Newly released documents reveal depth of Alaska Congressman Don Young's corruption.

Courtesy of the Huffington Post:

 -- Documents released by the FBI show that a source told investigators that an Alaska congressman and his late wife spent campaign money on hunting trips and flights and wrote checks to themselves over years of allegedly profligate spending on his contributors' dime. 

The allegations were not enough to convince the FBI that they could convict Rep. Don Young and the matter was dropped in 2010. 

The documents were released Friday, more than three months after a federal judge rejected the Justice Department's refusal to turn over records of its criminal investigation. 

The source, whose identify was redacted in the documents, appeared to have intimate knowledge of Young's D.C. office and was familiar with Young and his wife's conduct during fundraising trips. 

Congress asked the Justice Department in 2008 to investigate Young's role in securing a $10 million earmark to widen a Florida highway. 

The project would have benefited a developer who helped raise money for Young. The congressman was re-elected to a 20th term in 2010. 

Young's press secretary, Luke Miller, said Saturday that the matter should be considered closed. 

"First and foremost, Congressman Young is not under investigation and any assertion that he is, is utterly false," Miller said. "The reckless accusations made yesterday are part of a larger effort to smear the Congressman. 

"Congressman Young has cooperated with the investigative process every step of the way and nothing was found. Simply put – it's time to move on."

The idea that "Congressman Young has cooperated with the investigative process every step of the way" is laugh out loud funny, but the sad fact is that, due to Don Young's seemingly invulnerability to criminal prosecution, many Alaska political activists HAVE moved on.

You would be hard pressed to find ANYBODY in Alaska who would not admit that they think Don Young is corrupt. And that goes for supporters as well.

However you would also be hard pressed to find anybody who thinks Don Young will either be defeated in an election or convicted for his numerous crimes. Ain't gonna happen.

In 2008 I was actually among those who firmly believed that we were at the cusp of an incredible overhaul of Alaska's corrupt election system, and that, with all of the energy and participation inspired by BOTH Barack Obama and Sarah Palin, Alaskans were finally ready to "throw the bums out."

I watched the election returns that night at election headquarters downtown and was beyond excited to see Young trailing Ethan Berkowitz by a substantial margin early on. Suddenly right before our eyes the newer numbers started coming in from polling places that rely heavily on the Diebold electronic voting machines and by a large margin they started to favor Young. By the end of the night Young was ahead of Ethan by only a few percentage points. However later there suddenly appeared this huge unexpected number of absentee ballots, and by the end Young retained his seat.

It was the clearest case of voter fraud that I had ever witnessed. However when push came to shove, Ethan Berkowitz conceded, and today Don Young remains our "Congressman for life."

It was a very hard lesson to learn, in that it makes NO difference who the voters want, because until the GOP (And their oil company masters) release their death grip on Alaska politics the people's choice will never attain office in this state. Literally the ONLY reason that Mark Begich was able to defeat Ted Stevens is because he had become an embarrassment to the powers that be in Alaska and they allowed him to be removed.

And as for the FBI?  Well my sources tell me that have NO plans to go after Don Young, pretty much ever. ESPECIALLY after the debacle of the Ted Stevens corruption trial.

When members of the Alaska Republicans referred to themselves as "The Corrupt Bastards Club," it was not some tongue in cheek reference to how their political enemies viewed them. It was an arrogant display of how positive they were that they were too powerful and well connected to ever be punished for their crimes.

And in the end, at least in the case of Congressman Don Young and Ted's son Ben Stevens, that arrogance proved to be well deserved.

Travesty of justice.

Courtesy of ADN:

Ben Stevens has been told he's off the hook in the rapidly fading Alaska political corruption investigation, according to people with knowledge of the case. 

Family friends of Stevens, the former Alaska Senate president and son of the late U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, say he's recently received a letter from federal prosecutors that he won't face charges. A government source who spoke only on background confirmed that the letter was sent and that the long-running investigation has concluded without an indictment. 

At the door of their family home in South Anchorage on Wednesday, Stevens' wife, Elizabeth, reviewed a draft of this story and said Stevens would have no comment. 

