FBI, IRS Search Alaskan Senator’s Home

Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK) issued a statement earlier this week which read, “My attorneys were advised this morning that federal agents wished to search my home in Girdwood [about 40 miles from Anchorage, AK] in connection with an ongoing investigation. I continue to believe this investigation should proceed to its conclusion without any appearance that I have attempted to influence the outcome.” The investigation revolves around his links to an oil-services company called VECO, whose CEO and a VP have pleaded guilty to several federal corruption charges.

VECO CEO Bill Allen and VECO vice president, Rick Smith, have pleaded guilty to paying more than $400,000 to Alaskan lawmakers as bribes. Mr. Allen and the senator go back quite a few years, and they were partners in a race horse enterprise called Alaska’s Great Eagle, LLC, which owned a horse named “So Long Birdie.” Other ties between VECO and the senator include some hiring of family members. Ben Stevens, son of Senator Ted, is president of the Alaska State Senate and runs Stevens and Associates, Inc., a consulting company. VECO has paid $243,000 to that firm over the last five years for consulting services. Meanwhile, VECO President Pete Leathard's son, Scott, has been a staffer in Senator Steven’s Washington Office.

None of this is illegal, and given the sparse population of Alaska, it might be inevitable. The appearance may not be all that pristine, but the evidence of wrong-doing is invisible to non-existent. Where it gets dicey for the Senator is his home in Girdwood, which was remodeled in 2000, effectively doubling its size. The man who oversaw the project was Mr. Allen, who vetted the bills and the construction work.

If Mr. Allen got the place remodeled at a fair price, then much of this will fall by the wayside. However, if he saved the Senator substantial money, it is going to start to look like bribery, much like the case of former New York City Police Commissioner Bernie Kerik. Senator Stevens is 83 years old and, therefore, probably doesn’t face any jail time even if he is indicted (which has not yet happened), tried and convicted. Yet, he does give the Democrats yet another “sleaze” claim that will hurt the GOP in November 2008.

© Copyright 2007 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux.

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