Blue State Graft Watch: Securities Firm Run by Former New Jersey Governor and Obama Bundler John Corzine to be Probed by FBI

The MF Global Securities firm run by former New Jersey Governor and Goldman Sachs [NYSE: GS] chairman John Corzine will be investigated by the FBI to determine if the firms actions violated criminal laws after filing for bankruptcy protection on Monday. MF's bankruptcy was reportedly the 8th largest filing in US History.

After taking over MF Global last year, Corzine led MF Global to make more trades for the company's own profits, a practice known as proprietary trading. Proprietary trading helped turn Goldman into a trading powerhouse in recent years.

Under Corzine's leadership, MF Global bet $6.3 billion on debt issued by Italy, Spain and other European nations with troubled economies. Those bonds have lost value in recent weeks as fears have intensified that some European countries might default.

Regulators said in September that MF Global was overvaluing some of its European debt investments. It required the company to raise more cash, according to court papers filed on Monday.

Corzine reportedly continued to use clients money as losses from the European sovereign debt MF invested in increased.

Reports had also been circulating as recently as a few months ago that Corzine was a possible replacement for current US Treasury secretary Tim Geithner should President Obama win a second term. In fact, these rumors led to an oddly specific stipulation in a $325 million bond offering from MF.

MF creditors were so concerned that Corzine might quit to take a White House post that they demanded an “Obama clause” be inserted in a $325 million bond offering -- in which MF would shell out an extra 1 percent in interest if Corzine left for a government post by 2013.

Oddly, the regulator in charge of investigating the wreckage of Corzine's securities firm worked at Goldman Sachs with Corzine and donated $10,000 the the Democrat party of New Jersey when Corzine was running for governor in 2005.

In 2009, Corzine lost re-election to Republican challenger and former US Attorney Chris Christie despite a number of high profile campaign appearances with President Obama stumping on behalf of the incumbent.

More recently, however, Corzine has gone on to become one of the top bundlers for Obama's 2012 campaign, raising at least $500,000 by many estimates.

A recent list of top “bundlers” or elite fundraisers released by Obama’s campaign listed Corzine in the highest category -- reporting that he had raised more than $500,000 for the campaign. A substantial chunk of those funds were collected at a $35,800 per ticket fundraiser that Corzine hosted at his wife’s spacious Fifth Avenue apartment last April -- an event that was touted at the time as part of a concerted effort by the president’s campaign team to reach out to well-heeled Wall Street donors who had been alienated by some of his policies and previous public comments.

In the meantime, an estimated $700 million in funds from MF Securities remains unaccounted for.

The Obama Administration had promised to return monetary donations from Corzine [although they didn't clarify if it was Corzine's $5000 maximum individual contribution or the contributions in excess of $500,000 that Corzine helped bundle from other wealthy donors- NANESB!] earlier this week.

I find it quite telling that the whole #Occupy Wall Street movement claimed they had taken to the streets to protest nationwide about the greed and excess on Wall Street embodied by Corzine's actions at MF Securities, but have remained remarkably silent about Corzine and the primary benefactor of his largess, President Obama.

Blue State Graft Watch: Maryland State Senator Won't Testify in His Own Defense in Corruption Trial

A 4-term Democrat state senator representing Prince George's county does not plan on testifying on his own behalf as his Federal corruption trial is coming to an end, according to his lawyers.

Attorneys for Currie had held out the possibility that he might testify, but it is rare for defendants in criminal cases to take the stand, and Currie and his defense team indicated that he will not.

The announcement in U.S. District Court in Baltimore by defense attorney Joseph L. Evans came during a full day of testimony in the trial, now in its fifth week. The 74-year-old senator is accused of taking bribes in exchange for a series of government favors for Shoppers Food Warehouse.

Currie has also been charged with making false statements to the FBI during an interview at the time of the early-morning raid of his home.

Instead, the defense has made the claim that Currie's memory and mental capacity has been diminished by injections of a drug called Lupron stemming from his 2008 treatment for prostate cancer.

In May 2008, the FBI searched his District Heights, MD home and seized documents pertaining to his consultation work with Shoppers Food Warehouse. Currie was indicted by a federal grand jury in September 2010.

