This article provides a list of major political scandals of the United States.

Scope and organization of political scandals

Categorizing and listing scandals

Division of this article's list of American political scandals into three categories --- (1) federal; (2) state-and-local; and (3) sex ---- is somewhat arbitrary and sometimes overlapping. It seems possible that separate sub-categories could be developed, within the "federal" rubric, for example, for scandals that have emerged during the course of the confirmation hearing for a political or judicial appointee. Another approach might be to categorize American political scandals by the nature of the alleged wrongdoing (separating "private immorality" scandals, where possible, from graft, bribery, and other abuse of the public trust; separating misconduct that led to criminal indictment, from non-criminal matters).

The arrangement of the list of federal-level scandals in this article follows a more or less chronological order; in the case of state and local scandals, the arrangement is alphabetical, by state.

Political "scandal"

It is not always clear whether a particular flap involving a politician should count as a "scandal." For example, the alcohol-related problems that have plagued Senator Ted Kennedy probably never rose to the level of a "scandal," apart from the question of drunk driving in the 1969 Chappaquiddick incident involving the death of Mary Jo Kopechne. Edward Moore Ted Kennedy (born February 22, 1932) is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts and a member of the Democratic Party. ... Mary Jo Kopechne (July 26, 1940 – July 18, 1969) was an American teacher, secretary and administrator, notable for her death in a car accident on Chappaquiddick Island in a car driven by Senator Ted Kennedy. ...

The illegal mining of Nicaraguan harbors, and the Reagan administration's refusal to inform or consult the Senate about this, caused an enormous uproar in the Congress (including condemnations by Republican Senator Barry Goldwater), but its status as a "scandal" is debatable, even though, as a result of the U.S.-sponsored paramilitary actions in Central America, the United States in the case Nicaragua v. United States, ultimately became the only nation ever adjudged by the International Court of Justice to have been guilty of sponsoring terrorism. Scandalous though it no doubt was that United States intelligence agencies had been covertly and unlawfully engaged in terrorism, neither the World Court judgment nor the covert violent acts were treated in mainstream media exactly as a "scandal." On the other hand, the secret funding of the contras (of which the Nicaraguan harbor mining and other covert violence were part), in the context of secret negotiations with Iran concerning embassy hostages, was ultimately treated as a scandal and dubbed the "Iran-Contra affair". The Republic of Nicaragua v. ... The Contras (from the Spanish term La Contra, short for movement of the contrarrevolucionarios) were the armed opponents of Nicaraguas Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction following the July 1979 overthrow of Anastasio Somoza Debayle (which ended the Somoza dynasty), and continuing throughout the following decade. ... The Iran-Contra Affair (also Irangate), was a political scandal occurring in 1987 as a result of earlier events during the Reagan administration in which members of the executive branch sold weapons to Iran, an avowed enemy, and illegally used the profits to continue funding rebels, the Contras, in Nicaragua. ...

"Political" scandal

Even when public officials are involved, a scandal is not always considered "political" in nature. An example of this might be the Tailhook scandal, which was generally regarded as a military, rather than a political scandal. Likewise, the 2004 photographs of degradation and alleged torture at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq were viewed by some to implicate highly placed Defense Department officials, but the events at Abu Ghraib were generally treated as a matter for military discipline rather than as a political scandal. The Tailhook Association is a US based, fraternal, non-profit organization, supporting the interests of aircraft carrier aviation. ... {{{mWf}}} Caution: This article contains several potentially morbid photographs that depict nude, abused, and deceased persons. ...

Some major news stories that surely count as "scandals" are nevertheless not usually considered "political" scandals. An obvious example would be the story concerning allegations that entertainer Michael Jackson (who is not a politician or a public official, although he is a public figure) engaged in improper relations with children. Likewise, the ImClone "insider" stock investigation that led to the conviction of Martha Stewart was certainly a celebrity scandal, and there was doubtless a political dimension to her prosecution, but Martha Stewart was not acting as a public official or a politician, so her case is not normally considered a "political scandal." Again, although the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy certainly exercises political power, the recent ecclesiastical scandal involving priest sexual misconduct and alleged coverup is not directly related to federal, state, or local governments and thus is not included among "political" scandals. Martha Stewart (born Martha Helen Kostyra on August 3, 1941) is an American business magnate, author, editor and homemaking advocate. ... The Roman Catholic sex abuse cases are a series of accusations of child sexual abuse and related church cover-ups made against Roman Catholic priests. ...

"Major" political scandal

There is no bright line to distinguish "major" scandals from "minor" scandals. The nature of the particular act or occasion of wrongdoing need not be great, but the consequences (such as resulting notoriety, resignation, etc.) are normally significant. For example, a single "innocent" remark by then U.S. Senate majority leader Trent Lott of Mississippi in appreciation of Strom Thurmond on the occasion of Senator Thurmond's 100th birthday ultimately brought attention to Senator Lott's poor record on civil rights and associated him with white supremacy and racial segregationism, which ultimately caused this powerful political leader to step down from his role as majority leader. Chester Trent Lott, Sr. ... James Strom Thurmond (December 5, 1902 – June 26, 2003) was an American politician who served as governor of South Carolina and as a United States Senator representing that state. ...

This article includes a category of scandals on the "state and local" levels; this suggests a relative scale concerning the extent to which a scandal must be publicized or celebrated in order to be deemed "major."

At times, investigative news coverage of a political scandal may itself be considered scandalous if it is deemed to violate journalistic standards, as happened in 2004 in connection with allegations that CBS News and Dan Rather were negligent or malicious in allowing fabricated military records to be used in connection with a report of allegedly dishonorable conduct by President George W. Bush in avoiding his military service obligations. Even though the falsified records in question were only a tiny part of the evidence and were corroborated by other testimony and documents, the focus suddenly shifted from the alleged dereliction of duty on the part of Mr. Bush, to Dan Rather's irresponsible, improper, and possibly biased, authentication of a particular set of records. Similarly, an official investigation into alleged wrongdoing can itself come to be viewed as scandalously wrong if it appears to be politically motivated.

