Monday, August 27, 2007
Random thoughts during BM season
OK, I'll let you guess what BM means. During this time when I am basically going from one short-term thought to the next, I have no ability to write a blog entry about a single idea. So, I shall go for the random offload of useless information.
Bye, Bye Alberto. The worst Attorney General ever resigned from office today. He was the personification of the Peter Principle (a person will rise to their level of incompetence). He made Michael Brown (the famously unqualified FEMA Director) look like Omar Bradley. Alberto's uselessness was only surpassed by his unlawful behavior and legal writings as Bush's lawyer.
Senator Larry Craig (R-Idaho) was arrested in June for some sort of sexual act toward a plain-clothes policeman in the Twin Cities airport. For the obvious, he's against equal rights for gays. His campaign for re-election next year should be interesting.
I actually wrote my boss today telling him I was going to make sure I didn't work more than 45 hours in the coming weeks (pre-BM). I know realize that I must be completely crazy. Why is it that I have to even make this statement? Because corporate American has driven into most workers heads that a 40-hour week is unacceptable. Isn't that just sad.
Michael Vick pled guilty to dogfighting charges. OK, so I'm not going to pass judgement on his quest for salvation (he said during his media statement today that he had found Jesus....who was obviously lost behind the Virginia house along with the dog cadavers). I am going to pass judgement on his ill-making actions. I'm no dog-fan, but dogfighting is a cruel and inhumane act. That he led in this venture makes him a criminal, and I'm saddened that many wish to ignore this fact. I personally think he should be kept on a leash and treated in the same manner as he treated many of his dogs (without the eventual electrocution or drowning).
And when the hell did the past tense of plea become pleaded? It sounds horrible. It's pled. PLED!!!! Get it right news media.
I had a bout with hemorrhoids. Well, I'm still having said bout. I can tell you now that there is NOTHING more uncomfortable then a probe in one's butt (this I believe is true whether gay or straight). I would so love for this to not be occurring. After this range of treatment is over, it's onto the colonoscopy. Shoot me now!
I've been talking to my long-time best friend much lately. I love talking to him. He's a great soul. He has taught me so much and been there so often for me during the almost 30 years we have known each other that he knows almost as much about the way I tick as Tracey. The only problem we've had in our relationship is that our family lives are so vastly different. He is gay, and been in the same relationship for going on 25 years. I am married for over 15 years. He was the best man in my wedding. What makes our lives so different is kids. I have two. I know he has always wanted to be a father, but that option has not been available (in a realistic sense) for him. I don't think there has ever been any resentment, but the difference in being a parent and not is a pretty wide divide. But suddenly, with this momentous event looming, we have started talking alot lately. I've loved it. We even discussed my hemorrhoids (talking about the gay perspective on it). I can't wait for Jacob to introduce his Uncle Tony and Uncle Jimmy to his friends, which I hope to see soon.
I am tired all the time right now. I wake up tired. It's tough because there is so much going on right now that I am preoccupied as I sleep.
Time for the answer to the question at the top. BM = Bar Mitzvah.
It is that which is looming over every move I make right now. How do we make sure everything is handled. Getting Jacob to his different appointments. Deciding about stuff. Buying damn near everything on the planet. It's amazing how much a restrained BM costs. We are having an extremely toned down event, and still it costs thousands and thousands. It is astounding.
The Braves need to win about 10 games straight to have any realistic hope of making the playoffs. Fingers are soon to be firmly crossed.
Fantasy football draft is Thursday night. How can I screw it up? We will soon find out.
Bye, Bye Alberto. The worst Attorney General ever resigned from office today. He was the personification of the Peter Principle (a person will rise to their level of incompetence). He made Michael Brown (the famously unqualified FEMA Director) look like Omar Bradley. Alberto's uselessness was only surpassed by his unlawful behavior and legal writings as Bush's lawyer.
Senator Larry Craig (R-Idaho) was arrested in June for some sort of sexual act toward a plain-clothes policeman in the Twin Cities airport. For the obvious, he's against equal rights for gays. His campaign for re-election next year should be interesting.
