House leader Hoyer steps in to help distressed Laura Richardson
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer today defended a California Democrat facing ethics questions over her personal finances, while appearing to downplay his involvement in a fundraiser for her this week.
Rep. Laura Richardson's Sacramento house was sold in a foreclosure last month, according to news reports, and she has gon
e into default on properties in San Pedro and Long Beach. She still owed $9,000 in county taxes on the Sacramento house.
The Long Beach Press-Telegram reports that in 1995 Richardson stiffed a local mechanic on a $735 bill to repair her heavily damaged BMW, and then had it towed to another body shop and abandoned it. Then a member of the Long Beach City Council, she began using a city-owned car, according to the Press-Telegram, which she continued to drive for five days after joining the California State Assembly.
The watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington has called on the House Ethics Committee to investigate.
Hoyer, known in political circles as a prodigious fundraiser, is hosting a Capitol Hill event on Wednesday to help Richardson retire her campaign debt. Matthew Hay Brown has the rest of the story over at the Swamp.
-- Andrew Malcolm
Andrew Malcolm's immigrant parents repeatedly stressed the importance of active participation in a democracy. Early lessons included learning the alphabetical list of states by watching televised roll calls of national political conventions. That childhood exposure led to a lifelong fascination with politics, including 40-plus years of covering them and a brief stint practicing them as press secretary to Laura Bush in 1999-2000. A veteran foreign and national correspondent, Malcolm served on the Times Editorial Board and was a Pulitzer finalist in 2004. He is the author of 10 nonfiction books and father of four.
Johanna Neuman is a veteran Washington correspondent for both The Los Angeles Times and USA Today, having covered presidents and politics as far back as Ronald Reagan. A former president of the White House Correspondents Assn., she authored a book on media and foreign policy, “Lights, Camera, Wars.” Most recently she was co-author of the 
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It seems the Democ"rats" have their own nest of "Jack the rat Abramoffs. They keeping tell everyone it is the Republicans that are "BAD". Why do people fall for it.
Both parties have their fair share of ......
VJ Machiavelli
http://www.vjmachiavelli.blogspot.com
Posted by: VJ Machiavelli | June 24, 2008 at 11:39 PM
The Los Angeles County District Attorney Cooley should bring her before a grand jury via subpoena qnd question her under oath. Then the D.A, should question all those with Knowledge of Richardson'd alleged transgressions. If probable cause exists for indictments he should ask the grand jury to return atrue bill of indictment and let her and or any others who may be charged defend themselves in open court. If convicted a custodial sentence should be utilized to to punish the guilty, particularly anyone who misuses their public office for improper personal benefit.
Elected officeholders who abuse the law by corrupt practices must do more hard prision time than even the most violent of other criminals.
Posted by: Kev | June 25, 2008 at 05:47 PM