One of the most famous examples of an official investigation itself being perceived as scandalous was the Joseph McCarthy anti-communist investigation of the 1950s, which came to be widely viewed as an abusive witchhunt that violated civil liberties. One's perception of whether an official investigation has itself become scandalous is likely to depend on one's own political point of view. Thus, the perception was especially strong among supporters of President Bill Clinton, that malicious abuse of prosecutorial powers had pervaded the investigations conducted by Kenneth Starr, which ranged from Whitewater to Travelgate to Filegate to the Monica Lewinsky matter. Joseph Raymond McCarthy (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957) was a Republican U.S. Senator from the state of Wisconsin between 1947 and 1957. ... Kenneth Winston Starr Kenneth Winston Starr (born July 21, 1946) is an American lawyer and former judge who was appointed to the Office of the Independent Counsel to investigate the death of the deputy White House counsel Vince Foster and the Whitewater land transactions by President Bill Clinton. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... On May 19, 1993, several longtime employees of the White House Travel Office were fired. ... Filegate is a White House scandal in June of 1996. ... Monica Samille Lewinsky (born July 23, 1973) is an American woman with whom the former United States President Bill Clinton admitted to having a sexual relationship[1] while Lewinsky worked at the White House in 1995 and 1996. ...

Coverup

A frequent element of major political scandals is stonewalling, and often a cover-up is involved, which in some cases can even lead to formal criminal charges of obstruction of justice or perjury. In many cases, the "damage control" denials and other deception involved in efforts to "cover up" a scandal became themselves more scandalous, and more damaging to political careers, than the underlying problem. As embarrassing to the Nixon administration as the Watergate burglary was, what ultimately caused him to resign was the erosion of congressional support as it came to light that Nixon and his associates were concealing information and destroying evidence.

Campaign attacks distinguished

A distinction should perhaps be drawn between allegations in negative campaign ads and political scandals. It has become commonplace for the campaigns or the surrogates of political candidates to accuse opposing candidates of scandalously unworthy behavior. Although some of this mudslinging can on occasion lead to investigations that bear fruit as scandal, more often than not the purpose of such ads is simply to create a temporary negative association with a certain candidate, only long enough to influence an upcoming election. In the race for the 1988 Democratic nomination, campaign attacks were launched against various candidates, including allegations of plagiarism by Senator Joe Biden, and allegations of attack videos secretly prepared by the campaign of Governor Michael Dukakis, etc., but it appears that few of these campaign allegations (even when substantiated) were widely considered to constitute major political scandals. On the other hand, one Democratic hopeful in 1988, Gary Hart, famously withdrew from the race after being caught in the Donna Rice "Monkey Business" illicit sex scandal, which was apparently deemed sufficiently salacious to qualify as a major political scandal. Gary Warren Hart (born Gary Warren Hartpence, November 28, 1936) is a politician and lawyer from the state of Colorado. ... Press Kit photo of Donna Rice Hughes from ProtectKids. ...

Contemporaneous notoriety versus historical research

A distinction

Systemic scandals

Not included in this article are pervasive systemic scandals, such as the role of money in the political process.

Campaign finance

Supporters of grass roots democracy have called the dominance of campaign contribution money in the political process the "great scandal" of modern democracy. Details of this systemic scandal are well documented by the Federal Election Commission, the Center for Responsive Politics, and elsewhere. Thus, except for the more extreme or celebrated cases of outright quid-pro-quo bribery, the "normal" purchase of access and influence by means of political donations is not covered in this article. The Federal Election Commission (or FEC) is an independent regulatory agency created in 1975 by the United States Congress to administer and enforce campaign finance legislation in the United States. ... The Center for Responsive Politics is a non-partisan, non-profit research group based in Washington, D.C. that tracks money in politics, and the effect of money on elections and public policy. ...

"Revolving door" conflicts of interest

An increasing phenomenon is the facility with which government officials have come to move between serving in public office and working for private interests. Former members of Congress often join private lobbying firms upon leaving Congress; policymakers and other appointees to regulatory agencies are often selected from within the industries those agencies are charged with regulating, and then the "public servants" often quickly slip back into their private roles at the end of the appointment. Because private interests may well be at odds with the public interest, this situation has at times been widely viewed as a systemic political scandal. Rules designed to slow down this so-called "revolving door" process have had no substantial effect on this practice. And even some of the more celebrated instances of this type of conflict of interest, such as President Ronald Reagan's acceptance of a million dollar speaking fee from Japanese company, Fujisankei Communications Group, after leaving office, or large book advances for the Clintons, have come to be treated simply as routine practice. “Reagan” redirects here. ... Fujisankei Communications Group (フジサンケイグループ) is a group in Japan that consists many companies. ...

Corporate scandals, including accounting scandals

Because of the close connection between certain politicians and certain corporations, some corporate accounting scandals that have come to light in recent years could reasonably be considered political scandals. For example, both the Enron scandal and the Harken Energy scandal implicated close associates of President George W. Bush. Occasionally a particular episode of corporate fraud will be treated as a "political scandal," but the widespread extent of corporate wrongdoing, and the systemic influence of corporate power on politics, would make it difficult to present a comprehensive account of all "political scandals" involving corporate misconduct. In 2002, a wave of accounting scandals broke in the fraud, and a series of investigations have been launched by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. ... Enron Corporation was an energy company based in Houston, Texas. ... Refers to a series of transactions entered into during 1990 involving Harken Energy. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the 43rd and current President of the United States, inaugurated on January 20, 2001. ...

Salacious gossip versus crisis of legitimacy

News coverage of some of the more sensationalized political scandals has tended to focus on salacious details, resembling gossipy tabloid coverate of Hollywood celebrity scandals. On the other hand, some political scandals have been treated more soberly as crises implicating the legitimacy of government. In either case, it is widely believed that political scandals are capable of profoundly undermining the credibility of government, in the public mind.

