There are a lot of reasons Rep. Don Young (R-AK) has been on CREW's list of Most Corrupt members of Congress for the past three years: 

Rep. Young is currently under federal investigation for (1) his role in securing a $10 million earmark for a road in Florida; (2) assistance he offered to convicted VECO Corporation CEO Bill Allen; and (3) his ties to convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

Today, we learned that the FBI is investigating Young for bribery stemming from his relationship with Bill Allen (seen #2 above). McClatchy has the details:

An Alaska businessman admitted to giving gifts to Republican Rep. Don Young, the state's long-serving sole congressman, in a confession made public this week as part of an ongoing federal investigation into political corruption in the state.

The confession, signed in 2007 by Bill Allen, the former chief of Veco, an Alaska oil services company, was released as part of Allen's upcoming sentencing on charges that he bribed state lawmakers.

In the document, which outlines criminal activity Allen was involved in, the 72-year-old executive admits to 13 years of gift-giving to public officials. They include former Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens and Young, whom the document referred to as to "United States Representative A."

Until now, however, it wasn't clear whether the FBI was looking at Young as part of Allen's bribery scheme. Prosecutors wrote in a separate sentencing document filed Wednesday in Allen's case that the former Veco chief "curried favor with various state and federal legislators and awarded them with cash and other items of value so they would be favorably disposed toward voting for legislation that was of interest to Veco and the oil industry."

Alaska has always had a presence on CREW's list of most corrupt members of Congress. This year is no different. And, as the Anchorage Daily News notes, this is the third time that Rep. Don Young has been designated one of the most corrupt:

Republican Rep. Don Young has made his third annual appearance on the "Most Corrupt" list of the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. The group references an ongoing FBI investigation, saying that "ethics violations stem from the misuse of his position to benefit family and friends and to steer millions of dollars in earmarks to corporations in exchange for contributions to his campaign committee and political action committee."

In 2007, all three members of Congress from Alaska -- Senator Ted Stevens, Senator Lisa Murkowski and Rep. Don Young -- were included in CREW's report naming the most corrupt members of Congress.

The ramifications of the dismissal of the case against Senator Ted Stevens continue to reverberate.  Unfortunately, it extends beyond the Stevens case:

While the allegations of prosecutorial misconduct in the Stevens trial are limited to his case alone, the damage to the Department of Justice Public Integrity Section may make judges more willing to listen to defense attorneys who challenge evidence. Jurors may also be more willing to listen to claims of innocence by politicians under scrutiny, experts say.

Some Department of Justice watchers predict there will be staff changes in the leadership of the Public Integrity Section — moves that could slow down criminal investigations into other lawmakers.

Among the pending cases are charges against former Reps. William Jefferson (D-La.) and Rick Renzi (R-Ariz.), who have been indicted on a host of corruption charges, including bribery and fraud. Former Rep. John Doolittle (R-Calif.) has been implicated in the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal, and Reps. Don Young (R-Alaska), John P. Murtha (D-Pa.) and Peter Visclosky (D-Ind.) have found themselves drawn into other criminal probes by the Justice Department, although no charges have been filed in those cases.

Melanie Sloan, as usual, succinctly summed up the situation:

“This sordid mess reflects equally poorly on the Public Integrity Section and Sen. Stevens, but in the end it is the public that has lost the most: a corrupt politician has escaped punishment and future prosecutions of politicians have been jeopardized,” said Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. (emphasis added)

More action on the Abramoff front last this afternoon.  Word from the Anchorage Daily News is that a former employee of Rep. Don Young (R-AK) is the latest person from Capitol Hill to face charges:

A former congressional staffer for Don Young was indicted today on corruption charges for taking a free trip to the 2003 World Series.

In the latest case to arise out of the scandal surrounding ex-lobbyist Jack Abramoff, prosecutors charged Fraser Verrusio, 39, who worked under Young when he chaired the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Officials say Verrusio and another Capitol Hill staffer accepted an illegal gratuity when lobbyists gave them an all-expenses-paid trip to New York, including the World Series game and a visit to a strip club.

The lavish trip to the series game between the Florida Marlins and the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium has already helped prosecutors win corruption-related guilty pleas from three people: Trevor Blackann, a former aide to two Missouri Republicans; James Hirni, a former Abramoff lobbying associate; and Todd Boulanger, another former Abramoff deputy.

Boulanger and Hirni helped provide the World Series trip. Blackann and Verrusio were the recipients and were also treated to a chauffeured SUV and dinner at an expensive steakhouse, court papers say.

Earlier this week, CREW named Rep. Don Young (R-AK) as one of the 2008 Most Embarrassing Re-Elected Members of Congress.  We've also named Young to our list of the most corrupt members of Congress twice.

Today, Rep. Young lost his powerful leadership post on a key House committee.  Apparently, while Young appears undaunted by the scandals swirling around him, the embarrassment was shared by Young's GOP colleagues:

U.S. Rep. Don Young, who wielded considerable power on the House Committee on Natural Resources in the 1990s as chairman and in recent years as its senior Republican, today lost his top spot on the panel.

The move came from fellow Republicans, who are determining this week who will take leadership roles on committees when Congress begins its new term next year.