Stevens, 52, was one of six state legislators whose offices were raided by the FBI on Aug. 31, 2006. Four were eventually charged and convicted. 

In 2007, Stevens was identified as the recipient of bribes in the charges to which two officials of Veco Corp., Bill Allen and Rick Smith, pleaded guilty. 

While Stevens served in the Legislature, he disclosed that Veco, an oil field services company long active in Alaska politics, paid him $243,250 between 2002 and 2006 for "consulting." But he never would say what work he did for the money, even after a citizen complained to the Alaska Public Offices Commission that the fees were thinly disguised bribes. 

On the witness stand in the 2007 trial of former House Speaker Pete Kott, Smith, a Veco vice president, was asked which state senators he had bribed. 

"That would be Ben Stevens and John Cowdery," Smith testified. (Cowdery pleaded guilty to conspiracy in 2008.) 

Federal authorities also investigated Stevens over the hundreds of thousands of dollars in consulting fees paid to him by fishing interests that benefited from legislation promoted by his father in Congress. 

This is devastating news for Alaskans, like myself, who have been working to see the corruption in this state cleaned up.

Ben Stevens was considered by most of us to be a slam dunk for the FBI. He had his fingers in everything, and was considered one of the most egregious of the "Corrupt Bastards Club."

With the dropping of Stevens investigation, and Pete Kott and Vic Kohring starting to wriggle out of the grasping fingers of justice, it appears that there will be NO real deterrent to prevent the Republican party from continuing in the future to take kickbacks from oil companies, ensure sweetheart deals for their donors, and keep right on screwing over the people of Alaska.

As some of you may remember the investigation against Rep. Don Young was dropped last year, but as surprising as that was, having Ben Stevens walk away from this whole thing smelling like a rose is almost unthinkable.

Of all of the corrupt bastards the FBI was after, Stevens seemed like the easiest case to make. Hell, essentially EVERYBODY had sold him out!

Personally I find this very unsettling.  And for those of you who were still holding out hope that the long rumored federal investigation against Sarah Palin might bubble to the surface in the near future, I would suggest that you not hold your breath on that one either.

This state is filled with awe inspiring beauty, but there is a great ugliness running through our politic system, and apparently for the time being it is here to stay.

Shannyn Moore shines a much needed spotlight on the corruption of Alaska's recent political past.

Look I know you are busy today. Since you are a visitor to this blog you probably have to sacrifice an animal on an altar, or dance naked in the moonlight, or perform some other pagan religious right to celebrate ALL Saints day.

But once you are finished I would like to suggest that you get yourself a cup of some steaming beverage, curl up in a cozy afghan, and spend a few minutes reading through the amazing opus that Shannyn produced on Friday.

If you are at all fascinated with Alaskan politics it is a MUST read. No, it does not have much to do with Sarah Palin. But it does contain quite a lot of amazing detail about the often overlooked yet still very pernicious potpourri of predatory political pricks that populate our state government. (Sorry the "P" button was stuck on my keyboard)

Just click the title and enter the world of oil soaked politicians that is the Alaska state government. But don't you fear! Shanyn is waiting there to hold your hand and guide you through to the end. I promise you will return safely.

Ex-VECO kingpin Bill Allen gets three years in prison and a $750,000 fine.

A district court judge sentenced the key witness in the federal government's wide-sweeping investigation of Alaska political corruption to three years in prison and a $750,000 fine on Wednesday.

Former VECO Corp. CEO Bill Allen, 72, pleaded guilty in 2007 to bribery, conspiracy and extortion. Allen and VECO Vice President Rick Smith bribed numerous state lawmakers, and then helped federal prosecutors with wire taps, video-taped conversations, and testimony to convict most of the legislators caught up in the scandal.

Later in the day Smith received a 21-month prison sentence and $10,000 fine."Democracy doesn't work if it's corrupt," Judge John Sedwick said before giving Allen his sentence. "We enjoy the benefits of a true democracy, and from time to time that democracy is threatened, as it was here."