List of scandals

Federal-level scandals

18th century

• King George III and Thomas Hutchinson, royal governor of Massachusetts, accused in the Declaration of Independence (1776) of outrageous wrongdoing and abuses against fundamental rights
• Silas Deane recalled from trade negotiations with France after dispute with Arthur Lee
• Conway Cabal (1777-1778), movement or conspiracy to remove George Washington as commander of the Continental Army
• Yazoo land scandal (1790s)
• XYZ Affair

Thomas Hutchinson (September 9, 1711 – June 3, 1780) was the American colonial governor of Massachusetts from 1771 to 1774 and a prominent Loyalist in the years before the American Revolutionary War. ... U.S. Declaration of Independence The Declaration of Independence is the document in which the Thirteen Colonies declared themselves independent of the Kingdom of Great Britain and explained their justifications for doing so. ... Silas Deane (December 24, 1737 - September 23, 1789), was a delegate to the American Continental Congress and later a diplomat. ... Arthur Lee has been the name of several notable men: Arthur Lee (1740-1792), U.S. envoy to France Arthur Lee, 1st Viscount Lee of Fareham (1868-1947), British soldier and diplomat Arthur Lee (born 1945), U.S. psychedelic rock musician Arthur Lee (born c. ... The Conway Cabal refers to a conspiracy in late 1777 and 1778 designed to remove George Washington as commander of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. ... The Yazoo Land Scandal, Yazoo Fraud or Yazoo Land Fraud was a massive fraud perpetrated by several Georgia governors and the state legislature from 1795 to 1803 by selling large tracts of land to insiders at ridiculously low prices. ... The XYZ Affair was a 1797 diplomatic episode that worsened relations between France and the United States and led to the undeclared Quasi-War of 1798. ...

19th century

• Aaron Burr duel with Alexander Hamilton (1804); See also Burr's "New Empire" conspiracy
• Judge John Pickering impeached and convicted in absentia by U.S. Senate for drunkenness and use of profanity on the bench (1804)
• Aaron Burr New Empire (Southwest) conspiracy (1804-1807) and treason trial (1807)
• James Wilkinson conspiracies (1787-1811)
• Corrupt Bargain (1824)
• Petticoat Affair or Eaton Affair (1831) involving a sex scandal and the resignation of much of Andrew Jackson's cabinet.
• Swartwout-Hoyt scandal involving the Port of New York Collectors' Office, became a struggle between President John Tyler and Congress concerning authority to appoint and pay investigative commissioners (1841-1842)
• Simon Cameron, war profiteer (1860-1862)
• Tammany Hall (1854-1934)
• Gould-Fisk Gold Conspiracy Black Friday scandal (1869)
• Crédit Mobilier of America scandal (1872)
• Salary Grab Act (1873)
• Sanborn Contract
• Whiskey Ring (1875)
• Bribing of United States Secretary of War William Belknap leading to impeachment and resignation; President Grant's acceptance of Belknap's resignation created an additional scandal and controversy, as this was believed by some to have deprived the Senate of jurisdiction over the impeachment (1876)
• Star Route Frauds - postal contract corruption involving Arkansas Sen. Stephen W. Dorsey, who became Secretary of the Republican National Committee during James Garfield's 1880 presidential campaign (1876-1882)
• Senator-elect La Fayette Grover implicated (1878) in vote-rigging scheme while Governor of Oregon: See State and local-level scandals
• Ezra Ayres Hayt, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, forced to resign by Secretary of Interior Carl Schurz due to allegations of rampant corruption (1880)
• Dakota Territorial Governor Nehemiah Ordway indicted on corruption charges (1884) and removed by President Arthur

This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757–July 12, 1804) was an Army officer, lawyer, Founding Father, American politician, leading statesman, financier and political theorist. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... John Pickering (22 September 1737 - 11 April 1805) served as Chief Justice of the New Hampshire Superior Court and as Judge for the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... General James Wilkinson James Wilkinson (1757 – December 28, 1825) was a U.S. soldier and statesman, who was associated with several scandals and controversies. ... Three deals cut in connection with the Presidency of the United States, two in contested United States presidential elections and one involving a Presidential appointment of a Vice President, have been described as Corrupt Bargains. ... The Petticoat Affair (also known as the Eaton Affair or the Eaton Malaria) was an 1831 U.S. sex scandal involving members of President Andrew Jacksons Cabinet. ... The Petticoat Affair (also known as the Eaton Affair or the Eaton Malaria) was an 1831 U.S. sex scandal involving members of President Andrew Jacksons Cabinet. ... For other uses, see Andrew Jackson (disambiguation). ... The Swartwout-Hoyt scandal arose from corruption in the Office of the Collector of the Port of New York. ... John Tyler, Jr. ... Simon Cameron Simon Cameron (March 8, 1799 – June 26, 1889) was United States Secretary of War for Abraham Lincoln from 1861 to 1862. ... Tammany Hall was the Democratic Party political machine that played a major role in controlling New York City politics from the 1790s to the 1960s. ... Jay Gould (1836-1892) Jason Gould (May 27, 1836 – December 2, 1892) was an American financier. ... James Fisk, Jr. ... Black Friday, September 24, 1869, also known as the Fisk-Gould Scandal, was a financial panic in the United States caused by two speculators efforts to corner the gold market. ... The Crédit Mobilier of America scandal of 1872 involved the Union Pacific Railroad and the Crédit Mobilier of America construction company. ... The Salary Grab Act was passed by the United States Congress on 3 March 1873. ... In the Sanborn Contract fraud, a scandal that occurred during the administration of United States President Grant, a politician named Sanborn was given a contract to collect $427,000 in unpaid taxes for a 50% commission. ... In the United States, the Whiskey Ring was a scandal, exposed in 1875, involving diversion of tax revenues in a conspiracy among government agents, politicians, whiskey distillers, and distributors. ... The Secretary of War was a member of the United States Presidents Cabinet, beginning with George Washingtons administration. ... William Worth Belknap (September 22, 1829 - October 13, 1890) was a U.S. administrator, soldier and United States Secretary of War. ... Star routes is a term used in connection with the United States postal service. ... Stephen Wallace Dorsey Stephen Wallace Dorsey (February 28, 1842 - March 20, 1916) was a Senator from Arkansas; born in Benson, Rutland County, Vermont, February 28, 1842; moved to Ohio and settled in Oberlin; attended the public schools; during the Civil War served in the Union Army; returned to Ohio and... The Republican National Committee (RNC) provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. ... James Abram Garfield (November 19, 1831–September 19, 1881) was a major general in the United States Army, member of the U.S. House of Representatives, and the twentieth President of the United States. ... The U.S. presidential election of 1880 was largely seen as a referendum on the Republicans relaxation of Reconstruction efforts in the southern states. ... La Fayette Grover (November 29, 1823 – May 10, 1911) was a Democratic representative and senator from Oregon, USA. Grover was born in Bethel, Maine. ... The Governor of Oregon is the top executive of the government of the U.S. state of Oregon. ... The United States Secretary of the Interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior. ... Carl Schurz (March 2, 1829 – May 14, 1906) was a German revolutionary, American statesman and reformer, and Union Army general in the American Civil War. ... Dakota Territory existed as an entity from 1861 until 1889, when it was divided into the states of North Dakota and South Dakota. ... Nehemiah G. Ordway Nehemiah G. Ordway Nehemiah George Ordway (November 10, 1828 – July 3, 1907) was a New Hampshire state senator and the seventh Governor of Dakota Territory. ... Chester Alan Arthur (October 5, 1829—November 18, 1886) was an American politician who served as 21st President of the United States. ...