I actually wrote my boss today telling him I was going to make sure I didn't work more than 45 hours in the coming weeks (pre-BM). I know realize that I must be completely crazy. Why is it that I have to even make this statement? Because corporate American has driven into most workers heads that a 40-hour week is unacceptable. Isn't that just sad.
Michael Vick pled guilty to dogfighting charges. OK, so I'm not going to pass judgement on his quest for salvation (he said during his media statement today that he had found Jesus....who was obviously lost behind the Virginia house along with the dog cadavers). I am going to pass judgement on his ill-making actions. I'm no dog-fan, but dogfighting is a cruel and inhumane act. That he led in this venture makes him a criminal, and I'm saddened that many wish to ignore this fact. I personally think he should be kept on a leash and treated in the same manner as he treated many of his dogs (without the eventual electrocution or drowning).
And when the hell did the past tense of plea become pleaded? It sounds horrible. It's pled. PLED!!!! Get it right news media.
I had a bout with hemorrhoids. Well, I'm still having said bout. I can tell you now that there is NOTHING more uncomfortable then a probe in one's butt (this I believe is true whether gay or straight). I would so love for this to not be occurring. After this range of treatment is over, it's onto the colonoscopy. Shoot me now!
I've been talking to my long-time best friend much lately. I love talking to him. He's a great soul. He has taught me so much and been there so often for me during the almost 30 years we have known each other that he knows almost as much about the way I tick as Tracey. The only problem we've had in our relationship is that our family lives are so vastly different. He is gay, and been in the same relationship for going on 25 years. I am married for over 15 years. He was the best man in my wedding. What makes our lives so different is kids. I have two. I know he has always wanted to be a father, but that option has not been available (in a realistic sense) for him. I don't think there has ever been any resentment, but the difference in being a parent and not is a pretty wide divide. But suddenly, with this momentous event looming, we have started talking alot lately. I've loved it. We even discussed my hemorrhoids (talking about the gay perspective on it). I can't wait for Jacob to introduce his Uncle Tony and Uncle Jimmy to his friends, which I hope to see soon.
I am tired all the time right now. I wake up tired. It's tough because there is so much going on right now that I am preoccupied as I sleep.
Time for the answer to the question at the top. BM = Bar Mitzvah.
It is that which is looming over every move I make right now. How do we make sure everything is handled. Getting Jacob to his different appointments. Deciding about stuff. Buying damn near everything on the planet. It's amazing how much a restrained BM costs. We are having an extremely toned down event, and still it costs thousands and thousands. It is astounding.
The Braves need to win about 10 games straight to have any realistic hope of making the playoffs. Fingers are soon to be firmly crossed.
Fantasy football draft is Thursday night. How can I screw it up? We will soon find out.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
And you thought CBC meant the Canadian Broadcasting
I know, I'm late. But only with the publishing of this brewing scandal. I've actually been watching this for some time, waiting for the many shoes involved in this to drop.
Well, last week, the biggest of the shoes came down on the head of a person known for his use and abuse of power in the chamber of the Senate. He who's description of the Internet shall live in annuls of double-speak ("it's a bunch of tubes"). The man who tried to force the infamous bridge to nowhere down our collective tax-paying throats.
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska). What is this scandal about?
One of our favorite causes, buying favorable tax laws and political influence. But in reading about this back in September of last year, one interesting tidbit jumped out at me. The group of state lawmakers involved in this fracas named themselves the "Corrupt Bastards Club". How's that for ballsy?
Now, you might be asking how Sen. Stevens is involved. Well, one of the main players in this saga is his son, State Senate President Ben Stevens. He, though, is but a cog in his father's political machine. As this unfolds, watch and see how amazingly intertwined Ted Stevens is.
Therefore, if for no other reason than their nickname, I bestow the honor of Political Scum on the "Corrupt Bastards Club" and Sen. Ted Stevens.
Here's all the interesting news from its inception:
Probe leads to FBI search of 6 Alaska lawmakers' offices
By MATT VOLZ
The Associated Press
JUNEAU, Alaska — Federal agents raided the offices of at least six Alaska lawmakers Thursday in an investigation of a large oil-field-services company, officials said.
