Robert William Ney is an
American politicianThe United States is a federal constitutional republic, in which the President of the United States , Congress, and judiciary share powers reserved to the national government, and the federal government shares sovereignty with the state governments.The executive branch is headed by the President...
from the
U.S. stateA U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of
OhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. A
RepublicanThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
, Ney represented
Ohio's 18th congressional districtThe 18th congressional district of Ohio is currently represented by Republican Bob Gibbs. The district ranges around the eastern part of Ohio, taking in a collection of small cities and rural areas. The district voted for the majority party in the House of Representatives in every election since...
in the
U.S. House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from 1995 until November 3, 2006, when he resigned. Ney's resignation took place after he pled guilty to charges of conspiracy and making false statements in relation to the
Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandalThe Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal is a United States political scandal relating to the work performed by political lobbyists Jack Abramoff, Ralph E. Reed, Jr., Grover Norquist and Michael Scanlon on Indian casino gambling interests for an estimated $85 million in fees. Abramoff and Scanlon...
.
Ney's best known Congressional work was on the election reform efforts founded in the wake of the confused 2000 voting in Florida, and his support and backing for the "Stand Up For Steel" crusade and resulting laws. From 2001 to 2006, Ney was Chairman of the
House Administration CommitteeThe United States House Committee on House Administration deals with the general administration matters of the United States House of Representatives.-Jurisdiction:...
. As chair of that committee, he oversaw operations in the
CapitolThe United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall...
complex and was sometimes known as the "Mayor of Capitol Hill". Ney also gained notoriety when he mandated, as Chairman of the House Administration Committee, that "french fries" be renamed "
freedom friesFreedom fries is a political euphemism for French fries used by some people in the United States as a result of anti-French sentiment during the controversy over the U.S. decision to launch the 2003 invasion of Iraq. France expressed strong opposition in the United Nations to such an invasion...
" on House of Representatives food service menus, to indicate displeasure with France's lack of support for the
2003 invasion of IraqThe 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
.
Before he pled guilty, Ney was identified in the guilty pleas of
Jack AbramoffJack Abramoff is an American former lobbyist and businessman. Convicted in 2006 of mail fraud and conspiracy, he was at the heart of an extensive corruption investigation that led to the conviction of White House officials J. Steven Griles and David Safavian, U.S. Representative Bob Ney, and nine...
, former
Tom DeLayThomas Dale "Tom" DeLay is a former member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1984 until 2006. He was Republican Party House Majority Leader from 2003 to 2005, when he resigned because of criminal money laundering charges in...
deputy chief of staff
Tony RudyTony Charles Rudy , an American lobbyist and an associate of Jack Abramoff. After serving as a staffer in the office of U. S. Representative Tom DeLay from approximately 1995 to 2001, and rising to deputy chief of staff, Rudy joined "Team Abramoff" at Greenberg Traurig. Rudy was implicated in the...
, former DeLay press secretary
Michael ScanlonMichael Scanlon, AKA "Sean Scanlon", is a former communications director for Rep. Tom DeLay, lobbyist, and public relations executive who has pleaded guilty to corruption charges related to the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal...
and former Ney chief of staff
Neil VolzNeil Volz was Chief of Staff to Representative Bob Ney , staff director of the House Administration Committee, and later part of Team Abramoff, when he left Capitol Hill in February 2002 to work for Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig LLP...
for receiving lavish gifts in exchange for political favors.
On May 18, 2006, the
House Ethics CommitteeThe Committee on Ethics, often known simply as the Ethics Committee, is one of the committees of the United States House of Representatives. Prior to the 112th Congress it was known as the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct....
announced an investigation into bribery allegations against Ney, and on August 7, 2006, Ney announced that he was withdrawing from the 2006 election race.
On September 15, 2006, the Justice Department filed Ney's guilty pleas to a charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to a charge of falsifying financial disclosure forms. Both charges are related to actions taken on behalf of Abramoff's clients in exchange for bribes, as well as separate actions taken on behalf of a foreign businessman in exchange for over $50,000 in gambling sprees at foreign private casinos.
Ney is the first member of Congress to admit to criminal charges in the Abramoff investigation, which has focused on the actions of several current and former Republican lawmakers who had been close to the former lobbyist. Ney resigned from the
House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
on November 3, 2006.
He was sentenced to 30 months in prison. He was released on August 15, 2008 after serving 17 months.
Early years and family
Ney was born in
Wheeling, West VirginiaWheeling is a city in Ohio and Marshall counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia; it is the county seat of Ohio County. Wheeling is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area...
. The son of a TV cameraman for
WTRF-TVWTRF-TV is the CBS-affiliated television station for the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia and the Allegheny Plateau of Eastern Ohio that is licensed to Wheeling, West Virginia. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 7 from a transmitter in Bridgeport, Ohio. Owned by West...
, Ney grew up in
Bellaire, OhioBellaire is a village in Belmont County, Ohio, United States. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 4,278 at the 2010 census. The village is located along the Ohio River...
, an aging industrial town across the
Ohio RiverThe Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
from Wheeling. He graduated in 1972 from St. John's High School in Bellaire. He attended
Ohio State UniversityThe Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
's branch campus in
Belmont CountyBelmont County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 70,400. Its county seat is St. Clairsville...
before transferring to OSU's main campus in
ColumbusColumbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
. He received a
Bachelor of ScienceA Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
degreeAn academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
from
Ohio State UniversityThe Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
in 1976. After college, he worked at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, taught English in
IranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, served as Bellaire safety director, and worked as the health and education program manager of the Ohio Office of Appalachia.
He has two children from a previous marriage, and no children with his second wife, Elizabeth.
Political career — Ohio legislature
In 1980, at the age of 26, Ney defeated state Represnentative
Wayne HaysWayne Levere Hays was an American politician whose strong rule of the House Administration Committee extended to even the smallest items. In the mid-1970s, lawmakers avoided crossing Hays for fear that he would shut off the air conditioning in their offices...
, a former U.S. representative who had resigned from Congress in 1976 after a
sex scandalA sex scandal is a scandal involving allegations or information about possibly-immoral sexual activities being made public. Sex scandals are often associated with movie stars, politicians, famous athletes or others in the public eye, and become scandals largely because of the prominence of the...
. Ney served in the
Ohio House of RepresentativesThe Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate....
from 1981 to 1983. He was defeated in his reelection bid in November 1982.
After his defeat, Ney managed a home security company in
Saudi ArabiaThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
. He was appointed to the Ohio Senate in 1984 to replace former state senator
Sam SpeckSam Speck is a former member of the Ohio Senate, where he served from 1977 to 1983. He represented the 20th District.-Education:Speck earned his bachelor's degree from Muskingum University and his master's and doctoral degrees from Harvard University....
, who resigned the 20th District seat to accept a presidential appointment. Ney won the seat in November 1984 and then re-election in 1988 and 1992.
Congressional career
In November 1994, Ney won the Republican nomination for the 18th District after nine-term incumbent Democrat
Douglas ApplegateDouglas "Doug" Applegate is a former member of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio. Applegate is a Democrat....
announced his retirement. The 18th had a considerable Democratic lean, but Ney scored a considerable upset, defeating Democrat
Greg DiDonatoGregory L. DiDonato of Dennison, Ohio, is an American politician of the Democratic party. While still in high school, DiDonato was elected to the village council of Dennison, Ohio. At age 21, he was elected mayor of the Village of Dennison. He was re-elected mayor in 1987. While in college, he...
with 53% of the vote. In 1996, he was re-elected with 50% of the vote against Democrat Rob Burch. In 1998, he again defeated Burch, this time with 60% of the vote. He won in 2000 and 2004 with more than 65% of the vote, and was unopposed in 2002.
Ney's voting record was considerably more moderate than has become typical of Republicans elected in 1994. He did not earn a rating in the 90s from the
American Conservative UnionThe American Conservative Union is an American political organization advocating conservative policies, and is the oldest such conservative lobbying organization in the country.-Organization:...
until 2004. He was known for bucking his party's leadership on issues important to his mostly blue-collar district, such as championing the needs of the beleaguered steel industry. In 1999 he was a prominent part of the "Stand Up for Steel" campaign, which united the steel industry and steel unions in a fight against low-priced imports. In 2000, he was one of a handful of Republicans who backed an effort to block permanent normal trade status for China. In 2001, Ney was one of three Republicans to vote against the
USA Patriot ActThe USA PATRIOT Act is an Act of the U.S. Congress that was signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 26, 2001...
(the other two were Butch Otter of
IdahoIdaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
and
Ron PaulRonald Ernest "Ron" Paul is an American physician, author and United States Congressman who is seeking to be the Republican Party candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Paul represents Texas's 14th congressional district, which covers an area south and southwest of Houston that includes...
of
TexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
). In 2005 he voted against
President BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
's Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) and against Republican budget cuts to
Medicaid Medicaid is the United States health program for certain people and families with low incomes and resources. It is a means-tested program that is jointly funded by the state and federal governments, and is managed by the states. People served by Medicaid are U.S. citizens or legal permanent...
and after-school programs.
In 2003, Ney led the effort, along with fellow Republican Congressman
Walter B. JonesWalter Beaman Jones, Jr. is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1995. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district encompasses the Outer Banks and areas near the Pamlico Sound. Jones' father was Walter B. Jones, Sr., a Democratic Party congressman from the neighboring 1st district...
, to change the name of "
french friesFrench fries , chips, fries, or French-fried potatoes are strips of deep-fried potato. North Americans tend to refer to any pieces of deep-fried potatoes as fries or French fries, while in the United Kingdom, Australia, Ireland and New Zealand, long, thinly cut slices of deep-fried potatoes are...
" and "
French toastFrench toast or Eggy Bread, is a food made with bread and eggs. It is a Christmas time dessert in Portugal and Brazil.Where French toast is served as a sweet dish, milk, sugar, or cinnamon are also commonly added before frying, and it may be then topped with sugar, butter, fruit, syrup, or other...
" to "
freedom friesFreedom fries is a political euphemism for French fries used by some people in the United States as a result of anti-French sentiment during the controversy over the U.S. decision to launch the 2003 invasion of Iraq. France expressed strong opposition in the United Nations to such an invasion...
" and "freedom toast". His committee had authority over House cafeterias. Ney said at a press conference that "this action today is a small, but symbolic effort to show the strong displeasure of many on Capitol Hill with the actions of our so-called ally,
FranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
." In July 2006, after Ney had left the committee, the names were changed back; Ney had no comment. In late 2005 and early 2006, allegations that Ney played a key role in the
Abramoff lobbying scandalThe Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal is a United States political scandal relating to the work performed by political lobbyists Jack Abramoff, Ralph E. Reed, Jr., Grover Norquist and Michael Scanlon on Indian casino gambling interests for an estimated $85 million in fees. Abramoff and Scanlon...
were widely reported. (See below.)
On January 15, 2006, Ney resigned as chairman of the House Administration Committee. He maintained that he had done nothing wrong, but had been under increasing pressure to stand down since his ties to Abramoff were an increasing embarrassment in light of Republican plans for reforms of lobbying and campaign finance rules. The House Administration Committee has jurisdiction over elections and lobbyists. House Speaker
Dennis HastertJohn Dennis "Denny" Hastert was the 59th Speaker of the House serving from 1999 to 2007. He represented as a Republican for twenty years, 1987 to 2007.He is the longest-serving Republican Speaker in history...
reportedly emailed a
Roll CallRoll Call is a newspaper published in Washington, D.C., United States, from Monday to Thursday when the United States Congress is in session and on Mondays only during recess. Roll Call reports news of legislative and political maneuverings on Capitol Hill, as well as political coverage of...
article regarding Ney's precarious hold on the gavel to several Capitol beat reporters. Ney's resignation was officially temporary. However, even some of his Republican colleagues expected him to be indicted. Under Republican caucus rules, he would have permanently lost his chairmanship if indicted.
On June 29, 2006, three of Ney's staffers resigned: Brian Walsh, a longtime Ney spokesman; Will Heaton, Ney’s chief of staff; and Chris Otillio, a senior legislative aide. In a statement, Ney said that Congressional staff turnover is high, and that all three departing staff members had worked for him longer than many others stay in similar jobs.
2006 re-election campaign
On January 26, 2006, Ney announced his candidacy for re-election to the House.
Even before his indictment, Ney was one of the Republican elected officials whom Democrats highlighted as part of a "
culture of corruptionCulture of corruption was a political slogan used by the U.S. Democratic Party to refer to a series of political scandals involving Republican politicians during the first two years of George W...
" in the 2006 campaign.
Republican primary
On May 2, 2006, Ney defeated Republican James Brodbelt Harris, a financial analyst from
Zanesville, OhioZanesville is a city in and the county seat of Muskingum County, Ohio, United States. The population was 25,586 at the 2000 census.Zanesville was named after Ebenezer Zane, who had constructed Zane's Trace, a pioneer road through present-day Ohio...
, in the primary. Harris did not campaign, and collected less than $5,000 in campaign contributions. Ney won 68 percent to 32 percent. On the day of the election, Greg Giroux of
Congressional QuarterlyCongressional Quarterly, Inc., or CQ, is a privately owned publishing company that produces a number of publications reporting primarily on the United States Congress...
noted: "I'd be surprised if Harris got more than 20 or 25 percent. That would be a sign that there is a chunk of the Republican base that's disenchanted with the incumbent."
