Congress' Most Corrupt Member Thinks Chelsea Manning Got Off Too Lightly

Just over a year ago, we reported how House Armed Services Committee chairman Buck McKeon had a serious conflict of interest stemming form the 6-figure gambling debts he had racked up in Sheldon Adelson's Las Vegas casino. This is especially dangerous in light of Adelson's status as a billionaire being completely in the hands of the Chinese government. I was assured by a Republican Member of the House Armed Services Committee that McKeon was being investigated on several levels and that he had personally spoken with Boehner and asked him to fire McKeon as committee chair. But, as is almost always the case inside the Beltway when it comes to powerful, crooked congressmen, nothing has come of it. The roots of the problem go back to the McKeon family's bankruptcy and his ill-fated mortgage deal with Counytywide

McKeon, who poses as a devout Mormon, is addicted to gambling. And he's a loser. What McCarthy's staffers have leaked is that he's lost very large sums of money at Adelson's casino. He hasn't reported these losses-- which is a crime. He gets the highest national security briefings, briefings the man he owes hundreds of thousands of dollars to is very interested in. He's always welcome at the Venetian Hotel on the Strip, where he's a well-known figure... and where he keeps getting deeper and deeper in debt to Adelson (and Red China). I might add, tangentially, that although there isn't a single casino in CA-25, McKeon is one of the top recipients of gambling contributions in the House ($34,700 so far... the year is young) and that he has a record of supporting the agenda of the big casino companies that bribe him patriotically donate large sums of money to his political career

Of course, when it comes to other people, McKeon is a real law and order kind of guy... no mercy! In reporting on the Bradley Manning sentencing, CNN quoted some remarks by McKeon:

Buck McKeon, criticized what he called a light sentence compared to the life terms some convicted spies have received.

"Bradley Manning betrayed his country, his obligations as a soldier and the trust of all Americans. He put the lives of our troops and our allies in danger," McKeon, R-California, said in a written statement.

"Given the vast damage he did to our national security and the need to send a strong signal to others who may be tempted to disclose classified information, this is a dangerous conclusion," McKeon added.

So far no comment from ole Buck about Bradley asking to start hormone therapy so that he can live the rest of his life as a woman, although McKeon is notoriously anti-gay and acted as the financial funnel between the Mormon Church in Salt Lake City and right-wing hate groups in California working to overturn marriage equality.

In any case, let's remember McKeon's statement about 35-year "light sentences" when he has his turn before the bar of justice for selling state secrets to China... rather than honorable whistleblowing on a corrupt, unaccountable system. McKeon should be held accountable for his career of criminal behavior by the same standards he would use to judge Bradley (or Chelsea) Manning.