1900 - 1945

• Eugene Schmitz and Abe Ruef convicted in the infamous San Francisco graft trials.
• Newport Sex Scandal (1919) Secretary of the Navy Franklin Delano Roosevelt initiated an investigation into allegations of "immoral conduct" (homosexuality) at Naval base in Newport, Rhode Island; the investigators were themselves ultimately accused of misconduct, including ties to homosexuality (Consider moving to Sex scandal category)
• Teapot Dome scandal (1922)
• Edwin Atherton's 1937 Atherton Report on police graft in San Francisco.
• Kefauver Commission

Born 1864 in San Francisco, he was the mayor of his hometown when the famous 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and subsequant fire destroyed a prodigious amount of the city. ... Abraham Rueff (September 2, 1864 San Francisco, California - February 29, 1936 San Francisco, California), known as Abe Ruef, was an American lawyer and politician. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... The Newport Sex Scandal involved allegations in 1919 of immoral conduct (specifically, homosexuality) at the United States Navy base in Newport, Rhode Island. ... Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882–April 12, 1945), 32nd President of the United States, the longest-serving holder of the office and the only man to be elected President more than twice, was one of the central figures of 20th century history. ... Teapot Dome is a reference to an oil field on public land in Wyoming, so named because of a mass boulder that looks like a teapot overlooking the field. ... Edwin Newton Atherton (10/12/1896 - 8/31/1944 ) Born in Washington D.C. Foreign Service Officer, FBI Agent, Private Investigator and head of the college athletics organization, the Pacific Coast Conference in the 1940s. ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Between 1950 and 1951, the Kefauver Committee held all of Americans attention. ...

1946 - 1974

• Department of Justice tax scandal (1951-1952) leading to the firing or forced resignations of 166 employees of the agency; investigations were widely regarded as a systematic cover-up for high-level wrongdoing
• McCarthyism (1948-1954)
• 1952 Republican Vice-Presidential nominee Richard Nixon delivers televised "Checkers Speech," to deflect scandal about $18,000 in gifts, maintaining that the only personal gift he had received was a cocker spaniel dog named "Checkers"
• Vicuña Coat scandal of Eisenhower's chief of staff Sherman Adams (1958); See State and Local level (New Hampshire)
• Billy Sol Estes (1961)
• Bobby Baker (1963) aide to LBJ was involved with underworld figures
• Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. of New York expelled from Congress (1967) but re-elected anyway
• Senator Thomas J. Dodd censured for financial misconduct and corruption (1967)
• Supreme Court Associate Justice Abe Fortas resigns in financial scandal (1969) that emerged during his nomination to become Chief Justice
• Harold Carswell nominated by President Nixon as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court withdrew (1970) after publication of a speech 20 years earlier: "I yield to no man . . . in the firm, vigorous belief in the principles of white supremacy."
• Pentagon Papers (1971)
• Watergate (1972-1973)
• Bebe Rebozo (1973) — investigated for accepting large contribution to Nixon campaign.
• Nixon Jewelry (1974) Violation of Foreign Gifts and Decorations Act of 1881, as amended in 1966.
• Spiro T. Agnew scandal (1973)
• Judge Otto Kerner, Jr. resigned U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals (1974) after exhausting appeals in conviction for bribery, mail fraud, conspiracy, and tax evasion while Kerner was Governor of Illinois
• Nixon Pardon by President Ford (1974)

A 1947 comic book published by the Catechetical Guild Educational Society warning of the dangers of a Communist takeover. ... Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994) was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. ... Wikisource has original text related to this article: Checkers speech The Checkers speech was given by Richard Nixon on September 23, 1952, when he was the Republican candidate for the Vice Presidency. ... Binomial name Vicugna vicugna (Molina, 1782) The Vicuña (Vicugna vicugna) is one of 2 wild South American camelids, along with the guanaco, which lives in the high alpineous areas of the Andes. ... Llewelyn Sherman A. Adams (July 8, 1899-October 27, 1986) was a United States politician, best known as White House Chief of Staff for President Dwight D. Eisenhower, the culmination of a relatively short (18-year) political career that also included a stint as Governor of New Hampshire. ... Billy Sol Estes was a close associate and neighbor of president Lyndon B. Johnson in Texas prior to president John F. Kennedys election. ... Robert Baker, known as Bobby Baker, was born 1928, in Pickens, South Carolina. ... A rare spoken word album by Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. ... Thomas Joseph Dodd (May 15, 1907-May 24, 1971) was a United States Senator and Representative from Connecticut. ... Abe Fortas (June 19, 1910–April 5, 1982) was a U.S. Supreme Court associate justice. ... George Harrold Carswell (December 22, 1919 – July 13, 1992) was a Federal Judge and an unsuccessful nominee to the United States Supreme Court. ... The Pentagon Papers is the colloquial term for United States-Vietnam Relations, 1945-1967: A Study Prepared by the Department of Defense, a 47 volume, 7,000-page, top-secret United States Department of Defense history of the United States political and military involvement in the Vietnam War from 1945... The Watergate building. ... Charles Bebe Rebozo with President Richard Nixon. ... Spiro Theodore Agnew, born Spiro Anagnostopoulos (November 9, 1918–September 17, 1996), was the thirty-ninth Vice President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1973 under President Richard M. Nixon. ... Otto Kerner, Jr. ... Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994) was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. ... Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. ...