Commenting on his situation after the primary, Ney said "I have a healthy campaign account, in contrast to the Democratic Party, which is deeply divided and has a candidate with almost no campaign cash."
Legal fees
A filing with
Federal Election CommissionThe Federal Election Commission is an independent regulatory agency that was founded in 1975 by the United States Congress to regulate the campaign finance legislation in the United States. It was created in a provision of the 1975 amendment to the Federal Election Campaign Act...
in October said that Ney had paid the law firm Vinson & Elkins $136,000 from July through September, from campaign funds. By early January 2006, the total legal expenses paid by Ney's political campaign committee had risen to $232,381. For the January to March 2006 reporting period, Ney paid an additional $96,000 in legal fees from campaign funds to that law firm; total campaign spending for the period was $250,000. The legal fees are related to an ongoing federal investigation (see below.)
Brian Walsh, spokesman for Ney, said in April 2006: "Frankly, it's an unfortunate commentary on the justice system that someone has to spend a lot of money simply to clear their name and set the record straight in what is in this case completely false allegations." He also said that "the congressman is doing everything possible and moving as quickly as possible to put these allegations to rest and clear his name."
In an Federal Elections Commission filing showing expenses through the end of June 2006, Ney reported that he had not paid any legal fees since January 5 from campaign funds. Mark Tuohey, the lead lawyer at Vinson & Elkins, said Ney "needs money for his campaign and that's a priority right now. He intends to pay. He'll pay his fees, I have no doubt about that."
In November 2005, it was reported that Ney had set up a legal defense fund for himself in connection with the Abramoff case. Documents filed in the House in January 2006 showed that the Ethics Committee had approved the organization papers for the fund. The fund raised $40,000 between January and March 2006, and nothing between April and June 2006. As of June 30, 2006, the fund had not yet spent any money for Ney's legal expenses. Ney's withdrawal from the race (see below) meant that he could use his remaining campaign funds (almost half a million dollars) for his legal defense.
General election
Ney's opponent in the November general election was to be
Zack SpaceZachary T. "Zack" Space is an American politician and the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2007 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life, education and career:...
, a
Dover, OhioDover is a city in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 12,210 at the 2000 census.-History and features:Dover was originally part of a grant to Col. James Morrison of Kentucky, who had received it from the federal government for Revolutionary War services...
lawyer and hotel developer, who won the Democratic primary with 39% of the vote. As of July 2006, Space was considered to be slightly ahead of Ney, with a large percentage of undecided voters.
For the first three months of 2006, Ney blamed legal costs for causing his re-election campaign to spend more than it raised. For the April–June period, it was unusually intense campaigning in his rural district that caused the six-term incumbent to spend $52,675 more than donors gave him in the last three months, he said.
Withdrawal from race and guilty plea
On August 7, 2006, state senator
Joy PadgettJoy Padgett is a former Republican member of the Ohio Senate, representing the 20th district until the end of 2008. In 2006, dogged by personal scandals, she ran unsuccessfully for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and for Congress in...
announced that Ney was withdrawing his candidacy in the 2006 election, and that Ney and House Majority Leader
John BoehnerJohn Andrew Boehner is the 61st and current Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party, he is the U.S. Representative from , serving since 1991...
had asked her to run in his place.
On the same date, in an interview with the
Pittsburgh Tribune-ReviewThe Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, also known as "the Trib," is the second largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
, Ney confirmed he would not run for reelection, but intended to serve out his term. About his future plans, Ney said "I have some options in the nongovernment sector." The
Washington Post reported that Boehner met with Ney in early August "to urge him to step aside, reminding him that with a son in college and a daughter nearing college age, he will need money. ... If he lost his House seat for the party, Boehner is said to have cautioned, Ney could not expect a lucrative career on K Street to pay those tuition bills, along with the hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees piling up."
On August 14, 2006, Ney officially withdrew from the race. Because that occurred before August 19 (80 or more days before the election), Ohio Revised Code 3513.312 applied: "the vacancy in the party nomination so created shall be filled by a special election". If Ney had waited until August 20, section 3513.31 of the Ohio Revised Code would have pertained: Ney's replacement in the November general election would be named by a district committee of the Ohio Republican party.
The special election was held on September 14, and was won by State Senator
Joy PadgettJoy Padgett is a former Republican member of the Ohio Senate, representing the 20th district until the end of 2008. In 2006, dogged by personal scandals, she ran unsuccessfully for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and for Congress in...
with just under half of the fewer than 1600 votes cast.
On September 15, Ney announced he was entering inpatient treatment for rehabilitation and was entering a guilty plea to federal corruption charges related to the Abramoff scandal. He admitted to making "serious mistakes" and stated that, after helping people for his entire political career, it was he who needed the help now.
On October 13, Ney officially pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Ellen Huvelle. He issued a statement saying that he was "ashamed" that he had to end his career as a public servant in such a fashion.
Ney did not immediately resign from the House, even though under House rules he would not have been able to vote or participate in any committee work during the chamber's "lame duck" session in December. He claimed that he had outstanding work to finish in his congressional office. Also, several officials said that he was in severe financial straits and needed to continue drawing his congressional salary for as long as possible. The four highest-ranking members of the Republican House leadership — Hastert, Boehner, Majority Whip
Roy BluntRoy D. Blunt is the junior United States Senator from Missouri. He is a member of the Republican Party. His Senate seat was previously held by Republican Kit Bond, until his retirement....
and House Republican Conference Chairwoman
Deborah PryceDeborah D. Pryce is an American politician from Ohio and former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives for Ohio's 15th congressional district, which includes the western half of Columbus and the surrounding suburbs.She is divorced from Randy Walker and now lives in Upper...
— issued a joint statement demanding that Ney resign before the lame duck session. If he didn't do so, they said, they would make a resolution to expel him the first order of business at the lame duck session.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/13/AR2006101300169.html
On November 3 — four days before the election — Ney submitted his resignation to Hastert. It is widely believed that Ney's delay in resigning cost Padgett any chance of keeping the seat in Republican hands, as she was routed by Space 62% to 38%.
On January 19, 2007, Ney was sentenced to 30 months in prison, pay a $6,000 fine and 200 hours of community service. On the orders of Judge Ellen Huvalle, Ney reported to Federal Correctional Institution, Morgantown in
Morgantown, West VirginiaMorgantown is a city in Monongalia County, West Virginia. It is the county seat of Monongalia County. Placed along the banks of the Monongahela River, Morgantown is the largest city in North-Central West Virginia, and the base of the Morgantown metropolitan area...
on March 1, 2007. His
Federal Bureau of PrisonsThe Federal Bureau of Prisons is a federal law enforcement agency subdivision of the United States Department of Justice and is responsible for the administration of the federal prison system. The system also handles prisoners who committed acts considered felonies under the District of Columbia's...
inmate number is 28882-016, and he will bunk in a room with twelve others. He shared a space in the prison with former "Survivor" star Richard Hatch, a Morgantown inmate serving 51 months for failing to pay taxes.
After his prison term Ney was required to be on probation for two years, pay a fine of $6,000, and undergo counseling.
Controversies
Ney is allegedly involved in several matters that have attracted the interest of federal prosecutors. On May 18, 2006 the House Ethics Committee announced an investigation into bribery allegations against Ney.
Involvement with Abramoff
In four separate guilty pleas,
Jack AbramoffJack Abramoff is an American former lobbyist and businessman. Convicted in 2006 of mail fraud and conspiracy, he was at the heart of an extensive corruption investigation that led to the conviction of White House officials J. Steven Griles and David Safavian, U.S. Representative Bob Ney, and nine...
, former DeLay deputy chief of staff
Tony RudyTony Charles Rudy , an American lobbyist and an associate of Jack Abramoff. After serving as a staffer in the office of U. S. Representative Tom DeLay from approximately 1995 to 2001, and rising to deputy chief of staff, Rudy joined "Team Abramoff" at Greenberg Traurig. Rudy was implicated in the...
, former DeLay press secretary
Michael ScanlonMichael Scanlon, AKA "Sean Scanlon", is a former communications director for Rep. Tom DeLay, lobbyist, and public relations executive who has pleaded guilty to corruption charges related to the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal...
and former Ney chief of staff
Neil VolzNeil Volz was Chief of Staff to Representative Bob Ney , staff director of the House Administration Committee, and later part of Team Abramoff, when he left Capitol Hill in February 2002 to work for Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig LLP...
all said Ney had used his position to grant favors to the Abramoff lobbying team in exchange for gifts, including a free trip to the Super Bowl, Northern Marianas Islands, Scotland, the use of luxury boxes at sporting events, and concerts and meals.
Ney was subpoenaed in the investigation in November 2005. In May 2006, Will Heaton, his chief of staff, was subpoenaed. In June 2006, the federal grand jury issued a subpoena to Matthew D. Parker, Ney's campaign manager. In July 2006, John Bennett, a staffer in Ney's district office, received a subpoena.
"Representative #1"
On January 3, 2006, Abramoff pleaded guilty to three felony counts involving charges stemming principally from his lobbying activities in Washington on behalf of Native American tribes. One of the cases of bribery described in the plea agreement detail involves a person identified as "Representative #1". Ney's spokesman confirmed that Ney is Representative #1.
A press release from the
Department of JusticeThe United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
describes the particulars:
- Abramoff also admitted that as one means of accomplishing results for their clients, he, Scanlon, and others engaged in a pattern of corruptly providing things of value to public officials, including trips, campaign contributions, and meals and entertainment, with the intent to influence acts by the public officials that would benefit Abramoff and Abramoff’s clients. For example, Abramoff and Scanlon provided things of value
An economic value is the worth of a good or service as determined by the market.The economic value of a good or service has puzzled economists since the beginning of the discipline. First, economists tried to estimate the value of a good to an individual alone, and extend that definition to goods...
to a public official (described as Representative #1) and members of his staff, including, but not limited to, a lavish trip to Scotland to play golfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
on world-famous courses, tickets to sporting events and other entertainmentEntertainment consists of any activity which provides a diversion or permits people to amuse themselves in their leisure time. Entertainment is generally passive, such as watching opera or a movie. Active forms of amusement, such as sports, are more often considered to be recreation...
, regular meals at Abramoff’s upscale restaurant, and campaign contributions for the Representative, his political action committee, his campaign committee, and other political committees on behalf of the Representative. At the same time, and in exchange for these things of value, Scanlon and Abramoff sought and received the Representative’s agreement to perform directly and through others a series of official acts, including but not limited to agreements to support and pass legislation, and agreements to place statements in the Congressional Record.
Ney said in a statement that "At the time I dealt with Jack Abramoff, I obviously did not know, and had no way of knowing, the self-serving and fraudulent nature of Abramoff's activities". Ney spokesman Brian Walsh said that any official actions Ney had taken were based on "the merits and facts of the situation and not because of any improper influence from Jack Abramoff or anybody else".
"Staffer A" and "Staffer B"
Abramoff's plea agreement also details his practice of hiring former congressional staffers. Abramoff used these persons' influence to lobby their former Congressional employers, in violation of a one-year federal ban on such lobbying. Named in the
Department of JusticeThe United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
indictment are two Abramoff colleagues, "Staffer A" and "Staffer B", who are
Tony RudyTony Charles Rudy , an American lobbyist and an associate of Jack Abramoff. After serving as a staffer in the office of U. S. Representative Tom DeLay from approximately 1995 to 2001, and rising to deputy chief of staff, Rudy joined "Team Abramoff" at Greenberg Traurig. Rudy was implicated in the...
and Ney's former chief of staff,
Neil VolzNeil Volz was Chief of Staff to Representative Bob Ney , staff director of the House Administration Committee, and later part of Team Abramoff, when he left Capitol Hill in February 2002 to work for Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig LLP...
(who left Ney's office to work as a lobbyist for
Barnes & ThornburgBarnes & Thornburg LLP is a large U.S. law firm and lobbying group. It is currently the largest law firm in the state of Indiana, and 97th largest in the United States...
) respectively.
Michael Scanlon describes actions by Ney
On November 21, 2005, Scanlon pleaded guilty to conspiring to bribe a member of Congress, identified as Ney, and other public officials. In the agreement, Scanlon admitted to bribing Ney in return for, among other things, the following (described in more detail below):
- Ney's placing statements in the Congressional Record relating to the SunCruz Casinos
SunCruz Casinos was one of many cruise lines that offered offshore "cruises to nowhere", legally transporting passengers into international waters beyond the reach of federal and state gambling laws...
scandal;
- Ney's using his position to attempt to endorse and support a client of Abramoff's as a provider of a wireless telephone infrastructure to the House of Representatives;
- Ney's agreement to introduce and seek passage of legislation that would lift an existing federal ban against commercial gaming for two different Native American tribes in Texas (clients of Abramoff);
- Ney's agreement to assist legislation to financially benefit a California tribe.
Involvement in the SunCruz Casinos Scandal
Ney is also implicated in the separate Abramoff
SunCruz CasinosSunCruz Casinos was one of many cruise lines that offered offshore "cruises to nowhere", legally transporting passengers into international waters beyond the reach of federal and state gambling laws...
scandal. The conduct alleged is that Ney twice entered statements into the Congressional Record at Scanlon's request in exchange for a $10,000 contribution.
