On the heels of the Associated Press report comes news, courtesy of the New York Times, that Rep. Rick Renzi (R-AZ) finds himself on the business end of yet another federal probe. This one isn’t about land swaps at all, but about allegations Renzi used his power to benefit his dad’s employer:
Federal authorities in Arizona have opened an inquiry into whether Representative Rick Renzi introduced legislation that benefited a military contractor that employs his father, law enforcement officials said Tuesday.The officials said the inquiry was at an early stage and that no search warrants had been issued, suggesting that investigators had yet to determine whether there was a basis to open a formal investigation or empanel a grand jury… .
Law enforcement officials said that the most serious accusation involved Mr. Renzi’s sponsorship of legislation in 2003 that appeared to indirectly benefit the ManTech International Corporation, a communications company based in Virginia that employs Mr. Renzi’s father, Eugene, a retired Army general, as executive vice president… . Employees of the company were the largest contributors to Mr. Renzi’s campaign in 2002 and the second-largest in 2004.