Among the offices searched were those of Senate Rules Committee Chairman John Cowdery, R-Anchorage, and Senate President Ben Stevens, R-Anchorage, the son of longtime U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens.
The company named in the search warrant was VECO, an Anchorage oil-field-services and construction company, said Tam Cook, the Legislature's top attorney.
VECO's executives are major contributors to political campaigns.
"This morning, investigators from the FBI interviewed me in my office regarding an investigation of VECO," Republican Rep. Vic Kohring said. He said he cooperated and was told he was not a target of the investigation.
Agents searched Cowdery's offices in Juneau and Anchorage. The senator stood by in Anchorage as authorities sifted through documentation.
In Stevens' Anchorage office, agents wearing blue rubber gloves were visible through gaps in the blinds looking through documents.
The offices of Rep. Bruce Weyhrauch, R-Juneau; Sen. Donald Olson, D-Nome; and Rep. Pete Kott, R-Eagle River, also were searched.
Two legislative aides, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said FBI agents were looking for financial information and gifts, among other items.
One aide who did not read the warrant but was told its contents by officials said it allowed for the search of computer files, personal diaries and other documentation.
The other aide said he read the warrant and it named VECO officials Bill Allen, Rick Smith and Pete Leathard.
A message left Thursday with VECO was not returned.
FBI spokesman Eric Gonzalez said the FBI and Internal Revenue Service executed search warrants in Anchorage, Juneau, Wasilla, Eagle River and Girdwood.
He declined to say who was served search warrants.
The warrants had not been filed with the clerk's office at the U.S. District Court by Thursday afternoon.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Anchorage referred questions to a Department of Justice spokeswoman in Washington, D.C., who didn't answer her phone.
Messages left with other lawmakers and Senate Republican majority spokesman Jeff Turner were not returned.
Associated Press writer Jeannette J. Lee in Anchorage contributed to this report.
Copyright © 2006 The Seattle Times Company
FBI looks for "Corrupt Bastards Club" hats in Alaska corruption probe
9/01/06
Anchorage, Alaska
Among the items federal agents were searching for in Alaska legislative offices this week are hats or garments labeled "Corrupt Bastards Club" or "Corrupt Bastards Caucus," according to the search warrant.
FBI and Internal Revenue Service agents raided a half-dozen state lawmakers' offices across Alaska Thursday and continuing Friday, looking for ties between them and oil field services giant VECO Corp.
A copy of one of the search warrants, obtained by The Associated Press, links the investigation to the new production tax law signed last month by Gov. Frank Murkowski and the natural gas pipeline draft contract Murkowski and the state's three largest oil companies negotiated.
Among the items to be seized, according to the warrant, "from the period of October 2005 to the present, any and all documents concerning, reflecting or relating to proposed legislation in the state of Alaska involving either the creation of a natural gas pipeline or the petroleum production tax."
VECO and its chairman, Bill Allen, were staunch supporters of the governor's production tax plan, a version of which the Legislature passed in August after twice rejecting it earlier this year. Lawmakers have also twice failed to pass legislation related to the governor's pipeline fiscal contract with BP PLC, ConocoPhillips and Exxon Mobil Corp.
VECO's executives are top contributors to Alaska politicians, mostly Republican. Allen flew to Juneau at the end of the regular session to lobby lawmakers and watch the vote on the new production tax.
The warrant calls for seizure of documents "concerning, reflecting or relating to any payment" to lawmakers by VECO executives Allen and Richard Smith. Agents also looked for documents about contracts, agreements or employment of legislators provided by VECO, Allen, Smith and company president Peter Leathard.
In the warrant served on state Sen. Donald Olson, D-Nome, agents were also authorized to seize any documents related to fuel payments, landing strip fees, storage fees and similar aircraft costs. Olson owns a flying service.
Olson was in Nome Friday, but his office line was engaged and he could not be reached for comment.
A specific item named in the search for seizure: "Any physical garments (including hats) bearing any of the following logos or phrases: 'CBC,' 'Corrupt Bastards Club,' 'Corrupt Bastards Caucus,' 'VECO.'"
