It seems bizarre to balance news of the worst political corruption scandal in the state’s history and efforts by bloggers and commenters on Bacons Rebellion to dismiss it all as “everyone does it.”
The apologia is getting a little too hot and heavy here. One famous blogger wanted to smack former governor Bob McDonnell on the backside of the head, implying they are closer than brothers and that’s all what he really needs as punishment for doing the bidding of his greedy wife.
What’s being lost here is that the indictment of the McDonnells is a huge turning point in Virginia political history. It means that the old noblesse oblige manners dating to when the state was ruled by a rich and exclusive cabal of white men has long since vanished along with the idea that the “Virginia Way” means serious ethics rules are not necessary.
Big news, this. It’s not 1920 anymore and hasn’t been for nearly a century. The Old Dominion has emerged into a completely new state where top politicians are born elsewhere (George Allen, Mark Warner, Tim Kaine, Terry McAuliffe and even Bob McDonnell).
Rather than drawing from landed gentry the leadership comes from rich, self-made men, such as Warner who amassed $200 million or more in the cell phone and IT business or McAuliffe who built a fortune in various businesses. The other recruiting ground is service, including military, mayor, prosecutor or attorney general (Jim Gilmore, Kaine, McDonnell).
In the latter track, it is harder to build a fortune. It is harder still when religious or social conservative views make one compelled to breed prodigiously. You end up with a lot of mouths to feed and college tuition to pay. Nowhere was this more evident that with the McDonnells and their five children. In the old days, Scott Junior would have been sent off to “The University” or Washington & Lee while Sarah Jane went to Sweetbriar or somewhere thanks to old family money.
A few more myths to demolish:
- McDonnell will walk because there’s no “quid” to the “quo.” Admittedly, this is always a tough on in corruption cases. Even Blago from Illinois almost walked when there was indisputable evidence that he was selling Barack Obama’s seat. In West Virginia, they had Gov. Arch Moore accepting a half a million in cash in an envelope from a coal company wanting to avoid black lung fund payments. The donor was even wearing a wire and there was some question. But they both ended up in prison.
- McDonnnell technically did not have to concretely “deliver” anything for payoffs, just had to imply such. The indictments show a series of events. Maureen asks for favors (sometimes Bob does) and there’s some kind of event to promote Anatabloc, the product upon which Star Scientific’s financial future depended. The Food and Drug Administration since has said Anatabloc is not tested or approved. Star had used medical outlets such as the RosKamp Institute and Johns Hopkins School of Medicine to imply they backed the product. Johns Hopkins pushed back. Jonnie Williams tried to get Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Virginia to vet it by dropping the McDonnells’ name and pointing to events staged for him by the McDonnells. That could be quid pro quo enough.
- Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. Federal prosecutors had to act because there was a clear and steady cycle of solicitations from the McDonnells, gifts and loans from Williams and then some activity on the First Couple’s part promoting Williams and his company. There were no isolated events.
- The “everybody does it” defense. This doesn’t wash. First, it is true that one can drive a truck through Virginia’s ethics rules. No prosecutor could make a case on state law. But the indictments are federal charges. They include wire fraud. Federal law also covers gifts to public officials in exchange for something – perhaps political juice for medical research studies. It doesn’t have to actually happen. Lastly, there’s the nettlesome problem that McDonnell might have falsified loan application documents to hide his relationship with Williams. ”Intent” is always tough legally, but when one gets into bank documents, it’s a new ball of wax.
- Why didn’t voters know that the McDonnells were in such dire financial straits when they were elected? Where was the media? These days most job applicants go through a credit check. The fact that the First Couple made bad financial decisions and couldn’t manage their credit should have raised bright red flags.
- McDonnell’s apologists – most of them conservatives – can be aggravating in other ways. They likewise claim to be wardens of public money, but Virginians such as you and I are going to be stuck with more than $780,000 in legal bills defending Maureen and Bob for the designer dresses, the Ferrari, the Rolex and so on. This is because firebrand Atty. Gen. Kenneth Cuccinelli was in a conflict of interest because he accepted Williams largesse, too. New Attorney General Mark Herring has put a stop to this nonsense. So where are the nearly broke McDonnells going to get their legal funding? There is a defense fund that was started last summer but it only has a measly $2,000 in it, showing that Virginians aren’t exactly storming the Bastille over Maureen’s need for Oscar de la Renta clothing.
What this likely means is that the McDonnells, lacking resources for a lengthy court battle, will cop a plea and avoid lengthy jail terms. Point made: “Orange is the New Black.” And maybe the apologists will shut up long enough so we can get some needed ethics reform.