If only the Alaska politicians had any idea just how damaging their relationship with Bill Allen would turn out to be, they would probably have run screaming in the other direction the minute they saw him approaching.

Associating with him sent Pete Kott, and Vic Kohring to prison, and got Senator Ted Stevens indicted.

In the not too distant future he will probably be instrumental in putting both Congressman Don Young and Teddy's little acorn, Ben Stevens, in jail as well.

Dennis Zaki filmed Allen and his family doing the "walk of shame" as they left the federal courthouse together. They were NOT in a good mood.

Ted Stevens "Get out of Jail Free" card may not extend to other Republican criminals in Alaska.

The Justice Department has apparently decided to not dismiss charges against convicted legislators Pete Kott and Vic Kohring as it did for U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens earlier this year, and may fight efforts by the men to get new trials.

Stevens was found guilty by a jury of failing to disclose tens of thousands of dollars of gifts from an oil-field contractor and others. But the Justice Department dismissed his charges in April when the trial judge in Washington, D.C., accused prosecutors of misconduct.

Such a ruling has not been made in the cases of Kott and Kohring, convicted in Anchorage in 2007 of taking bribes from the same oil-field contractor, former Veco chief executive Bill Allen, who by then was helping the FBI. In June, with their cases before the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the Justice Department asked Sedwick to release Kott and Kohring from prison pending a determination of whether the government's failure to fully disclose information about Allen and others had tainted the trials.

Just when Alaskans had finally become convinced that justice had come to the last frontier, Ted Stevens conviction was thrown out.

If Kott and Kohring follow suit, many of us are worried that corruption cases will not be pursued as vigorously as in the past. I mean how satisfying is it to build a case that gets a corrupt politician convicted only to see him walking down the street, a free man, only months later?

And personally that really irritates the snot out of me because one of the biggest crooks in Alaska remains free to this day.

Who am I speaking of? Well Ted's son, Ben Stevens of course. A man who VECO purchased for a measly $243,250. Of course he was paid a little more by Bering Sea Crab Effort Reduction Fund and Adak Fisheries. The only reason I can imagine that the prosecutors have not already had Ben arrested and started his corruption trial is that they fear his case will get thrown out just like his father's. After all they seized evidence against Ben three whole years ago.

So in the name of Alaska justice I certainly hope that both Kott and Kohring end up behind bars very soon so that the Feds be will fired up to go after the rest of the corrupt bastards in this state. And of course who better to start with than Little Lord Fauntleroy himself, Ben Stevens?

Money for nothing and your perks for free. Ted Stevens son, Ben Stevens, may be the final straw that sends his father to prison.

Veco Corp. executives questioned whether there would be liability for the company if the son of U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens continued to collect consulting fees without doing any work, according to court documents.

Former Veco President Pete Leathard, Chief Financial Officer Roger Chan and the company's attorney, Jack Miller, were worried about Ben Stevens' compensation, according to documents filed late Sunday in U.S. District Court in the government's corruption case against Ted Stevens.
"Pete Leathard and Roger Chan do not like Ben Stevens," the documents say. "There was concern in Veco that Ben Stevens was not doing any work and he was billing Veco monthly for work. Both Roger Chan and Jack Miller have stated the Veco is going to get in trouble if they do not have Ben Stevens doing something."
Stevens, a former Alaska Senate president, collected more than $300,000 during a seven-year period working for the now-defunct oil field services company, according to state disclosure forms.

Nobody likes Ben Stevens.

Even those who may support his father Ted Stevens, find the son to be a complete waste of oxygen. He is slimy, he is sneaky, and he is lazy.

The only reason that Ben Stevens is not sitting in Bean's Cafe waiting for his free meal is that he had the great fortune of springing from the loins of a man who is a state icon. Without that connection none of us would have ever heard the name "Ben Stevens" unless we were to notice it on the Anchorage police blotter printed in our local paper.

He worked as a commercial crab fisherman after his father bought him everything he needed to get started. By all accounts he was not very good.

Then he started a consulting business for which his father provided the clients. By all accounts he was not very good.