Besides VECO and its executives, agents were authorized to seize any documents related to The Petroleum Club, Republican pollster David Dittman or his company, Dittman Research and Communication Corp., pollster Marc Hellenthal or his company, Hellenthal and Associates, Roger Chan, VECO's chief financial officer, and Olson Air Service, according to the warrant.
VECO officials and Dittman did not immediately return calls Friday.
"We have a history of contract work with VECO," Hellenthal said Friday. "There's a ton of businesses that have a political interest that want to know how the people they are backing are doing."
Hellenthal said once or twice a year, his firm conducts polls for VECO and other businesses on governors' and legislative races. The exception was this year, when he was polling for Republican candidate John Binkley. Binkley came in second to Sarah Palin for the GOP nomination on Aug. 22. Hellenthal said he has not been contacted by federal agents.
A receipt of items seized from Olson's office by the FBI and obtained by The Associated Press lists five things: Olson's 2006 year planner, Murkowski's gas pipeline proposal released in May, a manila folder labeled "APOC," the Alaska Public Offices Commission, Olson's interim travel file and a binder related to the Alaska Stranded Gas Fiscal contract.
Department of Justice spokeswoman Jaclyn Lesch said Friday the searches began Thursday and are continuing Friday. FBI spokesman Eric Gonzalez said a total of 20 search warrants were being executed across Alaska, but would not say where.
"Those actions took place yesterday in cities in Alaska as part of an ongoing law enforcement matter. The (Justice Department) and FBI won't be able to comment any further," Lesch said.
No further comment is likely to come from the Justice Department unless charges are filed, she said.
Among the offices searched was that of Republican Senate President Ben Stevens, the son of the senior senator from Alaska. Ted Stevens' spokesman Aaron Saunders on Friday said they had no comment on the search.
Ben Stevens could not be reached at his Anchorage home on Friday.
Also searched were offices in both Juneau and Anchorage belonging to state Sen. John Cowdery, the Senate Rules chairman; Republican state Rep. Vic Kohring; Republican state Rep. Bruce Weyhrauch; and Republican state Rep. Pete Kott.
Olson is the only Democrat of the six; the rest are Republicans.
Calls to Weyhrauch and Kott were not immediately returned Friday.
Kohring said he cooperated and was told he was not a target of the investigation.
Cowdery, a Republican from Anchorage, said Friday he didn't know why he was included in the raid or why agents seized items "unrelated to anything," including the stubs of his legislative salary checks. Cowdery said he has not retained an attorney to deal with the matter, but probably will.
It's pretty bizarre," he said. "That's all I know, it's pretty bizarre. I certainly haven't done anything wrong."
Parts of this story were from ADN.com and wire reports.
Alaska Senator's Home Is Raided
Stevens Scrutinized In a Wide Inquiry Into Corruption in the State
By Dan Eggen and Paul Kane
Washington Post Staff Writer and Washingtonpost.com Staff WriterTuesday, July 31, 2007; Page A01
Agents from the FBI and the Internal Revenue Service raided the Alaska home of Sen. Ted Stevens (R) yesterday as part of a broad federal investigation of political corruption in the state that has also swept up his son and one of his closest financial backers, officials said.
Stevens, the longest-serving Republican senator in history, is under scrutiny from the Justice Department for his ties to an Alaska energy services company, Veco, whose chief executive pleaded guilty in early May to a bribery scheme involving state lawmakers.
Contractors have told a federal grand jury that in 2000, Veco executives oversaw a lavish remodeling of Stevens's house in Girdwood, an exclusive ski resort area 40 miles from Anchorage, according to statements by the contractors.
Stevens said in a statement that his attorneys were advised of the impending search yesterday morning. He said he would not comment on details of the inquiry to avoid "any appearance that I have attempted to influence its outcome."
Stevens, 83, who joined the Senate in 1968, has been considered one of the most powerful members of Congress for more than a decade, including six years in which he held wide sway over nearly $1 trillion in federal spending as chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. He is now the top Republican on the Commerce Committee, which has oversight of fisheries and other industries critical to his home state.
