Regarding 'Strange' Fed Charges Against Jackson County Exec LeVota

Governing mag coverage offers a worthwhile description and roundup that's worth a look . . .

Of course we've got more on this topic BUT . . . Here's what we want readers to consider . . . 

Are the latest federal charges at the courthouse representative of a new era in local politics wherein so much surveillance and spying demands squeaky-clean elected officials???

That's not such a bad thing even if it will make office-holders even more useless and far less powerful than their benefactors. 

Check-it . . .   

The charges are a little strange. Politicians regularly maneuver to urge each other to join certain races or sit out other ones, sometimes maneuvering from positions of power, either hard or soft. LeVota was not seeking election to a full term as county executive. But prosecutors allege that he crossed a line into “honest services fraud” by offering a potential candidate a public job in exchange for forgoing a campaign for the county executive’s office. LeVota has “categorically” denied the charges. His trial, originally scheduled for September, was recently delayed until next year.

The day before the indictment was announced, Stacy Lake won the Democratic nomination to be the next county executive.

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .

A County Government Fiasco in Kansas City

A federal indictment in Jackson County, Mo., adds to a pattern of upheaval in the county executive's office.