Kent Conrad Lucks Out, Is Inexplicably Left Off Most Corrupt Politicians List
Judicial Watch has released it’s list of the 10 (12 including the dishonorable mentions) most corrupt politicians of 2008. You can see the whole list here, but what’s interesting to me is that North Dakota’s Senator Kent Conrad was left off the list.
Conrad’s partner in crime in the Countrywide scandal, Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, made the list in the second position but Kent Conrad is nowhere to be seen.
Why, I wonder? Dodd did more for Countrywide, and received more compensation, but Conrad’s actions on behalf of Countrywide (pushing legislation potentially worth hundreds of billions of dollars to Countrywide through his Budget Committee) were certainly important, and the $10,000 in mortgage discounts he got certainly isn’t small potatoes. And then, after the scandal, Senator Conrad attempted to exonerate himself from any wrong doing by claiming that he didn’t know he was receiving any special treatment from Countrywide Mortgage.
Yet a Countrywide insider has gone on the record saying that it was his job to give VIP’s like Conrad special treatment and to make sure they knew they were getting it. Meaning that Conrad is not only guilty of taking bribes from Countrywide, but he’s guilty of lying to the public about it too.
And what’s troubling is that the media in North Dakota has largely let all of this go on with only a small amount of reporting, and absolutely no criticism.
So much for that “fourth estate” of objective, truth-telling journalists who are supposed to be keeping our political leaders honest.
It’s a new year. Perhaps journalists in North Dakota should make a resolution to hold the powers that be accountable for their actions now and then.
