I have been writing about the bribery that goes on in our Congress. Congresspeople get cash from a wealth of sources even foreign countries have been known to bribe our Congress.
Countries like Saudi Arabia, Israel just to mention a few….but it is a lot deeper than those I listed.
But just how deep is this crime?
Democratic Texas congressman Henry Cuellar was indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice on charges of “bribery, unlawful foreign influence, and money laundering.” The accusations revolve around a set of deals in which Cuellar allegedly accepted money from a state-owned Azerbaijani oil company and a Mexican bank in exchange for an agreement to push U.S. foreign policy in their favor.
As concerning as this may be, it’s not even the first such indictment against a sitting member of Congress this year. In March, Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) received a superseding indictment which expands further upon earlier accusations that the former Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman took bribes to advocate on behalf of the Egyptian and Qatari governments.
These cases make it clear that foreign bribery, in which representatives of one country pay money to manipulate the representatives of another, is still a serious problem in the United States. As the world’s most powerful and interventionist nation, no other government has more influence over the rest of the world’s affairs — influence which can be bought. The recent charges against Rep. Cuellar and Sen. Mendendez show how significant of a problem bribery and undue influence has been for the U.S. congress, while also drawing attention to the ongoing efforts to prevent this corruption from continuing.
Bribes offered in exchange for political favors are nothing new in Congress. The first congressional bribery investigation on record took place in 1854, when a lobbyist attempted to bribe members of Congress into extending the patent for the Colt revolver handgun. The question of bribery across borders, however, did not receive much attention in Congress until fairly recently.
Concerns about foreign bribery emerged most forcefully in the mid-1970s as a result of the Watergate investigation and the Church Committee, which investigated abuses by U.S. intelligence agencies. These investigations identified slush funds run by large companies that could be used for illegal political donations and undisclosed foreign payments, including several U.S.-based corporations with overseas operations.
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/congress-bribery/
The bribes are hidden behind those damn PACs, political action committees.
It is time to clean up the den of corruption….there is no place for it in our system.
Sadly money makes the wheels of government less squeaky and running ‘smoothly’…..as they say ‘follow the money’.
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
In Saner Thought 
unfortunately this is all too common. The laws controlling this are written deliberately to make it difficult track who is contributing how much to who. And it isn’t just Congress. It goes all the way down to state legislatures and even down to local politics.
A few years ago Some enterprising reporter discovered that immediately after a state legislator here received a $10,000 “campaign contribution” from a lawyer, he introduced a bill that would have enabled to lawyer to weasel out of making child support payments. A bill that was allegedly actually written by the lawyer himself. You and I would probably consider this to be a case of flat out bribery, but thanks to how the law here is written, they can get away with calling it a “campaign contribution”. The legislator was eventually shamed into giving up the money, but nobody was charged, nobody went to jail, nothing.
So apparently if you’re interested you can buy your own Wisconsin state legislator for as little as $10K, less than a used car would cost you.
We had a county supervisor a few years ago that took $88 for a deal….so Mississippi lawmakers work cheap. chuq
Accountability, as likely as Trump being found guilty and sent to Riker’s Island!
Sad but true…..chuq
I look forward to the judge’s last comments to the defendant. He may not have had him jailed for contempt, but I bet he gives Trump a very stern talking down to before he lets him go! Trump, of course will whine and whin about how terribly he’s treated.
It will be interesting indeed. chuq
I truly hope he gives Trump a scathing putdown, one that would earn him the hosannahs of all who value him finally getting the comeuppance he’s bought his way out of his whole life!
We can only hope Doug…..chuq
I wish there had been video of the trial, but especially would like to hear the sentencing. Mr. Whine would complain he’s the victim, mistreated. The judge could (in this fantasy) tell him that he wants him to be treated just like everyone else, namely put his butt in jail.
Jail time is a dream…..one I like….chuq
Yeah!
😎
Same deal here. Luxury holidays and jet trips, second jobs that don’t really exist. Israeli pay-offs for support of their policies, same with Saudi Arabia. It seems like everyone in power is just on the take.
Best wishes, Pete.
They probably are….these days it is about who has the most cash to pass on….the people just do not have the resources for Congress to care. chuq