A federal grand jury has indicted Maryland State Senator Ulysses S. Currie, age 73, of Forestville, Maryland; and Shoppers Food Warehouse Corp. (SFW) executives—former president William J. White, age 67, of Annapolis, Maryland and Jupiter, Florida; and former vice president for real estate development R. Kevin Small, age 55, of Lewisburg, Pennsylvania—in connection with a scheme from 2002 to 2008 in which the supermarket chain allegedly paid Senator Currrie in exchange for using his official position and influence in matters benefitting White, Small, and the supermarket chain. In addition, a separate criminal information was filed against Shoppers Food Warehouse Corp., which has agreed to enter into a deferred prosecution agreement.

The 18-count indictment alleges that soon after Ulysses Currie became chair of the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee in 2002, he asked to be placed on the payroll of Shoppers Food Warehouse Corporation and agreed to use his government office and authority to pursue specific state action to benefit his private employer. Chairman Currie allegedly signed contracts reflecting the cover story that he would provide services unrelated to his government office; failed to file legally required conflict-of-interest statements with the Maryland General Assembly’s Joint Committee on Legislative Ethics; and lied under oath on public financial disclosure forms filed with the Maryland State Ethics Commission for five consecutive years, in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008. Meanwhile, Chairman Currie caused to be introduced and voted on legislation to benefit the corporation and sought benefits on its behalf from state officials. The indictment alleges that Chairman Currie prepared a list of 12 specific projects in which he used his Senate office and influence to benefit the supermarket chain, and offered to bring “many more” government benefits in the future. Chairman Currie allegedly wrote that he was “in a unique position to assist” the supermarket chain “in expanding its mission and increasing its bottom line.”

The indictment alleges that Currie received payments of $3,000 per month beginning in February 2003, raised to $3,416.67 in July 2004, to $3,800 in June 2007, and ultimately to $7,600 per month in December 2007. In order to conceal his arrangement with White, Small and the corporation, the indictment charges that Chairman Currie did not disclose any income from the corporation on five separate annual ethics disclosures, from 2004 through 2008.

In a separate deferred prosecution agreement, Shoppers Food Warehouse was assessed $12.5 million in fines.

Campaign Treasurer's Arrest Leaves California Democrats Scrambling

California Democrat officeholders and party officials have been left frantic and scrambling since the arrest of prominent Democrat campaign financier Kinde Durkee last month. [BREAKING: I can't seem to find my world's tiniest violin; I think it's in the shop for its 20,000 sad sad song tune-up- NANESB!]

Durkee was arrested at her Burbank, CA offices on September 3rd by the FBI on charges of mail fraud. Durkee allegedly used funds raised from Democrat party donors to pay her own mortgage, travel expenses and American Express credit card bill.

Since the arrest, donors and candidates are trying to assess the full extent of the losses while attempting to raise money to replenish funds misappropriated by Kinder or frozen by the state's Fair Political Practices Commission. Complicating matters is that Durkee co-mingled money from the nearly 400 different accounts she controlled at First California Bank, making it difficult to determine exactly how much funding each campaign had available.

In late September, multimillionaire Senator Dianne Feinstein filed suit against both Durkee and First California Bank, alleging fraud and estimating her campaign's losses to be in the neighborhood of $5 million (much of that self-funded). In the meantime, much to the chagrin of statewide Democrat Party officials, First California has reportedly turned over the accounts under Durkee's control to a California court to determine who exactly has claim to what.

The bank angered clients when it handed over control of the 398 bank accounts associated with Durkee to a California state court on September 23, recusing itself from sorting out how much of the recovered money should be doled out to whom.

"In yet another attempt to escape liability for the fiasco that they helped create, First California Bank has turned most of the accounts that Durkee controlled over to the courts," the Los Angeles County Democratic Party said.

Hmm....Perhaps we touched on another reason why Congressman Dennis Cardoza (D- CA18) announced that he had decided not to run for another term this week.

Let me be honest- I can't say that this story makes me sad, because it doesn't. Not in the least. I grew up in a very blue state controlled by Democrats and aside from a stint in the US Army, I've spent the majority of my adult life in another dark blue state largely controlled by Democrats. The way the democrats have engaged in class warfare and the politics of envy and avarice while simultaneously representing the wealthiest ZIP codes in the United States would be laughable at face value if they didn't keep getting elected by the same cadre of vapid, wealthy elitists who whine endlessly that wealthy people like Rupert Murdoch or the Koch Brothers are bad for America.

