Rep. William Jefferson was indicted for influence selling today. He should be the first in a long line of Congressional charges. Rep. Jefferson and Senator Rick Santorum took significant donations from kidney dialysis companies before sponsoring a bill giving them automatic Medicare payment updates over a three year period. Do any e-mails indicate a quid pro quo for those donations?
When Democrats found out about the Jefferson investigation they tossed him off the powerful House Ways and Means Committee. The ex-Chair Bill Thomas retired before an investigation could be launched in his direction. Not only did he hold a hearing on for-profit hospitals' unfair tax paying disadvantage after $30,000 in donations, he browbeat the Medicare actuary who suggested the Medicare prescription drug program would cost much more than estimates submitted by Medicare Chief Tom Scully.
Jefferson didn't know when to take the money and run like Tom Scully and Bill Thomas. Rick Santorum lost his race in 2006 but he seems to be faring well selling Islamophobia in the public sector. How much does he make a speech nowadays? It didn't take him long to get appointed to Universal Health Service's Board of Directors. The for-profit hospital chain is happy to have a well connected insider onboard. The President clearly favors for-profits as he continues rolling out the Bush healthcare blanket party.
While William Jefferson has been charged with 16 violations of federal laws, the others skated away free. Had lawyers access to their records how many charges would result? Who knows, but there's a crop of suspicious legislators remaining. Applying the same laws equally across the House and Senate chambers how many would fall out? My guess is easily over 50%...
P.S. After Tom Scully left federal employment he was named Senior Advisor for private equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson and Stowe. Then he got promoted to General Partner. Guess who made Sen. Rick Santorum's top 20 donor list for 2006? WCAS landed in the 18th spot.
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