In March 2000, before a deal for Abramoff and others to purchase SunCruz was closed, Ney entered the following comments into the Congressional Record that were critical of the management of SunCruz: "Mr. Speaker, how
SunCruz CasinosSunCruz Casinos was one of many cruise lines that offered offshore "cruises to nowhere", legally transporting passengers into international waters beyond the reach of federal and state gambling laws...
and Gus Boulis conduct themselves with regard to
FloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
laws is very unnerving. Florida authorities have repeatedly reprimanded SunCruz Casinos and its owner Gus Boulis for taking illegal bets, not paying their customers properly and had to take steps to prevent SunCruz from conducting operations altogether." It is alleged that this statement was intended to pressure SunCruz to sell to Abramoff on terms favorable to the latter.
The second time was in October 2000. It is alleged that Ney, like other Republicans in the House, was under pressure to raise money for the Republican National Congressional Committee (RNCC) in October 2000, a month prior to the November elections. In an October 23 e-mail from Abramoff to Scanlon, Abramoff asked "Would 10K for NRCC from Suncruz for Ney help?" Scanlon replied, "Yes, a lot! But would have to give them a definite answer — and they need it this week".
The $10,000 was sent to the RNCC within days, and Ney got credit for raising it. Scanlon wrote a draft statement for Ney that praised Adam Kidan, the main partner of Abramoff in purchasing SunCruz. Ney then inserted the statement into the October 26 Congressional Record, praising the new more responsible management, under Kidan, of SunCruz.
Ney's support of Indian gambling
Ney introduced legislation that would allow the Tiguas Indians to reopen their casino after receiving $32,000 in donations to his PAC and campaign from the tribe.
In March 2002, Abramoff e-mailed Marc Schwartz, a consultant for the Tiguas, instructing him to donate to Rep. Ney's campaign. The tribe donated $2,000 to the campaign and $30,000 to Ney's PAC. Scanlon e-mailed Abramoff on March 20, 2002 to tell him that he has signed up Rep. Bob Ney to attach a provision allowing the Tiguas to have gaming rights to the Helping Americans Vote Act, which Ney had co-authored: "just met with Ney!!! We're f'ing gold!!!! He's going to do Tigua." (Former Ney Chief of Staff Neil Volz, now an Abramoff employee, made the appeal to Ney's staff while still subject to the one-year lobbying ban).
According to testimony by Tigua representatives, Abramoff set up a lengthy meeting between tribal representatives and Ney in Ney's office in August 2002, as well as a conference call, and Ney assured them he was working to insert language that would reopen their casino into an unrelated election reform bill. Ney's attorney reported that he found a calendar reference indicating that Ney had had a meeting with the "Taqua".
Ultimately, the Tiguas casino language did not become law. Abramoff, Scanlon, and Ney had promised the tribe that the provision would win Senate support from Senator
Christopher DoddChristopher John "Chris" Dodd is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States Senator from Connecticut for a thirty-year period ending with the 111th United States Congress....
. Dodd said that he never supported the amendment. The Tiguas then claimed they were defrauded — by Abramoff, Scanlon, and Ney.
In November 2004, Ney told Senate investigators that "he was not at all familiar with the Tigua" and could not recall meeting with members of the tribe. Brian Walsh, a spokesman for Ney, said in June 2006 that the congressman's meeting with the committee "was a voluntary meeting — it was not conducted under oath".
Neil Volz describes involvement by Ney with Indian tribes
On May 8, 2006, Volz pleaded guilty to conspiring to corrupt public officials and violating lobbying rules.
Bloomberg News described the plea agreement:
- In court documents filed as part of Volz's plea agreement, prosecutors said that he and others at Greenberg Traurig offered trips, tickets to sporting events and numerous meals at Abramoff's restaurants to Ney. In 2003, Volz paid for part of a two-night trip to the Sagamore Resort in Lake George, New York, for Ney and members of his staff, prosecutors said.
- Ney, for his part, agreed to help Abramoff clients with acts such as inserting language into legislation that would lift a gaming ban hurting one of the tribes, prosecutors said. The court documents also describe conversations in which Volz told Ney what Abramoff wanted him to say in meetings with the tribal client.
License to a telecommunications firm
Ney, as chair of the House Administration Committee, approved a 2002 license for an Israeli telecommunications company to install equipment to improve cell phone reception in the Capitol and adjacent House office buildings, equipment that would generate significant revenue for the firm. The company, then Foxcom Wireless, an Israeli start-up telecommunications firm, (which has since moved headquarters from Jerusalem to Vienna, Va., and been renamed MobileAccess Networks) later paid Abramoff $280,000 for lobbying. It also donated $50,000 to Abramoff's
Capital Athletic FoundationThe Capital Athletic Foundation is a 501 charity organization founded in 2000. The organization's nominal purpose was to provide needy youths with athletic opportunities. The organization has been used by its founder, Jack Abramoff, as a front group for channeling money into his own political...
, a non-profit organization that Abramoff used to redistribute money for personal and political gain.
A spokesman for Ney claimed that wireless providers had voted for Foxcom in secret ballots, but spokesmen for each of the six wireless companies told
The Washington Post they had remained neutral in the selection process. Ney has refused to make public a copy of documents relating to the agreement.
Involvement in U.S. sanctions on arms sales to Iran
In the late 1970s, Ney went to
IranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
to teach English. Since then, he has maintained an active interest in Iranian affairs and was the only member of Congress fluent in
PersianPersian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
.
In January 2006,
NewsweekNewsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
reported that Ney's lawyer confirmed that federal prosecutors have subpoenaed records on an expenses paid February 2003 trip to
LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
that Ney and a top aide took. The trip was paid for by "Nigel Winfield, a thrice-convicted felon who ran a company in
CyprusCyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
called FN Aviation. Winfield was seeking to sell U.S.-made airplane spare parts to the Iranian government — a deal that would have needed special permits because of U.S.
sanctionsInternational sanctions are actions taken by countries against others for political reasons, either unilaterally or multilaterally.There are several types of sanctions....
against Tehran", and that "Ney personally lobbied the then Secretary of State
Colin PowellColin Luther Powell is an American statesman and a retired four-star general in the United States Army. He was the 65th United States Secretary of State, serving under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American to serve in that position. During his military...
to relax U.S. sanctions on Iran."
Resignation
On November 3, 2006, facing an impending
expulsionExpulsion is the most serious form of disciplinary action that can be taken against a Member of Congress. Article I, Section 5 of the United States Constitution provides that "Each House [of Congress] may determine the Rules of its proceedings, punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with...
vote, Ney resigned from the
House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
by his letter of resignation to Speaker of the House
Dennis HastertJohn Dennis "Denny" Hastert was the 59th Speaker of the House serving from 1999 to 2007. He represented as a Republican for twenty years, 1987 to 2007.He is the longest-serving Republican Speaker in history...
.
Current status
As of Sept 18, 2008, former Congressman Ney is working with the Talk Radio News Service. He gave an interview on the Marc Bernier show on radio station WFHG-FM on that date and the host titled him "Bob Ney, of the Talk Radio News Service".
In April 2009, Mr. Ney started the "Bob Ney Radio Show", a talk show on West Virginia radio station
WVLY (AM)WVLY is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to Moundsville, West Virginia, USA, it serves the area. The station is currently owned by Monroe Communications.WVLY is the current radio home of former U.S. Rep. Bob Ney...
. He maintained a blog on the station's
website.
Electoral history
Robert William Ney (born July 5, 1954) is an American politicianThe United States is a federal constitutional republic, in which the President of the United States , Congress, and judiciary share powers reserved to the national government, and the federal government shares sovereignty with the state governments.The executive branch is headed by the President...
from the U.S. stateA U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of OhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. A RepublicanThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
, Ney represented Ohio's 18th congressional districtThe 18th congressional district of Ohio is currently represented by Republican Bob Gibbs. The district ranges around the eastern part of Ohio, taking in a collection of small cities and rural areas. The district voted for the majority party in the House of Representatives in every election since...
in the U.S. House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from 1995 until November 3, 2006, when he resigned. Ney's resignation took place after he pled guilty to charges of conspiracy and making false statements in relation to the Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandalThe Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal is a United States political scandal relating to the work performed by political lobbyists Jack Abramoff, Ralph E. Reed, Jr., Grover Norquist and Michael Scanlon on Indian casino gambling interests for an estimated $85 million in fees. Abramoff and Scanlon...
.
Ney's best known Congressional work was on the election reform efforts founded in the wake of the confused 2000 voting in Florida, and his support and backing for the "Stand Up For Steel" crusade and resulting laws. From 2001 to 2006, Ney was Chairman of the House Administration CommitteeThe United States House Committee on House Administration deals with the general administration matters of the United States House of Representatives.-Jurisdiction:...
. As chair of that committee, he oversaw operations in the CapitolThe United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall...
complex and was sometimes known as the "Mayor of Capitol Hill". Ney also gained notoriety when he mandated, as Chairman of the House Administration Committee, that "french fries" be renamed "freedom friesFreedom fries is a political euphemism for French fries used by some people in the United States as a result of anti-French sentiment during the controversy over the U.S. decision to launch the 2003 invasion of Iraq. France expressed strong opposition in the United Nations to such an invasion...
" on House of Representatives food service menus, to indicate displeasure with France's lack of support for the 2003 invasion of IraqThe 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
.
Before he pled guilty, Ney was identified in the guilty pleas of Jack AbramoffJack Abramoff is an American former lobbyist and businessman. Convicted in 2006 of mail fraud and conspiracy, he was at the heart of an extensive corruption investigation that led to the conviction of White House officials J. Steven Griles and David Safavian, U.S. Representative Bob Ney, and nine...
, former Tom DeLayThomas Dale "Tom" DeLay is a former member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1984 until 2006. He was Republican Party House Majority Leader from 2003 to 2005, when he resigned because of criminal money laundering charges in...
deputy chief of staff Tony RudyTony Charles Rudy , an American lobbyist and an associate of Jack Abramoff. After serving as a staffer in the office of U. S. Representative Tom DeLay from approximately 1995 to 2001, and rising to deputy chief of staff, Rudy joined "Team Abramoff" at Greenberg Traurig. Rudy was implicated in the...
, former DeLay press secretary Michael ScanlonMichael Scanlon, AKA "Sean Scanlon", is a former communications director for Rep. Tom DeLay, lobbyist, and public relations executive who has pleaded guilty to corruption charges related to the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal...
and former Ney chief of staff Neil VolzNeil Volz was Chief of Staff to Representative Bob Ney , staff director of the House Administration Committee, and later part of Team Abramoff, when he left Capitol Hill in February 2002 to work for Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig LLP...
for receiving lavish gifts in exchange for political favors.
On May 18, 2006, the House Ethics CommitteeThe Committee on Ethics, often known simply as the Ethics Committee, is one of the committees of the United States House of Representatives. Prior to the 112th Congress it was known as the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct....
announced an investigation into bribery allegations against Ney, and on August 7, 2006, Ney announced that he was withdrawing from the 2006 election race.
On September 15, 2006, the Justice Department filed Ney's guilty pleas to a charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to a charge of falsifying financial disclosure forms. Both charges are related to actions taken on behalf of Abramoff's clients in exchange for bribes, as well as separate actions taken on behalf of a foreign businessman in exchange for over $50,000 in gambling sprees at foreign private casinos.
Ney is the first member of Congress to admit to criminal charges in the Abramoff investigation, which has focused on the actions of several current and former Republican lawmakers who had been close to the former lobbyist. Ney resigned from the House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
on November 3, 2006.
He was sentenced to 30 months in prison. He was released on August 15, 2008 after serving 17 months.
Early years and family
Ney was born in Wheeling, West VirginiaWheeling is a city in Ohio and Marshall counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia; it is the county seat of Ohio County. Wheeling is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area...
. The son of a TV cameraman for WTRF-TVWTRF-TV is the CBS-affiliated television station for the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia and the Allegheny Plateau of Eastern Ohio that is licensed to Wheeling, West Virginia. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 7 from a transmitter in Bridgeport, Ohio. Owned by West...
, Ney grew up in Bellaire, OhioBellaire is a village in Belmont County, Ohio, United States. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 4,278 at the 2010 census. The village is located along the Ohio River...
, an aging industrial town across the Ohio RiverThe Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
from Wheeling. He graduated in 1972 from St. John's High School in Bellaire. He attended Ohio State UniversityThe Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
's branch campus in Belmont CountyBelmont County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 70,400. Its county seat is St. Clairsville...
before transferring to OSU's main campus in ColumbusColumbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
. He received a Bachelor of ScienceA Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
degreeAn academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
from Ohio State UniversityThe Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
in 1976. After college, he worked at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, taught English in IranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, served as Bellaire safety director, and worked as the health and education program manager of the Ohio Office of Appalachia.
He has two children from a previous marriage, and no children with his second wife, Elizabeth.
Political career — Ohio legislature
In 1980, at the age of 26, Ney defeated state Represnentative Wayne HaysWayne Levere Hays was an American politician whose strong rule of the House Administration Committee extended to even the smallest items. In the mid-1970s, lawmakers avoided crossing Hays for fear that he would shut off the air conditioning in their offices...
, a former U.S. representative who had resigned from Congress in 1976 after a sex scandalA sex scandal is a scandal involving allegations or information about possibly-immoral sexual activities being made public. Sex scandals are often associated with movie stars, politicians, famous athletes or others in the public eye, and become scandals largely because of the prominence of the...