"I urge Alaskans not to form conclusions based upon incomplete and sometimes incorrect reports in the media," Stevens said. "The legal process should be allowed to proceed so that all the facts can be established and the truth determined." Brendan Sullivan, a prominent white-collar defense attorney representing Stevens, declined to comment.
The afternoon raid was conducted by FBI and IRS agents as part of a "court-authorized search warrant," FBI spokesman Richard Kolko said in Washington. He declined to provide further details.
Stevens is among more than a dozen current and former members of Congress who have come under federal investigation in the past three years over allegations related to their ties to lobbyists, defense contractors and other corporate interests. This week, the House and Senate are expected to approve ethics legislation that would require more disclosure of lobbying activities and contributions to lawmakers, among other changes.
This spring, Republicans and Democrats celebrated on the Senate floor when Stevens became the longest-serving Republican in the chamber's history. He has said he plans to run in 2008 for another six-year term.
A few weeks after that celebration, one of Stevens's closest political allies, Bill Allen, formerly the chief executive of Veco, pleaded guilty to bribing several members of the state legislature. One was an unidentified former state senator whose consulting payments cited in the plea agreement matched payments reported by Ben Stevens, a state lawmaker who is the senator's son. He left the state Senate last year.
The Alaska investigation has centered on Allen's efforts to bribe lawmakers by handing out wads of hundred-dollar bills in an effort to win favorable tax legislation in Alaska for a natural gas pipeline long sought by the energy industry and leaders of both political parties there.
In early June, Ted Stevens told The Washington Post that federal investigators had given him a document preservation request as part of the Veco probe, a request that he expected would lead to him turning over those documents to the FBI. He added that "my son is also under investigation." Stevens said then he had not been interviewed by federal investigators.
The inquiry has been run by the Justice Department's Public Integrity Section, overseeing a team of FBI agents and two assistant U.S. attorneys in Anchorage. The involvement of the IRS was not previously known.
Contractors who worked on Stevens's Girdwood home have told The Post and other media outlets that the remodeling project was overseen by Allen and other Veco executives. They said they provided evidence and testimony about it to a federal grand jury in Anchorage.
In addition, the Anchorage Daily News reported last month that a second grand jury was hearing testimony in Washington involving the Girdwood home project. The remodeling, which took place in 2000, involved putting the senator's one-story house on stilts and building a new ground floor, making it two stories.
Veco has received more than $30 million in federal contracts since 2000, according to a database search of FedSpending.org, which tracks contracts given to private companies. The largest contracts were for logistical services provided to the National Science Foundation.
Stevens spent more than $37,000 on legal fees in the second quarter of 2007, according to his campaign committee report. The payments went to Williams and Jensen, a law firm that has long served as his campaign counsel.
Stevens is not the only Alaska Republican to be spending large sums on lawyers, according to congressional financial disclosures. From April through June, Rep. Don Young (R) spent more than $262,000 on two law firms. A local office director for Young formerly lobbied for Veco, and Allen used to hold an annual fundraiser for Young.
Part of Allen's plea agreement included charges that he illegally laundered donations to federal officials by reimbursing company officials for contributions they made in 2005 and 2006 to campaign committees. In that period, Stevens and Young were the top recipients of Veco cash, taking in $37,000 and $30,250, respectively.
Allen also pleaded guilty to illegally underwriting the cost of political fundraisers. The Wall Street Journal reported last week that Young recently amended his campaign filings to show $38,000 in payments to Allen for "fundraising costs." Young has declined to comment on the Veco matter.
Well, last week, the biggest of the shoes came down on the head of a person known for his use and abuse of power in the chamber of the Senate. He who's description of the Internet shall live in annuls of double-speak ("it's a bunch of tubes"). The man who tried to force the infamous bridge to nowhere down our collective tax-paying throats.
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska). What is this scandal about?
One of our favorite causes, buying favorable tax laws and political influence. But in reading about this back in September of last year, one interesting tidbit jumped out at me. The group of state lawmakers involved in this fracas named themselves the "Corrupt Bastards Club". How's that for ballsy?
