Katherine Harris (Florida Selection 2000) linked to bribery scandal

[PhilipShore]

Tampa Tribune
Harris Got Illegal Donations
Feb 25, 2006

http://news.tbo.com/news/metro/MGBQ34QE3KE.html

TAMPA - A defense contractor who pleaded guilty Friday to bribing a California congressman told federal authorities he also funneled illegal campaign contributions to U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris of Longboat Key, who's running for the U.S. Senate.

Representative Katherine Harris
Republican, Florida

Biography

Answers.com

http://www.answers.com/topic/katherine-harris

While she was Secretary of State, Harris presided over the contested Presidential election of 2000 in Florida. It was Harris who certified that the Republican candidate, George W. Bush, had carried the State of Florida, thus giving him the election over Al Gore. Her ruling was challenged, and was overturned on appeal by the Florida Supreme Court, but was upheld upon further appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States. There were allegations of a conflict of interest since she was prominent in the Florida Bush campaign.

[Dr.Phool]

1. I hope they find a way to indict her ass.

She really belongs in the women's wing of the same place they send the Duke-stir.

[Lasher]

9. We will prepare a room for her at Alderson, WV

I think this is still the only federal women's prison in the USA.

[BrotherBuzz]

33. We have a lovely and extremely overcrowded one in California

Dublin Federal Correctional Institution in California houses women. We'll make room for her!

[Lasher]

42. Yours sounds better

Alderson was the Club Fed that they sent Martha Stewart to.

Just to further my education, how long has Dublin been in business?

[BrotherBuzz]

43. I remember it being there back in the early fifties...

It sat alone up on a hill adjacent to some sort of Army depot facility. Back then it looked like WWII surplus Army barracks surrounded by barbed wire fencing so I suspect it's history started sometime after WWII. Google failed me in nailing the exact date. For what it's worth, Heidi Fleiss is an alumna of the facility.

[Lasher]

53. OK, I broke down and googled this

Alderson Prison, which is sometimes called Camp Cupcake by the locals, was the first Federal Women's Prison, but it hasn't been the only one for the better part of a century. Holy cow, was my information dated, or what?

http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/1008/p01s01-usju.html

That's impressive you had Heidi Fleiss. But we got Tokyo Rose, Squeaky Fromme, and Martha Stewart. And we can improve our lists of famous female felons. The way the pukes are going, it looks like we'll soon get a crack at Katherine Harris and Jean Schmidt.

http://dailydelay.blogspot.com/2005/07/schmidt-candidate-in-oh-02-urged-to.html

Thank you very much, I learned something today. That's a good thing. :)

[Critters2]

45. There's one in Pekin, IL

where they lock up nuns who protest the School of the Americas. I don't know about the quality of the accomodations, but spending some time around people with morals might be good for ol' Katie!

[peace frog]

54. May I remind you that this is Flori-DUH, friends...

If you're hoping for an indictment of our esteemed former Secretary of State, save your optimism.
Ain't gonna happen in JebBushWorld... not now, not ever while Repukes are in power.

[cascadiance]

58. If they have to keep her in prison in Florida...

... perhaps she could share a cell with Ann Coulter after they nail her ass for election fraud too! That would be a good pair!

[Roland99]

63. She'll finagle her way out of it...nothing seems to stick to some people.

[Wordie]

2. K&R!!! I looooveee hearing it! :)

You should edit to get her name in the title line, PhilipShore! More people would recognize who it is that way!

You could say:
"Katharine Harris, former FL SOS (in 2000 Election) Got Illegal Donations"

I think that would fit...

[Wordie]

25. Good work, PhilipShore!

That title is WAAAYYY better than the one I suggested!

:applause:

[davidinalameda]

3. the best quote from that article

The congressman who got second-most illegal money wants to be a U.S. senator."

priceless!

[Mnemosyne]

4. .

[PhilipShore]

5. PensacolaNewsJournal: Harris linked to bribery scandal

PensacolaNewsJournal
Harris linked to bribery scandal
February, 25, 2006

http://www.pensacolanewsjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060225/NEWS01/602250319/1006

WASHINGTON -- Florida U.S. Senate candidate Katherine Harris was forced again Friday to distance herself from a bribery scandal that already has cost one former Republican congressman his job.

