The Duke of Sleaze

I've been following the Randy "Duke" Cunningham story since this summer, so it's no surprise that he's pled guilty to bribery and resigned his House seat. But even I'm staggered by the magnitude of his corruption. According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, prosecutors state that he took $2.4(!) million in bribes, including:

Buying the Del Mar-area home at an inflated price;

Paying for the capital gains tax on that sale;

Buying and maintaining the yacht in Washington D.C. on which Cunningham lived;

Paying for a graduation party for Cunningham's daughter

Buying a Rolls Royce, antique furniture and jewelry, and picking up travel and hotel expenses for Cunningham and his wife;

Making a $500,000 mortgage payoff for the house in Rancho Santa Fe.

Is this the biggest bribery case in the history of Congress? Abscam" only involved tens of thousands of dollars. Jim Traficantwas a piker compared to this. Maybe there are some earlier examples of bribery on this scale (after adjusting for inflation), but none come immediately to mind.