Prince George's County, Maryland Adopts a Different Approach to Pay-to-Play
As we’ve observed here a few times before, nothing gets a legislator in the mood for regulatory action like press accounts of one of their own getting busted for pocketing a few dollars in exchange for government largess. One could hardly second guess Prince George’s County, Maryland for following this predictable pattern. In this case however, the funds forming the catalyst for action weren’t “pocketed” - they were “bra’d”.
Last November, the Washington, DC area was somewhat titillated by news reports that Prince George’s County Executive Jack B. Johnson and his wife, Prince George’s County Councilwoman-Elect Leslie Johnson had been arrested by the FBI in connection with an investigation into allegations that certain real estate developers in Prince George’s County, Maryland were bribing public officials in exchange for official acts benefitting the developers and their companies. The FBI moved in, it was reported, when their wiretaps overheard Johnson instruct his wife to flush a developer’s check for $100,000 down the toilet and to conceal another $79,600 in cash in her bra.
Regardless of where the money went, the result was inevitable - pay-to-play legislation.
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