Favoritism

The California Senate offers special interests that give money to its charity the opportunity to travel with state lawmakers to Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Jerusalem, Tokyo and other foreign locales. The Senate uses its staff -- paid by taxpayers -- to help make travel plans for the contributors, some donors said. The donors are mostly corporate interests with business before the Legislature who get federal tax deductions for their contributions.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher J. Dodd acknowledged Tuesday that he knew in 2003 that Countrywide Financial Corp. placed him in a "VIP section" when the firm reportedly gave him preferential rates on two mortgages. But he denied he knew he was getting any special deal and said he didn't plan to give up the loans. "I'm not clairvoyant," Dodd (D-Conn.) said. "There was no red flag to me that we were getting some special treatment." Revelations that Dodd and Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates pledged to oversee a disputed $35-billion tanker contract after congressional investigators Wednesday detailed numerous mistakes the Air Force made in awarding the deal to Northrop Grumman Corp. and its European partner over Boeing Co.

Shortly after joining the U.S. Senate and while enjoying a surge in income, Barack Obama bought a $1.65-million restored Georgian mansion in an upscale Chicago neighborhood. He secured a $1.32-million mortgage from Northern Trust in Illinois. The freshman Democratic senator received a discount. He locked in an interest rate of 5.625% on the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage at a time when such loans in Chicago averaged as much as 6%.

It was an evening that would have brought a smile to the face of Jack Haley. For those who care about professionalism behind the mike, however, it was embarrassing. You remember Haley, a former NBA player with the Lakers and several other teams, who traded his uniform in for a Lakers cheerleader outfit when he went to work for the Fox Sports Network. The spirit of Haley was alive and rooting on the FSN postgame show the night the Dodgers clinched the National League West.

When Hollywood madam Jody "Babydol" Gibson was busted eight years ago, word that police had seized her list of celebrity clients stirred intense curiosity in Hollywood -- and not a little worry. The much-anticipated disclosure of famous names never occurred, however. The evidence presented to the jury that convicted Gibson in 2000 of operating an international prostitution ring included phone books and other records in which, prosecutors said, she listed her customers.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, once a critic of patronage in government, has rewarded 29 aides from his reelection campaign with state jobs, promotions and hefty raises. Jeffrey Wyly left the state labor agency last spring to work for the governor's reelection. After Schwarzenegger won, Wyly returned to the agency with a promotion and a $20,304 raise. At 26, Wyly is now paid $75,000 a year -- a 37% bump -- to help enact Schwarzenegger's labor agenda.

Federal investigators have written a sharply worded critique of the beleaguered chief of the General Services Administration, Lurita Alexis Doan, accusing her of violating the law by improperly attempting to use her agency to help Republican political candidates. "The GSA administrator displayed no reservations in her willingness to commit GSA resources, including its human capital, to the Republican Party," the report says.

The Department of Justice skirted federal policy guidelines to allow the indictment of four liberal activists on voter fraud charges in Missouri shortly before November's midterm election, a former U.S. attorney told a Senate investigative panel Tuesday. Bradley Schlozman, who was the interim U.S. attorney in Kansas City last year, also advised the Senate Judiciary Committee that he did not believe the indictments helped Republicans in the election.

Sheriff Lee Baca's decision to let Paris Hilton out of jail after she served only three days of a planned 23-day stay sparked outrage Thursday, prompting an emergency court hearing today that could send the hotel heiress back behind bars. Infuriated prosecutors asserted Thursday that Hilton had received special treatment from the Sheriff's Department, which they accused of contempt of court.