The Washingtonian’s View

Sometimes, Members of Congress really do have to pay the piper.

Some people thought nothing was ever going to come out of it; but it appears that the raid on his home actually has teeth.  Sen. Ted Stevens, 84, once had the distinction of being the longest-serving Republican senator and a major figure in Alaska politics since before statehood.  But now he gets to be known as something else.  Sen. Stevens was indicted Tuesday on seven felony counts of concealing more than a quarter of a million dollars in house renovations and gifts from a powerful oil contractor that lobbied him for government aid.

For months the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) have been looking into the premise that he lied on his annual Senate financial disclosure reports.  The time frame between 1999 and 2006, is where the bureau is most interested in looking into.

Sen. Stevens’ indictment damages Republican prospects in the November election.  Many political wonks months ago have predicted that it was going to be a bad cycle for Republicans, on both sides of the isle.  While Senate Republicians are trying to get themselves together,  Senate Democrats are looking to capture a filibuster-proof 60-vote majority.

The Department of Justice accuses Stevens of agreeing to receive expensive work on his home in the ski resort town of Girdwood, Alaska.  The work was through oil services contractor VECO Corp. and its executives. Some of the company’s employees helped do the work on the senator’s home.  This is odd because VECO normally builds oil processing equipment and pipelines.

Prosecuters says VECO Corp’s founder, Allen, and vice president, Rick Smith, have pleaded guilty to bribing state lawmakers to push legislation to help the company. This was the initial investigation into VECO spawned the Stevens probe.

Allen agreed to cooperate with the FBI as part of a plea deal for a lesser penalty. That cooperation included letting the FBI tape his phone calls with Stevens, though those calls do not appear as part of the indictment.

Prosecutors said that work included a new first floor, garage, wraparound deck, plumbing and electrical wiring. He also is accused of accepting from VECO a Viking gas grill, furniture and tools, and of failing to report swapping an old Ford for a new Land Rover to be driven by one of his children.

From May 1999 to August 2007, prosecutors said, the senator concealed “his continuing receipt of hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of things of value from a private corporation.”

In a press release the senator had this to say:

“I have proudly served this nation and Alaska for over 50 years. My public service began when I served in World War II. It saddens me to learn that these charges have been brought against me. I have never knowingly submitted a false disclosure form required by law as a U.S. senator.”

He further added that in line with Senate GOP rules he was temporarily giving up the ranking positions his seniority has given him. If the Republicans were to take over the Senate, the party’s most-senior senator would be in line to become president pro tempore, a mostly symbolic title but one that would make him third in line for the presidency after the vice president and speaker of the House.

The Justice Department and FBI expect Stevens to turn himself in. The case was assigned to U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan, who was appointed to the bench by President Clinton, a Democrat.

The charges paint a negative image of of the most powerful and savvy of the Republican in the Senate. Sen. Stevens has had no real opposition in the past six re-elections. Each time he has managed to soundly defeat Republicans in the primaries and Democrats in the state-wide races.  This year the mayor Anchorage, Mark Begich, will give Stevens the toughest race of his career.

“It’s a sad day for him, us, but you know I believe in the American system of justice,” said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, “and he’s presumed innocent.”

Even White House press secretary Dana Perino said, “The president has been working with Senator Stevens for many years, and he appreciates his strong leadership on key issues. This is a legal matter that the Department of Justice is handling, and so we will not comment further on it.”

Prosecutors said Stevens “took multiple steps to continue” receiving things from VECO and its founder, Bill Allen. The indictment says Allen and other VECO employees were soliciting Stevens for “multiple official actions … knowing that Stevens could and did use his official position and his office on behalf of VECO during that same time period.”

VECO’s requests included funding and other aid for the company’s projects and partnerships in Pakistan and Russia. It also included federal grants from several agencies, as well as help in building a national gas pipeline in Alaska’s North Slope Region, according to the indictment filed in Washington.

Stevens has maintained he didn’t do anything for VECO that he didn’t do for any other constituent or pro-Alaska interest. The indictment stops short of charging Stevens with bribery or other traditional corruption crimes.

The Justice Department has closely followed that money, looking for where it intersects with the senator’s son, Ben, who also is under investigation concerning financial ties to a company that stood to make millions off a piece of federal legislation his father wrote.

Tuesday’s indictment comes a year after another Republican senator, Larry Craig of Idaho, pleaded guilty to charges arising out of a Minneapolis airport men’s room sex sting.

This investigation has upended Alaska politics and given the GOP a black-eye.

Stevens’ legal woes is fueling the campaign fires as both Democratic and Republican challengers who are trying to capitalize.  All challenegers are set to use the well-timed ammunition to shot out campaign ads.  Sen. Stevens is running for re-election; along with his congressional colleague, GOP Rep. Don Young.

Stevens is the first sitting U.S. senator to face federal indictment since 1993. That was the year that Republican Sen. David Durenberger of Minnesota was charged with conspiring to file fraudulent claims for Senate reimbursement of $3,825 in lodging expenses. He eventually pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges and was sentenced to one year of probation and a $1,000 fine.

In attempting to get a response from Sen Stevens, he had this to say:  “I am innocent of these charges and intend to prove that.”