All of a sudden, this Durkee decides to help herself to their millions and out come the lawyers and sob stories when in reality, Durkee pretty much personified the end result of what passes for economic policy from the Democrat party these days- find an entity with lots and money and help yourself to it while convincing them you're doing them some sort of service.

California Democrat: I'm Not Going to Bother Running For Re-Election With That Friggin' Obama Albatross Hanging Around My Neck

OK, Congressman Dennis Cardoza (D- CA18) didn't come right out and say that when he announced that he wasn't going to run for another term, but it was implied in his parting shots toward the Obama Administration.

In a statement explaining his decision, Cardoza, a leader of the centrist Blue Dog Coalition, said he was “dismayed” by the administration’s “failure to understand and effectively address the current housing foreclosure crisis.”

“Home foreclosures are destroying communities and crushing our economy, and the Administration’s inaction is infuriating,” Cardoza said.

A former chairman of the moderate Blue Dog Caucus, Cardoza also bemoaned the increasing partisanship in Washington, and blamed the media for fueling the ideological divide in the country, not giving enough attention to moderates.”

Cardoza's district includes the cities of Stockton, Modesto and Merced, which are currently among the top 10 cities with the highest foreclosure rates in the United States [not to mention the district's brush with infamy 10 years ago thanks to former Congressman Gary Condit- NANESB!].

Also, keep in mind that a number of Democrats leading up to the 2010 mid-terms portrayed themselves as 'moderate' or 'fiscally conservative', despite having voted in favor of two of the most sweeping big government proposals (Cap & Trade and Obamacare) in generations- Cardoza voted in favor of both. This caucus of supposedly moderate Democrats (known as the Blue Dogs) was been led by Cardoza at one time.

Cardoza is one of three Democrat Congressmen from the Blue Dog caucus to announce in the last 4 months that they wouldn't run for re-election. In early June, Representative Dan Boren, who represented Oklahoma's 2nd congressional district (Basically Tulsa and the eastern ⅓ of the Sooner State) announced that he wouldn't run for another term.

A month later and on the other side of the Ozarks, 6-term Blue Dog Mike Ross (D-AR4) announced that he wouldn't seek a 7th term, leading to speculation that in some corners that Ross was preparing for a 2014 bid for the Governor of Arkansas.

US Air Force General Claims He Was Pressured to Alter Testimony About White House Backed Sattelite Communications Network

The Commander of the United States Air Force Space Command told House members that he was pressured to change prepared testimony before Congress to benefit a communications company that had a major Democrat donor as one of its main investors.

Republicans have raised questions about whether the project pursued by the company, LightSquared, is being unduly expedited by the Obama administration, which has pushed for national wireless network upgrades.

The Virginia-based satellite and broadband communications company has plans to build a nationwide, next-generation, 4G phone network that many, including Shelton, think would seriously hinder the effectiveness of high-precision GPS receiver systems, a product used most commonly by the United States military.

General William Shelton testified before Congress last week that interference with the military's GPS satellite system due to activity from LightSquared's proposed satelite-based 4G and wireless communications network could not be mitigated.

He did testify that testing done by various agencies responsible for military GPS positioning "demonstrated empirically that the LightSquared signals interfere with all of the types of receivers in the test."

He added that mitigation would not be possible because redesigning the equipment to filter out interference from LightSquared "would involve substantial financial cost and likely degrade the accuracy of high performance receivers, which is critical to many key GPS users."

Military training that relies on precision GPS, such as dropping ordnance, potentially could cease to exist in the United States. Many farmers who also rely on the systems would also be affected. It's estimated this system is used by as many as 1 million people.

The Federal Aviation Administration has also expressed worry about the LightSquared project. The FAA is in the process of moving from a radar based positioning system to a required GPS system for all aircraft, and it has “serious concerns” about how LightSquared may interfere with that, according to FAA spokesman Laura Brown.

Since the General's testemony, another witness has come forward to claim that he was pressured to modify his testimony to rflect more favorable on LightSquared.

General Shelton's allegations come less than a month after heavily subsidised solar panel manufacturer Solyndra shut down, leaving taxpayers on the hook for $500 million in loan guarantees.

