Corrupt Bastard Comes to School Board **VIDEO UPDATE**
UPDATE: Mr. Corkran withdrew his name for consideration on Sunday afternoon. On Monday, Thomas P. Corkran will be sworn in as a School Board member. He was selected by the Anchorage School Board after four rounds of voting to fill the seat vacated by Gretchen Guess. The board had boiled the candidates down to two, and selected Corkran over the CEO of Avant-Garde Learning Alliance, Kameron Perez-Verdia. There were 41 applications: why did they pick this guy? Do our School Board members know how to Google? I’m hoping the answer is no. Why? Because the alternative is spooky. Mr….
Open Thread – Crude Awakening Book Salon TODAY!
Join me and author Amanda Coyne of Alaska Dispatch today at firedoglake.com for a book salon featuring the new release Crude Awakening – Money, Mavericks and Mayhem in Alaska by Coyne and co-author Tony Hopfinger. Details below. Hope to see you there! [Cross-posted from Alaska Dispatch] Jeanne Devon, AKA AK Muckraker, who runs the popular Alaska-based website The Mudflats, is hosting an online discussion Sunday, Nov. 13, of “Crude Awakening: Money, Mavericks and Mayhem in Alaska.” The discussion will be held at Firedoglake Book Salon. “Crude Awakening” was penned by Alaska Dispatch founders Amanda Coyne and Tony Hopfinger. Coyne will…
Corrupt Bastard Doesn’t Like Being Corrupt Bastard – Sues
Just when you thought it was over… Convicted Corrupt Bastard Vic Kohring, doesn’t much like being called a corrupt bastard. So, he’s is suing fellow corrupt Bastard Bill Allen, federal informant and former CEO of oil services company VECO for defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and damage to his business and personal reputations. He has also named CH2M Hill, the company that purchased VECO in the suit. Vic Kohring, as you may recall, is the former Republican legislator from Wasilla who pleaded guilty during his October 21 retrial for accepting bribes to keep oil taxes low in Alaska. The…
Corrupt Bastard Double Feature – Kott and Kohring Sentenced
Yesterday, a long dark chapter in the history of Alaska politics came to an end. I decided that even though the day didn’t promise to hold any shocking news or big surprises, that I ought to be there nonetheless. The last of the self-described “Corrupt Bastards Club” have pleaded guilty and were sentenced by Judge Ralph Beistline. Courtroom 2 in the Federal Courthouse was busy today. No cameras were allowed in the courtroom so, as usual, you will have to rely upon my masterful and detailed court drawings that will make you feel like you were really there. First up:…
Corrupt Bastards Plead Out – No New Trials for Kott and Kohring
Well, it’s good news for former Senate President Pete (got) Kott and former Representative Vic Kohring – bad news for courtroom devotees of the Corrupt Bastard trials. It was political theater at its best, and there never seemed to be an end to the drama. But with news that there will be no prosecution of Ben Stevens, former Senate President (and son of the late Senator Ted Stevens), nor of Congressman Don Young, it appeared that things are winding down. Kott and Kohring were both found guilty and serving prison time when their attorneys successfully appealed and got both a…
Ben Stevens – the One that Got Away
An Open Letter from Wickersham’s Conscience to Attorney General John Burns about Ben Stevens, former State Senate President and son of the late Senator Ted Stevens. August 11, 2011 John J. Burns, Attorney General Department of Law PO Box 110300 Juneau, AK 99811 Re: Ben Stevens Dear Attorney General Burns: The Anchorage Daily News reports today that Ben Stevens will not be subject to federal prosecution. Based on the federal prosecutors’ track record in Operation Polar Pen has been pretty pitiful. But just because the Feds have abandoned their claims against Ben Stevens doesn’t mean the State of Alaska has to let him…
Corrupt Bastards 2.0 Has Launch Date
Good news for Alaskans that have been jonesing for their Corrupt Bastard fix. It’s been a while. The trials of the self-named Corrupt Bastards Club were the best pieces of legislative and judicial theater around, and had Alaskans who normally didn’t pay attention to politics riveted, and infuriated. They may not have been keeping up with the ins and outs of Alaska oil and gas taxation and policy, but at the very least they expected their legislators not to blatantly sell their votes right to the oil companies. Silly Alaskans. Not only did we discover that our legislators sold out,…