. Ney served in the Ohio House of RepresentativesThe Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate....
from 1981 to 1983. He was defeated in his reelection bid in November 1982.
After his defeat, Ney managed a home security company in Saudi ArabiaThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
. He was appointed to the Ohio Senate in 1984 to replace former state senator Sam SpeckSam Speck is a former member of the Ohio Senate, where he served from 1977 to 1983. He represented the 20th District.-Education:Speck earned his bachelor's degree from Muskingum University and his master's and doctoral degrees from Harvard University....
, who resigned the 20th District seat to accept a presidential appointment. Ney won the seat in November 1984 and then re-election in 1988 and 1992.
Congressional career
In November 1994, Ney won the Republican nomination for the 18th District after nine-term incumbent Democrat Douglas ApplegateDouglas "Doug" Applegate is a former member of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio. Applegate is a Democrat....
announced his retirement. The 18th had a considerable Democratic lean, but Ney scored a considerable upset, defeating Democrat Greg DiDonatoGregory L. DiDonato of Dennison, Ohio, is an American politician of the Democratic party. While still in high school, DiDonato was elected to the village council of Dennison, Ohio. At age 21, he was elected mayor of the Village of Dennison. He was re-elected mayor in 1987. While in college, he...
with 53% of the vote. In 1996, he was re-elected with 50% of the vote against Democrat Rob Burch. In 1998, he again defeated Burch, this time with 60% of the vote. He won in 2000 and 2004 with more than 65% of the vote, and was unopposed in 2002.
Ney's voting record was considerably more moderate than has become typical of Republicans elected in 1994. He did not earn a rating in the 90s from the American Conservative UnionThe American Conservative Union is an American political organization advocating conservative policies, and is the oldest such conservative lobbying organization in the country.-Organization:...
until 2004. He was known for bucking his party's leadership on issues important to his mostly blue-collar district, such as championing the needs of the beleaguered steel industry. In 1999 he was a prominent part of the "Stand Up for Steel" campaign, which united the steel industry and steel unions in a fight against low-priced imports. In 2000, he was one of a handful of Republicans who backed an effort to block permanent normal trade status for China. In 2001, Ney was one of three Republicans to vote against the USA Patriot ActThe USA PATRIOT Act is an Act of the U.S. Congress that was signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 26, 2001...
(the other two were Butch Otter of IdahoIdaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
and Ron PaulRonald Ernest "Ron" Paul is an American physician, author and United States Congressman who is seeking to be the Republican Party candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Paul represents Texas's 14th congressional district, which covers an area south and southwest of Houston that includes...
of TexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
). In 2005 he voted against President BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
's Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) and against Republican budget cuts to Medicaid Medicaid is the United States health program for certain people and families with low incomes and resources. It is a means-tested program that is jointly funded by the state and federal governments, and is managed by the states. People served by Medicaid are U.S. citizens or legal permanent...
and after-school programs.
In 2003, Ney led the effort, along with fellow Republican Congressman Walter B. JonesWalter Beaman Jones, Jr. is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1995. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district encompasses the Outer Banks and areas near the Pamlico Sound. Jones' father was Walter B. Jones, Sr., a Democratic Party congressman from the neighboring 1st district...
, to change the name of "french friesFrench fries , chips, fries, or French-fried potatoes are strips of deep-fried potato. North Americans tend to refer to any pieces of deep-fried potatoes as fries or French fries, while in the United Kingdom, Australia, Ireland and New Zealand, long, thinly cut slices of deep-fried potatoes are...
" and "French toastFrench toast or Eggy Bread, is a food made with bread and eggs. It is a Christmas time dessert in Portugal and Brazil.Where French toast is served as a sweet dish, milk, sugar, or cinnamon are also commonly added before frying, and it may be then topped with sugar, butter, fruit, syrup, or other...
" to "freedom friesFreedom fries is a political euphemism for French fries used by some people in the United States as a result of anti-French sentiment during the controversy over the U.S. decision to launch the 2003 invasion of Iraq. France expressed strong opposition in the United Nations to such an invasion...
" and "freedom toast". His committee had authority over House cafeterias. Ney said at a press conference that "this action today is a small, but symbolic effort to show the strong displeasure of many on Capitol Hill with the actions of our so-called ally, FranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
." In July 2006, after Ney had left the committee, the names were changed back; Ney had no comment. In late 2005 and early 2006, allegations that Ney played a key role in the Abramoff lobbying scandalThe Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal is a United States political scandal relating to the work performed by political lobbyists Jack Abramoff, Ralph E. Reed, Jr., Grover Norquist and Michael Scanlon on Indian casino gambling interests for an estimated $85 million in fees. Abramoff and Scanlon...
were widely reported. (See below.)
On January 15, 2006, Ney resigned as chairman of the House Administration Committee. He maintained that he had done nothing wrong, but had been under increasing pressure to stand down since his ties to Abramoff were an increasing embarrassment in light of Republican plans for reforms of lobbying and campaign finance rules. The House Administration Committee has jurisdiction over elections and lobbyists. House Speaker Dennis HastertJohn Dennis "Denny" Hastert was the 59th Speaker of the House serving from 1999 to 2007. He represented as a Republican for twenty years, 1987 to 2007.He is the longest-serving Republican Speaker in history...
reportedly emailed a Roll CallRoll Call is a newspaper published in Washington, D.C., United States, from Monday to Thursday when the United States Congress is in session and on Mondays only during recess. Roll Call reports news of legislative and political maneuverings on Capitol Hill, as well as political coverage of...
article regarding Ney's precarious hold on the gavel to several Capitol beat reporters. Ney's resignation was officially temporary. However, even some of his Republican colleagues expected him to be indicted. Under Republican caucus rules, he would have permanently lost his chairmanship if indicted.
On June 29, 2006, three of Ney's staffers resigned: Brian Walsh, a longtime Ney spokesman; Will Heaton, Ney’s chief of staff; and Chris Otillio, a senior legislative aide. In a statement, Ney said that Congressional staff turnover is high, and that all three departing staff members had worked for him longer than many others stay in similar jobs.
2006 re-election campaign
On January 26, 2006, Ney announced his candidacy for re-election to the House.
Even before his indictment, Ney was one of the Republican elected officials whom Democrats highlighted as part of a "culture of corruptionCulture of corruption was a political slogan used by the U.S. Democratic Party to refer to a series of political scandals involving Republican politicians during the first two years of George W...
" in the 2006 campaign.
Republican primary
On May 2, 2006, Ney defeated Republican James Brodbelt Harris, a financial analyst from Zanesville, OhioZanesville is a city in and the county seat of Muskingum County, Ohio, United States. The population was 25,586 at the 2000 census.Zanesville was named after Ebenezer Zane, who had constructed Zane's Trace, a pioneer road through present-day Ohio...
, in the primary. Harris did not campaign, and collected less than $5,000 in campaign contributions. Ney won 68 percent to 32 percent. On the day of the election, Greg Giroux of Congressional QuarterlyCongressional Quarterly, Inc., or CQ, is a privately owned publishing company that produces a number of publications reporting primarily on the United States Congress...
noted: "I'd be surprised if Harris got more than 20 or 25 percent. That would be a sign that there is a chunk of the Republican base that's disenchanted with the incumbent."
Commenting on his situation after the primary, Ney said "I have a healthy campaign account, in contrast to the Democratic Party, which is deeply divided and has a candidate with almost no campaign cash."
Legal fees
A filing with Federal Election CommissionThe Federal Election Commission is an independent regulatory agency that was founded in 1975 by the United States Congress to regulate the campaign finance legislation in the United States. It was created in a provision of the 1975 amendment to the Federal Election Campaign Act...
in October said that Ney had paid the law firm Vinson & Elkins $136,000 from July through September, from campaign funds. By early January 2006, the total legal expenses paid by Ney's political campaign committee had risen to $232,381. For the January to March 2006 reporting period, Ney paid an additional $96,000 in legal fees from campaign funds to that law firm; total campaign spending for the period was $250,000. The legal fees are related to an ongoing federal investigation (see below.)
Brian Walsh, spokesman for Ney, said in April 2006: "Frankly, it's an unfortunate commentary on the justice system that someone has to spend a lot of money simply to clear their name and set the record straight in what is in this case completely false allegations." He also said that "the congressman is doing everything possible and moving as quickly as possible to put these allegations to rest and clear his name."
In an Federal Elections Commission filing showing expenses through the end of June 2006, Ney reported that he had not paid any legal fees since January 5 from campaign funds. Mark Tuohey, the lead lawyer at Vinson & Elkins, said Ney "needs money for his campaign and that's a priority right now. He intends to pay. He'll pay his fees, I have no doubt about that."
In November 2005, it was reported that Ney had set up a legal defense fund for himself in connection with the Abramoff case. Documents filed in the House in January 2006 showed that the Ethics Committee had approved the organization papers for the fund. The fund raised $40,000 between January and March 2006, and nothing between April and June 2006. As of June 30, 2006, the fund had not yet spent any money for Ney's legal expenses. Ney's withdrawal from the race (see below) meant that he could use his remaining campaign funds (almost half a million dollars) for his legal defense.
General election
Ney's opponent in the November general election was to be Zack SpaceZachary T. "Zack" Space is an American politician and the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2007 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life, education and career:...
, a Dover, OhioDover is a city in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 12,210 at the 2000 census.-History and features:Dover was originally part of a grant to Col. James Morrison of Kentucky, who had received it from the federal government for Revolutionary War services...
lawyer and hotel developer, who won the Democratic primary with 39% of the vote. As of July 2006, Space was considered to be slightly ahead of Ney, with a large percentage of undecided voters.
For the first three months of 2006, Ney blamed legal costs for causing his re-election campaign to spend more than it raised. For the April–June period, it was unusually intense campaigning in his rural district that caused the six-term incumbent to spend $52,675 more than donors gave him in the last three months, he said.
Withdrawal from race and guilty plea
On August 7, 2006, state senator Joy PadgettJoy Padgett is a former Republican member of the Ohio Senate, representing the 20th district until the end of 2008. In 2006, dogged by personal scandals, she ran unsuccessfully for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and for Congress in...
announced that Ney was withdrawing his candidacy in the 2006 election, and that Ney and House Majority Leader John BoehnerJohn Andrew Boehner is the 61st and current Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party, he is the U.S. Representative from , serving since 1991...
had asked her to run in his place.
On the same date, in an interview with the Pittsburgh Tribune-ReviewThe Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, also known as "the Trib," is the second largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
, Ney confirmed he would not run for reelection, but intended to serve out his term. About his future plans, Ney said "I have some options in the nongovernment sector." The Washington Post reported that Boehner met with Ney in early August "to urge him to step aside, reminding him that with a son in college and a daughter nearing college age, he will need money. ... If he lost his House seat for the party, Boehner is said to have cautioned, Ney could not expect a lucrative career on K Street to pay those tuition bills, along with the hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees piling up."
On August 14, 2006, Ney officially withdrew from the race. Because that occurred before August 19 (80 or more days before the election), Ohio Revised Code 3513.312 applied: "the vacancy in the party nomination so created shall be filled by a special election". If Ney had waited until August 20, section 3513.31 of the Ohio Revised Code would have pertained: Ney's replacement in the November general election would be named by a district committee of the Ohio Republican party.
The special election was held on September 14, and was won by State Senator Joy PadgettJoy Padgett is a former Republican member of the Ohio Senate, representing the 20th district until the end of 2008. In 2006, dogged by personal scandals, she ran unsuccessfully for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and for Congress in...
with just under half of the fewer than 1600 votes cast.
On September 15, Ney announced he was entering inpatient treatment for rehabilitation and was entering a guilty plea to federal corruption charges related to the Abramoff scandal. He admitted to making "serious mistakes" and stated that, after helping people for his entire political career, it was he who needed the help now.
On October 13, Ney officially pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Ellen Huvelle. He issued a statement saying that he was "ashamed" that he had to end his career as a public servant in such a fashion.
Ney did not immediately resign from the House, even though under House rules he would not have been able to vote or participate in any committee work during the chamber's "lame duck" session in December. He claimed that he had outstanding work to finish in his congressional office. Also, several officials said that he was in severe financial straits and needed to continue drawing his congressional salary for as long as possible. The four highest-ranking members of the Republican House leadership — Hastert, Boehner, Majority Whip Roy BluntRoy D. Blunt is the junior United States Senator from Missouri. He is a member of the Republican Party. His Senate seat was previously held by Republican Kit Bond, until his retirement....
and House Republican Conference Chairwoman Deborah PryceDeborah D. Pryce is an American politician from Ohio and former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives for Ohio's 15th congressional district, which includes the western half of Columbus and the surrounding suburbs.She is divorced from Randy Walker and now lives in Upper...
— issued a joint statement demanding that Ney resign before the lame duck session. If he didn't do so, they said, they would make a resolution to expel him the first order of business at the lame duck session.http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/13/AR2006101300169.html
On November 3 — four days before the election — Ney submitted his resignation to Hastert. It is widely believed that Ney's delay in resigning cost Padgett any chance of keeping the seat in Republican hands, as she was routed by Space 62% to 38%.