The Obama Administration reportedly pressured regulators from the Department of Energy to expedite loans to Solyndra, sat in on company meetings and touted the solar company's activities as an indication that the 2009 Stimulus was working as intended, with President Obama visiting the company's Fremont, CA facilities in May 2010.

Congressman Wu Announces Resignation After Admitting to Sexual Encounter W/ Donor's Teenage Daughter

Congressman David Wu (D- OR 1) announced on Tuesday his resignation pending a resolution of the current debt crisis after the teenage daughter of one of his donors accused him of an unwanted sexual encounter.

A distraught young woman called U.S. Rep. David Wu's Portland office this spring, accusing him of an unwanted sexual encounter, according to multiple sources.

When confronted, the Oregon Democrat acknowledged a sexual encounter to his senior aides but insisted it was consensual, the sources said.

The woman is the daughter of a longtime friend and campaign donor. She apparently did not contact police at the time.

One person who heard the voice mail described the woman as upset, breathing heavily and "distraught."

In the voice mail, the young woman accused Wu of aggressive and unwanted sexual behavior, according to sources with direct knowledge of the message and its contents.

Reporters could not verify the young woman's age. Notes on Facebook over the past 18 months indicate she graduated from high school in 2010. California records show she registered to vote in August.

Wu, like Anthony Weiner last month, was facing increasingly tough re-election prospects and diminishing support from his own party, leading to Tuesday's announcement.

The sexual misconduct allegations come a few months after campaign and Congressional staffers resigned from Wu's office after the Portland congressman displayed increasingly erratic behavior.

Blue State Graft Watch Update- State of Michigan Grants Kwame Kilpatrick Parole

The jailed former mayor of Detroit is likely to start his 24-month parole starting next month, a Michigan parole board ruled last week.

After another month behind bars, Kwame Kilpatrick is likely off to Texas to start his 24-month parole.

The ex-mayor of Detroit, who kept his nose and record clean while in state custody after violating probation, was approved for parole Friday with release set for sometime after July 24. A move to Texas to reunite with his wife and three sons was part of the plan submitted at his parole hearing, said his lawyer, James Thomas.

Officials added two special requirements to his parole: that he pay his outstanding restitution to the City of Detroit and that he establish and maintain a payment schedule with his parole officer.

Kilpatrick resigned as mayor in September 2008 after pleading guilty to two felony counts of perjury and obstruction of justice. Last year, the Democrat former mayor was sentenced to 5 years prison for violating the terms of his probation that was part of his 2008 plea arrangement.

The two term mayor is also facing federal charges of tax evasion, wire fraud, extortion and obstruction of justice- some of the charges carry a prison term of up to 20 years each.

Blue State Graft Watch: Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich Guilty on 17 of 20 Corruption Charges in Second Trial

Former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich was found guilty on 17 of 20 counts of corruption at the Federal Courthouse in Chicago Monday afternoon.

This was the former governor's second trial. In 2010, Blagojevich was found not guilty on 23 of 24 charges faced, with the jury finding that the former Land of Lincoln governor guilty of lying to the FBI.

CHICAGO—A federal jury on Monday found former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich guilty of 17 counts of corruption, including trying to sell the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama.

The jury found Mr. Blagojevich not guilty on one of 20 corruption counts in his second trial and deadlocked on two other counts. The verdicts came more than two years after Mr. Blagojevich, 54 years old, was arrested by federal agents.

The verdict was a victory for U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, who initiated "Operation Board Games" just a few months after Mr. Blagojevich took office. In the hours after the then-governor's arrest, Mr. Fitzgerald said he had "interrupted a political corruption crime spree" and that Mr. Blagojevich had "put a for-sale sign on the naming of a United States Senator."

Mr. Blagojevich is the second consecutive Illinois governor to be convicted of corruption. Gov. George Ryan is currently serving a 6½-year sentence.

Unlike his first trial, in which the former Chicago congressman escaped conviction on 20 of 21 counts, Mr. Blagojevich testified for seven days at his second trial. He said his intent was to use the seat as leverage to pass legislation that would have benefited the residents of Illinois.