Young said he was "confident that the cloud that hangs over me will eventually clear as I know I have done nothing wrong."

"However, for the good of the Republican Party, the right thing for me to do is temporarily step down from my post as ranking member on the House Committee on Natural Resources while my name is cleared. At that time, I look forward to regaining my post."

Young has been Alaska's sole representative to the House of Representatives since 1973 and is its second-most senior Republican. He squeaked through in the primary election and then went on to a decisive Nov. 4 victory over a Democratic challenger -- despite persistent rumblings of an FBI investigation into fundraising and other potential wrongdoing. Since 2007, Young has spent over $1.1 million on legal fees connected to the federal probe.

We seem to spend a lot of time writing about Alaska on this blog.  The state's elected official provide plenty of fodder.  Again this year, Rep. Don Young, the state's sole member of the U.S. House, was named one of the most corrupt members of Congress.  There are ample reasons:

Rep. Don Young is an 18th-term member of the House of Representatives, representing Alaska at-large.  Rep. Young served as Chairman of the House Resources Committee from 1994 to 2000 and as the Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee from 2000-2006.  Currently, Rep. Young serves as the ranking member of the House Resources Committee.

Rep. Young’s ethics violations stem from the misuse of his position to benefit family and friends and from steering millions of dollars in earmarks to corporations in exchange for contributions to his campaign committee and political action committee, Midnight Sun PAC (MSPAC).  Rep. Young is currently under four separate federal investigations including an investigation into his role in securing a $10 million earmark for a road in Florida, assistance he offered to recently convicted VECO executive Bill Allen, his ties to convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff, and his financial relationship with recently indicted businessman Dennis Troha.  Rep. Young was included in CREW’s 2007 congressional corruption report.

Earmarking Transportation Funds for a Campaign Donor
                                   
The Department of Justice is currently investigating whether Rep. Young earmarked $10 million dollars for a construction project in exchange for campaign donations.  In 2005, while in Florida to discuss upcoming transportation projects, Rep. Young attended a fundraiser held by Daniel Aronoff, a land developer who stood to gain financially from the passage of an Interstate 75 expansion.  The fundraiser brought in $40,000 for Rep. Young and Mr. Aranoff personally donated a total of $3,000 to Rep. Young’s campaign committee and PAC.  Shortly after his Florida trip, Rep. Young earmarked $10 million in the Fiscal Year 2006 transportation bill for I-75 improvements.

After the Lee County Metropolitan Planning Organization voted to block the interchange because it could threaten nearby wetlands, Rep. Young threatened to revoke the money entirely.

 In 2008, both the House and Senate voted to direct the DOJ to launch an investigation into the 2005 earmark that was inserted for the Coconut Road interchange.  After the calls for the inquiry, Rep. Young admitted that he sponsored the earmark and that his staff “corrected” the earmark before the bill went to the White House to be signed by the president.

Earmarking Transportation Funds for Bridges

In the 109th Congress, Rep. Young earmarked over $400 million dollars to Alaska for two bridges serving tiny populations of constituents.  Rep. Young’s daughter, Joni Young, and his son-in-law, Art Nelson, own land near one of the proposed bridges and stand to profit if the project is completed.

After negative press coverage and pressure from colleagues, Rep. Young agreed to release the obligation that the earmarked money be used for the specific bridges.  The funds were still given to Alaska, however, as part of the state’s general federal highway allotment fund from which legislators can still fund the bridge projects.

Association with VECO Corporation

Rep. Young is the subject of a criminal inquiry into whether he accepted bribes, illegal gratuities or unreported gifs from VECO corporation.  VECO President Peter Leathard has been quoted  saying his company works to elect politicians that back mineral exploration.  To that end, since 2002, VECO executives have donated $89,500 to the Rep. Young’s campaign committee and PAC. The corruption probe of VECO is ongoing and has led to the indictments of other Alaskan politicians including Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) who was indicted on seven counts of failing to disclose gifts from VECO and its CEO Bill Allen. 
               
Association with PBS&J

Rep. Young has received campaign contributions from employees of Florida based construction firm PBS&J.  The firm’s chairman pleaded guilty to violating federal campaign laws in July of 2007 after a federal investigation revealed that he was reimbursing PBS&J employees for making donations to favored candidates.  PBS&J had previously received a federal grant to conduct a study of the Rep. Young’s proposed bridges and in June 2006, prepared a cost estimate review study analyzing the construction planning.

Three PBS&J executives have been convicted for their part in a long-running scheme to circumvent campaign election laws.  In October 2007, the Federal Election Commission launched it’s own investigation into the illegal campaign contributions and use of political action committees by PBS&J.

Ties to Jack Abramoff

Rep. Young’s ties to convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff are the subject of a grand jury investigation.  In September 2002, Rep. Young and Ohio Rep. Steve LaTourette sent a letter to the General Service Administration (GSA) urging it to “give preferential treatment to organizations such as Indian tribes” during the development of the Old Post Office Pavilion in Washington, D.C.  Mr. Abramoff was representing the tribes hoping to secure lease space in the building.  Just weeks after sending the letter to the GSA, Rep. Young’s PAC received $7,000 from Mr. Abramoff’s tribal clients and another $5,000 before the end of 2002.

