Posted on 10/19/2009 7:43:23 AM PDT by rabscuttle385
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Mayor Larry Langford, who could be tossed out of office and go to prison if convicted of federal bribery charges, recently offered some advice to a new Birmingham City Council member.
"The illusion of power is the most dangerous drug on the planet," Langford said. "A little bit of power — nothing intoxicates like it."
Last week's comment may sound a lot like the government's opening argument against Langford, 61, the most recent in a long line of prominent names in the state Democratic Party to face corruption charges. Jury selection begins Monday.
Prosecutors claim a greedy, power-drunk Langford accepted bribes totaling some $235,000 — a chunk of it for upscale clothes and jewelry — while serving as president of the Jefferson County Commission before he was elected mayor. In exchange, they say, Langford steered $7.1 million in bond business to a political crony's investment banking firm.
Those bond deals and others turned sour during the credit crunch and brought on a financial crisis that has pushed Alabama's most populous county to the brink of filing what would be the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history. The current commissioners have repeatedly extended credit agreements as they struggle to pay back $3.9 billion.
Charged with multiple felony counts of bribery, conspiracy, fraud, money laundering and tax violations, Langford automatically would be removed from office if convicted of even one count.
(Excerpt) Read more at google.com ...
Sorry, can’t be a dem. and uncorrupt. Its gotten to old and the silence from all dems is total.
WHY PELOSI MUST GO
By DICK MORRIS
Published on TheHill.com on May 19, 2009
It’s obvious that either Leon Panetta, Obama’s head of the CIA, or Nancy Pelosi, his party’s Speaker of the House, has to go. No administration can tolerate a permanent, public civil war between two such high-ranking officials.
Especially when their disagreement stems not from issues of policy but from matters of veracity and credibility, the battle must end in one of their resignations. You cannot have the head of the nation’s first line of defense against terrorism calling the Speaker of the House a liar and being attacked by her in turn.
Obviously, Obama cannot fire Panetta. First of all, he just appointed him. And second, to cave in to Pelosi (D-Calif.) would earn him the massive disrespect and disapproval of the very operatives on whom he must depend to keep the nation safe.
Already skeptical of his leftist credentials, the analysts at the CIA would regard it as a massive vote of no confidence if their chief were fired for believing in them.
Like Clinton — whose draft-dodging made his relationship with the military problematic — Obama takes office amid reservations about him on the part of the intelligence community. He has taken pains to reach out to both the uniformed and white-collar intelligence officials to smooth his way and win their trust.
Panetta took over as CIA chief under the cloud of his agency’s distrust of the man who appointed him. Now he is standing firm for his agency and winning its loyalty and support.
Obama cannot pull the rug out from under him without incurring the agency’s permanent animosity. Before Sept. 11, 2001, that may have been an acceptable risk. Now it is not.
But Pelosi is expendable. The job of a Democratic Speaker is to pass the program of the Democratic president. Her ability and track record is measured on a scale of effectiveness. If she is ineffective, she’s not up to the job.
There is no way that Nancy Pelosi can be effective while she is engaged in a war of words with the Democratic head of the CIA.
House members have a shark’s instinct for blood in the water and know full well that satisfying Pelosi is likely to be an unrewarding occupation.
With House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) waiting in the wings, few congressmen would be willing to treat the IOUs from Pelosi they get for casting difficult votes as worth much more than Confederate currency.
Remember that Pelosi won by only 118-95 in her election as Speaker. Her support was not overwhelming to begin with. She is a movement liberal. Her political antecedents come from the McGovern wing of the party. She is a leftist/reformer. An insurgent.
But Hoyer is a regular Democrat. Representing a district in the D.C. suburbs of Maryland, he is almost a civil servant himself. He is no radical.
While he can be counted on to pass Obama’s programs like a good Democrat, he is not the kind of guy who will get out in front of the president to upstage or pressure him.
He will fit right in, unobtrusively backing the president. (Full disclosure: He’s a former client. Very former.)
Above all, Obama cannot allow the distraction and disruption of a feud between Speaker and CIA head to sow the image of an administration at war with itself.
The Speaker is the hired help. She exists to serve her president. And, right now, he needs this fight like he needs a hole in the head.
PLEASE FORWARD THIS E-MAIL TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY
Toricelli: Move over.
Bama Democrats wrote the book on grift. Langford is the undisputed king.
This putz has sold millions in junk bonds to build TWO worthless amusement parks, paired up with jailbird Richard Scrushy to bribe high level state officials into giving Healthsouth lucrative exclusive contracts, and his latest gambit-rigging video bingo machines at the dog track to pay HIM huge cash wins.
No s#|7. This cretin actually walked into the dog track with an entourage, was ‘escorted’ to multiple machines, each of which ‘luckily’ paid him thousands. Then he waltzed right out with entourage and his ‘winnings’ in tow.
http://www.al.com/news/birminghamnews/metro.ssf?/base/news/1254989734155410.xml&coll=2
He will start screaming racism any minute is my guess. It would not surprise me to see a jury acquit him, either....based solely on those grounds.
And the people of Jefferson county (ie: B’ham) would happily re-elect him tomorrow.
Any wonder why I left?
Dems - the criminal party...
Wednesday Mar 26, 2008 7:38pm
The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has granted former (DEMOCRAT) Gov. Don Siegelman's request to be released from prison pending the outcome of his appeal.
Siegelman is currently serving a 7-year sentence in the Oakdale Federal Correctional Complex in Louisiana following his 2006 public corruption conviction.
Acting U.S. Attorney Louis Franklin confirms the 11th Circuit granted Siegelman's release in a four- page order which states Siegelman had raised a "significant question" about his conviction.
Oh yeah....Karl Rove’s fault. I forgot.
...I didn’t know that Birmingham had a black mayor....Atlanta, Richmond, New Orleans, Baltimore, Washington all governed by black Dems.
As he’s going in to the pen, the corrupt Birmingham Mayor, LaLa, can wave to the corrupt former d-RAT governor, Siegelman, as he’s coming out. Two thoroughly corrupt peas in a pod.
Venue has been changed to Tuscaloosa, so hopefully he will get a fair verdict.
A fair verdict would be LaLa going to the federal pen for a long long time.
Well yeah, LOL! Atlanta is not free from graft, either!
I would've left Birmingham, too. I won't live in Montgomery, either. Elmore County, Tallapoosa County, now that's a lot better.
Ditto - Tuscaloosa is about the only place I’d live still.
Local ping.
Langford, 61, the most recent in a long line of prominent names in the state Democratic Party to face corruption charges.And not the last. As long as there is a Democratic Party, there will be corrupt Democrats in office, and from time to time, prosecutions and convictions of same.
HSV is the best place to live in AL.
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