"Politicians Beware! The Definition for Bribery in Politics has changed"...by Don Siegelman [View all]

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Last edited Sun May 31, 2015, 03:46 PM - Edit history (2)

I got the following e-mail from former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman this morning. (Sat. May 30)
In it, he references his "Opinion Piece" in yesterday's Wall Street Journal.
"You Don't Need a Quid Pro Quo to Wind Up in Prison" by Don Siegelman

Unfortunately, the WSJ only allows the first 50 words or so to be seen for free, if you want to read more, you have to take out a paid subscription to the WSJ.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1016123380

I have included most of the WSJ Opinion Piece in the following e-mail from Don
Hopefully, the entire OP will soon be on Don's website
http://www.freedonsiegelman.org/


May 30, 2015

"While you weren't looking, the legal definition of "political bribe" changed.

I'm about as far outside of the DC Beltway as one can get...I'm in the swamps of Louisiana in a federal prison.
Regardless, I'm blessed, my friends send me the Washington Post, and the WSJ.
Fortunately we get CNN, Morning Joe and Fox & Friends at breakfast, and catch Cavuto and MSNBC in the afternoon.
So, through prison's prism, presidential politics may be a bit diffracted, but one thing is crystal clear, we have two frontrunner's, Hillary and Jeb.
Another thing is clear, there is an obscene amount of money being handed out and hoarded.
Good news for the public: the cashes of campaign cash may buy unforeseen fireworks and political blowback that embarrass or more.
Since January, there have been dozens of major stories in the Post and the WSJ about the race...the race for big money.
Now, there is even an 'opinion piece' in the WSJ by yours truly".
( Wall Street Journal, May 29, 2015, Letters & Opinion section)

"The following is an amplified Version of that article
Seemingly, several Republicans may have enough cash and wherewithal to hang in and challenge Jeb.....Jeb, who I got to know and respect, reminds me so much of our friend, Mitt Romney....Democrats went giddy watching Jeb's evolutionary answer to the question of whether he would, knowing what we know today, invade Iraq.
Lesson: feet are best used to pad the precincts in Iowa and out of one's mouth.
Republican detractors are telling jeb to stop with the money and get out on the campaign trail.
Time will tell whether those naysayers are really soothsayers.
But Republicans became buoyed by Peter Schweizer's book, 'Clinton Cash' revealing that Mrs. Clinton is flush with cash in all of her, and Bill's, pockets.....Yet, to Rove's dismay, 'she only has two challengers, Senator Sanders who pulls no punches and Governor O'Malley who throws no punches.
The good news for Rove republicans is that Hillary doesn't need a serious Democratic opponent....She has a team of distracters: Bill and Hillary.
Old axiom: People don't trip over the grand Canyon..It's the cracks in the sidewalks that bring them down.
Bill and Hillary have done for the American public what Cicero couldn't induce interest in Latin.
'Quid Pro Quo' we now know means 'Something For Something'.
In the campaign speak:'I'll give you a campaign donation IF you give me what I want.'
Since I'm in prison, having been convicted of 'quid pro quo' bribery, I feel compelled and qualified to give a shocking 2016 election law primer on the subject.

EXPLICIT AGREEMENT:
The good news for candidates is that the U.S. Supreme Court told us in the McCormick case in 1991, that because a campaign contribution puts the First Amendment into play, it takes an 'explicit' agreement .where the terms of the agreement are 'asserted', before one crosses the line from politics to crime.

INFER AGREEMENT:
Only with Personal gain:..The bad news is that in run-of-the-mill bribery situations, where personal gain is involved, the courts give juries more leeway to convict, if the jury can 'infer' or 'imply' an agreement.

NOW YOU CAN 'INFER AGREEMENT' WITHOUT PERSONAL GAIN:
And there's more bad news that will give lawyers heartburn.
I am in prison because of a campaign contribution to The Alabama Education Foundation.
The contribution wasn't even to my reelection campaign.
There was no testimony of a 'quid pro quo', much less an 'express' one, and no allegation of personal gain.
No personal benefit, not a single penny.
There was no self-enrichment scheme at all.

LEGAL PRECEDENT HAS POTENTIAL TO CRIMINALIZE POLITICS
While my case may be anomaly in American Jurisprudence, it is nonetheless legal precedent, and as George Will points out, this ruling puts 'dangerous discretion' in the hands of prosecutors."
"Is is bribery or just politics?"
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/is-it-bribery-or-just-politics/2012/02/09/gIQA4hy34Q_story.html

"Candidates should ask themselves, 'Are donors going to want something?..Perhaps an innocent appointment? Maybe being Governor of Samoa? An ambassadorship? Governmental action of some kind? SuperPac donors may find their donations which were intended to fuel the campaign are now fodder for an ambitious prosecutor who wants to shoot fish in a barrel."
Google: "Why super PACs have moved from sideshow to center stage for presidential-hopefuls"
Washington Post, March 12, 2015 (Unable to post link)

"While Hillary calls for a constitutional amendment, Jeb asks donors to limit gifts to $1,000,000.
Gov. Huckabee has a better idea....The former governor says lift the ban on campaign contributions to 'yank back control from SuperPacs' and require instant disclosure by candidates."

"The candidate would have to go out and defend whether he was a wholly owned subsidiary of the $100 million dollar donor..."
Google: "Big money in politics emerges as a rising issue in 2016 campaign"
Washington Post, April 19, 2015...(Unable to post link)

"The impression that large donors steer our democracy feeds the belief that 'my vote doesn't count,' eroding faith and trust in public officials.
As Governor Huckabee points out, disclosure will give voters the information they need to cast an informed ballot.

Ergo, with disclosure, voters will feel more empowered knowing WHY they need to hammer who on election day.
Now that will enliven our democracy!"

Don Siegelman
Governor of Alabama 199-2003
http://www.donsiegelman.org/

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