On January 19, 2007, Ney was sentenced to 30 months in prison, pay a $6,000 fine and 200 hours of community service. On the orders of Judge Ellen Huvalle, Ney reported to Federal Correctional Institution, Morgantown in Morgantown, West VirginiaMorgantown is a city in Monongalia County, West Virginia. It is the county seat of Monongalia County. Placed along the banks of the Monongahela River, Morgantown is the largest city in North-Central West Virginia, and the base of the Morgantown metropolitan area...
on March 1, 2007. His Federal Bureau of PrisonsThe Federal Bureau of Prisons is a federal law enforcement agency subdivision of the United States Department of Justice and is responsible for the administration of the federal prison system. The system also handles prisoners who committed acts considered felonies under the District of Columbia's...
inmate number is 28882-016, and he will bunk in a room with twelve others. He shared a space in the prison with former "Survivor" star Richard Hatch, a Morgantown inmate serving 51 months for failing to pay taxes.
After his prison term Ney was required to be on probation for two years, pay a fine of $6,000, and undergo counseling.
Controversies
Ney is allegedly involved in several matters that have attracted the interest of federal prosecutors. On May 18, 2006 the House Ethics Committee announced an investigation into bribery allegations against Ney.
Involvement with Abramoff
{{Main|Jack Abramoff lobbying and corruption scandal}}
In four separate guilty pleas, Jack AbramoffJack Abramoff is an American former lobbyist and businessman. Convicted in 2006 of mail fraud and conspiracy, he was at the heart of an extensive corruption investigation that led to the conviction of White House officials J. Steven Griles and David Safavian, U.S. Representative Bob Ney, and nine...
, former DeLay deputy chief of staff Tony RudyTony Charles Rudy , an American lobbyist and an associate of Jack Abramoff. After serving as a staffer in the office of U. S. Representative Tom DeLay from approximately 1995 to 2001, and rising to deputy chief of staff, Rudy joined "Team Abramoff" at Greenberg Traurig. Rudy was implicated in the...
, former DeLay press secretary Michael ScanlonMichael Scanlon, AKA "Sean Scanlon", is a former communications director for Rep. Tom DeLay, lobbyist, and public relations executive who has pleaded guilty to corruption charges related to the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal...
and former Ney chief of staff Neil VolzNeil Volz was Chief of Staff to Representative Bob Ney , staff director of the House Administration Committee, and later part of Team Abramoff, when he left Capitol Hill in February 2002 to work for Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig LLP...
all said Ney had used his position to grant favors to the Abramoff lobbying team in exchange for gifts, including a free trip to the Super Bowl, Northern Marianas Islands, Scotland, the use of luxury boxes at sporting events, and concerts and meals.
Ney was subpoenaed in the investigation in November 2005. In May 2006, Will Heaton, his chief of staff, was subpoenaed. In June 2006, the federal grand jury issued a subpoena to Matthew D. Parker, Ney's campaign manager. In July 2006, John Bennett, a staffer in Ney's district office, received a subpoena.
"Representative #1"
On January 3, 2006, Abramoff pleaded guilty to three felony counts involving charges stemming principally from his lobbying activities in Washington on behalf of Native American tribes. One of the cases of bribery described in the plea agreement detail involves a person identified as "Representative #1". Ney's spokesman confirmed that Ney is Representative #1.
A press release from the Department of JusticeThe United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
describes the particulars:
- Abramoff also admitted that as one means of accomplishing results for their clients, he, Scanlon, and others engaged in a pattern of corruptly providing things of value to public officials, including trips, campaign contributions, and meals and entertainment, with the intent to influence acts by the public officials that would benefit Abramoff and Abramoff’s clients. For example, Abramoff and Scanlon provided things of value
An economic value is the worth of a good or service as determined by the market.The economic value of a good or service has puzzled economists since the beginning of the discipline. First, economists tried to estimate the value of a good to an individual alone, and extend that definition to goods...
to a public official (described as Representative #1) and members of his staff, including, but not limited to, a lavish trip to Scotland to play golfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
on world-famous courses, tickets to sporting events and other entertainmentEntertainment consists of any activity which provides a diversion or permits people to amuse themselves in their leisure time. Entertainment is generally passive, such as watching opera or a movie. Active forms of amusement, such as sports, are more often considered to be recreation...
, regular meals at Abramoff’s upscale restaurant, and campaign contributions for the Representative, his political action committee, his campaign committee, and other political committees on behalf of the Representative. At the same time, and in exchange for these things of value, Scanlon and Abramoff sought and received the Representative’s agreement to perform directly and through others a series of official acts, including but not limited to agreements to support and pass legislation, and agreements to place statements in the Congressional Record.
Ney said in a statement that "At the time I dealt with Jack Abramoff, I obviously did not know, and had no way of knowing, the self-serving and fraudulent nature of Abramoff's activities". Ney spokesman Brian Walsh said that any official actions Ney had taken were based on "the merits and facts of the situation and not because of any improper influence from Jack Abramoff or anybody else".
"Staffer A" and "Staffer B"
Abramoff's plea agreement also details his practice of hiring former congressional staffers. Abramoff used these persons' influence to lobby their former Congressional employers, in violation of a one-year federal ban on such lobbying. Named in the Department of JusticeThe United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
indictment are two Abramoff colleagues, "Staffer A" and "Staffer B", who are Tony RudyTony Charles Rudy , an American lobbyist and an associate of Jack Abramoff. After serving as a staffer in the office of U. S. Representative Tom DeLay from approximately 1995 to 2001, and rising to deputy chief of staff, Rudy joined "Team Abramoff" at Greenberg Traurig. Rudy was implicated in the...
and Ney's former chief of staff, Neil VolzNeil Volz was Chief of Staff to Representative Bob Ney , staff director of the House Administration Committee, and later part of Team Abramoff, when he left Capitol Hill in February 2002 to work for Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig LLP...
(who left Ney's office to work as a lobbyist for Barnes & ThornburgBarnes & Thornburg LLP is a large U.S. law firm and lobbying group. It is currently the largest law firm in the state of Indiana, and 97th largest in the United States...
) respectively.
Michael Scanlon describes actions by Ney
On November 21, 2005, Scanlon pleaded guilty to conspiring to bribe a member of Congress, identified as Ney, and other public officials. In the agreement, Scanlon admitted to bribing Ney in return for, among other things, the following (described in more detail below):
- Ney's placing statements in the Congressional Record relating to the SunCruz Casinos
SunCruz Casinos was one of many cruise lines that offered offshore "cruises to nowhere", legally transporting passengers into international waters beyond the reach of federal and state gambling laws...
scandal;
- Ney's using his position to attempt to endorse and support a client of Abramoff's as a provider of a wireless telephone infrastructure to the House of Representatives;
- Ney's agreement to introduce and seek passage of legislation that would lift an existing federal ban against commercial gaming for two different Native American tribes in Texas (clients of Abramoff);
- Ney's agreement to assist legislation to financially benefit a California tribe.
Involvement in the SunCruz Casinos Scandal
{{Main|SunCruz Casinos}}
Ney is also implicated in the separate Abramoff SunCruz CasinosSunCruz Casinos was one of many cruise lines that offered offshore "cruises to nowhere", legally transporting passengers into international waters beyond the reach of federal and state gambling laws...
scandal. The conduct alleged is that Ney twice entered statements into the Congressional Record at Scanlon's request in exchange for a $10,000 contribution.
In March 2000, before a deal for Abramoff and others to purchase SunCruz was closed, Ney entered the following comments into the Congressional Record that were critical of the management of SunCruz: "Mr. Speaker, how SunCruz CasinosSunCruz Casinos was one of many cruise lines that offered offshore "cruises to nowhere", legally transporting passengers into international waters beyond the reach of federal and state gambling laws...
and Gus Boulis conduct themselves with regard to FloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
laws is very unnerving. Florida authorities have repeatedly reprimanded SunCruz Casinos and its owner Gus Boulis for taking illegal bets, not paying their customers properly and had to take steps to prevent SunCruz from conducting operations altogether." It is alleged that this statement was intended to pressure SunCruz to sell to Abramoff on terms favorable to the latter.
The second time was in October 2000. It is alleged that Ney, like other Republicans in the House, was under pressure to raise money for the Republican National Congressional Committee (RNCC) in October 2000, a month prior to the November elections. In an October 23 e-mail from Abramoff to Scanlon, Abramoff asked "Would 10K for NRCC from Suncruz for Ney help?" Scanlon replied, "Yes, a lot! But would have to give them a definite answer — and they need it this week".
The $10,000 was sent to the RNCC within days, and Ney got credit for raising it. Scanlon wrote a draft statement for Ney that praised Adam Kidan, the main partner of Abramoff in purchasing SunCruz. Ney then inserted the statement into the October 26 Congressional Record, praising the new more responsible management, under Kidan, of SunCruz. {{Citation needed|date=February 2007}}
Ney's support of Indian gambling
Ney introduced legislation that would allow the Tiguas Indians to reopen their casino after receiving $32,000 in donations to his PAC and campaign from the tribe.
In March 2002, Abramoff e-mailed Marc Schwartz, a consultant for the Tiguas, instructing him to donate to Rep. Ney's campaign. The tribe donated $2,000 to the campaign and $30,000 to Ney's PAC. Scanlon e-mailed Abramoff on March 20, 2002 to tell him that he has signed up Rep. Bob Ney to attach a provision allowing the Tiguas to have gaming rights to the Helping Americans Vote Act, which Ney had co-authored: "just met with Ney!!! We're f'ing gold!!!! He's going to do Tigua." (Former Ney Chief of Staff Neil Volz, now an Abramoff employee, made the appeal to Ney's staff while still subject to the one-year lobbying ban).
According to testimony by Tigua representatives, Abramoff set up a lengthy meeting between tribal representatives and Ney in Ney's office in August 2002, as well as a conference call, and Ney assured them he was working to insert language that would reopen their casino into an unrelated election reform bill. Ney's attorney reported that he found a calendar reference indicating that Ney had had a meeting with the "Taqua".
Ultimately, the Tiguas casino language did not become law. Abramoff, Scanlon, and Ney had promised the tribe that the provision would win Senate support from Senator Christopher DoddChristopher John "Chris" Dodd is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States Senator from Connecticut for a thirty-year period ending with the 111th United States Congress....
. Dodd said that he never supported the amendment. The Tiguas then claimed they were defrauded — by Abramoff, Scanlon, and Ney.
In November 2004, Ney told Senate investigators that "he was not at all familiar with the Tigua" and could not recall meeting with members of the tribe. Brian Walsh, a spokesman for Ney, said in June 2006 that the congressman's meeting with the committee "was a voluntary meeting — it was not conducted under oath".
Neil Volz describes involvement by Ney with Indian tribes
On May 8, 2006, Volz pleaded guilty to conspiring to corrupt public officials and violating lobbying rules. Bloomberg News described the plea agreement:
- In court documents filed as part of Volz's plea agreement, prosecutors said that he and others at Greenberg Traurig offered trips, tickets to sporting events and numerous meals at Abramoff's restaurants to Ney. In 2003, Volz paid for part of a two-night trip to the Sagamore Resort in Lake George, New York, for Ney and members of his staff, prosecutors said.
- Ney, for his part, agreed to help Abramoff clients with acts such as inserting language into legislation that would lift a gaming ban hurting one of the tribes, prosecutors said. The court documents also describe conversations in which Volz told Ney what Abramoff wanted him to say in meetings with the tribal client.
License to a telecommunications firm
Ney, as chair of the House Administration Committee, approved a 2002 license for an Israeli telecommunications company to install equipment to improve cell phone reception in the Capitol and adjacent House office buildings, equipment that would generate significant revenue for the firm. The company, then Foxcom Wireless, an Israeli start-up telecommunications firm, (which has since moved headquarters from Jerusalem to Vienna, Va., and been renamed MobileAccess Networks) later paid Abramoff $280,000 for lobbying. It also donated $50,000 to Abramoff's Capital Athletic FoundationThe Capital Athletic Foundation is a 501 charity organization founded in 2000. The organization's nominal purpose was to provide needy youths with athletic opportunities. The organization has been used by its founder, Jack Abramoff, as a front group for channeling money into his own political...
, a non-profit organization that Abramoff used to redistribute money for personal and political gain.
A spokesman for Ney claimed that wireless providers had voted for Foxcom in secret ballots, but spokesmen for each of the six wireless companies told The Washington Post they had remained neutral in the selection process. Ney has refused to make public a copy of documents relating to the agreement.
Involvement in U.S. sanctions on arms sales to Iran
In the late 1970s, Ney went to IranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
to teach English. Since then, he has maintained an active interest in Iranian affairs and was the only member of Congress fluent in PersianPersian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
.
In January 2006, NewsweekNewsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
reported that Ney's lawyer confirmed that federal prosecutors have subpoenaed records on an expenses paid February 2003 trip to LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
that Ney and a top aide took. The trip was paid for by "Nigel Winfield, a thrice-convicted felon who ran a company in CyprusCyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
called FN Aviation. Winfield was seeking to sell U.S.-made airplane spare parts to the Iranian government — a deal that would have needed special permits because of U.S. sanctionsInternational sanctions are actions taken by countries against others for political reasons, either unilaterally or multilaterally.There are several types of sanctions....
against Tehran", and that "Ney personally lobbied the then Secretary of State Colin PowellColin Luther Powell is an American statesman and a retired four-star general in the United States Army. He was the 65th United States Secretary of State, serving under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American to serve in that position. During his military...
to relax U.S. sanctions on Iran."