Blagojevich appointed Roland Burris to fill President Obama's then vacant senate seat in late 2008- an appointment that came after federal investigators recorded a call between the two where Burris was offering to raise funds for the governor in exchange for the Senate seat.

Blue State Graft Watch: Former Massachusetts House Speaker Sal DiMasi Convicted of Extortion, Fraud

A federal jury last week convicted former Massachusetts Speaker of the House Sal DiMasi of seven of nine charges against him in a scheme to steer lucrative state contracts to a software firm in exchange for payments to the state lawmaker and some of his colleagues.

Government prosecutors accused DiMasi and two associates of scheming to use his clout to steer two state contracts worth a combined $17.5 million to the software firm Cognos in exchange for payments, with DiMasi pocketing $65,000.

The defense argued the payments were legal referral fees.

Lobbyist Richard McDonough was also found guilty of six counts of fraud and conspiracy, but the jury cleared DiMasi’s other associate, accountant Richard Vitale, on all counts.

A fourth man, former software salesman Joseph Lally, pleaded guilty before the trial and testified against the others.

The complex case went to the jury late Monday after more than five weeks of testimony and a lengthy set of jury instructions from the judge.

DiMasi crony Richard McDonough also managed to land himself a no-show job on the public payroll while still working as a private lobbyist.

McDonough arranged for a client to give him a no-show, no-work job on a public payroll, allowing him to get medical benefits and a state pension he was not entitled to, said Inspector General Gregory W. Sullivan.

“It was literally a no-show job,’’ Sullivan wrote yesterday to the State Board of Retirement. “Mr. McDonough’s purported full-time employment at this public agency is a sham.’’ His pension defrauds the state retirement system, Sullivan said.

He asked the Retirement Board to review the $31,000-a-year lifetime pension, which McDonough started collecting in 2008 as the Globe was scrutinizing his involvement in a questionable effort to steer multimillion-dollar state contracts to a Burlington software firm in exchange for cash.

To qualify for the pension, McDonough had a lobbying client, the Merrimack Education Center of Chelmsford, put him on the payroll of a related organization, the Merrimack Education Collaborative, which provides education and treatment services for special-needs students from 10 school districts.

McDonough was described in internal records as the Education Collaborative’s director of public affairs and government relations from 2003 to 2008. But virtually no one knew McDonough was on the payroll, not the co-executive directors nor any of the employees. He had no desk, no phone, and no work product, according to Sullivan.

The job appears to be a paperwork maneuver that allowed McDonough to receive public benefits while remaining a private lobbyist. He collected the same lobbying fees as before, but the Education Collaborative classified the payments as an employee’s salary so that they counted toward increasing McDonough’s pension.

Commonwealth treasurer Steve Grossman is working to suspend DiMasi's $59,422 annual pension when the retirment board meets at the end of this month.

DiMasi becomes the third consecutive Massachusetts House speaker to resign while facing criminal charges. Thomas Finneran stepped down in 2004 before pleading guilty to obstruction of justice and Charles Flaherty, who resigned in 1996 before pleading guilty to felony tax evasion.

Weinerpalooza Update- Embattled Congressman Steps Down: Whiny Progressives, Late Night Talk Show Joke Writers Hardest Hit

In what could only be described as the most bizarre press conference since the June 7th presser, New York Democrat congressman Anthony Wiener announced his resignation amid jeers and taunts of "Goodbye, Pervert!".

The announcement comes after mounting pressure from Democrats over the weekend and more embarrassing pictures of the Congressman surfaced.

Exotic Dancer, Porn Star Ginger Lee and Congressional Facebook Friend Ginger Lee

Heading into the weekend, Congressman Weiner's office said that the representative would 'seek treatment' while taking a leave of absence [didn't know that being an insufferable douchebag was a treatable condition- NANESB!] but hinted that he was going to stay and fight to keep his job- even if he wound up stripped of his committee assignments by other Congressional Dems.

It was also revealed that one of Rep. Wiener's Facebook Friends- porn starlet Ginger Lee- that the Congressman asked her to lie and attempted to coach her on questions she'd likely face from the media.

Honestly, I'm not sure how I should feel about this. I think alot of people (myself included) knew Congressman Weiner was a vindictive, loathsome, petty, loudmouth little douchewaffle who was not above using his office to go after those he didn't like long before pictures of him feeling himself up in the Congressional gym or in drag began circulating online. While I am glad to see him go, I feel that it's never too late for those in the MSM (who coddled and encouraged Weiner in his most petulant moments) to rehabilitate his image or give him the opportunity to land on his feet like Elliot Spitzer.

