Today’s Must ReadEx-Rep Bob Ney (R-OH) heads to prison today, where he’ll spend the next thirty months. But before he disappears behind the gates of rustic FCI Morgantown, Ney sent an email out to friends and family, waxing philosophical on his fate. It was a touching send off from the man who accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes.
The email:
hello,i will not have access to e mail so this will be my last for awhile. i wanted to drop you a short e mail to give you my address:
robert ney
inmate number 28882-016
fci morgantown
446 greenbag road
route 857
morgantown, west virginia 26501i also wanted to thank you for all you have done for me and my family. your kind words, thoughts, and prayers throughout the last six months have helped all of us quite a lot.
someone asked me the other day, if i wish i had never ran for office. i answered that i am glad that i did. nothing can erase the wonderful memories, thoughts, constituents, and changes that we, working together with the republicans and democrats, have been able to do. working to bring jobs to the district, helping constituents with issues, and trying to change law to help people has been the greatest memory ever.
would i change things if i could, sure. am i sorry for things that happened, absolutely, and i will pay the price. but, i am grateful for many good people in our office that helped the district and grateful for a free nation, the men and women that protect it, and a wonderful constituency in the district that i used to serve.
my family and i have lost everything on an economical basis, house, health care, possesions, but so have other people, people in the district, many, have lost all. and yes , that is painful for anyone that has gone through it, but, i am so fortunate to have my wife and children, we are so rich with family, friends like you, loved ones that are there for us, and full of hope for a good future.
the darkest days are not ahead, i have gained a higher power, the god of my understanding, is with all of us and that allows me to view tomorrow, although as a day of loss of freedom, as a day of enlightenment and of life to come.
as garth brooks said in his song the dance:
and now i’m glad i didn’t know
the way it all would end, the way it all would go
our lives are better left to chance,
i could have missed the pain,
but i’d have had to miss, the dancemy family and my life is starting new, thanks for being part of it.
god bless,
bob ney
Note: Just for fun, compare and contrast the letter-writing styles of ex-Rep. Duke Cunningham (R-CA) and Bob Ney.
Update: On a more serious note, don’t miss the latest from The Washington Post today on the Walter Reed scandal: “Top officials at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, including the Army’s surgeon general, have heard complaints about outpatient neglect from family members, veterans groups and members of Congress for more than three years.”