D.C. group declares Buchanan among the most corrupt

By Jeremy Wallace, Herald Tribune (Political Insider Blog)

September 16, 2009

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington is once again targeting U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Longboat Key, among its list of 15 “most corrupt” members of Congress.

For the second year in a row, Buchanan is on the group’s list because of lingering lawsuits in which two former employees of Buchanan’s auto dealerships say they were pressured to give donations to Buchanan’s 2006 campaign.

One of those former employees, Carlo Bell is part of a Federal Election Commission complaint filed by CREW against Buchanan last year.

Buchanan’s spokeswoman Sally Tibbetts said CREW is a “partisan front group” that has direct ties to left-wing liberal donors. She said the FEC complaint filed by the group is “false” and “absurd.”

Tibbetts pointed to a Janury 2008 article in Roll Call, a Washington D.C. newspaper, to back her claim.

Crew’s list of 15 members includes eight Democrats and 7 Republicans.

Buchanan is the only member of Congress from Florida on the list. Here’s the full list.