Popular Alaskan politician allegedly concealed $250,000 in gifts

By Matthew B. Zeidman

WASHINGTON (Hollywood Today) 7/30/08 – In a not-so-ironic twist, U.S. Senator Ted Stevens, who vigorously opposed fiscal accountability for organizations receiving federal funding, was indicted Tuesday on charges of hiding his own monetary misdoings. The infamous proponent of Alaska’s “bridges to nowhere” has been accused of concealing gifts in excess of $250,000 he received from a company based in his home state and its CEO.

“It saddens me to learn that these charges have been brought against me,” Stevens said in a statement. “I am innocent of these charges and intend to prove that.”

Specifically, Stevens, 84, has been charged with not disclosing major renovations and additions energy company Veco and CEO Bill Allen made to his home on his Senate financial disclosure reports from 1999 to 2006. He also allegedly failed to disclose free household items, such as furniture, tools and an outdoor grill, given to him by Veco and Allen, as well as a $19,000 discount on a car trade-in.

The indictment did not question the legitimacy of receiving the high-ticket presents, but only the legality of not reporting them.

Though Stevens is a popular politician, having served Alaska in his current capacity since 1968, he has made news during his most recent term for being one of only a few U.S. senators who attempted to anonymously block the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006, which required closer financial oversight of organizations partially or completely funded by the federal government. The bill eventually passed in the Senate and House and was signed into law by President Bush.

Stevens also supported the building of bridges in sparsely populated Alaskan areas with billions of dollars of federal money, claiming he would resign if funds were pulled to aid states ravaged by Hurricane Katrina, and was accused of technological ignorance by bloggers and media pundits after referring to the Internet as a “series of tubes” and an e-mail as “an Internet” while commenting about a network neutrality piece of legislation.