Resignation
On November 3, 2006, facing an impending expulsionExpulsion is the most serious form of disciplinary action that can be taken against a Member of Congress. Article I, Section 5 of the United States Constitution provides that "Each House [of Congress] may determine the Rules of its proceedings, punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with...
vote, Ney resigned from the House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
by his letter of resignation to Speaker of the House Dennis HastertJohn Dennis "Denny" Hastert was the 59th Speaker of the House serving from 1999 to 2007. He represented as a Republican for twenty years, 1987 to 2007.He is the longest-serving Republican Speaker in history...
.
Current status
As of Sept 18, 2008, former Congressman Ney is working with the Talk Radio News Service. He gave an interview on the Marc Bernier show on radio station WFHG-FM on that date and the host titled him "Bob Ney, of the Talk Radio News Service".
In April 2009, Mr. Ney started the "Bob Ney Radio Show", a talk show on West Virginia radio station WVLY (AM)WVLY is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to Moundsville, West Virginia, USA, it serves the area. The station is currently owned by Monroe Communications.WVLY is the current radio home of former U.S. Rep. Bob Ney...
. He maintained a blog on the station's
website.
Electoral history
Robert William Ney (born July 5, 1954) is an American politicianThe United States is a federal constitutional republic, in which the President of the United States , Congress, and judiciary share powers reserved to the national government, and the federal government shares sovereignty with the state governments.The executive branch is headed by the President...
from the U.S. stateA U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of OhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. A RepublicanThe Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
, Ney represented Ohio's 18th congressional districtThe 18th congressional district of Ohio is currently represented by Republican Bob Gibbs. The district ranges around the eastern part of Ohio, taking in a collection of small cities and rural areas. The district voted for the majority party in the House of Representatives in every election since...
in the U.S. House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from 1995 until November 3, 2006, when he resigned. Ney's resignation took place after he pled guilty to charges of conspiracy and making false statements in relation to the Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandalThe Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal is a United States political scandal relating to the work performed by political lobbyists Jack Abramoff, Ralph E. Reed, Jr., Grover Norquist and Michael Scanlon on Indian casino gambling interests for an estimated $85 million in fees. Abramoff and Scanlon...
.
Ney's best known Congressional work was on the election reform efforts founded in the wake of the confused 2000 voting in Florida, and his support and backing for the "Stand Up For Steel" crusade and resulting laws. From 2001 to 2006, Ney was Chairman of the House Administration CommitteeThe United States House Committee on House Administration deals with the general administration matters of the United States House of Representatives.-Jurisdiction:...
. As chair of that committee, he oversaw operations in the CapitolThe United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall...
complex and was sometimes known as the "Mayor of Capitol Hill". Ney also gained notoriety when he mandated, as Chairman of the House Administration Committee, that "french fries" be renamed "freedom friesFreedom fries is a political euphemism for French fries used by some people in the United States as a result of anti-French sentiment during the controversy over the U.S. decision to launch the 2003 invasion of Iraq. France expressed strong opposition in the United Nations to such an invasion...
" on House of Representatives food service menus, to indicate displeasure with France's lack of support for the 2003 invasion of IraqThe 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
.
Before he pled guilty, Ney was identified in the guilty pleas of Jack AbramoffJack Abramoff is an American former lobbyist and businessman. Convicted in 2006 of mail fraud and conspiracy, he was at the heart of an extensive corruption investigation that led to the conviction of White House officials J. Steven Griles and David Safavian, U.S. Representative Bob Ney, and nine...
, former Tom DeLayThomas Dale "Tom" DeLay is a former member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1984 until 2006. He was Republican Party House Majority Leader from 2003 to 2005, when he resigned because of criminal money laundering charges in...
deputy chief of staff Tony RudyTony Charles Rudy , an American lobbyist and an associate of Jack Abramoff. After serving as a staffer in the office of U. S. Representative Tom DeLay from approximately 1995 to 2001, and rising to deputy chief of staff, Rudy joined "Team Abramoff" at Greenberg Traurig. Rudy was implicated in the...
, former DeLay press secretary Michael ScanlonMichael Scanlon, AKA "Sean Scanlon", is a former communications director for Rep. Tom DeLay, lobbyist, and public relations executive who has pleaded guilty to corruption charges related to the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal...
and former Ney chief of staff Neil VolzNeil Volz was Chief of Staff to Representative Bob Ney , staff director of the House Administration Committee, and later part of Team Abramoff, when he left Capitol Hill in February 2002 to work for Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig LLP...
for receiving lavish gifts in exchange for political favors.
On May 18, 2006, the House Ethics CommitteeThe Committee on Ethics, often known simply as the Ethics Committee, is one of the committees of the United States House of Representatives. Prior to the 112th Congress it was known as the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct....
announced an investigation into bribery allegations against Ney, and on August 7, 2006, Ney announced that he was withdrawing from the 2006 election race.
On September 15, 2006, the Justice Department filed Ney's guilty pleas to a charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to a charge of falsifying financial disclosure forms. Both charges are related to actions taken on behalf of Abramoff's clients in exchange for bribes, as well as separate actions taken on behalf of a foreign businessman in exchange for over $50,000 in gambling sprees at foreign private casinos.
Ney is the first member of Congress to admit to criminal charges in the Abramoff investigation, which has focused on the actions of several current and former Republican lawmakers who had been close to the former lobbyist. Ney resigned from the House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
on November 3, 2006.
He was sentenced to 30 months in prison. He was released on August 15, 2008 after serving 17 months.
Early years and family
Ney was born in Wheeling, West VirginiaWheeling is a city in Ohio and Marshall counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia; it is the county seat of Ohio County. Wheeling is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area...
. The son of a TV cameraman for WTRF-TVWTRF-TV is the CBS-affiliated television station for the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia and the Allegheny Plateau of Eastern Ohio that is licensed to Wheeling, West Virginia. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 7 from a transmitter in Bridgeport, Ohio. Owned by West...
, Ney grew up in Bellaire, OhioBellaire is a village in Belmont County, Ohio, United States. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 4,278 at the 2010 census. The village is located along the Ohio River...
, an aging industrial town across the Ohio RiverThe Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
from Wheeling. He graduated in 1972 from St. John's High School in Bellaire. He attended Ohio State UniversityThe Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
's branch campus in Belmont CountyBelmont County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 70,400. Its county seat is St. Clairsville...
before transferring to OSU's main campus in ColumbusColumbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
. He received a Bachelor of ScienceA Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
degreeAn academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...
from Ohio State UniversityThe Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
in 1976. After college, he worked at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, taught English in IranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, served as Bellaire safety director, and worked as the health and education program manager of the Ohio Office of Appalachia.
He has two children from a previous marriage, and no children with his second wife, Elizabeth.
Political career — Ohio legislature
In 1980, at the age of 26, Ney defeated state Represnentative Wayne HaysWayne Levere Hays was an American politician whose strong rule of the House Administration Committee extended to even the smallest items. In the mid-1970s, lawmakers avoided crossing Hays for fear that he would shut off the air conditioning in their offices...
, a former U.S. representative who had resigned from Congress in 1976 after a sex scandalA sex scandal is a scandal involving allegations or information about possibly-immoral sexual activities being made public. Sex scandals are often associated with movie stars, politicians, famous athletes or others in the public eye, and become scandals largely because of the prominence of the...
. Ney served in the Ohio House of RepresentativesThe Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate....
from 1981 to 1983. He was defeated in his reelection bid in November 1982.
After his defeat, Ney managed a home security company in Saudi ArabiaThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
. He was appointed to the Ohio Senate in 1984 to replace former state senator Sam SpeckSam Speck is a former member of the Ohio Senate, where he served from 1977 to 1983. He represented the 20th District.-Education:Speck earned his bachelor's degree from Muskingum University and his master's and doctoral degrees from Harvard University....
, who resigned the 20th District seat to accept a presidential appointment. Ney won the seat in November 1984 and then re-election in 1988 and 1992.
Congressional career
In November 1994, Ney won the Republican nomination for the 18th District after nine-term incumbent Democrat Douglas ApplegateDouglas "Doug" Applegate is a former member of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio. Applegate is a Democrat....
announced his retirement. The 18th had a considerable Democratic lean, but Ney scored a considerable upset, defeating Democrat Greg DiDonatoGregory L. DiDonato of Dennison, Ohio, is an American politician of the Democratic party. While still in high school, DiDonato was elected to the village council of Dennison, Ohio. At age 21, he was elected mayor of the Village of Dennison. He was re-elected mayor in 1987. While in college, he...
with 53% of the vote. In 1996, he was re-elected with 50% of the vote against Democrat Rob Burch. In 1998, he again defeated Burch, this time with 60% of the vote. He won in 2000 and 2004 with more than 65% of the vote, and was unopposed in 2002.
Ney's voting record was considerably more moderate than has become typical of Republicans elected in 1994. He did not earn a rating in the 90s from the American Conservative UnionThe American Conservative Union is an American political organization advocating conservative policies, and is the oldest such conservative lobbying organization in the country.-Organization:...
until 2004. He was known for bucking his party's leadership on issues important to his mostly blue-collar district, such as championing the needs of the beleaguered steel industry. In 1999 he was a prominent part of the "Stand Up for Steel" campaign, which united the steel industry and steel unions in a fight against low-priced imports. In 2000, he was one of a handful of Republicans who backed an effort to block permanent normal trade status for China. In 2001, Ney was one of three Republicans to vote against the USA Patriot ActThe USA PATRIOT Act is an Act of the U.S. Congress that was signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 26, 2001...
(the other two were Butch Otter of IdahoIdaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
and Ron PaulRonald Ernest "Ron" Paul is an American physician, author and United States Congressman who is seeking to be the Republican Party candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Paul represents Texas's 14th congressional district, which covers an area south and southwest of Houston that includes...
of TexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
). In 2005 he voted against President BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
's Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) and against Republican budget cuts to Medicaid Medicaid is the United States health program for certain people and families with low incomes and resources. It is a means-tested program that is jointly funded by the state and federal governments, and is managed by the states. People served by Medicaid are U.S. citizens or legal permanent...
and after-school programs.
In 2003, Ney led the effort, along with fellow Republican Congressman Walter B. JonesWalter Beaman Jones, Jr. is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1995. He is a member of the Republican Party. The district encompasses the Outer Banks and areas near the Pamlico Sound. Jones' father was Walter B. Jones, Sr., a Democratic Party congressman from the neighboring 1st district...
, to change the name of "french friesFrench fries , chips, fries, or French-fried potatoes are strips of deep-fried potato. North Americans tend to refer to any pieces of deep-fried potatoes as fries or French fries, while in the United Kingdom, Australia, Ireland and New Zealand, long, thinly cut slices of deep-fried potatoes are...
" and "French toastFrench toast or Eggy Bread, is a food made with bread and eggs. It is a Christmas time dessert in Portugal and Brazil.Where French toast is served as a sweet dish, milk, sugar, or cinnamon are also commonly added before frying, and it may be then topped with sugar, butter, fruit, syrup, or other...
" to "freedom friesFreedom fries is a political euphemism for French fries used by some people in the United States as a result of anti-French sentiment during the controversy over the U.S. decision to launch the 2003 invasion of Iraq. France expressed strong opposition in the United Nations to such an invasion...
" and "freedom toast". His committee had authority over House cafeterias. Ney said at a press conference that "this action today is a small, but symbolic effort to show the strong displeasure of many on Capitol Hill with the actions of our so-called ally, FranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
." In July 2006, after Ney had left the committee, the names were changed back; Ney had no comment. In late 2005 and early 2006, allegations that Ney played a key role in the Abramoff lobbying scandalThe Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal is a United States political scandal relating to the work performed by political lobbyists Jack Abramoff, Ralph E. Reed, Jr., Grover Norquist and Michael Scanlon on Indian casino gambling interests for an estimated $85 million in fees. Abramoff and Scanlon...
were widely reported. (See below.)
On January 15, 2006, Ney resigned as chairman of the House Administration Committee. He maintained that he had done nothing wrong, but had been under increasing pressure to stand down since his ties to Abramoff were an increasing embarrassment in light of Republican plans for reforms of lobbying and campaign finance rules. The House Administration Committee has jurisdiction over elections and lobbyists. House Speaker Dennis HastertJohn Dennis "Denny" Hastert was the 59th Speaker of the House serving from 1999 to 2007. He represented as a Republican for twenty years, 1987 to 2007.He is the longest-serving Republican Speaker in history...
reportedly emailed a Roll CallRoll Call is a newspaper published in Washington, D.C., United States, from Monday to Thursday when the United States Congress is in session and on Mondays only during recess. Roll Call reports news of legislative and political maneuverings on Capitol Hill, as well as political coverage of...
article regarding Ney's precarious hold on the gavel to several Capitol beat reporters. Ney's resignation was officially temporary. However, even some of his Republican colleagues expected him to be indicted. Under Republican caucus rules, he would have permanently lost his chairmanship if indicted.
On June 29, 2006, three of Ney's staffers resigned: Brian Walsh, a longtime Ney spokesman; Will Heaton, Ney’s chief of staff; and Chris Otillio, a senior legislative aide. In a statement, Ney said that Congressional staff turnover is high, and that all three departing staff members had worked for him longer than many others stay in similar jobs.
