The greed and influence peddling that seem to be the hallmarks of Virginia Governor Bob "Taliban Bob" McDonnell and Attorney General Ken "Kookinelli" Cuccinelli terms in office to date will be aired further in the coming trial of former executive chef to the Governor's mansion, Todd Schneider. Schneider is accused of taking state property from the Governor's mansion, but increasingly, it looks like his real crime was to pay too much attention to the misdeeds of the McDonald family members and the avalanche of money and gifts entering the Governor's mansion. Talking Points Memo looks at the situation. Here are highlights:
Accused of taking property from the governor’s mansion kitchen, Schneider is facing several charges of embezzlement in Virginia court. At the same time, he has become a key player in the scandal swirling around the McDonnells and Virginia’s Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli.
Revelations about the relationship between the McDonnell family, Cuccinelli, and a prominent political donor and businessman, Jonnie Williams Sr., have been trickling out for weeks. Williams, the CEO of a struggling dietary supplement company called Star Scientific, has given McDonnell tens of thousands of dollars in campaign funds over the years, as well as reportedly tens of thousands of dollars in undisclosed money and other gifts. The undisclosed funds are now at the center of federal and state investigations, according to The Washington Post.
According to a court motion filed at the end of April by his attorney, Schneider began providing state and federal authorities with information about Williams’ relationship to the McDonnells over a year ago. On Feb. 10, 2012, Schneider met with agents from the Virginia State Police and the FBI. A month later, on March 8, 2012, Schneider and his attorney again met with the agents, along with Patrick Dorgan, a senior assistant state attorney general.
Schneider’s lawyer, has argued that the very food and supplies his client is now accused of embezzling from the state was given to Schneider as work-around payment for catering personal and political events McDonnell held at the mansion. Furthermore, Benjamin believes Schneider should be treated as a whistleblower. He has also argued that Cuccinelli’s conflict of interest in the case — Schneider did not know Cuccinelli held Star Scientific stock when he began speaking with investigators — should get the case dismissed. (Cuccinelli recused himself from the case in late April, citing the fact that a former governor’s mansion employee now works for his gubernatorial campaign.)
Earlier this week, a court hearing was held on Benjamin’s motion to dismiss the case. Afterward, Tony Troy, a private attorney representing McDonnell, disputed the idea that Schneider had been forced to cook for non-state or McDonnell family events. According to The Washington Post, Troy said that the executive chef was supposed to be a “at-will, 24-7 employee.”
It will be interesting to watch to see if Schneider manages to cook McDonnell's and Cuccinelli's goose.
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