More 'Bonusgate' charges before Nov. 4 not possible, Corbett says

HARRISBURG -- Republican Attorney General Tom Corbett on Monday said the breadth of his office's "Bonusgate" investigation makes bringing additional charges before Election Day "physically impossible."

The attorney general, seeking re-election this fall against Democrat John Morganelli, had declared in September he would not present more "Bonusgate" charges from Oct. 1 to Nov. 4 to ensure it did not hold "undue influence" on the election.

That decision brought heavy criticism from some quarters, including Morganelli, who accused Corbett of playing politics. The attorney general's office indicted 12 former and current House Democratic staffers and lawmakers in July in connection with "Bonusgate," leaving critics to allege Corbett had unfairly singled out Democrats before the election.

But in a brief interview with PolitickerPA.com, Corbett said "forget the moratorium" -- his office couldn't bring charges this month even if it wanted to because it is following so many leads.

"It is unbelievable when you do an investigation like this how much documentation must be reviewed," he said. "Certainly, things come up, new developments take you down other roads."

He emphasized his office will bring charges only when it has all the information, "not 10 percent."

Corbett, whose race against Morganelli is expected to be competitive, argued the politically smart move was to indict a few Republicans before the election, even if harmed the investigation.

"I could have charged two Republicans and said, 'See, I did it,'" Corbett said. "Now was that right? No."

Morganelli has asked why, after 18 months of investigating, Corbett is unable to bring charges against anybody other than House Democrats. He has also criticized the attorney general for putting off his investigation into the GOP and connected the delay to GOP donations to Corbett's campaign.

his decision with donations to Corbett's campaign.

Corbett said Morganelli doesn't know anything about the Bonusgate investigation.

"He's never done an investigation like this and does not know what we have," he said.

"Mr. Morganelli," he said, "does not know what he's talking about."