Interior Department Ethics Scandal Is The Sort Of Thing John McCain Wants To Continue

3:05 pm EST September 10th, 2008 | News | 2 Comments

This must have been what the GOP conventioneers meant when they said drill, baby, drill.

As Congress prepares to debate expansion of drilling in taxpayer-owned coastal waters, the Interior Department agency that collects oil and gas royalties has been caught up in a wide-ranging ethics scandal — including allegations of financial self-dealing, accepting gifts from energy companies, cocaine use and sexual misconduct.

In three reports delivered to Congress on Wednesday, the department’s inspector general, Earl E. Devaney, found wrongdoing by a dozen current and former employees of the Minerals Management Service, which collects about $10 billion in royalties annually and is one of the government’s largest sources of revenue other than taxes.

‘A culture of ethical failure’ besets the agency, Mr. Devaney wrote in a cover memo.

The reports portray a dysfunctional organization that has been riddled with conflicts of interest, unprofessional behavior and a free-for-all atmosphere for much of the Bush administration’s watch.

Topic: , , ,

Related Posts

«
»

2 Responses to “Interior Department Ethics Scandal Is The Sort Of Thing John McCain Wants To Continue”

  1. jr says:
    September 10, 2008 at 4:14 pm

    “it’s ok McCain left Carol after her accident. He’s white like me”-Repubs

  2. Sean D. Martin says:
    September 10, 2008 at 5:47 pm

    The investigation also concluded that several of the officials “frequently consumed alcohol at industry functions, had used cocaine and marijuana, and had sexual relationships with oil and gas company representatives.”

    Y’know, as unadmirable as such behavior may be I don’t see the drinking, drugs and sex as something to take them to task for unless it was provided for free to influence their behavior.

    “Drinking at industry functions” = not a big deal.
    Being given free alcohol etc in exchange for contracts = OK, now you’ve got something.