The probe into Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell’s so-called “gifts” recently widened after it was reported that a Republican Party legislator, Del. David Ramadan (Loudoun - VA), was summoned to appear before a federal grand jury in July as part of the continuing investigation into McDonnell’s gift receipts and potential political favoritism.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has been conducting interviews regarding the relationship between the CEO of a dietary supplement company, Star Scientific, and Bob and Maureen McDonnell. While Virginia law does not prohibit the giving of political gifts, it does disallow political favors for political gifts.
It would be quite odd, however, if someone spent thousands of dollars on a political candidate and/or his or her immediate family without the expectation or the actual receipt of political favors. Would you just shell out over $10,000 for the wedding of someone else’s daughter without the expectation of some favor in return? If you answered “yes” by any chance, then you are one of a saintly few who would commit such an act of selflessness.
That Virginia’s opinion of McDonnell has been so strong for this long is a testament to the image that McDonnell successfully framed for himself in the minds of Virginia’s voters. McDonnell was the “honest Abe” of present-day Virginia politics, a man of supposedly high integrity and the best interests of all Virginians never too far from his thoughts.
With the growing scandal, a different image of McDonnell has gradually emerged and as evidence continues to unfold, this image may well supersede the “honest Abe” image that held for the first three years of his governorship. Once a sparkling supernova in the eyes of Virginians, McDonnell’s luster has faded as the ‘man of the middle ground’ has become increasingly viewed as the ‘man who won’t turn a gift down’ and a liability to the Republican Party.
Did McDonnell show favoritism towards Star Scientific? To be continued…
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