Now, you might be asking how Sen. Stevens is involved. Well, one of the main players in this saga is his son, State Senate President Ben Stevens. He, though, is but a cog in his father's political machine. As this unfolds, watch and see how amazingly intertwined Ted Stevens is.
Therefore, if for no other reason than their nickname, I bestow the honor of Political Scum on the "Corrupt Bastards Club" and Sen. Ted Stevens.
Here's all the interesting news from its inception:
Probe leads to FBI search of 6 Alaska lawmakers' offices
By MATT VOLZ
The Associated Press
JUNEAU, Alaska — Federal agents raided the offices of at least six Alaska lawmakers Thursday in an investigation of a large oil-field-services company, officials said.
Among the offices searched were those of Senate Rules Committee Chairman John Cowdery, R-Anchorage, and Senate President Ben Stevens, R-Anchorage, the son of longtime U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens.
The company named in the search warrant was VECO, an Anchorage oil-field-services and construction company, said Tam Cook, the Legislature's top attorney.
VECO's executives are major contributors to political campaigns.
"This morning, investigators from the FBI interviewed me in my office regarding an investigation of VECO," Republican Rep. Vic Kohring said. He said he cooperated and was told he was not a target of the investigation.
Agents searched Cowdery's offices in Juneau and Anchorage. The senator stood by in Anchorage as authorities sifted through documentation.
In Stevens' Anchorage office, agents wearing blue rubber gloves were visible through gaps in the blinds looking through documents.
The offices of Rep. Bruce Weyhrauch, R-Juneau; Sen. Donald Olson, D-Nome; and Rep. Pete Kott, R-Eagle River, also were searched.
Two legislative aides, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said FBI agents were looking for financial information and gifts, among other items.
One aide who did not read the warrant but was told its contents by officials said it allowed for the search of computer files, personal diaries and other documentation.
The other aide said he read the warrant and it named VECO officials Bill Allen, Rick Smith and Pete Leathard.
A message left Thursday with VECO was not returned.
FBI spokesman Eric Gonzalez said the FBI and Internal Revenue Service executed search warrants in Anchorage, Juneau, Wasilla, Eagle River and Girdwood.
He declined to say who was served search warrants.
The warrants had not been filed with the clerk's office at the U.S. District Court by Thursday afternoon.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Anchorage referred questions to a Department of Justice spokeswoman in Washington, D.C., who didn't answer her phone.
Messages left with other lawmakers and Senate Republican majority spokesman Jeff Turner were not returned.
Associated Press writer Jeannette J. Lee in Anchorage contributed to this report.
Copyright © 2006 The Seattle Times Company
FBI looks for "Corrupt Bastards Club" hats in Alaska corruption probe
9/01/06
Anchorage, Alaska
Among the items federal agents were searching for in Alaska legislative offices this week are hats or garments labeled "Corrupt Bastards Club" or "Corrupt Bastards Caucus," according to the search warrant.
FBI and Internal Revenue Service agents raided a half-dozen state lawmakers' offices across Alaska Thursday and continuing Friday, looking for ties between them and oil field services giant VECO Corp.
A copy of one of the search warrants, obtained by The Associated Press, links the investigation to the new production tax law signed last month by Gov. Frank Murkowski and the natural gas pipeline draft contract Murkowski and the state's three largest oil companies negotiated.
Among the items to be seized, according to the warrant, "from the period of October 2005 to the present, any and all documents concerning, reflecting or relating to proposed legislation in the state of Alaska involving either the creation of a natural gas pipeline or the petroleum production tax."
VECO and its chairman, Bill Allen, were staunch supporters of the governor's production tax plan, a version of which the Legislature passed in August after twice rejecting it earlier this year. Lawmakers have also twice failed to pass legislation related to the governor's pipeline fiscal contract with BP PLC, ConocoPhillips and Exxon Mobil Corp.
VECO's executives are top contributors to Alaska politicians, mostly Republican. Allen flew to Juneau at the end of the regular session to lobby lawmakers and watch the vote on the new production tax.
The warrant calls for seizure of documents "concerning, reflecting or relating to any payment" to lawmakers by VECO executives Allen and Richard Smith. Agents also looked for documents about contracts, agreements or employment of legislators provided by VECO, Allen, Smith and company president Peter Leathard.