Members of Rep. Young’s staff have also been linked to Mr. Abramoff. When Duane Gibson left his position as Rep. Young’s chief of staff to join Mr. Abramoff, he recommended that Mark Zachares be given a job with the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which Rep. Young chaired.  In April of 2007, Mr. Zachares pleaded guilty to bribery charges.  In his plea agreement, Mr. Zachares admitted that his intent was to use his position in the House Transportation Infrastructure Committee to steer clients toward Mr. Abramoff’s firm with the promise that eventually Mr. Abramoff would hire him.

After claiming that he had neither a personal nor a professional relationship with Mr. Abramoff,  it was discovered that in 2000, Rep. Young had used Mr. Abramoff’s MCI skybox tickets for two events, but failed to report them to the FEC until after the Abramoff scandal broke.

Records exposed in 2008 from two of Mr. Abramoff’s law firms show over 120 contacts with Rep. Young and his staff – including ten with Rep. Young himself – over a 25 month period.

Ties to Dennis Troha

In April of 2007, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin opened an investigation into an alleged deal between Rep. Young and convicted Wisconsin businessman Dennis Troha.  In the 2005 transportation bill, Rep. Young inserted a controversial item that benefitted Mr. Troha’s trucking company.  Months before the legislation became law, Rep. Young received $22,000 from Mr. Troha, his family members, JHT executives and their spouses.

In March of 2008, Mr. Troha was sentenced to probation for making illegal political donations.

Legal Fees

Rep. Young continues to pay legal fees in connection with several ongoing investigations.  Since July of 2007, Rep. Young’s campaign committee has paid $993,655.28 in legal fees.  In January of 2008, Rep. Young opened a legal defense fund.  By July 2008, his defense fund had paid $49,415.25 in legal fees.               

As noted below, today, CREW released our report, CREW's Most Corrupt, which names the 20 most corrupt members of Congress -- and four to watch.  

We'll be doing individual profiles on each of the named members, but two of them had front page stories in today's Anchorage Daily News:  Senator Ted Stevens and Rep. Don Young.

First, Senator Ted Stevens:

An attorney defending U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens against federal charges argued Tuesday that the government's failure to provide an advance look at evidence risks jeopardizing the fast-approaching trial.

In a motion to compel the government to turn over the material, Robert Cary accused prosecutors of "dilatory tactics" that could jeopardize Stevens' right to a fair trial.

But the government, which is prosecuting Stevens in Washington, D.C., on seven counts of filing false annual financial disclosures, dismissed the defense claims as being "without merit."

 Then, Rep. Don Young:

There are still some votes to count -- and maybe a recount after that -- but Rep. Don Young called a press conference Tuesday and said he expects to be the Republican on the U.S. House ballot when the Nov. 4 general election rolls around.

Young said he had not talked to Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell and doesn't expect to at least until the last absentee ballots from overseas are counted.

Yesterday was primary day in Alaska.

The incumbent Senator, Ted Stevens, and the incumbent House member, Don Young, are both enmeshed in public corruption scandals.  Both were listed in CREW's report, Beyond DeLay, as among the 22 most corrupt members of Congress

Stevens won his primary.

As of this morning, Young's race couldn't be called -- it's too close.

The Anchorage Daily News is monitoring results.

Probably a good thing for Rep. Don Young that he can use his campaign funds to pay his legal bills.  His legal defense fund hasn't proven all that lucrative:

The majority of the $54,000 Young received in the fund came from fishing and construction companies based in Alaska or the state of Washington.

Former Rep. Billy Evans (D-Ga.) and his wife, Renetta, wrote a $2,000 check, as did William Corbus, the former state revenue commissioner under then-Gov. Frank Murkowski (R).

The companies that gave include: Trident Seafoods Corporation, Seattle-based Aleutian Spray Fisheries, as well as one of its subsidiaries, Starbound, LLCBering Pacific Services Company, Boyer Towing Inc., Cruz Construction Inc., Osborne Construction Company and Tatonduk Outfitters Limited.

 

Another prominent Alaska public official was indicted yesterday.  Alaska has been a hot bed of corruption and federal investigations, which is why the Anchorage Daily News wonders who is next?

The indictment of state Sen. John Cowdery culminates another investigation of a public official targeted in federal raids, subpoenas and wiretaps in Alaska over the last two years.

But what of the far more powerful and prominent elected officials also in the sights of the FBI, IRS and other federal agencies, men like U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, his son Ben, and U.S. Rep. Don Young?

Ben Stevens, the former Alaska Senate president, was probably the best known among those whose legislative offices were searched in a series of raids on Aug. 31, 2006. Nearly a year later, the FBI and IRS searched Ted Stevens' home in Girdwood, in part to document an extensive addition built by Veco Corp. employees and contractors. Young is also under investigation for his ties to Veco and for an earmark he sponsored for a Florida highway interchange sought by a key campaign contributor.

Ben and Ted Stevens and Young say they have done nothing wrong, and federal prosecutors and agents won't say where their investigations are going or when they might get there.