2006 re-election campaign
On January 26, 2006, Ney announced his candidacy for re-election to the House.
Even before his indictment, Ney was one of the Republican elected officials whom Democrats highlighted as part of a "culture of corruptionCulture of corruption was a political slogan used by the U.S. Democratic Party to refer to a series of political scandals involving Republican politicians during the first two years of George W...
" in the 2006 campaign.
Republican primary
On May 2, 2006, Ney defeated Republican James Brodbelt Harris, a financial analyst from Zanesville, OhioZanesville is a city in and the county seat of Muskingum County, Ohio, United States. The population was 25,586 at the 2000 census.Zanesville was named after Ebenezer Zane, who had constructed Zane's Trace, a pioneer road through present-day Ohio...
, in the primary. Harris did not campaign, and collected less than $5,000 in campaign contributions. Ney won 68 percent to 32 percent. On the day of the election, Greg Giroux of Congressional QuarterlyCongressional Quarterly, Inc., or CQ, is a privately owned publishing company that produces a number of publications reporting primarily on the United States Congress...
noted: "I'd be surprised if Harris got more than 20 or 25 percent. That would be a sign that there is a chunk of the Republican base that's disenchanted with the incumbent."
Commenting on his situation after the primary, Ney said "I have a healthy campaign account, in contrast to the Democratic Party, which is deeply divided and has a candidate with almost no campaign cash."
Legal fees
A filing with Federal Election CommissionThe Federal Election Commission is an independent regulatory agency that was founded in 1975 by the United States Congress to regulate the campaign finance legislation in the United States. It was created in a provision of the 1975 amendment to the Federal Election Campaign Act...
in October said that Ney had paid the law firm Vinson & Elkins $136,000 from July through September, from campaign funds. By early January 2006, the total legal expenses paid by Ney's political campaign committee had risen to $232,381. For the January to March 2006 reporting period, Ney paid an additional $96,000 in legal fees from campaign funds to that law firm; total campaign spending for the period was $250,000. The legal fees are related to an ongoing federal investigation (see below.)
Brian Walsh, spokesman for Ney, said in April 2006: "Frankly, it's an unfortunate commentary on the justice system that someone has to spend a lot of money simply to clear their name and set the record straight in what is in this case completely false allegations." He also said that "the congressman is doing everything possible and moving as quickly as possible to put these allegations to rest and clear his name."
In an Federal Elections Commission filing showing expenses through the end of June 2006, Ney reported that he had not paid any legal fees since January 5 from campaign funds. Mark Tuohey, the lead lawyer at Vinson & Elkins, said Ney "needs money for his campaign and that's a priority right now. He intends to pay. He'll pay his fees, I have no doubt about that."
In November 2005, it was reported that Ney had set up a legal defense fund for himself in connection with the Abramoff case. Documents filed in the House in January 2006 showed that the Ethics Committee had approved the organization papers for the fund. The fund raised $40,000 between January and March 2006, and nothing between April and June 2006. As of June 30, 2006, the fund had not yet spent any money for Ney's legal expenses. Ney's withdrawal from the race (see below) meant that he could use his remaining campaign funds (almost half a million dollars) for his legal defense.
General election
Ney's opponent in the November general election was to be Zack SpaceZachary T. "Zack" Space is an American politician and the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2007 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life, education and career:...
, a Dover, OhioDover is a city in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 12,210 at the 2000 census.-History and features:Dover was originally part of a grant to Col. James Morrison of Kentucky, who had received it from the federal government for Revolutionary War services...
lawyer and hotel developer, who won the Democratic primary with 39% of the vote. As of July 2006, Space was considered to be slightly ahead of Ney, with a large percentage of undecided voters.
For the first three months of 2006, Ney blamed legal costs for causing his re-election campaign to spend more than it raised. For the April–June period, it was unusually intense campaigning in his rural district that caused the six-term incumbent to spend $52,675 more than donors gave him in the last three months, he said.
Withdrawal from race and guilty plea
On August 7, 2006, state senator Joy PadgettJoy Padgett is a former Republican member of the Ohio Senate, representing the 20th district until the end of 2008. In 2006, dogged by personal scandals, she ran unsuccessfully for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and for Congress in...
announced that Ney was withdrawing his candidacy in the 2006 election, and that Ney and House Majority Leader John BoehnerJohn Andrew Boehner is the 61st and current Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party, he is the U.S. Representative from , serving since 1991...
had asked her to run in his place.
On the same date, in an interview with the Pittsburgh Tribune-ReviewThe Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, also known as "the Trib," is the second largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
, Ney confirmed he would not run for reelection, but intended to serve out his term. About his future plans, Ney said "I have some options in the nongovernment sector." The Washington Post reported that Boehner met with Ney in early August "to urge him to step aside, reminding him that with a son in college and a daughter nearing college age, he will need money. ... If he lost his House seat for the party, Boehner is said to have cautioned, Ney could not expect a lucrative career on K Street to pay those tuition bills, along with the hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees piling up."
On August 14, 2006, Ney officially withdrew from the race. Because that occurred before August 19 (80 or more days before the election), Ohio Revised Code 3513.312 applied: "the vacancy in the party nomination so created shall be filled by a special election". If Ney had waited until August 20, section 3513.31 of the Ohio Revised Code would have pertained: Ney's replacement in the November general election would be named by a district committee of the Ohio Republican party.
The special election was held on September 14, and was won by State Senator Joy PadgettJoy Padgett is a former Republican member of the Ohio Senate, representing the 20th district until the end of 2008. In 2006, dogged by personal scandals, she ran unsuccessfully for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and for Congress in...
with just under half of the fewer than 1600 votes cast.
On September 15, Ney announced he was entering inpatient treatment for rehabilitation and was entering a guilty plea to federal corruption charges related to the Abramoff scandal. He admitted to making "serious mistakes" and stated that, after helping people for his entire political career, it was he who needed the help now.
On October 13, Ney officially pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Ellen Huvelle. He issued a statement saying that he was "ashamed" that he had to end his career as a public servant in such a fashion.
Ney did not immediately resign from the House, even though under House rules he would not have been able to vote or participate in any committee work during the chamber's "lame duck" session in December. He claimed that he had outstanding work to finish in his congressional office. Also, several officials said that he was in severe financial straits and needed to continue drawing his congressional salary for as long as possible. The four highest-ranking members of the Republican House leadership — Hastert, Boehner, Majority Whip Roy BluntRoy D. Blunt is the junior United States Senator from Missouri. He is a member of the Republican Party. His Senate seat was previously held by Republican Kit Bond, until his retirement....
and House Republican Conference Chairwoman Deborah PryceDeborah D. Pryce is an American politician from Ohio and former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives for Ohio's 15th congressional district, which includes the western half of Columbus and the surrounding suburbs.She is divorced from Randy Walker and now lives in Upper...
— issued a joint statement demanding that Ney resign before the lame duck session. If he didn't do so, they said, they would make a resolution to expel him the first order of business at the lame duck session.http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/13/AR2006101300169.html
On November 3 — four days before the election — Ney submitted his resignation to Hastert. It is widely believed that Ney's delay in resigning cost Padgett any chance of keeping the seat in Republican hands, as she was routed by Space 62% to 38%.
On January 19, 2007, Ney was sentenced to 30 months in prison, pay a $6,000 fine and 200 hours of community service. On the orders of Judge Ellen Huvalle, Ney reported to Federal Correctional Institution, Morgantown in Morgantown, West VirginiaMorgantown is a city in Monongalia County, West Virginia. It is the county seat of Monongalia County. Placed along the banks of the Monongahela River, Morgantown is the largest city in North-Central West Virginia, and the base of the Morgantown metropolitan area...
on March 1, 2007. His Federal Bureau of PrisonsThe Federal Bureau of Prisons is a federal law enforcement agency subdivision of the United States Department of Justice and is responsible for the administration of the federal prison system. The system also handles prisoners who committed acts considered felonies under the District of Columbia's...
inmate number is 28882-016, and he will bunk in a room with twelve others. He shared a space in the prison with former "Survivor" star Richard Hatch, a Morgantown inmate serving 51 months for failing to pay taxes.
After his prison term Ney was required to be on probation for two years, pay a fine of $6,000, and undergo counseling.
Controversies
Ney is allegedly involved in several matters that have attracted the interest of federal prosecutors. On May 18, 2006 the House Ethics Committee announced an investigation into bribery allegations against Ney.
Involvement with Abramoff
{{Main|Jack Abramoff lobbying and corruption scandal}}
In four separate guilty pleas, Jack AbramoffJack Abramoff is an American former lobbyist and businessman. Convicted in 2006 of mail fraud and conspiracy, he was at the heart of an extensive corruption investigation that led to the conviction of White House officials J. Steven Griles and David Safavian, U.S. Representative Bob Ney, and nine...
, former DeLay deputy chief of staff Tony RudyTony Charles Rudy , an American lobbyist and an associate of Jack Abramoff. After serving as a staffer in the office of U. S. Representative Tom DeLay from approximately 1995 to 2001, and rising to deputy chief of staff, Rudy joined "Team Abramoff" at Greenberg Traurig. Rudy was implicated in the...
, former DeLay press secretary Michael ScanlonMichael Scanlon, AKA "Sean Scanlon", is a former communications director for Rep. Tom DeLay, lobbyist, and public relations executive who has pleaded guilty to corruption charges related to the Jack Abramoff lobbying scandal...
and former Ney chief of staff Neil VolzNeil Volz was Chief of Staff to Representative Bob Ney , staff director of the House Administration Committee, and later part of Team Abramoff, when he left Capitol Hill in February 2002 to work for Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig LLP...
all said Ney had used his position to grant favors to the Abramoff lobbying team in exchange for gifts, including a free trip to the Super Bowl, Northern Marianas Islands, Scotland, the use of luxury boxes at sporting events, and concerts and meals.
Ney was subpoenaed in the investigation in November 2005. In May 2006, Will Heaton, his chief of staff, was subpoenaed. In June 2006, the federal grand jury issued a subpoena to Matthew D. Parker, Ney's campaign manager. In July 2006, John Bennett, a staffer in Ney's district office, received a subpoena.
"Representative #1"
On January 3, 2006, Abramoff pleaded guilty to three felony counts involving charges stemming principally from his lobbying activities in Washington on behalf of Native American tribes. One of the cases of bribery described in the plea agreement detail involves a person identified as "Representative #1". Ney's spokesman confirmed that Ney is Representative #1.
A press release from the Department of JusticeThe United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
describes the particulars:
- Abramoff also admitted that as one means of accomplishing results for their clients, he, Scanlon, and others engaged in a pattern of corruptly providing things of value to public officials, including trips, campaign contributions, and meals and entertainment, with the intent to influence acts by the public officials that would benefit Abramoff and Abramoff’s clients. For example, Abramoff and Scanlon provided things of value
An economic value is the worth of a good or service as determined by the market.The economic value of a good or service has puzzled economists since the beginning of the discipline. First, economists tried to estimate the value of a good to an individual alone, and extend that definition to goods...
to a public official (described as Representative #1) and members of his staff, including, but not limited to, a lavish trip to Scotland to play golfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
on world-famous courses, tickets to sporting events and other entertainmentEntertainment consists of any activity which provides a diversion or permits people to amuse themselves in their leisure time. Entertainment is generally passive, such as watching opera or a movie. Active forms of amusement, such as sports, are more often considered to be recreation...
, regular meals at Abramoff’s upscale restaurant, and campaign contributions for the Representative, his political action committee, his campaign committee, and other political committees on behalf of the Representative. At the same time, and in exchange for these things of value, Scanlon and Abramoff sought and received the Representative’s agreement to perform directly and through others a series of official acts, including but not limited to agreements to support and pass legislation, and agreements to place statements in the Congressional Record.
Ney said in a statement that "At the time I dealt with Jack Abramoff, I obviously did not know, and had no way of knowing, the self-serving and fraudulent nature of Abramoff's activities". Ney spokesman Brian Walsh said that any official actions Ney had taken were based on "the merits and facts of the situation and not because of any improper influence from Jack Abramoff or anybody else".
"Staffer A" and "Staffer B"
Abramoff's plea agreement also details his practice of hiring former congressional staffers. Abramoff used these persons' influence to lobby their former Congressional employers, in violation of a one-year federal ban on such lobbying. Named in the Department of JusticeThe United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
indictment are two Abramoff colleagues, "Staffer A" and "Staffer B", who are Tony RudyTony Charles Rudy , an American lobbyist and an associate of Jack Abramoff. After serving as a staffer in the office of U. S. Representative Tom DeLay from approximately 1995 to 2001, and rising to deputy chief of staff, Rudy joined "Team Abramoff" at Greenberg Traurig. Rudy was implicated in the...
and Ney's former chief of staff, Neil VolzNeil Volz was Chief of Staff to Representative Bob Ney , staff director of the House Administration Committee, and later part of Team Abramoff, when he left Capitol Hill in February 2002 to work for Abramoff at Greenberg Traurig LLP...
(who left Ney's office to work as a lobbyist for Barnes & ThornburgBarnes & Thornburg LLP is a large U.S. law firm and lobbying group. It is currently the largest law firm in the state of Indiana, and 97th largest in the United States...
) respectively.
