Political Corruption

Mexican security forces swept into President Felipe Calderon's home state of Michoacan on Tuesday and arrested a total of 27 mayors and other government officials, the largest operation to target politicians in Mexico's bloody drug war. The officials, including 10 mayors, are being investigated for alleged ties to drug traffickers and other organized crime syndicates that in effect control large sections of Michoacan, the federal attorney general's office said. Michoacan Gov.

Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.) said Wednesday that his comments about donating money to then-Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich's campaign fund in November were intended only to "placate" the governor's brother and keep Burris' Senate prospects alive. The telephone conversation between Burris and Robert Blagojevich, secretly recorded by the FBI as part of a federal corruption probe, became public Tuesday when a state judge released a transcript to the Senate Ethics Committee.

People who live in New Jersey can be forgiven if they initially yawned Thursday morning at the news of another federal sting that swept up a wide range of public officials, including the young mayor of Hoboken, who's been on the job all of three weeks. They might have even shrugged at the report that five rabbis were also snared in the dragnet for allegedly washing $3 million through an international money-laundering ring. But body parts?

At least one sign in Illinois -- welcoming drivers to the state's International Port District -- still proclaims Rod R. Blagojevich to be governor. After Blagojevich was impeached and ousted from office following his arrest on federal corruption charges, Gov. Pat Quinn called for a cleansing of the Blagojevich name from signs across the state. The 32 such signs above Illinois Tollway plazas were removed immediately.

South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford broke state law when he charged taxpayers for business and first-class flights, according to the chairman of the legislative committee investigating Sanford's international travel. State Sen. David Thomas, whose budget committee investigated Sanford's flights after reports last month by the Associated Press, sent evidence to Senate leaders Monday arguing that the Republican governor violated state laws requiring the cheapest travel possible. Thomas said Sanford's more expensive flights on two state Commerce Department trips cost taxpayers $13,700 more than economy class.

The state attorney general's office will join an expanding probe of political corruption in San Bernardino County centered largely on the past activities of the assessor's office, officials said Monday. So far the investigation has led to the arrest of former Assessor Bill Postmus and four former employees in his office. Allegations include using the assessor's staff to do political work, forgery, grand theft, perjury and failure to report gifts from a developer. Postmus was arrested in January on drug charges.

Former Illinois Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich blames overzealous prosecutors and political enemies for his downfall in a new book that offers glimpses of his rocky six-year tenure and his upcoming defense against federal corruption charges. "The Governor" describes his arrest on charges that included trying to sell the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama last year. In keeping with the governor's long-held position that he's been victimized by rivals and "unethical" prosecutors, Blagojevich writes that his guiding thought in selecting a new senator was, "How much do I love the people of Illinois?"

Christopher Kelly, a key figure in the federal corruption investigation of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, has died. A onetime confidant and top fundraiser for Blagojevich, Kelly was accused of using his office to leverage campaign donations and benefits for himself and his family. In a surprise move Tuesday, a day before his scheduled trial, the roofing business owner pleaded guilty to two counts of mail fraud as part of a kickback scheme to illegally obtain $8.5 million in work at O'Hare International Airport.

Federal authorities investigating alleged union corruption have been examining a labor coalition's backing of Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas' 2008 campaign and whether his supporters illegally used city property and a nonprofit group in his earlier runs for office, people familiar with the matter say. In addition, investigators have questioned people about whether Ridley-Thomas played any improper role in the hiring of a longtime...

In documents filed this week in Alaska's long-running political corruption investigation, the government's lead witness said he had given thousands of dollars in gifts to "United States Representative A" -- who could only be Republican Rep. Don Young. Bill Allen, a former oil services company executive, said he paid $10,000 to $15,000 a year from 1993 to 2006 out of VECO Corp.'s funds for the representative's annual fundraiser in Alaska. The lawmaker, who has not been charged with any wrongdoing, did not list any such payments on financial disclosure forms.