TEN QUESTIONS FOR SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV) RELATED TO HIS $1 MILLION LAND DEAL
QUESTION ONE: Why Did You Fail To Disclose Your Land Deal, Thus Violating Ethics Rules In The Process?:
"Reid Did Not Disclose To Congress An Earlier Sale In Which He Transferred His Land To A Company Created By A Friend And Took A Financial Stake In That Company ..." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
"Senate Ethics Rules Require Lawmakers To Disclose On Their Annual Ethics Report All Transactions Involving Investment Properties Regardless Of Profit Or Loss And To Report Any Ownership Stake In Companies." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
"Kent Cooper, Who Oversaw Government Disclosure Reports For Federal Candidates For Two Decades In The Federal Election Commission, Said Reid's Failure To Report The 2001 Sale And His Ties To Brown's Company Violated Senate Rules." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
QUESTION TWO: Did You Hide Your Partnership With Jay Brown Because He Was At The Center Of A "Major Political Bribery Trial"?:
"[Reid's] Deal Was Engineered By Jay Brown, A Longtime Friend And Former Casino Lawyer Whose Name Surfaced In A Major Political Bribery Trial This Summer And In Other Prior Organized Crime Investigations." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
"In 2001, Reid Sold The Land For The Same Price To A Limited Liability Corporation Created By Brown. The Senator Didn't Disclose The Sale On His Annual Public Ethics Report Or Tell Congress He Had Any Stake In Brown's Company." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
QUESTION THREE: Did You Lobby Your Then-Protégé - And Now Convicted Felon - For Help With The Clark County Commission?:
Former House Candidate Dario Herrera (D-NV), Hand Picked To Run By Harry Reid, Was Sentenced To 50-Months In Jail For Accepting Bribes While Chairing The Clark County Commission From 1998-2002. (Adrienne Packer, "Judge Hammers Herrera," Las Vegas Review-Journal, 8/22/06; Jane Ann Morrison, "Reid Says He's Abandoning Candidate Recruitment In Wake Of 2002 Fiasco," Las Vegas Review-Journal, 12/15/03)
In 2002, When Sen. Reid Was "Pressed About All [Of Herrera's] Ethics Problems," He Said: "[Herrera Is] An Honest Man" And "Reaffirmed That Herrera Had His Vote Of Confidence." (National Journal's House Race Hotline, 3/12/02)
Reid Spokesman Nathan Naylor: "Dario [Herrera] is an outstanding candidate, and he has the full support of Senator Reid." (John Mercurio, "[Herrera's] Rocky Month," Roll Call, 4/1/02)
Judge Larry Hicks: "I have never before witnessed a witness spin so carefully the evidence ... This is a collection of convictions that is shocking and extremely disturbing ... this man was Chairman of the Clark County Commission when all these felony offenses occurred." (Adrienne Packer, "Judge Hammers Herrera," Las Vegas Review-Journal, 8/22/06)
QUESTION FOUR: Did A Former Aide Express Concern To You That You Should Report The Land Deal?:
"[The Associated Press] First Learned Of The Transaction From A Former Reid Aide Who Expressed Concern The Deal Hadn't Been Properly Reported." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
QUESTION FIVE: Why Did You Not Disclose "Gifts" Of Extra Income Relating To The Land Deal?:
"Ethics Experts Said Such Informality Raises Questions About Whether Any Of Brown's Tax Payments Amounted To A Benefit For Reid. 'It Might Be A Gift,' Cooper Said." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
"[Stanley Brand, Former Democratic Chief Counsel Of The House ] Said The IRS Might View The Handling Of The Land Taxes As Undisclosed Income To Reid ..." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
QUESTION SIX: Why Did Government Officials Feel "Pressured" By Your Discussions On Behalf Of Del Webb Corp.?:
"Around The Time Of The 1998 Sale, [Fred] Lessman And His Company Were Completing A Complicated Federal Land Transfer That Also Involved An Arizona-Based Developer Named Del Webb Corp." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
"For Years, Reid Also Had Been Encouraging Interior To Make Land Swaps On Behalf Of Del Webb, Where One Of His Former Aides Worked. In 1994, Reid Wrote A Letter ... On Behalf Of Del Webb, And Then Met Personally With A Top Federal Land Official In Nevada. That Official Claimed In Media Reports He Felt Pressured By The Senator." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
"The Next Year, Reid Collected $18,000 In Political Donations From Del Webb's Political Action Committee And Employees." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
QUESTION SEVEN: What Was Your Involvement When A Consultant Used Your Name In Pressuring The Clark County Commission To Rezone The Land Included In This Deal?:
"Clark County Intended For The Property Reid Owned To Be Used Solely For New Housing, Records Show. Just Days Before Reid Sold The Parcels To Brown's Company, Brown Sought Permission In May 2001 To Rezone The Properties So A Shopping Center Could Be Built." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
"Career Zoning Officials Objected, Saying The Request Was 'Inconsistent' With Clark County's Master Development Plan. The Town Board In Spring Valley, Where Reid's Property Was Located, Also Voted 4-1 To Reject The Rezoning." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
"Before The Approval In September 2001, Brown's Consultant Told Commissioners That Reid Was Involved. 'Mr. Brown's Partner Is Harry Reid, So I Think We Have People In This Community Who You Can Trust To Go Forward And Put A Quality Project Before You,' The Consultant Testified." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
QUESTION EIGHT: Why Did You Not Disclose Your Ownership Stake In Patrick Lane LLC?:
"Reid And His Wife, Landra, Personally Signed The Deeds Selling Their Full Interest In The Property To Brown's Company, Patrick Lane LLC, For The Same $400,000 They Paid In 1998 ..." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
"Despite The Sale, Reid Continued To Report On His Public Ethics Reports That He Personally Owned The Land Until It Was Sold Again In 2004. His Disclosure Forms To Congress Do Not Mention An Interest In Patrick Lane Or The Company's Role In The 2004 Sale." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
"Reid Isn't Listed Anywhere On Patrick Lane's Corporate Filings With Nevada, Even Though The Land He Sold Accounted For Three-Quarters Of The Company's Assets." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
QUESTION NINE: Did You Fail To Pay Property Taxes On This Land Deal?:
"[Reid And Brown] Continued To Pay The Property Taxes From Their Personal Checking Accounts Even After The Land Was Sold To Patrick Lane In 2001 ..." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
"[U]ltimately, Reid Paid About 74 Percent Of The Property Taxes ... One Year, The Property Tax Payments Were Delinquent And Resulted In A Small Penalty ..." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
QUESTION TEN: Why Did You Hang Up The Phone On A Reporter Who Wanted To Discuss This Land Deal?:
"Reid Hung Up The Phone When Questioned About The Deal During An AP Interview ..." (John Solomon and Kathleen Hennessey, "Reid Got $1 Million For Land He Hadn't Owned For 3 Years," The Associated Press, 10/11/06)
Click Here To Listen To Sen. Reid Hang Up On A Reporter.
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