Last week, former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell was convicted of corruption. McDonnell was once a shining star in the Republican Party and was a potential 2012 running mate for Republican nominee Mitt Romney.
Many political observers considered McDonnell to be a presidential contender in 2016. However, his indictment and subsequent conviction changed his political fortunes permanently. McDonnell’s wife, Maureen — whom McDonnell threw under the bus during the trial — was also convicted of various charges.
What did the McDonnells do to land themselves in so much trouble?
They used the power of the governor’s office to assist the owner of a diet supplement company in exchange for $177,000 in gifts.
The McDonnell case is about as clear a textbook example of political corruption as you can find.
McDonnell is among a slew of current and former Republican governors throughout the country who are either under investigation or face criminal charges, and many of the names are presidential contenders.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry was recently indicted on abuse of power charges, after the governor allegedly threatened a Texas district attorney if she didn’t resign following a DUI arrest.
Perry has blamed the felony indictment on overzealous Democrats out for partisan blood.
However, recent accounts show that it is, in fact, Republicans pushing the case against Texas’s longest serving governor. A Republican prosecutor and a Republican-appointed judge brought the case against Perry.
The conviction of McDonnell and the indictment of Perry are far from isolated incidents. They represent just a portion of the Republican gubernatorial madhouse throughout the country, as several other GOP governors are under investigation.
The investigation into New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s role in the completely ridiculous Bridgegate scandal continues. As a reminder, Christie allegedly sought revenge against mayors who didn’t endorse his reelection campaign in 2013 by shutting down bridges between New Jersey and New York.
The allegations hurt the hotheaded governor’s 2016 prospects, and the threat of further legal action continues to hang over Christie’s head.
Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal — who is locked in a tight battle for reelection — is likewise facing investigations stemming from his 2010 gubernatorial campaign. When accused of campaign disclosure violations, Deal’s team allegedly had the head of the state ethics commission fired and replaced with Deal’s handpicked successor.
The new ethics chief shut down the investigation into Deal’s campaign, and the issue seemed settled until this year.
Now, Deal’s ethics chief alleges that she was threatened by Deal’s chief-of-staff and his attorney, and a judge recently handed out $3 million wrongful termination settlements for those fired after Deal took office.
Deal’s ethics chief was fired this week, and now the FBI is looking into the matter, and it has thrown a kink into Deal’s march toward a second term.
In Wisconsin, Gov. Scott Walker is locked in a heated reelection battle and is an often-mentioned name for the 2016 Republican presidential race.
Although some denied that Walker was under investigation, his connections to a political action committee targeted in a federal criminal conspiracy case raised many eyebrows earlier this summer.
The investigation was intended to determine whether the Wisconsin Club for Growth — a conservative political action group — coordinated with political campaigns in Wisconsin, which would amount to a major violation of campaign finance law.
The common thread between all these governors isn’t just their political affiliation but also their belief that they are above the law. It doesn’t matter whether McDonnell remains the only governor from this group to actually be convicted of a crime.
We should demand accountability and honesty from our state leaders.
Our governors need to look out for the best interest of their states, not ask for lavish gifts, or rig the ethics commission, or close a bridge because of a ridiculous grudge.
We can continue to complain that politicians are morally bankrupt, corrupt and unethical, but at the end of the day, the voters choose to hire or fire elected officials.
Just remember the next time you’re outraged at the moral ineptitude of American politicians, use the strongest voice you have: the power of your vote.
Joel Mendelson is a UF graduate student in political campaigning. His columns appear on Wednesdays.
[A version of this story ran on page 7 on 9/10/2014 under the headline "McDonnell conviction highlights problems with GOP governors"]