Then his father convinced then Governor Tony Knowles to appoint Ben to the State Senate. And once there his father used his influence again to get little Ben elected as the Majority leader, and then Senate President. By ALL accounts he was the WORST Senate President in Alaska history.

And now he may finally pay his father back for everything he has done for him by being such a greedy weasel that it will disgust the jury so much that they take it out on Senator Stevens. It simply must make Uncle Teddy beam with joy.

Yeah I know it may seem I am a little hard on creepy little Ben Stevens, but you have to understand that I have actually met this sleazeball. He used to come to my gym.

Even if I did not know who he was I would have immediately disliked him, he simply oozes creepiness, and he is one of those furtive little guys who seems to always expect somebody to knock him down and take his lunch money.

I remember having to use a piece of equipment next to him and being aware that he kept shooting sidelong glances at me, looking from the stack of weights I was lifting to my face, and back again. When I finally decided to meet his eyes to determine if he had a question or a problem, he quickly looked away, left the room, and I saw him dressed and going out of the door a few minutes later.

Apparently my mere presence made him uncomfortable. I simply cannot tell you how happy that makes me.

It is time to say goodbye to "Uncle Ted".

Known for delivering cash to Alaska, U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens is now raking it in.

"No other candidate for federal office in Alaska has ever raised the kind of money the senator has raised in the last six months," said Tim McKeever, treasurer for Stevens' re-election campaign.

But even as he rapidly stockpiles money for his re-election campaign, potential opponents are wondering: Is 2008 the year Uncle Ted is actually vulnerable?

Stevens is an Alaska icon and one-man state industry, bringing huge amounts of federal dollars here. Supporters say he's as vital and feisty as ever. But he is 83 years old and now in the Senate minority.

His son, former state Sen. Ben Stevens has been linked to -- although not indicted in -- a federal corruption investigation.

Alaskans are not naive and we all know that many of our politicians take liberties with their positions and take ethical shortcuts to get things done. We have accepted it because it was often to benefit Alaska, and therefore us. It is like living in a neighborhood that is run by the mob. You know they are crooks, but they keep the crime down, the schools renovated, and the garbage men working on time. So they hide a couple of bodies down by the river, is that so bad?

And Ted is the king of the backroom deal, the king of the "getting his while making sure we get ours" philosophy, the king of the Senate floor smack down for those who dare challenge him.

But I think that the king is dead, or at least terminally ill. And it is time for Alaska to start preparing for driving on roads that are not freshly paved, and treating the oil companies like business partners and not best friends, and even perhaps paying state taxes. Gasp!

The FBI has notified Senator Stevens to preserve his records and are clearly tightening the net to ensnare him just like it has ensnared his son, Ben Stevens.

It was a good run but it is time to embrace a more ethical, and crime free future. And that will not happen with Ted, and his son Ben, Stevens in office.

P.S. by the way if you want to see how Ted has used his influence to funnel money to his son then check here.

Republican corruption reaches Alaska. And to the surprise of no one it involves an oil company.

Bill Allen, a welder who took the Veco Corp. from a small Kenai oil-field company to a billion-dollar international contractor and a major political force, pleaded guilty Monday to bribing at least four Alaska legislators, including former Senate President Ben Stevens.

In a plea bargain with the U.S.Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section, Allen and Rick Smith, Veco’s vice president for community and government affairs, each pleaded guilty to three identical felony charges - bribery and two counts of conspiracy.

Both men accepted responsibility for making more than $400,000 in illegal payments and benefits to public officials or their families. More than half the money went to Stevens in the form of phony “consulting” fees, the government charged.

Stevens, son of U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, has not been charged. He was named in the plea documents as “State Senator B,” but his identity was unmistakable.

This has been brewing for awhile and I think many Alaskans expected it to involve Ben Stevens. He is an especially weaselly little shit who has used his father's influence to bully fellow state senators and get control of the reins of power and then, of course, abuse that power.

Those of us who have lived in Alaska for any length of time know full well that many Alaskan politicians play fast and lose with the rules, and sometimes even the laws.

We are not called "The Last Frontier" for nothing.