If one ever wondered why public approval of Congress is so low, look no further. Don't forget Denny Hastert either
Seat in Congress Helps Mr. Taylor Help His Business - WSJ.com Charles Taylor, wealthy businessman and banker, owns at least 14,000 acres of prime land in western North Carolina. He's also the local congressman. So when he steers federal dollars to his district, sometimes he helps himself, too.Last year, Mr. Taylor added $11.4 million to a big federal transportation bill to widen U.S. Highway 19, the main road through Maggie Valley, a rural resort town in the Great Smoky Mountains. His companies own thousands of acres near the highway there and had already developed a subdivision called Maggie Valley Leisure Estates.
Mr. Taylor also got $3.8 million in federal funds for a park now being built in downtown Asheville with fountains, tree-shaded terraces and an open-air stage. It's directly in front of the Blue Ridge Savings Bank, flagship of his financial empire. He is among the richest congressmen with assets of at least $72 million, records show.
The Republican lawmaker is one of at least a half-dozen House members whose public actions in directing special-interest spending known as earmarks have also benefited their private interests or those of business partners, according to congressional, corporate and real-estate records. Among them is a senior Democrat, Rep. Alan Mollohan of West Virginia.
...But the growth of earmarks and the secrecy that shrouds the practice inevitably raises questions of self-dealing. Earmarking has been at the center of the influence-peddling and corruption probes that have shaken public confidence in Congress this year. The practice also played a central role in the case against former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham. The California Republican was imprisoned after pleading guilty to accepting $2.4 million in bribes from defense firms in exchange for earmarks and other favors....
Earmarks are different because lawmakers can directly insert them into spending bills, often without public scrutiny. Many lobbyists and corporations have discovered in recent years that one of the fastest ways to get the spending they desire is to approach an individual lawmaker of either party on the House or Senate appropriation panel about an earmark. That has fed the growth in earmarks to an estimated $47.4 billion last year from $19.5 billion a decade earlier, according to the Congressional Research Service.
Earmarks range from pet projects -- such as Mr. Taylor's $500,000 earmark to help build a Teapot Museum in Sparta, N.C. -- to billion-dollar cargo-aircraft contracts that weren't sought by the Pentagon but are funded to keep jobs in a lawmaker's district. In California, Rep. Gary Miller steered $1.28 million to widen a road near an upscale shopping center he helped develop. The center is expected to include a Target store and 120 residential units. His business partner was Lewis Group, one of the nation's largest builders and a big contributor to his political campaign.
Federal prosecutors in Washington, Los Angeles and San Diego are looking closely at earmarking in the wake of the Cunningham case. At least four congressmen, including Rep. Jerry Lewis, a Republican from California who is chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, are being investigated for their role in earmarking or ties to lobbyists specializing in earmarks, people close to the inquiries say. Each lawmaker has denied impropriety. Mr. Taylor isn't known to be a target of any investigation.
Prosecuting these cases will be difficult because an earmark only becomes illegal if the legislator is clearly acting in exchange for money or to promote his private business interests. Under the prevailing interpretation of the constitutional separation of powers, most congressional correspondence and deliberations are out of reach of prosecutors.
Tags: Congress, /corruption
