Rick Renzi charged with crimes

[Kopji]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23305327

Rep. Rick Renzi was charged with 35 counts of conspiracy, fraud, money laundering and extortion in an indictment announced Friday. The third-term Republican from Arizona is charged with using the power of his office, and in particular his spot on the House Natural Resources Committee, to push through a land sale that he personally benefited from in 2005. Renzi also is accused of funneling more than $100,000 from a longtime business associate into his 2002 campaign for Congress. Renzi was elected to Arizona's 1st Congressional District, a largely rural district...

I know that probably nobody cares, but the air here in lil' ol District 1 will hopefully soon be cleaner to breathe.

Rick Renzi, loving father of 12. Mostly resident of Virgina, representing some place he used to live - oh yeah, here. George Bush Buddy and #1 Cheerleader.

The story, in a nutshell, is that he accepted large donations from a company in southern Arizona with family ties, and helped win the election over better and more honest, but not as well financed candidates.

[Kopji]

I'm obviously broken up about this.

http://forums.randi.org/imagehosting/106147c12fa6506d7.jpg

[davefoc]

The attorneys said Renzi did nothing wrong and that he will fight the charges until he is vindicated and his family's name is restored.

Boy, I bet the prosecutors are embarrassed. Sounds like they've indicted a guy who did nothing wrong. Surely the defense attorneys wouldn't lie about something like this.

Looks like Renzi's going to resign from McCain campaign:
http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/02/22/692562.aspx

Supposedly NY Times article was cause of a big bump in McCain fund raising. Maybe he'll get another bump out of this. If this good news keeps going for McCain he may just overwhelm the Democrats with his fund raising.

[Kopji]

WHAT!!!
Omagawd, is this really a true quote?

McCain was unaware of the Arizona congressman's indictment until asked about it this morning after a town hall in Indianapolis, at which point he said that you always think about the family in these circumstances and he would look into Renzi's role in his campaign.

I'm honestly concerned about this. Can McCain be so ignorant of issues in his own state?

This specter has been following Renzi since 2002. The US attorney would have got this done faster if Gonzales had not removed him from office. This is probably the tip of a huge iceberg of a scandal, and McCain has this crook working for his campaign???

That borders on senile.

Renzi resigned from his House committees quite a while back, and nobody is really representing rural Arizona. This indictment is not news here, everyone has been expecting it.

[Kopji]

Here we go.


Mike Madden and Dennis Wagner
The Arizona Republic
Mar. 21, 2007 12:00 AM

WASHINGTON - Two weeks after Arizona U.S. Attorney Paul Charlton was ordered to give up his post, he sent an e-mail to a top Justice Department official asking how to handle questions that his ouster was connected to his investigation of Rep. Rick Renzi, R-Ariz.

Charlton, one of eight federal prosecutors forced to resign last year, never received a written response.

His December e-mail was among more than 3,000 pages of records the Bush administration turned over to Congress late Monday as part of an ongoing congressional investigation into the ousters. Democrats released the documents Tuesday...

...When the first list of U.S. attorneys targeted for ouster was drafted, Charlton's name was not on it. But his name was on a subsequent list, drafted in September. Although the Renzi inquiry was not yet public, it is likely the Justice Department was aware of the investigation, said a former U.S. attorney who is familiar with the protocol when a sitting lawmaker is involved.

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/0321usattorney0321.html

[Kopji]

If there is really this level of involvment of Renzi with McCain's staff, this is probably going to become news involving the McCain presidential campaign. It can be moved over there if mods want. booyah

[Kopji]

George Cordova is the local businessman who lost to Renzi in 2002, it was quite a mudfest toward the end. George is front page news in the Daily Sun today, headline: "I told you so". Gotta be a little bittersweet for him.

Cheney and Bush pulled out all the stops to help Rick get elected, and even visited. Those were the good ol days when all the world was before them.

The article closes with a quote from Dick Cheney in 2002:
"Rick is exactly the sort of person we need more of in Congress".

[HereticHulk]

Wasn't Renzi one of the 'center stage' Pentagon flight crash witnesses on 9/11?

ETA: Yup.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6n0Yqxe8XJ0

[Kopji]

Well I'm learning all kinds of new things.

That's sort of a weird interview on youtube, he was not elected to the House till 2002. I just happened to be driving by and sensed an interview opportunity. (That was for the CT'ers)

Anyway, thanks for rubbing it in our faces that the guy did not even live in Flagstaff, he just owns a second house here. (I'm pretty sure he despises his constituents from all parties.) I mean, what kind of backwater jerks would vote for him? And this is a blue county too, sheesh.

[Darth Rotor]

Here we go.
We'll call this chapter:

In the Shadow of Gonzo.

DR

[Kopji]

Yeah, I think I'm going to go for 'thread that people care least about'. :D

From the local paper: Arizona Daily Sun 2-24-08

If he were to quit Congress before May 4, Arizona law would require Gov Janet Napolitano to call a special election within 75 and 105 days and a special general election between 35 and 45 days after that to fill the vacancy.

However, if Renzi resigned after May 4, his seat would remain vacant until a new congressman was sworn in - after the September regular primary and the Nov 4 general election.

[Kopji]

I can only guess that a special election would attract more Democrats due simply to motivation.

Renzi today says he will not resign because that would imply that he had the mantle of guilt, and well, he's innocent.