Getting Some Buzz over at Daily Kos

In hearing about Alaska Senator Ted Stevens' indictment today on charges of failing to report hundreds of thousands of dollars of gifts on his federal financial disclosure, it occurred to me that former Commerce Secretary Norman Mineta's almost certain similar violation may have involved even more money.

Unfortunately, the federal authorities have (so far) refused to even open an investigation into Mr. Mineta's possible wrongdoing.

So to stir the pot some more, I posted an item over on Daily Kos:

Sen. Ted Stevens Got Caught, But It's Not Only Republicans

Wow -- a number of interesting responses right off the bat. Nice!

The guy who posted "You'd make Norm *Mineta* a priority?" clearly doesn't have a clue that this scandal involves (at least) three other top-level Administration officials besides Mr. Mineta, and a systemic breakdown of our federal law enforcement and ethics functions.

He'll just have to read the book.

Jerry

POGO Keeps the Pressure On the USDOT IG

The non-profit watchdog Project on Government Oversight (POGO) continues to actively pursue the truth and the facts in the Traffic.com scandal, and yesterday sent a letter to U.S. Dept. of Transportation Inspector General Calvin Scovel, urging the IG to conduct a comprehensive audit into the very counterproductive TTID program.

Both POGO and the Sunlight Foundation have consistently helped investigate this scandal, through the issuance of multiple Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, postings on their website and blogs, and letters like this one urging the authorities to conduct their own detailed investigations into this scandal.

From a description of his background, it certainly appears that Mr. Scovel is an honorable and honest individual. However, the Inspector General's inherent conflict of interest was never more apparent than in this case.

Senator Orrin Hatch and Congressman Anthony Weiner both formally requested (Hatch's letter, Weiner's letter) investigations into this program (as did POGO) primarily because of Transportation Secretary Mary Peters' "non-responsive response" to Sen. Hatch's two very pointed inquiries last year. (See this white paper for background.)

Yet the IG and his office report on a day-to-day basis to the Secretary's office. The IG's staff undoubtedly feels subtle (or not so subtle) pressure to limit the scope of the current audit to "some narrow aspect of the statutory language" as POGO states in its letter, rather than to conduct a thorough and comprehensive audit back to the beginning of this very counterproductive program. After all, the "career staff" knows that it's not the best thing for your career to investigate and possibly even criticize the actions of your own boss.

It's hard to imagine a bigger conflict of interest, and brings up the age-old question "Who Will Guard the Guards?"

Thankfully, POGO is helping fill that void. We absolutely need a whole lot more of this type of courageous, independent oversight.

Jerry

This Congressman is No Flake

Sometime last year I became aware of the efforts of Arizona Republican Congressman Jeff Flake to reform the out-of-control earmark process. Flake often says that earmarks are the "currency of corruption," and that's exactly what has happened in the Traffic.com scandal.

While Cong. Flake is undoubtedly more conservative than I (as a "progressive/independent") on some issues, every time I hear him talk about the waste and government shenanigans earmarks can cause I find myself nodding vigorously at what he's saying.

This morning while drinking my coffee and watching C-SPAN, I saw that the indefatigable Congressman was at it again, giving a very cogent "5-minute speech" on earmarks in the U.S. House chamber. Once I got in the office I called Cong. Flake's office and asked if they might make that a video of that presentation available on his website.

Just after lunch and -- voila -- an email message from Matt Specht, his Deputy Chief of Staff, with the URL for that speech on YouTube. Here it is.



Enjoy!

Jerry

The Truth about Mr. Mineta's Ethics Problem is Getting Around!

Ain't the Internet great!

The All Points Blog, subtitled "The Weblog for Location Technology and GIS," picked up on my recent Guest Editorial in Hawaiireporter.com with details of Mr. Mineta's big ethics problem related to Trimble Navigation. Of course, Trimble Navigation is a big player in the location technology market, which is why they were interested in this story in the first place.

Here's the blog piece:

Werner on Traffic.com "monopoly" and Mineta and Trimble Ethics Concern

I particularly liked the way Directions Media Executive Editor Adena Schutzberg concluded the posting: "I encourage interested readers to trace his source materials noted in the article above and his blog."

That's terrific advice. I too, of course, encourage anyone who wants to get to the truth in this matter to fully study the four white papers I've put together that lay out the facts (and there are many) related to Mr. Mineta's very likely violation of our nation's signature ethics law, the Ethics in Government Act. I also encourage folks to listen carefully to my actual discussions with a lady in the U.S. Office of Government Ethics after the OGE apparently "lost" the one financial disclosure on which Mr. Mineta was required by law to provide details of his capital gains income of up to $1 million in Trimble Navigation stock options.

Senior appointed officials in our government should not have a "private agenda" when they come into office but, of course, that clearly appears to be what happened in this case. The citizens of this country deserve and should demand much better.

It has now been almost a month since my Guest Editorial ran, and no response at all from Mr. Mineta. No correction, no rebuttal, no threat to take me to court, no attempt (that I know of) to attack the messenger.

Mr. Mineta is now the Vice Chairman of a very prestigious worldwide Public Relations firm, Hill & Knowlton. Certainly, H&K has the resources to "spin" this story any way they want to, such as to put out a story that I'm just a disgruntled former federal contractor with an axe to grind against Mr. Mineta. Of course, that would not be true, but PR firms often put out spin that isn't true. Their business is "image," not necessarily truth -- very much like politics.

The likely reason that H&K and Mr. Mineta are staying mum is that they know that if they do launch a PR counterattack, that will just focus the public spotlight on the facts of the matter, to my Guest Editorial and four white papers and all the details I have provided online about the Traffic.com scandal.

Back on March 19, 2006, H&K Chairman Paul Taaffe (Mr. Mineta's boss) gave an interview to Australia's ABC Radio in which he said, "There’s nowhere to hide, that’s absolutely right... The reality is, we live in the Google age, there are no secrets."

He was absolutely right.

Ain't the Internet great!

Jerry

It isn't the Thing That I Bought

This latest song from Max and the Marginalized puts words to something that's been rattling around in my brain lately -- that Barack Obama's positions on a number of issues seem to be "softening." That's a polite way of saying that he doesn't quite seem to be standing on the same principles he espoused in his successful primary run, and that made him my preferred candidate during the primaries.

I have no problem if a candidate openly changes a position on some key issue based on changing facts and his or her honest reassessment of that issue. While sticking to one's beliefs and convictions is usually noble, there are times when circumstances demand reconsideration. But wholesale abandoning of your principles strictly to attract more of "the middle" is blatant pandering, pure and simple.

It boils down to telling people what they want to hear, rather than what you believe. Of course, that's what politicians do, but I thought that Obama was more of a statesman than the typical politician.

Now I'm not so sure. I'm going to be watching both candidates closely to see if I can really tell what they believe as opposed to just what they say. If we can't discern the difference, how can we know what they'll do once they get in office?

We can't afford to have another individual in the White House like the current occupant. Our issues are way too pressing.

Jerry