And whether he stayed or went, the sad fact is that the media and Democrats are able to successfully deflect attention from other, far more serious issues before them with the Weiner sideshow- issues that clearly show a failure of leadership on a number of levels. You don't think the Justice Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms knowingly allowing weapons to fall into the hands of Mexican cartels is a bigger story than a New York Congresscritter sticking his iPhone down his trousers and hitting 'SEND'?

But the reactions of his supporters (who at first insisted the charges against the Congressman were fabricated) has been something to behold.

Plus there is also tremendous benefit in having him around as the face of the Democrats heading into the 2012 elections. Think about it- you wouldn't want this guy anywhere near your 17 year old daughter or niece, but somehow he can be trusted to vote on legislation that could very well affect many aspects of our day to day lives?

I would say 'Good Riddance, Weiner'. However, the progressives- particularly in the media- seem to have this ingrained tendency to reward such conduct. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if Weiner lands on his feet at some point in the not too distant future with his own show on MSNBC or Al Gore's Current network.

As the World Weiner Turns Roasts; A Weiner Bun in the Oven? Delaware Police Interview Underage Girl in Contact w/Congressman

Well, it's been quite the week for New York Congressman Anthony Weiner, the Democrat representing the 9th Congressional district that includes parts of Brooklyn and Queens.

After his bizarre press conference in which he was upstaged by conservative publisher Andrew Breitbart before confessing to sending sexually explicit texts and pictures to followers on social networking sites on Monday, it was learned that his wife of 10 months, Huma Abedin, is pregnant [she was also noticeably absent from the press conference as well- NANESB!].

There have been bipartisan calls for the disgraced Queens congressman to step down, and news of Huma's pregnancy would give the shrill congressman the opportunity to resign and honestly (for a change) cite family concerns, but Weiner had indicated he intends to ride this scandal out.

Also during Monday's press conference was a reporter asking whether or not Weiner was in communication with any underage girls. Instead of a categorical denial, Weiner curiously gave an answer along the lines of 'Not to the best of my knowledge'. Among the known recipients of Weiner's 'sexts' [including some reportedly unsolicited images] include porn starlet Ginger Lee, a 26 year old single mother in Texas, 21- year old Seattle college student Genette Nicole Cordova and 40 year old Las Vegas blackjack dealer Lisa Weiss.

Now, a review of some of Weiner's communications that were made public (along with some of his followers) seems to indicate that he was in contact with underage girls via social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter and possible talking dirty to them as well.

At first glance, this has all the makings of some ribald and salacious tabloid gossip, but it's apparently being taken seriously by police in New Castle, DE where two officers from the New Castle County police department appeared at the home of a 17 year old High School Junior to interview her regarding direct online communications she had with Rep. Weiner.

Sources close the student said the girl followed Weiner on Twitter after seeing him speak during a school trip to Washington on April 1. Weiner, after signing on to follow the girl's Twitter feed, direct-messaged the girl on April 13, the sources said, though it is not clear what other communication the two may have had between or after those dates.

A Fox News reporter was at the girl's home when police arrived. The girls name hasn't been released yet due to her being a minor.

[Hat tip- Ace of Spades; Patterico's Pontifications]

Weinerpalooza- Summer Kicks off With Epic Weiner Roast

Glenn Foden/Townhall.com

Wow- so much schadenfreude in this one, I'm not sure where to start.

Apparently at some point over the Memorial Day weekend, an alert Twitter user had discovered that Congressman Anthony Weiner (D- NY9) sent a message from his official account that contained a blurry snapshot of what appeared to a closeup of somebody in their underwear with an erection. The image was apparently intended for a Seattle-area coed identified as Genette Nicole Cordova who followed Weiner's twitter account [on top of everything else, the image was apparently sent to Cordova unsolicited- NANESB!].

I'll spare NANESB readers the widely circulated image of Weiner's namesake and instead post an image of the attractive college student Wiener had sent the picture to via Twitter.