1975 - 1989

• John Connally Milk Money scandal (1975)
• "Lancegate": President Carter's OMB Director Bert Lance resignation amidst allegations of misuse of funds (1977)
• Jimmy Carter's Chief of Staff Hamilton Jordan target of special prosecution (beginning 1979)
• "Billygate": President Jimmy Carter's brother Billy Carter was found to be a paid agent of the government of Libya (1980); ensuing scandal did not help President Carter's bid for re-election in 1980
• Tongsun Park "Koreagate" scandal involving alleged bribery of more than 100 members of Congress by South Korean government; charges were pressed only against congressmen Richard T. Hanna (convicted) and Otto E. Passman (not prosecuted because of illness); also implicated was South Korean President Park Chung Hee (1977-1980)
• Betty Ford addictions (1978)
• Senator Herman Talmadge of Georgia punished after his ex-wife produced cash "gifts" he had hidden in an overcoat (1979); Talmadge later wrote, "I wish I'd burned that damn overcoat and charged everything on American Express." Talmadge the same year admitted to having spent five weeks in alcohol rehabilitation; he was not re-elected to the Senate in 1980.
• Abscam (1980)
• "Debategate": briefing book of President Jimmy Carter stolen and given to Ronald Reagan campaign before 1980 presidential election debate in Cleveland, Ohio (1980)
• Secretary of Labor Raymond J. Donovan investigated (beginning 1981) for wrongdoing and ultimately acquitted of larceny and fraud (1987)
• Anne Gorsuch Burford refusal to turn over EPA documents (1982)
• William Casey insider trading (1983)
• 1983 Congressional page sex scandal
• Iran-Contra affair (1985-1986); Oliver North was convicted (1989) of accepting an illegal gratuity, aiding and abetting in the obstruction of a congressional inquiry, and destruction of documents, but the convictions were later (1990) overturned by appeals court.
• Savings and loan scandal and the Keating Five (1980-1989): Alan Cranston, Dennis DeConcini, Don Riegle, John Glenn, and John McCain
• Preferential treatment for military contractor Wedtech implicates Attorney General Edwin Meese and White House aide Lynn Nofziger (1987)
• Robert Bernard Anderson former US Secretary of Treasury pleaded guilty to owning an offshore bank. (1987).
• "Pothead jurist," 1987: President Reagan's first controversial nominee to replace Justice Powell was Judge Robert Bork. Judge Bork, who coincidentally had fired Archibald Cox in the Nixon-era Saturday Night Massacre, was rejected for his allegedly extreme judicial philosophy; the second nominee was Judge Douglas H. Ginsburg, who had to drop out of consideration after he admitted having smoked marijuana while a Harvard Law School professor.
• Senator John Tower's nomination as Defense Secretary derailed due to allegations of habitual and extreme alcohol abuse and improper ties to defense industry (1987)
• Mario Biaggi convicted (1988) in Wedtech scandal of bribery, extortion, racketeering, filing a false tax return, mail fraud, and false financial disclosure; resigned from U.S. House before he could be expelled
• Speaker of the U.S. House Jim Wright from Texas forced to resign after ethics committee investigation found dozens of violations of House rules, including alleged improper receipt of $145,000 in gifts by Wright's wife from a Fort Worth developer and large profits from "sale" of Wright's speeches (1989)
• Anthony Lee Coelho of California resigns from U.S. House for unethical finance practices including "junk bond" deal (1989)
• Alcee Hastings, federal district court judge impeached (1989) and convicted of soliciting a bribe; subsequently elected (1992) to U.S. House

