Must Read: THE WRONG STUFF - Pulitizer-Winning Reporters Write Book on Duke Cunningham

[Dems Will Win]

The reporters who won a Pulitzer Prize for breaking the Duke Cunningham scandal have written a book!!

Here are some OPs of mine on the scandal:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=408673

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=417354

It was a conspiracy to create phony defense companies (see links above), fund them easy contracts through earmarks on Rep. Lewis' committee, live the life of luxury and send millions to the GOP campaign funds. The Biggest Scandal Ever. Duke even had a Price List for Bribes.

Book Description

Duke Cunningham was an All-American success story. The Midwestern boy who went off to war, became a hero, and rode his fame into Congress even bragged that Tom Cruise played him in a popular movie. But the fall of this "Top Gun" was almost as epic and just as cinematic. Today he sits in prison, branded as the most corrupt member of Congress in U.S. history.

To the public, Cunningham was a heroic family man. In reality, he was a hard-drinking, partisan bully with a lavish sense of entitlement and feckless moral compass. He partnered with rogues like Brent Wilkes and Mitch Wade, and together they hatched a grandiose plan to get rich wrapping themselves in the flag. Over time, Cunningham fed Wilkes and Wade tens of millions of dollars in vital post-9/11 contracts in exchange for millions in bribes. Their clubhouse was a yacht tied up along the Potomac River. From there, they traveled the city in limos, flew in private jets, and hosted all-night parties at posh hotels. Their funding came from "earmarks" in classified military contracts that were supposed to protect our troops in Iraq--not be squandered on booze and beautiful women, on yachts and jets.

Now, members of the team that won the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for sending Cunningham to prison uncover new details in a story still unfolding in Washington. The Wrong Stuff chronicles Cunningham's rise and his sordid fall. It is the saga of a man who came to believe his own press clippings and developed an enormous sense of self-entitlement, a man strong enough to brave enemy fire but too weak to resist the corrupt contractors and lobbyists in the nation's capital. It is also the story of the shadowy side of Washington today. More than just the story of one crooked politician, this is an inside look at how our system allowed this to happen. The Wrong Stuff provides the context for Cunningham's misdeeds and shows that more than one man's venality was involved. Indeed, there were things darkly wrong with Washington that invited Cunningham--and others--to steal, often putting American soldiers and Marines at risk during wartime.

If you want to understand the recent outcry over congressional corruption, then you need to understand how Cunningham and his contractor friends used the government to enrich themselves. This penetrating, witty, and gossipy analysis of how they stole and how they got caught makes for a fascinating read with a lesson for all Americans.

About the Author

The authors were on the team that won the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting. Jerry Kammer has been a correspondent for Copley News Service since 2002. Marcus Stern has been in Copley's Washington Bureau for twenty-two years. Dean Calbreath has been a reporter for The San Diego Union-Tribune for more than eight years. George E. Condon Jr. has been Washington bureau chief for Copley since 1984. Stern, Calbreath, and Kammer all received the George Polk award. Stern and Kammer also share the Edgar Poe award.

http://www.amazon.com/Wrong-Stuff-Extraordinary-Cunningham-Congressman/dp/1586484796/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-8255662-1825610

http://www.amazon.com/Wrong-Stuff-Extraordinary-Cunningham-Congressman/dp/1586484796/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-8255662-1825610

An excerpt from the book from TPM Muckraker, which received an advance copy:

...even Wilkes drew a line on what he would do for the congressman. For one thing, Wilkes was totally disgusted by the hot tub Cunningham put on the boat's deck during the autumn and winter. What repelled Wilkes -- and others invited to the parties -- was both the water Cunningham put in the hot tub and the congressman's penchant for using it while naked, even if everybody else at the party was clothed. Cunningham used water siphoned directly from the polluted Potomac River and never changed it out during the season. "Wilkes thought it was unbelievably dirty and joked if you got in there it would leave a dark water line on your chest," said one person familiar with the parties. "The water was so gross that very few people were willing to get into the hot tub other than Duke and his paramour." That was a reference to Cunningham's most frequently seen girlfriend, a flight attendant who lived in Maryland.

One of these parties started at the Capital Grille with Cunningham ordering his usual filet mignon -- very well done -- with iceberg lettuce salad and White Oak. Wilkes used the dinner to update Cunningham on the appropriations he wanted. Cunningham then took the whole group back to the boat where they drank more wine, sitting on white leather sofas while Cunningham told more war stories. Cunningham then took his clothes off and invited all to join him in the polluted hot tub that was hidden from the neighbors by a white tarp. There were no takers.

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/003262.php

From an interview in Harper's with the authors:

Who are some of the other characters in the Cunningham story that are still facing legal problems?

Wade pleaded guilty to conspiring to bribe Cunningham, and to denying the country the full honest services of defense officials and to committing election fraud. He is awaiting sentencing, which is expected in the fall. It’s been delayed because he’s assisting in the prosecution of Wilkes and possibly other co-conspirators. Wilkes has pleaded not guilty to charges of bribery, and Dusty Foggo, the former number-three official at the CIA, has also pleaded not guilty to charges that he funneled contracts to Wilkes. They will be tried this fall in San Diego and both have indicated they will fight the charges very aggressively. Wilkes gave three-quarters of a million dollars to Republican leaders and flew Tom DeLay around on his private jet. There’s probably real uneasiness on the part of Karl Rove and other GOP strategists that if Wilkes pleaded guilty and became a government witness, that it could jeopardize some more Republican congressional seats.

http://harpers.org/archive/2007/05/hbc-90000141

Remember to RECOMMEND to get the word out on this book...

[spanone]

1. K&R

[acmavm]

2. Two absoluty great threads there, that's for sure.

Which makes me really interested in you opinion of the dems we sent to Washington last fall. Do you think we got what we bargained for? They may not be fleecing the American people and laundering dirty money, but are they doing what we elected them to do? In your opinion, of course.

[Dems Will Win]

3. We sent about 30 more progressives to Congress

That makes 70 in the NEW Progressive Caucus, the largest Caucus in the House. That's almost 1/3 of the Dems. Soon with the young Millennials vote it will be half, then 2/3 of the Dems will be Progressive over the coming election cycles. Within 4-6 years, the Dems will be far more new style Progressive than old-style Liberal.

Then things will be peachy keen.

Until then it's going to be great on some issues and sucky on others - compared to the Repubs who are horrible on all issues, if not actively working to bring about the end of the world.

So gimme the Dems anytime!

[Ilsa]

4. I remember the History Channel profiling him

as the real deal, a true American hero. What a shame that his moral compass was so far off that he'd be so easily corrupted.