The strident and bombastic liberal Congressman representing parts of Queens and Brooklyn immediately denied any wrongdoing and followed up his claims of innocence with what would have to be categorized as the world's most perplexing series of damage-control interviews with a normally adoring and compliant media.

Even by the most objective standards, Weiner's behavior was bizarre, vague, combative and evasive when faced with simple and direct questions as to whether or not it was his crotch in the picture or whether or not his account was hacked (which would require the involvement of the FBI if that were the case) as he had earlier claimed. Liberal bloggers and groups such as the Daily Kos, Media Matters and Little Green Footballs unquestioningly and reflexively swallowed Weiner's version of events, with the latter fabricating some bizzaro-world CSI-style forensic proof that Weiner's Twitter account had definitively been hacked, implying that certain conservative bloggers and pundits had arranged exactly such a scenario.

Things took an even more bizarre turn on Monday when Congressman Weiner announced a press conference for 4PM ET in New York. However, while the assembled media was waiting for the Congressman to appear, conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart took to the podium to announce that more women who had been 'sexted' by Congressman Weiner had come forward with even racier pictures. During a 10 minute back and forth with reporters, Breitbart demanded an apology from the Congressman and the various media outlets and bloggers who had claimed Breitbart himself was behind the hacking.

Weiner's appearance at his own press conference was basically an afterthought, but he tearfully confessed to sending sexually explicit messages and photos to various women both before and after his marriage to Huma Abedin in addition to lying about his account being hacked before apologizing to his wife, Breitbart and his constituents [altho' it seemed more like he was sorry he got caught more than anything else- NANESB!].

However, he also said at the press conference that he didn't intend to resign even though House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Damascus) formally requested an ethics probe of Weiner's conduct [which means we'll likely be seing more of the words 'Weiner' and 'probe' together in the same sentence in the foreseeable future- NANESB!].

While Weiner's Congressional seat may be relatively safe for the near-term, the scandal has all but assured that Weiner's mayoral ambitions will remain unfulfilled. But that's only as long as there's a seat for him to hold on to- the State of New York is set to lose three congressional seats through redistricting before 2012. There's an outside chance that Wiener's district could be one of the ones that ceases to exist.

That said, there's a case to be made that both Democrats and Republicans might benefit from Weiner remaining in office. The Democrats might rally around him on general principle, or he could serve as a distraction for their abysmal handling of the deficit, jobs, entitlement reform, the budget and the economy. Heading into the 2012 election cycle, Republicans could benefit from the skeevy, loudmouth, obnoxious and duplicitous Congressman continuing to serve- protected thanks in large part to his party's elite- being held up as an example of the prototypical democrat.

To be honest, I thought the Congressman was a vile, contemptible human being long before it was known that he was texting images of his junk to girls 25 years his junior. Among the more recent examples was his pom-pom shaking for 0bamacare back in 2009 before requesting a waiver from the Department of Health & Human Services for all five boroughs of New York City earlier this year- a move that many saw as an indicator for his preparing to run for mayor of New York City.

Weiner is also infamous for racking up in excess of $2000 worth of parking tickets in Washington D.C.- a fine he only recently paid off when New York City media outlets caught wind of the story. With the scrutiny he's come under because of 'Weinergate', it also was learned that the Congressman apparently hasn't renewed his vehicle's registration since 2007.

Aside from the execrable Weiner, I must also confess that I'm enjoying seeing the Congressman's unthinking defenders in the progressive blogosphere fall flat on their face after a week of furious spinning, over the top conspiracy theories and baseless accusations. To quote Ace of Spades, its as though some of them have decided to 'double down on the stupid and wrong' if not try and change the topic altogether.

Stick around, though. This summer's just getting started and that's the best time of the year for a good old-fashioned Weiner roast.

[Hat tip- Ace of Spades, Big Government, Leg-gal In-sur-rec-tion, Lonely Conservative, Diary of Daedalus]

Blue State Graft Watch: Former IL Secretary of State Employee Sentenced in Cash-for-Liscenses Scheme

Despite an ealier 8 year federal probe into an Illinois cash-for-drivers-licenses scheme that resulted in the criminal convictions of former Gov. George Ryan and a number of senior Secretary of state employees, cases of bribery and corruption continued at some Illinois licensing facilities.

Federal prosecutors allege James Howell, of Chicago, started pocketing bribes while working at a licensing facility in Bridgeview in 2006.

