Follow the Money
2010-03-01 - by
While Secretary Lanier Cansler’s former firm has been lobbying his department, it’s also been making payments to Cansler, personally.
Another Democratic scandal?
Back when Governor Perdue appointed Lanier Cansler to lead North Carolina’s biggest state agency, he announced had severed all ties with his former lobbying firm – they had parted company and gone their separate ways.
But there was one small caveat.
Instead of selling his part of the firm outright, for cash, the firm gave Cansler a note. And, now, it seems while Cansler’s old firm is lobbying Cansler’s department they’re also paying his note – which makes a $30 million no bid contract Cansler gave CCME Corporation a big problem.
Last August, CCME hired Cansler’s former firm to lobby for them. Two months later, Cansler awarded a $30 million no bid contract to CCME. The money (or part of it) travels in a circle: From Cansler’s Department to CCME to Cansler’s former firm then back to Cansler.
How much did CCME pay Cansler’s firm? We don’t know. How much CCME paid for lobbying will be part of the public record. But how much it paid for consulting or public relations may never be known.
Plus, there’s one other oddity about CCME’s contract: A nonprofit organization made an offer to Cansler’s department to have doctors examine Medicaid patients for $75 each. Cansler turned that down. Then agreed to pay CCME Corporation to examine the same patients with nurses for $225 – three times as much.
How does Cansler justify giving a no bid contract to a corporation that’s paying his old firm which in turn is paying him? He says he recused himself from the decision to grant the contract – that his aides picked CCME.
Follow his logic: Cansler had his handpicked aides, who he hired, and whose salary he pays, to decide if CCME got the contract. That’s not a recusal – that’s like letting John Dillinger pick the fellow with the key to Fort Knox. A recusal would have been Cansler stepping aside so someone he has no control or influence over made the decision to grant that $30 million contract.
A deputy Cansler hired and can fire tomorrow doesn’t fill the bill. Nor do any of Cansler’s cronies in the Perdue Administration who, after all, may be lobbying him to hire their cousins or nephews or brother-in-laws.
The question, now, is how does Governor Perdue handle all this?
The current scandals rocking the state are phenomena born and bred of Democratic politics; that is not a tribute to Republican virtue – it is a tribute to Republicans complete lack of power in state government. The Republicans can’t muster enough influence in Raleigh to be tempted by corruption, while the Democrats have so much power when it comes to corruption the only thing standing in the way is, Will the News and Observer find out?
If the Governor thinks what Cansler has done is wrong, sacking him would be a way for Democrats to send North Carolinians a message they’re finally getting serious about cleaning up state government.
On the other hand, not sacking Cansler is the same as the Governor saying she believes what he’s done is fine, which sends a message to anyone in her administration who has an itch to follow in Cansler’s footsteps, Go ahead.
Posted in General, North Carolina - Democrats
Follow the Money
2010-03-01/
While Secretary Lanier Cansler’s former firm has been lobbying his department, it’s also been making payments to Cansler, personally.
Another Democratic scandal?
Back when Governor Perdue appointed Lanier Cansler to lead North Carolina’s biggest state agency, he announced had severed all ties with his former lobbying firm – they had parted company and gone their separate ways.
But there was one small caveat.
Instead of selling his part of the firm outright, for cash, the firm gave Cansler a note. And, now, it seems while Cansler’s old firm is lobbying Cansler’s department they’re also paying his note – which makes a $30 million no bid contract Cansler gave CCME Corporation a big problem.
Last August, CCME hired Cansler’s former firm to lobby for them. Two months later, Cansler awarded a $30 million no bid contract to CCME. The money (or part of it) travels in a circle: From Cansler’s Department to CCME to Cansler’s former firm then back to Cansler.
How much did CCME pay Cansler’s firm? We don’t know. How much CCME paid for lobbying will be part of the public record. But how much it paid for consulting or public relations may never be known.
Plus, there’s one other oddity about CCME’s contract: A nonprofit organization made an offer to Cansler’s department to have doctors examine Medicaid patients for $75 each. Cansler turned that down. Then agreed to pay CCME Corporation to examine the same patients with nurses for $225 – three times as much.
How does Cansler justify giving a no bid contract to a corporation that’s paying his old firm which in turn is paying him? He says he recused himself from the decision to grant the contract – that his aides picked CCME.
Follow his logic: Cansler had his handpicked aides, who he hired, and whose salary he pays, to decide if CCME got the contract. That’s not a recusal – that’s like letting John Dillinger pick the fellow with the key to Fort Knox. A recusal would have been Cansler stepping aside so someone he has no control or influence over made the decision to grant that $30 million contract.
A deputy Cansler hired and can fire tomorrow doesn’t fill the bill. Nor do any of Cansler’s cronies in the Perdue Administration who, after all, may be lobbying him to hire their cousins or nephews or brother-in-laws.
The question, now, is how does Governor Perdue handle all this?
The current scandals rocking the state are phenomena born and bred of Democratic politics; that is not a tribute to Republican virtue – it is a tribute to Republicans complete lack of power in state government. The Republicans can’t muster enough influence in Raleigh to be tempted by corruption, while the Democrats have so much power when it comes to corruption the only thing standing in the way is, Will the News and Observer find out?
If the Governor thinks what Cansler has done is wrong, sacking him would be a way for Democrats to send North Carolinians a message they’re finally getting serious about cleaning up state government.
On the other hand, not sacking Cansler is the same as the Governor saying she believes what he’s done is fine, which sends a message to anyone in her administration who has an itch to follow in Cansler’s footsteps, Go ahead.
Posted in General, North Carolina - Democrats