In Wade's guilty plea on Friday, the court document stated "Representative A" received $46,000 in "illegal contributions" from employees and spouses at Wade's firm.

Harris is "Representative A."

[ThoughtCriminal]

6. OK Illegal contirbutions - what about bribes?

That she could be indicted for.

[lovuian]

7. This is true Karma for Kathy .......

She wanted a piece of the action she earned it!!!

[ClayZ]

8. YES! It feels sooooo good to read this!

THROW THE ______ IN JAIL!





:popcorn:

[Justice Is Comin]

10. Yeah

Hang her chad.

[tom_paine]

11. Criminals will be criminals

Of course, her role in one of the greatest crimes in American Hostory (and her getting away with it, scot-free, couldn't have helped her respect for the law)

[Jeanette in FL]

12. She is supposed to be in Palatka, FL this morning

I plan on attending her visit to our little town t 9:30am. This should be good. Her topic of conversation is to be: "Faith-based issues". I wonder how illegal contributions fit into her faith. I haven't formulated a question for her yet, if I am able to get into the event. I will report back in later.

[lpbk2713]

14. I'll be looking forward to hearing

what she had to lie about.

[jasmeel]

32. OOH!! Do it!!

[Peter Frank]

13. But she's so evocatice...

[AndyA]

15. Katherine Harris needs to go to JAIL

No do pass the cosmetics counter, do not collect additional hairspray.

GO STRAIGHT TO JAIL!

I'll steal a quote from Dolly Parton: It costs a fortune to look this trashy. So you can see why Harris needs the money! :rofl:

[Patsy Stone]

44. OMG!

:rofl:

[liberal N proud]

16. That B!@%$ needs to go to jail

For all she has done to this country, she needs to rot in jail.

[lumberingbear]

17. Karma is a bitch, Katherine honey!!!!

[bballny]

18. She needed the money

to buy her new boobs.

[ncteechur]

19. Is there an honest one among them? I think NOT!!!!

[graywarrior]

20. Whoopee!!!!

Next time I see her in Whole Foods I can laugh at her. (Like I don't already)

[Faygo Kid]

21. In today's Washington Post, too

Contractor Pleads Guilty to Corruption
Probe Extends Beyond Bribes to Congressman

By Charles R. Babcock
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, February 25, 2006; Page A01

Washington defense contractor Mitchell J. Wade admitted yesterday in federal court that he attempted to illegally influence Defense Department contracting officials and tried to curry favor with two House members, in addition to lavishing more than $1 million in cash, cars, a boat, antiques and other bribes on convicted Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-Calif.).

The new admissions, including details that identify Reps. Virgil H. Goode Jr. (R-Va.) and Katherine Harris (R-Fla.) as recipients of illegal campaign contributions, are contained in Wade's agreement to plead guilty to four criminal charges stemming from his role in the Cunningham probe. The congressman resigned after pleading guilty in November to taking $2.4 million in bribes from Wade and others in return for steering federal funds and contracts their way. . .

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/24/AR2006022401737.html

[mom cat]

22. Who is running against her?

[Faygo Kid]

38. Incumbent Democratic Sen. Nelson

Not a favorite, by any means, but not a BushBot, as a Dem.

[mom cat]

40. Right. I forgot.

[Mithras61]

23. I especially like this bit...

Wade also told prosecutors he met with Harris in early 2005 for dinner at an expensive Washington restaurant, where they discussed two possibilities: Wade holding a fundraiser for Harris, who was then considering a run for Senate, and U.S. Navy funding for an MZM center in Harris' district.

<snip>

It is illegal for Congress members to discuss or accept money in return for performing specific governmental acts.

A Harris spokeswoman confirmed Friday that Harris did have dinner with Wade and discussed both subjects, but denied there was any connection between them.

