Nader says DeWeese, others to pay price for 'Bonusgate'

HARRISBURG -- House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese (D-Greene County), law firms and the country's "corrupt" two-party system -- each were warned Wednesday by Ralph Nader that the ongoing "Bonusgate" investigations will reveal their rampant political corruption.

Speaking in the Capitol rotunda, the three-time Green Party presidential candidate said the revelations already delivered by Attorney General Tom Corbett have "shocked the conscience of those who believe in clean elections."

But Nader is asking the attorney general, the Federal Elections Commission and U.S. Department of Justice to delve deeper, particularly focusing on what connections DeWeese an unnamed law firm referenced in the attorney general's presentment had with the alleged corruption. The attorney general's charges were very thorough, he said, but showed only "the tip of the iceberg."

Nader's connection to Bonusgate stems from Corbett's allegations that state workers successfully tried removing him from the 2004 election ballot as a presidential candidate while they were on the state dime. He is also asking the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to reverse its order for Nader to pay $80,000 to several law firms, including Reed Smith, that challenged Nader's ballot petition signatures in court.

DeWeese's office was not immediately available for comment.

Although Nader's remarks will have little bottom line politically -- he is far from a power player in Pennsylvania -- they again called attention to DeWeese's perilous hold on his leadership, whether he is disposed by his own caucus, voted out of office this November, or, as Nader suggest, is included in the next round of Bonusgate indictments. Corbett would not say when he announced the charges if DeWeese had been cleared of wrongdoing, emphasizing only that the investigation was continuing.

Nader said after the press conference it is "inconceivable that he was not directly involved."

Nader's attorney, Oliver Hall, pointed to a series of press releases from DeWeese that take credit for removing Nader from the ballot.

One press release dated Oct. 13, 2004, read, "DeWeese and (former Minority Whip Mike) Veon helped to organize volunteers across the state to review the petitions Nader's campaign submitted in early August."

The attorney general's presentment alleges the "volunteers" were state workers paid taxpayer money while working against Nader.

"The role of Bill DeWeese in all of this needs to be revealed," Hall said.

Hall also called on Corbett to reveal how much an unnamed law firm mentioned in the presentment knew about Democrats' efforts against Nader.  The presentment says a law firm worked with the HDC to challenge Nader's placement on the ballot, and Hall asked the attorney general if the firm knew the HDC's actions were illegal.

Nader described Bonusgate as an example of the rampant destruction of the Democratic process perpetrated by the Republican and Democratic parties, which he said they can do with impunity before a populace that ignores the abuses.

"This is enlightenment ... for those of us who believe the two-party dictatorship has to start observing constitutional norms at the federal and state levels," he said.