John Bowden Connally, Jr. ... Thomas Bertram Lance, known as Bert Lance, was director of the Office of Management and the Budget (OMB) during the presidency of Jimmy Carter. ... Hamilton Jordan William Hamilton McWhorter Jordan (born September 21, 1944) served as White House Chief of Staff in 1979 - 1980 and was a key advisor and strategist for President Jimmy Carter. ... Billy and Jimmy Carter William Alton Billy Carter (March 29, 1937 – September 25, 1988), the younger brother of United States President Jimmy Carter, was born in Plains, Georgia. ... Tongsun Park was a figure in the Koreagate scandal of the 1970s with a reputation as the Asian Great Gatsby, a socialite who charmed congressmen with his Washington dinner parties and cash payments. ... Betty Fords official White House portrait, painted in 1977 by Felix de Cossio Elizabeth Anne Bloomer Warren Ford (born April 8, 1918) is the widow of former United States President Gerald R. Ford and was the First Lady from 1974 to 1977. ... Herman Eugene Talmadge (August 9, 1913 – March 21, 2002) was an American politician who served as Governor of the U.S. state of Georgia briefly in 1947 and again from 1948 to 1955, and as a U.S. Senator from 1957 until 1981. ... Abscam (sometimes ABSCAM) was an FBI sting operation run out of the FBIs Hauppauge, Long Island office which initially targeted trafficking in stolen property and thereafter was converted to a public corruption investigation. ... Presidential electoral votes by state. ... Raymond J. Donovan (August 31, 1930-) is an American politician and former federal office-holder. ... Anne Gorsuch (21 April 1942–18 July 2004) was the first female Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, serving under President Ronald Reagan. ... William Joseph Casey (March 13, 1913 - May 6, 1987) was the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency from 1981 to 1987. ... The 1983 Congressional page sex scandal was a political scandal in the United States involving members of the United States House of Representatives. ... The Iran-Contra Affair (also Irangate), was a political scandal occurring in 1987 as a result of earlier events during the Reagan administration in which members of the executive branch sold weapons to Iran, an avowed enemy, and illegally used the profits to continue funding rebels, the Contras, in Nicaragua. ... Oliver Laurence North (born October 7, 1943) is most well known for his involvement in the Iran-Contra Affair. ... The Savings and Loan crisis of the 1980s was a wave of savings and loan failures in the USA, caused by mismanagement, rising interest rates, failed speculation and, in some cases, fraud. ... The Keating Five (or Keating Five Scandal) refers to a Congressional scandal related to the collapse of most of the Savings and Loan institutions in the United States in the late 1980s. ... Alan MacGregor Cranston (June 19, 1914 – December 31, 2000) was a U.S. journalist and politician. ... Dennis DeConcini Credited to the United States Senate Historical Office Dennis Webster DeConcini (born May 8, 1937, in Tucson) is a former Democratic U.S. Senator from Arizona. ... Donald Wayne Riegle Jr. ... For other persons named John Glenn, see John Glenn (disambiguation). ... For McCains grandfather and father, see John S. McCain, Sr. ... Edwin Meese III Edwin Ed Meese III (born December 2, 1931 in Oakland, California) served as the seventy-fifth Attorney General of the United States (1985-1988). ... Franklyn C. Lyn Nofziger (born 1924) is an American journalist, political consultant and author who served as White House staff during the Reagan and Nixon administrations. ... Robert Bernard Anderson Andersons signature, as used on American currency Robert Bernard Anderson (June 4, 1910–August 14, 1989) was a U.S. administrator and businessman. ... The United States Secretary of the Treasury is the finance minister of the Federal Government of the United States. ... An offshore bank account is a bank located outside the country of residence of the depositor, typically in a low tax jurisdiction (or tax haven) that provides financial and legal advantages. ... Robert Heron Bork (born March 1, 1927) is a conservative American legal scholar who advocates the judicial philosophy of originalism. ... The Saturday night massacre (October 20, 1973) was the term given by political commentators to U.S. President Richard Nixons executive dismissal of independent special prosecutor Archibald Cox, and the forced resignations of Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus during the controversial and drawn-out... Douglas H. Ginsburg Douglas Howard Ginsburg (born May 25, 1946) is the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. ... John Tower John Goodwin Tower (September 29, 1925 – April 5, 1991) was the first Republican United States senator from Texas since the Reconstruction after the Civil War. ... Mario Biaggi (born October 26, 1917) is a former American politician. ... James Claude Wright, Jr. ... Anthony Tony Coelho (b. ... Alcee Lamar Hastings (born September 5, 1936) is a U.S. politician, who was an impeached and removed federal judge and is currently a member of the House of Representatives representing Floridas 23rd congressional district (map). ...

1990 - 1999

• Senator David Durenberger denounced by Senate for unethical financial transactions (1990)
• Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) scandal implicates former Defense Secretary and Washington insider Clark Clifford (1991)
• House banking scandal (1992)
• Mary Rose Oakar (1992) allegations of "ghost employees" on payroll
• President George H.W. Bush's pardon of 6 Iran-Contra affair figures on December 24, 1992 after he had failed to win a second term, days before the perjury trial of Casper Weinberger was scheduled to begin.
• Travelgate (1993)
• Zoe Baird's nomination as Attorney General and Kimba Wood's subsequent near-nomination were derailed by past employment of illegal aliens as nannies. (1993)
• Dan Rostenkowski and other Democratic Members of Congress in the Congressional Post Office Scandal (1991 - 1995)
• The evident suicide (1993) of White House lawyer Vince Foster, together with accusations that documents from Foster's office relating to an investigation had disappeared mysteriously, fueled scandalous speculations, including the widely publicized suggestion (dismissed by investigators) that Foster's death had not been suicide.
• White House Coffees and Lincoln Bedroom sales -- political donations linked to access to President Clinton, including the apparent sale of "coffees" with him, and what amounted to the renting out of the Lincoln Bedroom.
• Commerce Secretary Ron Brown investigated (1995)
• The 1996 United States campaign finance controversy, also known as Chinagate, refers to alleged efforts by the People's Republic of China (PRC) to influence domestic United States politics prior to and during the Clinton Administration as well as the fundraising practices of the administration itself.
• Americorps head Eli Segal investigated (1996)
• Wes Cooley (1996)
• Filegate -- Misuse of FBI resources by White House Security Chief under President Bill Clinton, allegedly to compile an enemies list (1996); investigation found insufficient evidence of criminal wrongdoing
• Walter R. Tucker III of California resigned before bribery conviction (1996)
• Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich financial improprieties leading to House reprimand and assessment of $300,000 sanction (1997)
• Secretary of Agriculture Michael Espy forced to resign from office despite ultimate acquittal on criminal corruption charges (1998)
• Labor Secretary Alexis Herman investigated (1998) in connection with alleged illegal fundraising and other financial improprieties, ultimately cleared (2001)
• Bruce Babbitt, Interior Secretary, independent probe (1998-2000) of alleged lying to Congress concerning influence of money in 1995 American Indian tribe casino decision finds no criminally prosecutable perjury by Babbitt
• Vice-President Al Gore (1998) allegations of improper fundraising and "no controlling legal authority" defense
• Whitewater scandal (1994-2000)No criminal charges were brought against the Clintons as there was insufficient evidence that either of them had engaged in criminal wrongdoing
• Teamstergate Ron Carey's and Bill Clinton's 1996 campaigns for the Presidency of the union and the United States, respectively, swapped Teamsters' Union general treasury funds into Clinton's campaign, for Clinton Campaign funds into Ron Carey's campaign warchest. The Teamsters' political director was jailed. No Clinton officials were charged. Carey's re-election was invalidated; James Hoffa, Jr. was elected when Teamsters election was rerun.
• Henry Cisneros payments controversy - Henry Cisneros resigns as Housing Secretary and, after lengthy probe that began in 1995, pleads guilty (1999) to lying to the FBI about money he paid former mistress Linda Medlar a.k.a. Linda Jones; later pardoned by President Clinton in 2001 (Possibly reclassify or cross-reference to Sex scandal)
• Pardongate (1999 - 2001) -- Bill Clinton appeared to write out pardons, during his lame duck tenure, in response to massive contributions linked to the pardoned. This included a scandal which has become traditional for departing presidents; the sudden flurry of pardons during the final month in office, which would probably not have been deemed tolerable at any other time.

