions are very bad news for Brent Wilkes, president of Poway, California-based ADCS Inc. The stage is essentially set for what is expected to be a dramatic courtroom showdown between the former North County legislator and his longtime financial benefactor. Mr. Wilkes faces some 30 counts in two separate indictments, including charges that he gave Cunningham $600,000 in gifts and cash in exchange for Cunningham’s aid in obtaining more than $80 million in defense contracts. Federal prosecutors have not said whether they will bring Cunningham back to San Diego to testify in Wilkes’ two trials, on the docket for this coming fall.
Through the use of legislative "earmarks", (provisions lawmakers slip anonymously into spending bills without debate or disclosure) the former congressman promoted defense contracts for favored district companies like ADCS Inc. Wilkes asserts that in one case, a $100,000 payment to Cunningham was not a bribe but rather was to purchase the former congressman’s river yacht, named "The Kelly C."
"Cunningham said that there was never a sale," said the FBI report. "Cunningham stated that he and Wilkes created the cover story of a boat sale to explain, if anyone ever found out and asked, his receipt of $100,000 from Wilkes." Cunningham told investigators that Wilkes fully understood that there would be "no actual change in ownership" of the yacht. The two men agreed to divide the $100,000 into two checks because both "felt that the smaller checks might be less noticeable."
The documents show that Cunningham had first asked Wilkes for $550,000.
"Wilkes said no to the $550,000 but then countered with an offer of $100,000 if Cunningham would ensure that the support and earmarks would continue to happen. Cunningham promised Wilkes that he would 'fight like hell' for Wilkes/ADCS."
The FBI report made the point that Cunningham was clear about the quid pro quo:
"Cunningham stated that, by 2000, he had already been receiving numerous benefits from Wilkes that included such things as vacation trips, liquor, and cash/maintenance money . According to Cunningham, in return for these benefits, he had been helping Wilkes/ADCS in their efforts to secure government contracts."
His admissions are very much at odds with the image that Cunningham tried to create after his downfall. In a letter made public and in private statements to friends, he portrayed himself as someone unable to withstand the blandishments of corrupt contractors and someone who merely accepted "gifts" but never sold his office.
His admissions to the investigators – who were from the FBI, the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. attorneys' office and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service – also shed light on the actions of others implicated in the scandal. Conspirators include Mitchell Wade, president of MZM Inc. in Washington, who pleaded guilty in the case but has not yet been sentenced, and Thomas Kontogiannis, a New York developer accused of laundering the bribe money.
Kontogiannis pleaded guilty to providing $1.1 million in mortgages to Cunningham for a Rancho Santa Fe mansion, even though he knew the house was purchased with proceeds from illegal activity. The plea was made in February but was not made public until last month.
According to the FBI summary, Cunningham admits to being provided with prostitutes, misleading congressional ethics officials, making others buy gifts for his daughters, personally devising the schemes to launder his bribes, lying to his staff, and putting unrelenting pressure on government officials who thought the defense contracts he pushed with congressional earmarks were wasteful. Cunningham was well placed to steer military intelligence contracts to Wilkes and Wade because he was on the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
Cunningham also told investigators he demanded regular cash payments – he called them "maintenance money" – once even summoning one of his bribers to his office at the U.S. Capitol to give him $3,000 in cash.
In addition to the FBI summary of the prison interviews with Cunningham, Copley News Service also obtained a 75-page affidavit filed by the FBI in support of a search warrant in the case. It provides glimpses of what investigators found as they built their case against Cunningham and those the suspected of conspiring with him.
The FBI stated that:
• More than $1 million in bribes were laundered by being sent to Kontogiannis instead of going directly to Cunningham. Investigators identified at least 70 separate bank accounts maintained by Kontogiannis at only one bank.
• Despite all his many businesses, Kontogiannis has not filed a tax return since 2001.
• For the first time, investigators shed light on what Kontogiannis expected to get from Cunningham – help on a potential sale of fighter jets to his native Greece.
• The Rolls Royce that drew so much attention early in the investigation was not the only car that Cunningham made the contractors buy for him. In only two days in early 2002, the congressman bought a $43,000 Thunderbird and a $41,000 BMW from Bob Baker Ford in San Diego with $63,000 of his payment coming from bribes. That was three months before Wade gave him $10,000 toward the used Rolls Royce.
• In mid-2004 when Cunningham needed to make repairs to his boat, he called Wade and demanded $6,500 cash. Wade took the money out of his petty cash, stuffed the cash into a bulging envelope and rushed it over to a Cunningham fundraiser at a Washington restaurant, giving it to a Cunningham staffer.
In his prison interviews with investigators, as summarized by the FBI, the former congressman is reported to have:
• Insisted there were no prostitutes at Wilkes' Washington poker games, but said Wilkes hired prostitutes for him during a Hawaii vacation. Cunningham was miffed that Wilkes got the "younger and cuter" prostitute and said he was "somewhat embarrassed on this occasion because he had some difficulty in completing intercourse." On the next night, Cunningham again had a prostitute but said he "did not have sex" with her "because he felt guilty about his behavior."
• Said that among the many weapons Wade bought him was a Glock handgun, which he kept in a box on his boat – in apparently violation of D.C. laws.
• Said he tried to make peace between Wade and Wilkes when the two former friends fought over contracts.
• Openly "recalled exerting pressure on government officials" to reward his bribers.
• Said Wilkes told him he was "hiding money in a bank account in Panama" to pay him bribes.
• The FBI document also said Cunningham admitted to investigators he: Oversaw attempts to hide his bribe-taking in case he was ever caught.
• Made Wilkes buy Cunningham's daughter a computer when she went to college and then pay for its later repair.
• Made either Wilkes or Wade pay his way to the 2003 Super Bowl, Jimmy Buffet concerts in Chula Vista, and several Washington Wizards and Redskins games.
• Had to find ways to get around objections from Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., and Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-El Cajon, both of whom tried to block Cunningham's spending projects for Wade and Wilkes as wasteful and unneeded.
It’s become painfully clear that graft and corruption is endemic in our Congress - and after nearly 7 months of the 110th behind us - it’s still nearly impossible to determine whether both parties are involved. I’d like to think the Democrats are above such dubious behavior, but lately, Rep. Waxman’s stubborn refusal to hold a hearing on the Sibel Edmonds case, and Speaker Pelosi’s adamant statement that "... impeachment is off the table" have, in my mind, raised all sorts of red flags. And, unfortunately, that’s not all.
Although always lacking any substantive evidence, detractors of Rep. John Murtha (D-PA) have claimed for years that he’s corrupt. And, after the indictment of Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA), the refusal of the House Ethics Committee to get to the bottom of who knew what when in the congressional page scandal, and the recent refusal by House Intelligence Committee Chairman Silvestre Reyes to release even the unclassified version of the internal investigation conducted on the effects Cunningham’s crooked dealings has had on the committee... it makes me wonder.
(Sigh) I wish I had answers. Now, I doubt the Democrats could be guilty of more heinous crimes than the Republicans are, but I just hate the notion of settling for the lesser of two evils.
We have much work to do and it all starts with... impeachment.
Let’s get crackin’!
Peace