On Wednesday, Howell was sentenced in federal court to two years in prison for accepting bribes of $100 at a time for fraudulently issuing licenses to mostly Chinese nationals.

Howell was so busy taking bribes that he didn't have time to administer road tests for the bribe-paying applicants, so he simply filled out their test scores for them to ensure they passed, according to his plea agreement.

Howell was one of two secretary of state employees snared in an investigation into a Chinatown phony-licensing ring that has led to 19 convictions so far.

During the scheme, Howell and co-defendant Timothy Johnson, a former secretary of state employee, pocketed up to $10,000 in bribes between them, prosecutors said.

While working at the licensing facility at 9901 S. King Drive on the South Side, Johnson also took cash bribes with three other employees, sharing in $40,000 in all, prosecutors said. He pleaded guilty but has not yet been sentenced. The others haven't been charged.

After the bribery schemes came to light, the secretary of state's office ended up canceling the licenses of nearly 3,000 drivers, spokesman David Druker said Wednesday.

From the 1990s to 2002, the Illinois Secretary of State's office- which includes the DMV- was alleged to have sold phony licenses and vehicle registrations to unqualified drivers under Republican then-governor George Ryan. The ongoing scheme was busted up in a federal probe called Operation Safe Roads after the Feds approached two whistleblowers in the Illinois Secretary of State's office.

US Supreme Court Orders California to Release up to 38,0000 Convicts From State Prisons

The United States Supreme Court ordered that the state of California must release anywhere from 38,000 to 46,000 inmates in a 5-4 decision on Monday.

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court ordered California on Monday to release tens of thousands of its prisoners to relieve overcrowding, saying that "needless suffering and death" had resulted from putting too many inmates into facilities that cannot hold them in decent conditions.

It is one of the largest prison release orders in the nation's history, and it sharply split the high court.

Justices upheld an order from a three-judge panel in California that called for releasing 38,000 to 46,000 prisoners. Since then, the state has transferred about 9,000 state inmates to county jails. As a result, the total prison population is now about 32,000 more than the capacity limit set by the panel.

Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, speaking for the majority, said California's prisons had "fallen short of minimum constitutional requirements" because of overcrowding. As many as 200 prisoners may live in gymnasium, he said, and as many as 54 prisoners share a single toilet.

Kennedy insisted that the state had no choice but to release more prisoners. The justices, however, agreed that California officials should be given more time to make the needed reductions.

In dissent, Justice Antonin Scalia called the ruling "staggering" and "absurd."

He said the high court had repeatedly overruled the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals for ordering the release of individual prisoners. Now, he said, the majority were ordering the release of "46,000 happy-go-lucky felons." He added that "terrible things are sure to happen as a consequence of this outrageous order." Justice Clarence Thomas agreed with him.

In a separate dissent, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. said the ruling conflicted with a federal law intended to limit the power of federal judges to order a release of prisoners.

I'm sorry- I was just thinking that if some of these convicts that the court is so willing to spring should have to bunk at Justice Sotomayor or Kagan's place, then some of the Supremes probably wouldn't be as eager to let them walk.

Even if I was to assume that all 38,000+ inmates wanted to go on the striaght and narrow, there's still the fact that they're being released into a state with 12% unemployment and an already scarce job market, which would mean that it would only be a matter of time before the newly-released cons would turn back to whatever criminal enterprise landed them in the clink to begin with. Couple that with budget and personnel cuts in police departments throughout California and you are almost begging for something bad to happen.....often.

As far back as 2009, Michigan's then-Gov Granholm had proposed in a letter to California's then-Gov. Schwarzenegger that California inmates could be housed in two Michigan prisons that were slated for closure that year. Although the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania would take Granholm up on a similar offer, the deal with California ultimately fell through.

In advance of the Supreme Court Ruling, Gov. Brown had proposed transferring some 40,000 'low level' offenders to local or county jails as part an effort to meet an estimated $9.6 budget shortfall. [I can almost garuntee that most state and local politicians will stand firm on refusing to allow law-abiding Californians to obtain conceal-carry permits- NANESB!]

Exit question- what are the odds some Democrat-allied 'community organizers' are going to attempt to register as many of the newly released convicts to vote as possible?