Michael Scanlon describes actions by Ney
On November 21, 2005, Scanlon pleaded guilty to conspiring to bribe a member of Congress, identified as Ney, and other public officials. In the agreement, Scanlon admitted to bribing Ney in return for, among other things, the following (described in more detail below):
- Ney's placing statements in the Congressional Record relating to the SunCruz Casinos
SunCruz Casinos was one of many cruise lines that offered offshore "cruises to nowhere", legally transporting passengers into international waters beyond the reach of federal and state gambling laws...
scandal;
- Ney's using his position to attempt to endorse and support a client of Abramoff's as a provider of a wireless telephone infrastructure to the House of Representatives;
- Ney's agreement to introduce and seek passage of legislation that would lift an existing federal ban against commercial gaming for two different Native American tribes in Texas (clients of Abramoff);
- Ney's agreement to assist legislation to financially benefit a California tribe.
Involvement in the SunCruz Casinos Scandal
{{Main|SunCruz Casinos}}
Ney is also implicated in the separate Abramoff SunCruz CasinosSunCruz Casinos was one of many cruise lines that offered offshore "cruises to nowhere", legally transporting passengers into international waters beyond the reach of federal and state gambling laws...
scandal. The conduct alleged is that Ney twice entered statements into the Congressional Record at Scanlon's request in exchange for a $10,000 contribution.
In March 2000, before a deal for Abramoff and others to purchase SunCruz was closed, Ney entered the following comments into the Congressional Record that were critical of the management of SunCruz: "Mr. Speaker, how SunCruz CasinosSunCruz Casinos was one of many cruise lines that offered offshore "cruises to nowhere", legally transporting passengers into international waters beyond the reach of federal and state gambling laws...
and Gus Boulis conduct themselves with regard to FloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
laws is very unnerving. Florida authorities have repeatedly reprimanded SunCruz Casinos and its owner Gus Boulis for taking illegal bets, not paying their customers properly and had to take steps to prevent SunCruz from conducting operations altogether." It is alleged that this statement was intended to pressure SunCruz to sell to Abramoff on terms favorable to the latter.
The second time was in October 2000. It is alleged that Ney, like other Republicans in the House, was under pressure to raise money for the Republican National Congressional Committee (RNCC) in October 2000, a month prior to the November elections. In an October 23 e-mail from Abramoff to Scanlon, Abramoff asked "Would 10K for NRCC from Suncruz for Ney help?" Scanlon replied, "Yes, a lot! But would have to give them a definite answer — and they need it this week".
The $10,000 was sent to the RNCC within days, and Ney got credit for raising it. Scanlon wrote a draft statement for Ney that praised Adam Kidan, the main partner of Abramoff in purchasing SunCruz. Ney then inserted the statement into the October 26 Congressional Record, praising the new more responsible management, under Kidan, of SunCruz. {{Citation needed|date=February 2007}}
Ney's support of Indian gambling
Ney introduced legislation that would allow the Tiguas Indians to reopen their casino after receiving $32,000 in donations to his PAC and campaign from the tribe.
In March 2002, Abramoff e-mailed Marc Schwartz, a consultant for the Tiguas, instructing him to donate to Rep. Ney's campaign. The tribe donated $2,000 to the campaign and $30,000 to Ney's PAC. Scanlon e-mailed Abramoff on March 20, 2002 to tell him that he has signed up Rep. Bob Ney to attach a provision allowing the Tiguas to have gaming rights to the Helping Americans Vote Act, which Ney had co-authored: "just met with Ney!!! We're f'ing gold!!!! He's going to do Tigua." (Former Ney Chief of Staff Neil Volz, now an Abramoff employee, made the appeal to Ney's staff while still subject to the one-year lobbying ban).
According to testimony by Tigua representatives, Abramoff set up a lengthy meeting between tribal representatives and Ney in Ney's office in August 2002, as well as a conference call, and Ney assured them he was working to insert language that would reopen their casino into an unrelated election reform bill. Ney's attorney reported that he found a calendar reference indicating that Ney had had a meeting with the "Taqua".
Ultimately, the Tiguas casino language did not become law. Abramoff, Scanlon, and Ney had promised the tribe that the provision would win Senate support from Senator Christopher DoddChristopher John "Chris" Dodd is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States Senator from Connecticut for a thirty-year period ending with the 111th United States Congress....
. Dodd said that he never supported the amendment. The Tiguas then claimed they were defrauded — by Abramoff, Scanlon, and Ney.
In November 2004, Ney told Senate investigators that "he was not at all familiar with the Tigua" and could not recall meeting with members of the tribe. Brian Walsh, a spokesman for Ney, said in June 2006 that the congressman's meeting with the committee "was a voluntary meeting — it was not conducted under oath".
Neil Volz describes involvement by Ney with Indian tribes
On May 8, 2006, Volz pleaded guilty to conspiring to corrupt public officials and violating lobbying rules. Bloomberg News described the plea agreement:
- In court documents filed as part of Volz's plea agreement, prosecutors said that he and others at Greenberg Traurig offered trips, tickets to sporting events and numerous meals at Abramoff's restaurants to Ney. In 2003, Volz paid for part of a two-night trip to the Sagamore Resort in Lake George, New York, for Ney and members of his staff, prosecutors said.
- Ney, for his part, agreed to help Abramoff clients with acts such as inserting language into legislation that would lift a gaming ban hurting one of the tribes, prosecutors said. The court documents also describe conversations in which Volz told Ney what Abramoff wanted him to say in meetings with the tribal client.
License to a telecommunications firm
Ney, as chair of the House Administration Committee, approved a 2002 license for an Israeli telecommunications company to install equipment to improve cell phone reception in the Capitol and adjacent House office buildings, equipment that would generate significant revenue for the firm. The company, then Foxcom Wireless, an Israeli start-up telecommunications firm, (which has since moved headquarters from Jerusalem to Vienna, Va., and been renamed MobileAccess Networks) later paid Abramoff $280,000 for lobbying. It also donated $50,000 to Abramoff's Capital Athletic FoundationThe Capital Athletic Foundation is a 501 charity organization founded in 2000. The organization's nominal purpose was to provide needy youths with athletic opportunities. The organization has been used by its founder, Jack Abramoff, as a front group for channeling money into his own political...
, a non-profit organization that Abramoff used to redistribute money for personal and political gain.
A spokesman for Ney claimed that wireless providers had voted for Foxcom in secret ballots, but spokesmen for each of the six wireless companies told The Washington Post they had remained neutral in the selection process. Ney has refused to make public a copy of documents relating to the agreement.
Involvement in U.S. sanctions on arms sales to Iran
In the late 1970s, Ney went to IranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
to teach English. Since then, he has maintained an active interest in Iranian affairs and was the only member of Congress fluent in PersianPersian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
.
In January 2006, NewsweekNewsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
reported that Ney's lawyer confirmed that federal prosecutors have subpoenaed records on an expenses paid February 2003 trip to LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
that Ney and a top aide took. The trip was paid for by "Nigel Winfield, a thrice-convicted felon who ran a company in CyprusCyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
called FN Aviation. Winfield was seeking to sell U.S.-made airplane spare parts to the Iranian government — a deal that would have needed special permits because of U.S. sanctionsInternational sanctions are actions taken by countries against others for political reasons, either unilaterally or multilaterally.There are several types of sanctions....
against Tehran", and that "Ney personally lobbied the then Secretary of State Colin PowellColin Luther Powell is an American statesman and a retired four-star general in the United States Army. He was the 65th United States Secretary of State, serving under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American to serve in that position. During his military...
to relax U.S. sanctions on Iran."
Resignation
On November 3, 2006, facing an impending expulsionExpulsion is the most serious form of disciplinary action that can be taken against a Member of Congress. Article I, Section 5 of the United States Constitution provides that "Each House [of Congress] may determine the Rules of its proceedings, punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with...
vote, Ney resigned from the House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
by his letter of resignation to Speaker of the House Dennis HastertJohn Dennis "Denny" Hastert was the 59th Speaker of the House serving from 1999 to 2007. He represented as a Republican for twenty years, 1987 to 2007.He is the longest-serving Republican Speaker in history...
.
Current status
As of Sept 18, 2008, former Congressman Ney is working with the Talk Radio News Service. He gave an interview on the Marc Bernier show on radio station WFHG-FM on that date and the host titled him "Bob Ney, of the Talk Radio News Service".
In April 2009, Mr. Ney started the "Bob Ney Radio Show", a talk show on West Virginia radio station WVLY (AM)WVLY is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to Moundsville, West Virginia, USA, it serves the area. The station is currently owned by Monroe Communications.WVLY is the current radio home of former U.S. Rep. Bob Ney...
. He maintained a blog on the station's
website.
Electoral history
{{ushr|Ohio|18|}
}: Results 1994–2006
!|Year
!
!|Democrat
!|Votes
!|Pct
!
!|Republican
!|Votes
!|Pct
!
!|3rd Party
!|Party
!|Votes
!|Pct
!
|-
|1994
|
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |{{nowrap|Greg DiDonatoGregory L. DiDonato of Dennison, Ohio, is an American politician of the Democratic party. While still in high school, DiDonato was elected to the village council of Dennison, Ohio. At age 21, he was elected mayor of the Village of Dennison. He was re-elected mayor in 1987. While in college, he...
}}
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |87,926
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |46%
|
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |{{nowrap|Robert W. Ney}}
|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |103,115
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |54%
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
|1996
|
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |{{nowrap|Robert L. Burch}}
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |108,332
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |46%
|
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |Robert W. Ney
|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |117,365
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |50%
|
|{{Party shading/Independent}} |Margaret Chitti
|{{Party shading/Independent}} |Natural Law
|{{Party shading/Independent}} align="right" |8,146
|{{Party shading/Independent}} align="right" |3%
|
|-
|1998
|
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |Robert L. Burch
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |74,571
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |40%
|
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |Robert W. Ney
|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |113,119
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |60%
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
|2000
|
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |{{nowrap|Marc D. Guthrie}}
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |79,232
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |34%
|
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |Robert W. Ney
|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |152,325
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |64%
|
|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} |John R. Bargar, Sr.
|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} |LibertarianThe Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...
|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} align="right" |4,948
|{{Party shading/Libertarian}} align="right" |2%
|
|-
|2002
|
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |(no candidate)
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |
|
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |Robert W. Ney
|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |125,546
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |100%
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
|2004
|
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |{{nowrap|Brian R. Thomas}}
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |90,820
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |34%
|
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |Robert W. Ney
|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |177,600
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |66%
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
|2006
|
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |{{nowrap|Zack T. Space}}
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} align="right" |129,646
|{{Party shading/Democratic}} |62%
|
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |Joy PadgettJoy Padgett is a former Republican member of the Ohio Senate, representing the 20th district until the end of 2008. In 2006, dogged by personal scandals, she ran unsuccessfully for Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and for Congress in...
*
|{{Party shading/Republican}} align="right" |79,259
|{{Party shading/Republican}} |38%
|
|
|
|
|
|
{{s-end}}
External links
{{Commons category|Bob Ney}}
{{CongBio|N000081}}
- Associated Press profile
- List of campaign contributors to Bob Ney
- Operation Open Doors, Washington Post editorial, December 3, 2004
- Congressman Linked to Abramoff Is No Stranger to Lobbyists, Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, January 22, 2006, by Noam N. Levey and Walter F. Roche Jr.
- House Ethics Panel, Justice Dept. to Run Parallel Probes, Washington Post, May 19, 2006, by Jeffrey H. Birnbaum
- "The 13 Most Corrupt Members of Congress" — Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington is a nonprofit 501 organization that describes itself as "dedicated to promoting ethics and accountability in government and public life by targeting government officials – regardless of party affiliation – who sacrifice the common good to...
- record maintained by the Washington Post
- Plea Agreement, US District Court of D.C., signed September 15, 2006
- Criminal Information to the Plea, US District Court of D.C., signed September 15, 2006
- Factual Basis to the Plea, US District Court of D.C., signed September 13, 2006
- List of candidates for the Eighteenth Congressional District of Ohio
{{s-start}}
{{s-par|us-hs}}
{{USRepSuccessionBox
| state=Ohio
| district=18
|before=Doug ApplegateDouglas "Doug" Applegate is a former member of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio. Applegate is a Democrat....
| after=Zack SpaceZachary T. "Zack" Space is an American politician and the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2007 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life, education and career:...
| years=1995–2006
}}
{{s-off}}
{{succession box
|title=Chairman of the House Administration CommitteeThe United States House Committee on House Administration deals with the general administration matters of the United States House of Representatives.-Jurisdiction:...
|before=Bill ThomasWilliam Marshall Thomas , commonly known as Bill Thomas, is an American politician, and a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1979–2007, finishing his tenure representing California's 22nd congressional district and as the Chairman of the House Ways and Means...
California
|after=Vern EhlersVernon James "Vern" Ehlers is the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 1993 until 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party....
Michigan
|years=2001–2006
}}
{{s-end}}
{{Jack Abramoff|subcat=people}}
{{Persondata
|NAME=Ney, Bob
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Ney, Robert William (full name)
|SHORT DESCRIPTION=Ohio politician
|DATE OF BIRTH=July 5, 1954
|PLACE OF BIRTH=Wheeling, West VirginiaWheeling is a city in Ohio and Marshall counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia; it is the county seat of Ohio County. Wheeling is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area...
|DATE OF DEATH=living
|PLACE OF DEATH=
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ney, Bob}}