David Ferdinand Durenberger (born August 19, 1934) is an American politician. ... BCCI in London was closed by the Bank of England in 1991 after evidence emerged of fraud and money laundering. ... Clark McAdams Clifford (December 25, 1906 – October 10, 1998) was a highly influential American lawyer who served Presidents Truman, Kennedy, Johnson and Carter, serving as Secretary of Defense for Johnson. ... Rubbergate was the name given to a scandal that broke in early 1992 when it was revealed that members of the United States House of Representatives were knowingly writing bad checks, and not being penalized by the House Bank. ... Mary Rose Oakar (b. ... Order: 41st President Vice President: Dan Quayle Term of office: January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993 Preceded by: Ronald Reagan Succeeded by: Bill Clinton Date of birth: June 12, 1924 Place of birth: Milton, Massachusetts First Lady: Barbara Pierce Bush Political party: Republican George Herbert Walker Bush, KBE (born... This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The Iran-Contra Affair (also Irangate), was a political scandal occurring in 1987 as a result of earlier events during the Reagan administration in which members of the executive branch sold weapons to Iran, an avowed enemy, and illegally used the profits to continue funding rebels, the Contras, in Nicaragua. ... is the 358th day of the year (359th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... Perjury is the act of lying or making verifiably false statements on a material matter under oath or affirmation in a court of law or in any of various sworn statements in writing. ... Caspar Willard Weinberger (born August 18, 1917) is best known as United States Secretary of Defense under President Ronald Reagan from 1982 through 1987, and for his related roles in the Strategic Defense Initiative program (popularly known as Star Wars), and in the Iran-Contra Affair. ... On May 19, 1993, several longtime employees of the White House Travel Office were fired. ... Zoe Baird (born 1952) was a U.S. lawyer. ... In most common law jurisdictions, the Attorney General is the main legal adviser to the government, and in some jurisdictions may in addition have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions. ... Kimba Wood (born 1944) is a U.S. federal judge. ... Daniel David Dan Rostenkowski served in the U.S. Congress as a U.S. Representative for Illinois from 1959 to 1995. ... The Congressional Post Office Scandal, or Check Kiting Scandal, is a phrase used to refer to the discovery of corruption among various Congressional Post Office employees and members of the House of Representatives, which was investigated from 1991 to 1995, climaxing in the conviction of House Ways and Means Committee... Vincent Walker Foster, Jr. ... Redecoration of the Lincoln Bedroom in a more historical nineteenth century style was completed in 2005. ... Ronald Harmon Brown (August 1, 1941 – April 3, 1996), was the United States Secretary of Commerce, serving during the first term of President Bill Clinton. ... President Clinton with convicted fund-raiser Charlie Trie The 1996 United States campaign finance controversy was an alleged effort by the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) to influence domestic American politics prior to and during the Clinton administration and also involved the fund-raising practices of the administration itself. ... President Clintons Cabinet, circa 1993 Headed by President of the United States Bill Clinton, the Clinton Administation was the executive branch of the federal government of the United States from 1993 to 2001. ... the AmeriCorps logo AmeriCorps is an American network of more than 3,000 non-profit organizations, public agencies, and faith-based organizations. ... Wester Shadric Cooley (born March 28, 1932) is an American politician from Oregon. ... Filegate is a White House scandal in June of 1996. ... Walter Rayford Tucker III (born May 28, 1957) is a politician from the state of California. ... Newton Leroy Gingrich (born June 17, 1943), Ph. ... Alphonso Michael Espy, called Mike Espy, (born November 30, 1953) was a U.S. political figure. ... The official portrait of Alexis Herman hangs in the Department of Labor Alexis Margaret Herman (born July 16, 1947 in Mobile, Alabama) served as the 23rd U.S. Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton. ... Bruce Edward Babbitt (born June 27, 1938), a Democrat, served as United States Secretary of the Interior and as Governor of Arizona. ... Albert Arnold Gore, Jr. ... Official portrait 1994 Al Gore, former Vice-President of the United States (1993-2001) and 2000 Democratic Party presidential nominee, has been the subject of some controversies. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Teamstergate was the name the news media placed on an apparent money swap between the 1996 Bill Clinton presidential campaign and the Ron Carey campaign to be reelected as president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. ... The Henry Cisneros payments controversy was a lengthy investigation begun in 1995 into allegations that Henry Cisneros, United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development during the Presidency of Bill Clinton, had lied to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)( background check investigators about payments he had made to his former... Henry Gabriel Cisneros (born June 11, 1947) is a prominent American politician, businessman, and community leader. ... President Bill Clinton was widely criticized for some pardons and other acts of executive clemency; collectively, these have been called Pardongate. ...