So what she's saying is that she either:

a) discussed performing specific acts for dinner and she was too stupid to realize she was being bribed

or

b) accepted bribes for illegally actions and expects that WE'RE to stupid to realize she was bribed (even though Wade says he bribed her).


I'm not sure which of these options is worse! <head explodes>

[murpheeslaw]

57. ". . . expensive Washington restaurant . . ."

Gee, wasn't there some mention of someone else with Republican leanings . . . that had a restaurant . . . in Washington . . . where people were wine'd and dine'd and deals were made . . . and he's in some kind of trouble now . . . Wait - don't tell me - Appleman? Abracadabra(?!) Oh, yes - Abramoff. Wouldn't that be just (ahem) delicious?

also your line ". . . discussed performing specific acts for dinner . . ." just gives me the willies (ugh! - sorry, my mind's in the gutter)

[yardwork]

24. Toss her in jail!

She should be in jail twelve times over for stealing the election anyway.

[Botany]

26. Sounds more like a bribe to me.

Harris should come clean about the 2000 election so as to get a reduced sentence.

[Seedersandleechers]

27. Best news I've heard all day!!!!!

[raysr]

28. Throw her in with Charlie(Manson)

[kiteinthewind]

29. YES!!!!

Kick! :kick:

[WillyT]

30. And... Defense Contractor Says He Gave Harris Illegal Campaign Money

Herald Tribune

Link: http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060225/NEWS/602250401

:bounce::evilgrin::bounce:

[Shelor]

31. The GOP is so stupid for running this bimbo. Landslide win for Nelson.

[libertarianseeker]

34. Landslide

<The GOP is so stupid for running this bimbo. Landslide win for Nelson.>
Who is counting the votes in Florida these days anyway.... just wondering...

[aquart]

35. Yep. Part of her payoff.

Bitch. Hope she fries in oil.

[LSK]

36. Please please please MSM run with this

Hopefully she will remove herself from the race. Is anyone even running against here in the primary? A similar thing happened in IL that helped Obama win - not that he needed the help.

[Divine Discontent]

37. sheesh.. what a filthy woman

I could only hope that my brakes would go out driving near her ***snicker!***


and how this woman can get ANYONE to vote for her over the extremely HONORABLE Bill Nelson will blow me away.. shows how blind Americans are to corruption and concerned with whether they should go see Madea's Family Reunion, taping LOST and making sure they get paid for those extra 4 hours at work that their company usually tries to screw them out of! They've no CLUE and don't want ONE!!!


This woman (ARE WE SURE OF THIS????) will get at least 43% of the vote, and that is staggering. Anyone want to make any bets on this? She was behind the mess in 2000, and still got elected congresswoman, so what's a little bribery? :puke:


http://www.cafepress.com/senbillnelson

[klook]

39. "...has since donated the contributions to charity."

Harris has acknowledged accepting the MZM contributions but said she did not know they were illegal and never performed any service for MZM in return. She has since donated the contributions to charity.

Hmmm...I wonder what "charity" she donated the $$ to? The Club for Growth? The Heritage Foundation? The American Enterprise Institute?

At PoliticalMoneyLine there's general info about her contributions and disbursements. For $50 you can download a more detailed report, but I'm too cheap. Surely this info is publicly available for free somewhere.

on edit: fixed fecinfo.com link

[lpbk2713]

48. So, if I robbed a bank. And then when I was caught ......

if I gave the money back to the bank.....

Does that mean all is forgiven and I'm a nice guy again?


Not a chance in Hell.

That sort of thing only happens to rethuglicans.

[PhilipShore]

41. TIME: Would Justice Clean the House?

TIME
Would Justice Clean the House?
If Congress doesn't start policing itself more seriously, federal prosecutors say they might step in
Feb. 25, 2006

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1167705,00.html

The Justice Department has a message for Congress: clean up your house or else we may have to do it for you. A senior federal law enforcement official told TIME that the paralyzed and often lax House ethics committee has created a vacuum that prosecutors won't hesitate to fill. The House’s internal mechanism for keeping corruption in check is “broken,” says the official.

