Thomas Donlan devotes his latest editorial commentary in Barron’s to the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that favored a former Republican Virginia governor.
Considering that they are all political appointees, the eight justices of the U.S. Supreme Court don’t seem to understand an important thing about American politics: It’s never what you know; it’s always who you know and what they can do for you. The other possibility is worse—that they understand all too well.
The court, so often divided on partisan lines, was unanimous in a decision that there’s nothing intrinsically wrong with officials accepting gifts from people looking for favors, unless the favor is a specific and formal governmental act.
According to Chief Justice John Roberts, “Setting up a meeting, talking to another official, or organizing an event does not, standing alone, qualify as an ‘official act,’ ” and the other seven justices signed on to that opinion.
They overturned the extortion conviction of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, a Republican who left office in 2014. During his term, he and his wife received $177,000 worth of gifts, including a Rolex watch and partial payment for their daughter’s wedding reception, from a Richmond businessman who was trying to promote a dietary supplement. The governor arranged meetings with state officials and state university researchers and touted the product to them. He also allowed the businessman to use the governor’s mansion for a promotional lunch.
Roberts was impressed enough to call McDonnell’s behavior tawdry and distasteful, but he provided a legalistic excuse: “Because a typical meeting, call, or event is not of the same stripe as a lawsuit before a court, a determination before an agency, or a hearing before a committee, it does not count as a ‘question’ or ‘matter’ ” under federal law.
The businessman, Jonnie Williams, who testified under a grant of immunity from prosecution, made it clear that he knew he was trying to buy official acts. The jury decided that he had succeeded, but the Supreme Court held that he failed.