It was little more than a year ago that a dejected Curt Weldon – his grandchild in his arms – appeared in an equally sullen Springfield Country Club ballroom and announced what was once unthinkable: He had lost re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives.
Weldon fell to upstart Democrat Joe Sestak.
This was new territory for Weldon. He was a 10-term incumbent, a powerful member of the House Armed Services Committee.
Weldon explained to the thunderstruck GOP faithful that night that his campaign’s polling had put him up seven points just weeks before, “then the bottom fell out.”
In a way.
Actually, three weeks before the election, the campaign was rocked by news that the Justice Department was investigating whether Weldon had improperly steered contracts to a firm owned by his daughter and his longtime political mentor, former Springfield GOP boss Charlie Sexton.
The homes of Karen Weldon and Sexton were raided.
Not much has come of the probe since. Federal officials when asked will say only that the federal inquiry is still pending.
But yesterday some news did emanate from Washington, and it involved Weldon’s former chief of staff.
Court documents allege that Russ Caso falsified congressional financial disclosure reports in order to hide $19,000 paid to his wife from a consulting firm.
It is believed Caso will enter a plea in the case. He is due in court in Washington Friday.
The charging documents do not indicate whether the firm in question is Solutions North America, the firm owned by Weldon’s daughter.
Neither Weldon nor the firm is named in the documents. The former congressman faces no charges as yet stemming from the probe. Neither does his daughter. Nor Sexton.
Weldon has moved on. He now works in the private sector, as a consultant for the Exton-based defense firm Defense Solutions Inc.
As we have done now for more than a year, we continue to wait. So does Weldon and the others, for the feds to either file charges or clear their names.
As the feds say, the investigation simply is “ongoing.”
Weldon fell to upstart Democrat Joe Sestak.
This was new territory for Weldon. He was a 10-term incumbent, a powerful member of the House Armed Services Committee.
Weldon explained to the thunderstruck GOP faithful that night that his campaign’s polling had put him up seven points just weeks before, “then the bottom fell out.”
In a way.
Actually, three weeks before the election, the campaign was rocked by news that the Justice Department was investigating whether Weldon had improperly steered contracts to a firm owned by his daughter and his longtime political mentor, former Springfield GOP boss Charlie Sexton.
The homes of Karen Weldon and Sexton were raided.
Not much has come of the probe since. Federal officials when asked will say only that the federal inquiry is still pending.
But yesterday some news did emanate from Washington, and it involved Weldon’s former chief of staff.
Court documents allege that Russ Caso falsified congressional financial disclosure reports in order to hide $19,000 paid to his wife from a consulting firm.
It is believed Caso will enter a plea in the case. He is due in court in Washington Friday.
The charging documents do not indicate whether the firm in question is Solutions North America, the firm owned by Weldon’s daughter.
Neither Weldon nor the firm is named in the documents. The former congressman faces no charges as yet stemming from the probe. Neither does his daughter. Nor Sexton.
Weldon has moved on. He now works in the private sector, as a consultant for the Exton-based defense firm Defense Solutions Inc.
As we have done now for more than a year, we continue to wait. So does Weldon and the others, for the feds to either file charges or clear their names.
As the feds say, the investigation simply is “ongoing.”
Comments