Oil Patch Boys set the standard for corruption in Alaska. Surprised?
Oil Patch Boys set the standard for corruption in
Alaska. Surprised?
The trial of an Alaska politician found guilty of taking bribes from the oil industry has offered a glimpse into more widespread corruption in the state’s government.
Details emerged in the trial of former state House Speaker Pete Kott about oil-friendly legislators who dubbed themselves the “Corrupt Bastards Club” and secretly taped booze-soaked hotel conversations showing how leaders of the state’s biggest oil-services company used their clout to manipulate Alaska politics.
At the trial, former VECO Corp chief executive Bill Allen described how he supplied materials and company workers to remodel Senator Ted Stevens’s Alaska home in the ski resort town of Girdwood to help influence legislation.
All the implicated Alaska politicians are Republicans.
So far - Ted Stevens, Ben Stevens and Don Young haven’t been charged. Given testimony at the trial, that just seems to be a matter of time.
Projected sentences for Allen and Smith are 9-11 years.
Posted: Wed - September 26, 2007 at 08:03 AM