But with the House ethics committee stalled for so long, new pressure on House members to jump start their internal ethics oversight comes in the form of widening justice probes into their behavior.
Wade, former CEO of defense contractor MZM, pleaded guilty to bribing Cunningham and told investigators about how he reimbursed employees who gave to the campaigns of influential representatives. Records released in the Wade plea suggest the House Members are GOP Reps. Katherine Harris of Florida and Virgil Goode of Virginia. Harris released a statement Friday calling the revelations in the Wade plea “an unfortunate reality…. I am confident justice will prevail and the guilty parties will be properly punished." Harris said she had attempted to refund the donations after press accounts first called them into question some time ago, before “voluntarily deciding to donate the full amount of these funds to charity.” Goode issued a statement on Friday saying he had donated all MZM-related campaign contributions to charity. Goode could not be reached for comment—but seems to acknowledge he'd been tight with Wade by calling him “Mitch” in the statement, which appears to be on official House letterhead instead of the campaign stationery that’s normally used for fundraising matters.

[FreedomAngel82]

46. Maybe this is why people are running away from her?

[Up2Late]

47. OH NO! First Ralph Reed!, Now Katherine "Cruella de Ville" Harris!

It's almost enough to say that ALL Republicans a Corrupt! There, I said it, and I won't take it back!

[eppur_se_muova]

56. Love it! I called her "Florida's Cruel Stepmother", but she looks like CD!

[DemFromMem]

49. Why can't this news break AFTER she gets the GOP nomination?

Not to be Machiavellian, but it will be a shame if Harris' nomination is shot and the GOP gets a better candidate in time to have a real shot at Florida. Not sure if one exists, but geez, Harris is a horror movie and is the ideal candidate to oppose.

[klook]

52. Please do be Machiavellian in this case

That would have been truly sweet if she'd gotten the nomination and then this came out too late for any other Republican candidate to gain any traction. But I'll take it.

[peace frog]

60. Her nomination is relatively secure however...

... currently she trails her opponent, Democrat Bill Nelson, by 25 points and is not expected to catch up by election time. Either way, she doesn't have a prayer.

[savemefromdumbya]

50. another one bites the dust!

[Virginian]

51. Virgil Goode also. Charlottsville, did you catch that?

Harris, Cunningham and Virgil Goode of Virginia's 5th district. I see Virgil has two opponents in the race this year. Make sure they see this. Make sure they use this.
Let this help turn Virginia blue.

[kiteinthewind]

55. Does anybody have the link to the Hannity-Colmes show when she was

turned sideways, sticking her chest into the air while she was being interviewed about her announcement for her candidacy? She is a total freak!! I have it on RealPlayer, but don't know how to put a link to it. :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[kay1864]

62. I think CrooksandLiars still has it

http://www.crooksandliars.com/2005/08/09.html

[kiteinthewind]

64. Thanks, kay!

:hi:

[cascadiance]

59. Katherine Harris and Goode were suspected back in June in 2005...

... of taking illegal contributions then. I created a thread in the Florida forum to note this. Read here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=145&topic_id=4766&mesg_id=4766

What Wade's guilty plea does is confirm that these contributions were illegal. The next step will be to establish how there might have been "payback" for those illegal contributions. I would guess that Wade and MZM wouldn't have been breaking the law "just to be nice" to get Harris and Goode elected. This is just step 2 in this process. I wonder if Cunningham was "wired" earlier when talking to Goode or Harris?

Rethugs knew this too. I think it was no coincidence that the Bushies were trying to discourage her in her Senate Campaign and wanting to get someone else the nomination instead. They knew that she was "marked" back then when the Cunningham scandal broke wide open. The Rethugs forced Cunningham to resign as early as possible (they didn't want him running for re-election too), and his resignation was put off as long as they could. We still don't have effective representation here in the 50th district in California. Hopefully that will change on April 11th, but that is probably why they have Diebold lined up to restart itself in California in that special election, even if Arnold and McPherson are breaking California state law to do so.

[9119495]

61. Too bad it wasn't after her primary...Does this mean she'll be pardoned

as bush leaves office?

Glad to see we'll be keeping Florida's other Senate seat.