That ol’ corruption glass house comes shattering down on Harry Reid… again.

Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid collected a $1.1 million windfall on a Las Vegas land sale even though he hadn’t personally owned the property for three years, property deeds show.

In the process, Reid did not disclose to Congress an earlier sale in which he transferred his land to a company created by a friend and took a financial stake in that company, according to records and interviews.

The Nevada Democrat’s deal was engineered by Jay Brown, a longtime friend and former casino lawyer whose name surfaced in a major political bribery trial this summer and in other prior organized crime investigations.
…
The deal began in 1998 when Reid bought undeveloped residential property on Las Vegas’ booming outskirts for about $400,000. Reid bought one lot outright, and a second parcel jointly with Brown. One of the sellers was a developer who was benefiting from a government land swap that Reid supported.
…
The complex dealings allowed Reid to transfer ownership, legal liability and some tax consequences to Brown’s company without public knowledge, but still collect a seven-figure payoff nearly three years later.

But when questioned about the deal, Harry Reid came clean…

…or not

Reid hung up the phone when questioned about the deal during an AP interview last week.

Oops.

But Reid didn’t run afoul of Congressional rules…

The senator’s aides said no money changed hands in 2001 and that Reid instead got an ownership stake in Brown’s company equal to the value of his land. Reid continued to pay taxes on the land and didn’t disclose the deal because he considered it a “technical transfer,” they said.

…or did he?

Senate ethics rules require lawmakers to disclose on their annual ethics report all transactions involving investment properties _ regardless of profit or loss _ and to report any ownership stake in companies.

And not only did Reid apparently run afoul of the disclosure requirements, it appears he used his office to enable land deals for campaign contributors:

In 1994, Reid wrote a letter with other Nevada lawmakers on behalf of Del Webb, and then met personally with a top federal land official in Nevada. That official claimed in media reports he felt pressured by the senator. Reid denied any pressure.

The next year, Reid collected $18,000 in political donations from Del Webb’s political action committee and employees. Del Webb’s efforts to get federal land dragged on.

In December 1996, Reid wrote a second letter on behalf of Del Webb, urging Interior to answer the company’s concerns. The deal came together in summer and fall 1997, with Perma-Bilt joining in.

In January 1998 _ just days before he bought his land _ Reid applauded the Lake Tahoe land transfers, saying they would create the “gateway to paradise.”

Let’s not forget another time Harry Reid wrote letters:

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) wrote at least four letters helpful to Indian tribes represented by Jack Abramoff, and the senator’s staff regularly had contact with the disgraced lobbyist’s partners about legislation affecting other clients.

Next time you hear Dirty Harry use the words “culture of corruption“, remind him he doesn’t have to look far to find it.

I remember a certain Senator describing the culture of corruption like this:

“The arrogance of power, the culture of corruption has not come to the attention of the American public as it has the past several months… I think it has shone a bright light on the abuses that have taken place that need to be corrected. And that’s what we want to do. We want to shine a bright light and make things better than what they were.”

Consider the bright light shone, Dirty Harry.

Contact Harry Reid and encourage him to do the right thing and resign today (Isn’t this what the Left would be calling for if this had been a Republican story?):

528 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: 202-224-3542
Fax: 202-224-7327
Email

Others:
Captain Ed nails it.

Now we have the Democratic caucus leader dodging disclosures and failing to disclose $800,000 in profits from a project on which he partnered with a lawyer suspected of connections to organized crime and a bribery scandal. And let’s not forget Reid’s connections to Jack Abramoff, whom Democrats tried mightily to use as a poster boy for Republican-only graft

No wonder they started that “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” campaign.

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