A prominent Democratic California state senator and gun-control advocate was indicted by a San Francisco grand jury on charges of corruption and conspiracy to traffic in firearms, according to court documents released on Friday.
The indictment adds to the troubles facing state Senator Leland Yee, who was arrested last week and criminally charged along with two dozen others in the same case. He has since been suspended with pay.
Yee, 65, is the third California state senator to face criminal charges this year in separate cases that have cost Democrats a cherished two-thirds legislative majority in an election year and prompted them to cancel a major fundraiser planned for this weekend.
In a 31-page indictment that sharpens but does not materially change the allegations against Yee, he is charged with six counts of corruption and one count of conspiracy to traffic in firearms. His lawyer said he plans to plead not guilty.
Among the allegations contained in the indictment is that the one-time San Francisco mayoral candidate accepted cash from an undercover FBI agent seeking to purchase illegal weapons.
If Leland Yee is guilty, I hope they throw the book at him.
Despite being royal hypocrites for the most part, Republicans have been able to maintain the moral high ground because they have little problem getting their campaigns financed or having jobs waiting for them should they need to retire. Democrats have to grovel for money at every turn, with little money coming from the private sector. That’s become more and more of a problem as the gap between rich and poor as reached such proportions. And now with SPOTUS being a “conservative” aka Republican majority, campaign finance laws have been trashed and our legislators are vulnerable to foreign and domestic influences that have no stake in basic American principles. With money so hard to come by, Democrats are not always fortunate to have families, like the Burkes or Kennedys, with personal wealth to step up to public service. Even so, personal or familial wealth does not guarantee as sterling candidate, as their are no educational or experience standards required, and the public seldom insists on such standards, especially on the Democratic side. In Memphis, monetary corruption got so bad in the Democratic party, that being sent to jail became a badge of honor and almost guaranteed re-election when the term was served. #TheTennesseeWaltz #movetoamend.org