2000 -

• Linda Chavez, nomination as Secretary of Labor derailed by past employment of illegal alien (2001)
• Enron collapse (2002) leading to investigation of Kenneth Lay, a top political ally and financial donor to the election campaign of President George W. Bush; Lay, who had been named as a leading candidate for Secretary of the Treasury, eventually indicted (2004). Attempts to link individual politicians with the Enron malfeasance have not been particularly successful, perhaps partly due to the fact that so many politicians of both major parties received campaign contributions (including 158 Republicans and 100 Democrats in Congress (as of 2001) [2]).
• Jim Traficant (D-OH) financial corruption conviction and expulsion from House (2002)
• Robert Torricelli (D-NJ) bribery scandal (2002)
• Trent Lott (R-MS) resigned as Senate majority leader amid racial controversy
• Bill Frist (R-TN), becomes Senate majority leader and is alleged to have been deeply involved in campaign finance improprieties. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating insider-trading issues in connection with Frist's July 2005 sale of Hospital Corporation of America shares immediately before the stock's value fell precipitously.
• Yellowcake forgery. Evidence alleged to be forged was presented in the case for 2003 invasion of Iraq (2003)
• Plame affair (2004), leading to the CIA leak grand jury investigation, eventually implicating Vice Presidential Chief of Staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, who was indicted October 28, 2005 on five counts of obstruction of justice, perjury, and making false statements; convicted of four counts on March 6, 2007, sentenced to 30 months in federal prison, $250,000 fine, and 2 years supervised release on June 5, 2007; after bail refused pending appeal of the verdict, 30-month prison sentence commuted by President George W. Bush on July 2, 2007. (Also known as: CIA leak scandal (2003) and Plamegate.)
• Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse scandal (2004-2005)
• Tom DeLay (R-TX), reprimanded twice by House Ethics Committee and aides indicted (2004-2005); eventually DeLay himself was indicted (October 2005); DeLay resigned from the House 9 June, 2006
• Bernard Kerik, nomination as Secretary of Homeland Security derailed by past employment of illegal alien as nanny, and amid allegations of various other ethical improprieties (2004)
• Former Clinton administration National Security Advisor Sandy Berger pleads guilty (2005) to unlawfully removing classified documents from the National Archives in October 2003
• Bush administration payment of columnists including Armstrong Williams, Maggie Gallagher and Michael McManus (2004-2005)
• Downing Street Memo minutes of UK government secret meeting (dated 23 July 2002, leaked 2005) include summary of MI6 Director Sir Richard Dearlove's report that "Bush wanted to remove Saddam, through military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD. But the intelligence and the facts were being fixed around the policy."
• George Allen Ex-Senator from Virginia, saying "macaca" to a Webb campaign volunteer. Also failed to produce stock options, had a long affinity with the Confederate flag, and for the attack and the Omni Hotel.
• Duke Cunningham (R-CA) resigned from the House of Representatives and pleaded guilty on November 28, 2005 to charges of conspiracy to commit bribery, mail fraud and wire fraud, and tax evasion for underreporting his income in 2004. Prosecutors said Cunningham admitted to receiving at least $2.4 million in bribes.

• Jack Abramoff, Republican lobbyist and key figure in Tom DeLay scandal, is indicted on wire fraud charges (August 2005). The following people have been convicted:

• William J. Jefferson (D-LA) under investigation for bribery after the FBI seized $90,000 of a $100,000 bribery payment from Jefferson's home freezer (August 2005)

• Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL), chairman of the House Caucus on Missing and Exploited Children and zealous champion of get-tough legislation against pedophiles, resigns from House of Representatives 29 September 2006, after reports he sent inappropriate sexually oriented e-mails and instant messages to young adult male congressional pages. (Also listed under "Sex Scandals.")
• "Lawyergate" -[3] The Bush administration firing of several Republican appointed lawyers. It became a scandal after it became known that the firings may have been politically motivated, rather than based on the stated reason "poor job performance." The lawyers had refused repeatedly solicitations by Republican politicians to investigate claims of voter fraud by Democrats after the 2006 elections.

Linda Chavez (born June 17, 1947 in Albuquerque, New Mexico) is a prominent Hispanic-American conservative author, commentator, and radio talk show host. ... The United States Secretary of Labor is the head of the United States Department of Labor. ... Enron Corporation (Former NYSE ticker symbol: ENE) was an American energy company based in Houston, Texas. ... Kenneth Lee Ken Lay (April 15, 1942 – July 5, 2006) was an American businessman, best known for his role in the widely-reported corruption scandal that led to the downfall of Enron Corporation. ... James Traficant James A. Traficant Jr. ... Robert Guy Torricelli (born August 27, 1951), nicknamed the Torch, is an American politician from the U.S. state of New Jersey. ... Chester Trent Lott, Sr. ... William Harrison Bill Frist, Sr. ... The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, commonly referred to as the SEC, is the United States governing body which has primary responsibility for overseeing the regulation of the securities industry. ... Insider trading is the trading of a corporations stock or other securities (e. ... The Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) NYSE: HCA is the largest private operator of health care facilities in the world. ... The term Yellowcake Forgery refers to falsified classified documents initially uncovered by Italian intelligence which possibly depicted an attempt by Iraqs Saddam Hussein regime to purchase yellowcake uranium from the country of Niger, in defiance of United Nations sanctions. ... The subject of this article is the 2003 invasion of Iraq. ... The Plame affair (also known as the CIA leak scandal or the CIA leak case) is a political controversy in the United States, involving high-level officials of the George W. Bush administration and members of the media, and resulting in a federal grand jury investigation, a criminal trial, and... Patrick Fitzgerald, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois CIA leak grand jury investigation (rel. ... I. Lewis Scooter Libby Irve Lewis Scooter Libby, Jr. ... is the 301st day of the year (302nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 65th day of the year (66th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 156th day of the year (157th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the 43rd and current President of the United States, inaugurated on January 20, 2001. ... The CIA leak scandal (2003) (sometimes described as the Plame Scandal or the Plame affair) is an American political controversy involving high-level officials of the George W. Bush administration and members of the media resulting in a federal grand jury investigation, a criminal trial, and an on-going civil... Valerie Plame and Joseph C. Wilson The Plame Affair began in July 2003 when journalist Robert Novak wrote a column concerning a CIA-sponsored trip to Niger by former United States Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson, in which Novak asserted that Wilsons wife, Valerie Plame, was an Agency operative on... It has been suggested that Nature of Abu Ghraib abuse be merged into this article or section. ... Thomas Dale DeLay (born April 8, 1947) is a former member of the United States House of Representatives from Sugar Land, Texas. ... Bernard Kerik Bernard Bailey Kerik, CBE , (born September 4, 1955 in Newark, New Jersey) is an American law-enforcement officer. ... The United States Secretary of Homeland Security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the body concerned with protecting the American homeland and the safety of American citizens. ... Samuel R. Sandy Berger (born October 28, 1945) served as the 19th United States National Security Advisor under President Bill Clinton from 1997 to 2001. ... The Bush administration payment of columnists refers to the payment of public funds to right-wing media commentators by several U.S. executive departments under Cabinet officials to promote various policies of U.S. President George W. Bushs administration. ... Armstrong Wil