The Republicans try to paint corruption as a bi-partisan problem, but the majority of the problems we hear about come from the right side of the aisle:
Federal investigators probing Rep. Jerry Lewis (news, bio, voting record)’ ties to lobbyists are looking into a land deal that put nearly 41 pristine acres in the congressman’s neighborhood off-limits to developers, The Associated Press has learned.
The land was given to the city of Redlands by Jack and Laura Dangermond, who have donated generously to Lewis. The Dangermonds founded and run a company — Environmental Systems Research Institute Inc. of Redlands — that has gotten tens of millions of dollars’ worth of contracts through the powerful House Appropriations Committee that Lewis, a Republican, now chairs.
One government contract came months after the land donation.
The land, some of which sits directly across from Lewis’ home, is part of a scenic canyon in one of Redlands’ wealthiest neighborhoods. Keeping the land free of development helps ensure property values remain high.
A spokeswoman for Lewis’ attorneys said the congressman was unaware the Dangermonds owned the land and did not know the terms under which it was given to the city.
The U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles, which is leading the Lewis investigation, and a spokeswoman for the FBI had no comment on the land deal.
I will admit there are Democrats who are also corrupt, but the majority of the corruption does come from the Republican side. As matter of fact, there is far more corrupt Republicans than there are Democrats.