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The elephant not in the room
All eyes will be on Russ Caso Jr. in a Washington, D.C. courtroom today.
But that won’t be the name on most people’s minds.
Caso is the former chief of staff to longtime Delco Congressman Curt Weldon. And it is the 7th District Republican who will literally be the elephant that is not in the room.
Caso is due to be sentenced in federal court on a conspiracy charge. The feds say he intentionally failed to disclose $19,000 his wife received for work she did for a non-profit connected to Weldon.
All of this is fallout from a federal investigation of the former congressman.
It is a probe that, to this point, has resulted in zero charges being filed against Weldon.
It was just a few months before election day back in 2006 when a tight race between Weldon and Democrat Joe Sestak was rocked by a leaked report that Weldon was the target of a federal investigation.
The homes of his daughter and one of his close allies, then-Springfield GOP boss Charlie Sexton, were raided. A lot of material was seized.
Weldon lost the election, crying foul about the timing of the raid. That was alomost three years ago. Nothing much has come of the probe, nor the raids.
Cecilia Grimes, a lobbyist who also had ties to Weldon, got three years probation after she admitted destroying evidence about her connections with the congressman.
Caso is due to be sentenced today. A memorandum filed in connection with his sentencing hails Caso’s “extraordinary” cooperation in federal investigations. He is expected to be sentenced to home monitoring and a fine, less than the recommendation, and due in part to his cooperation.
Some are interpreting the fact the Caso’s sentencing is going forward today as a sign that the federal investigation is at an end. The thinking is that if Caso were needed to testify at any upcoming trial, his sentencing would not occur until after that happened. Others downplay the timing of the sentencing altogether.
Papers filed by federal prosecutors say only that their investigation remains “open.” It also mentions they are “not public.”
I think it’s about time they were. If the feds have something on Weldon, it’s time to lay it on the table. If not, they should tell the public that and consider the matter closed.
Of course, that would also mean explaining the timing of those raids just weeks before the 2006 election.
That’s why I’m guessing all we’re going to hear today is that the investigation is “open” and “ongoing.”
Just as it’s been for almost three years.
But that won’t be the name on most people’s minds.
Caso is the former chief of staff to longtime Delco Congressman Curt Weldon. And it is the 7th District Republican who will literally be the elephant that is not in the room.
Caso is due to be sentenced in federal court on a conspiracy charge. The feds say he intentionally failed to disclose $19,000 his wife received for work she did for a non-profit connected to Weldon.
All of this is fallout from a federal investigation of the former congressman.
It is a probe that, to this point, has resulted in zero charges being filed against Weldon.
It was just a few months before election day back in 2006 when a tight race between Weldon and Democrat Joe Sestak was rocked by a leaked report that Weldon was the target of a federal investigation.
The homes of his daughter and one of his close allies, then-Springfield GOP boss Charlie Sexton, were raided. A lot of material was seized.
Weldon lost the election, crying foul about the timing of the raid. That was alomost three years ago. Nothing much has come of the probe, nor the raids.
Cecilia Grimes, a lobbyist who also had ties to Weldon, got three years probation after she admitted destroying evidence about her connections with the congressman.
Caso is due to be sentenced today. A memorandum filed in connection with his sentencing hails Caso’s “extraordinary” cooperation in federal investigations. He is expected to be sentenced to home monitoring and a fine, less than the recommendation, and due in part to his cooperation.
Some are interpreting the fact the Caso’s sentencing is going forward today as a sign that the federal investigation is at an end. The thinking is that if Caso were needed to testify at any upcoming trial, his sentencing would not occur until after that happened. Others downplay the timing of the sentencing altogether.
Papers filed by federal prosecutors say only that their investigation remains “open.” It also mentions they are “not public.”
I think it’s about time they were. If the feds have something on Weldon, it’s time to lay it on the table. If not, they should tell the public that and consider the matter closed.
Of course, that would also mean explaining the timing of those raids just weeks before the 2006 election.
That’s why I’m guessing all we’re going to hear today is that the investigation is “open” and “ongoing.”
Just as it’s been for almost three years.
posted by Heron's Nest at
8:01 AM
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