In the warrant served on state Sen. Donald Olson, D-Nome, agents were also authorized to seize any documents related to fuel payments, landing strip fees, storage fees and similar aircraft costs. Olson owns a flying service.
Olson was in Nome Friday, but his office line was engaged and he could not be reached for comment.
A specific item named in the search for seizure: "Any physical garments (including hats) bearing any of the following logos or phrases: 'CBC,' 'Corrupt Bastards Club,' 'Corrupt Bastards Caucus,' 'VECO.'"
Besides VECO and its executives, agents were authorized to seize any documents related to The Petroleum Club, Republican pollster David Dittman or his company, Dittman Research and Communication Corp., pollster Marc Hellenthal or his company, Hellenthal and Associates, Roger Chan, VECO's chief financial officer, and Olson Air Service, according to the warrant.
VECO officials and Dittman did not immediately return calls Friday.
"We have a history of contract work with VECO," Hellenthal said Friday. "There's a ton of businesses that have a political interest that want to know how the people they are backing are doing."
Hellenthal said once or twice a year, his firm conducts polls for VECO and other businesses on governors' and legislative races. The exception was this year, when he was polling for Republican candidate John Binkley. Binkley came in second to Sarah Palin for the GOP nomination on Aug. 22. Hellenthal said he has not been contacted by federal agents.
A receipt of items seized from Olson's office by the FBI and obtained by The Associated Press lists five things: Olson's 2006 year planner, Murkowski's gas pipeline proposal released in May, a manila folder labeled "APOC," the Alaska Public Offices Commission, Olson's interim travel file and a binder related to the Alaska Stranded Gas Fiscal contract.
Department of Justice spokeswoman Jaclyn Lesch said Friday the searches began Thursday and are continuing Friday. FBI spokesman Eric Gonzalez said a total of 20 search warrants were being executed across Alaska, but would not say where.
"Those actions took place yesterday in cities in Alaska as part of an ongoing law enforcement matter. The (Justice Department) and FBI won't be able to comment any further," Lesch said.
No further comment is likely to come from the Justice Department unless charges are filed, she said.
Among the offices searched was that of Republican Senate President Ben Stevens, the son of the senior senator from Alaska. Ted Stevens' spokesman Aaron Saunders on Friday said they had no comment on the search.
Ben Stevens could not be reached at his Anchorage home on Friday.
Also searched were offices in both Juneau and Anchorage belonging to state Sen. John Cowdery, the Senate Rules chairman; Republican state Rep. Vic Kohring; Republican state Rep. Bruce Weyhrauch; and Republican state Rep. Pete Kott.
Olson is the only Democrat of the six; the rest are Republicans.
Calls to Weyhrauch and Kott were not immediately returned Friday.
Kohring said he cooperated and was told he was not a target of the investigation.
Cowdery, a Republican from Anchorage, said Friday he didn't know why he was included in the raid or why agents seized items "unrelated to anything," including the stubs of his legislative salary checks. Cowdery said he has not retained an attorney to deal with the matter, but probably will.
It's pretty bizarre," he said. "That's all I know, it's pretty bizarre. I certainly haven't done anything wrong."
Parts of this story were from ADN.com and wire reports.
Alaska Senator's Home Is Raided
Stevens Scrutinized In a Wide Inquiry Into Corruption in the State
By Dan Eggen and Paul Kane
Washington Post Staff Writer and Washingtonpost.com Staff WriterTuesday, July 31, 2007; Page A01
Agents from the FBI and the Internal Revenue Service raided the Alaska home of Sen. Ted Stevens (R) yesterday as part of a broad federal investigation of political corruption in the state that has also swept up his son and one of his closest financial backers, officials said.
Stevens, the longest-serving Republican senator in history, is under scrutiny from the Justice Department for his ties to an Alaska energy services company, Veco, whose chief executive pleaded guilty in early May to a bribery scheme involving state lawmakers.
