Alaska's Hat-Trick of Corruption

PROGRESS REPORT - Alaska may be the second youngest state in the country, but it's also one of the most corrupt. The state's entire congressional delegation -- Sens. Ted Stevens (R) and Lisa Murkowski (R) and Rep. Don Young (R) -- is now embroiled in a series of scandals and criminal investigations that threaten to topple Alaska's oil industry-friendly political leadership. Much of the corruption involves Alaska's "largest oil-field engineering firm," Veco Corp., which is "entwined in a broad federal investigation that has led to the indictment of four current and former Alaska politicians and ensnared former Alaska Senate President Ben Stevens, son of Ted Stevens."

Ted Stevens is "the most senior Republican in the U.S. Senate and Alaska's most famous political figure." He's also the subject of investigations by the FBI and a federal grand jury over an "extensive remodeling project" done to his home in 2000. The contractors for this major project, which added a new floor to Stevens's house, happened to be hired by longtime Veco Corp. CEO Bill Allen. Allen and another company executive pleaded guilty in May to federal conspiracy, bribery and tax charges, and they are now cooperating with authorities. . .

The Wall Street Journal revealed this week that 18-term Alaska congressman Don Young is also under criminal investigation in the widening probe into "alleged influence-peddling and self-dealing in Congress," and Allen again plays a prominent role. For a decade, "Allen has held fund-raisers for Mr. Young in Anchorage every August, known as 'The Pig Roast.'" Veco employees and its PAC have contributed at least $157,000 to Young between 1996 and 2006, the last year the event was held. Young has often skated ethics rules closely. The self-proclaimed "little oinker" has arranged several highly-suspect pork projects, including the infamous "Bridge to Nowhere," and his former staffer was convicted as part of the Jack Abramoff corruption probe. Young has now "hired a criminal-defense team and has said his campaign committee has paid $262,000 in legal fees in the past three months."

Alaska's other senator, Lisa Murkowski, has come under fire in recent weeks for buying a prime riverfront lot on Alaska's Kenai River lot "at a cut-rate price from a major campaign contributor." Wealthy Alaskan real estate developer and political supporter Bob Penney sold a 1.27-acre waterfront lot for $179,000 to Murkowski's husband, Verne Martell. "Three days after the borough recorded the Murkowskis' purchase, the assessed value went up to $214,900. So right off the bat, it looks like she got a discount of 20 percent." But the discount was "probably far bigger. The online real estate listing service for Alaska has one Kenai riverfront lot. The parcel is only one acre -- a quarter of an acre less than Sen. Murkowski's -- but the asking price is $399,000. Per acre, that's almost three times what the senator paid for hers." Last month, the National Legal and Policy Center filed a 25-page ethics complaint against Murkowski with the Senate committee. Murkowski's deal factors into the other scandals -- Bob Penney, who sold her husband the lot, also testified last year before a grand jury "about his cozy relationship" with Stevens.