As Congress prepares to debate expansion of drilling in taxpayer-owned coastal waters, the Interior Department agency that collects oil and gas royalties has been caught up in a wide-ranging ethics scandal — including allegations of financial self-dealing, accepting gifts from energy companies, cocaine use and sexual misconduct.
In three reports delivered to Congress on Wednesday, the department’s inspector general, Earl E. Devaney, found wrongdoing by a dozen current and former employees of the Minerals Management Service, which collects about $10 billion in royalties annually and is one of the government’s largest sources of revenue other than taxes.
“A culture of ethical failure” besets the agency, Mr. Devaney wrote in a cover memo.
The reports portray a dysfunctional organization that has been riddled with conflicts of interest, unprofessional behavior and a free-for-all atmosphere for much of the Bush administration’s watch.
TVNL Comment: We, along with all the other truth organizations, have been saying this and reporting the evidence for almost 8 years!
Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) on Sunday said that those who push to not “engage” with popular...
A long paved road, flanked by desert sand, leads to the big white tents usually housing...
Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) on Sunday slammed President Trump’s message to Iran earlier in...