Contractors have told a federal grand jury that in 2000, Veco executives oversaw a lavish remodeling of Stevens's house in Girdwood, an exclusive ski resort area 40 miles from Anchorage, according to statements by the contractors.
Stevens said in a statement that his attorneys were advised of the impending search yesterday morning. He said he would not comment on details of the inquiry to avoid "any appearance that I have attempted to influence its outcome."
Stevens, 83, who joined the Senate in 1968, has been considered one of the most powerful members of Congress for more than a decade, including six years in which he held wide sway over nearly $1 trillion in federal spending as chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. He is now the top Republican on the Commerce Committee, which has oversight of fisheries and other industries critical to his home state.
"I urge Alaskans not to form conclusions based upon incomplete and sometimes incorrect reports in the media," Stevens said. "The legal process should be allowed to proceed so that all the facts can be established and the truth determined." Brendan Sullivan, a prominent white-collar defense attorney representing Stevens, declined to comment.
The afternoon raid was conducted by FBI and IRS agents as part of a "court-authorized search warrant," FBI spokesman Richard Kolko said in Washington. He declined to provide further details.
Stevens is among more than a dozen current and former members of Congress who have come under federal investigation in the past three years over allegations related to their ties to lobbyists, defense contractors and other corporate interests. This week, the House and Senate are expected to approve ethics legislation that would require more disclosure of lobbying activities and contributions to lawmakers, among other changes.
This spring, Republicans and Democrats celebrated on the Senate floor when Stevens became the longest-serving Republican in the chamber's history. He has said he plans to run in 2008 for another six-year term.
A few weeks after that celebration, one of Stevens's closest political allies, Bill Allen, formerly the chief executive of Veco, pleaded guilty to bribing several members of the state legislature. One was an unidentified former state senator whose consulting payments cited in the plea agreement matched payments reported by Ben Stevens, a state lawmaker who is the senator's son. He left the state Senate last year.
The Alaska investigation has centered on Allen's efforts to bribe lawmakers by handing out wads of hundred-dollar bills in an effort to win favorable tax legislation in Alaska for a natural gas pipeline long sought by the energy industry and leaders of both political parties there.
In early June, Ted Stevens told The Washington Post that federal investigators had given him a document preservation request as part of the Veco probe, a request that he expected would lead to him turning over those documents to the FBI. He added that "my son is also under investigation." Stevens said then he had not been interviewed by federal investigators.
The inquiry has been run by the Justice Department's Public Integrity Section, overseeing a team of FBI agents and two assistant U.S. attorneys in Anchorage. The involvement of the IRS was not previously known.
Contractors who worked on Stevens's Girdwood home have told The Post and other media outlets that the remodeling project was overseen by Allen and other Veco executives. They said they provided evidence and testimony about it to a federal grand jury in Anchorage.
In addition, the Anchorage Daily News reported last month that a second grand jury was hearing testimony in Washington involving the Girdwood home project. The remodeling, which took place in 2000, involved putting the senator's one-story house on stilts and building a new ground floor, making it two stories.
Veco has received more than $30 million in federal contracts since 2000, according to a database search of FedSpending.org, which tracks contracts given to private companies. The largest contracts were for logistical services provided to the National Science Foundation.
Stevens spent more than $37,000 on legal fees in the second quarter of 2007, according to his campaign committee report. The payments went to Williams and Jensen, a law firm that has long served as his campaign counsel.
Stevens is not the only Alaska Republican to be spending large sums on lawyers, according to congressional financial disclosures. From April through June, Rep. Don Young (R) spent more than $262,000 on two law firms. A local office director for Young formerly lobbied for Veco, and Allen used to hold an annual fundraiser for Young.
Part of Allen's plea agreement included charges that he illegally laundered donations to federal officials by reimbursing company officials for contributions they made in 2005 and 2006 to campaign committees. In that period, Stevens and Young were the top recipients of Veco cash, taking in $37,000 and $30,250, respectively.
Allen also pleaded guilty to illegally underwriting the cost of political fundraisers. The Wall Street Journal reported last week that Young recently amended his campaign filings to show $38,000 in payments to Allen for "fundraising costs." Young has declined to comment on the Veco matter.
