Feds Planned to Pursue Weldon Case After Mid-terms

[Rose Siding]

A grand jury, impaneled in Washington in May, has obtained evidence gathered over at least four months through wiretaps of Washington area cellphone numbers and has scrutinized whether Weldon received anything of value, according to the sources. They spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the investigation....

Yesterday's raids of six locations in Pennsylvania and Florida were moved up in part because of leaks about the investigation late last week, according to two of the sources. Top federal prosecutors supervising the inquiry concluded early this month that they were progressing significantly on another front in the investigation and did not want to make their work public too soon by conducting searches, especially so close to the Nov. 7 elections.

McClatchy Newspapers reported Saturday that the FBI had recommended that Justice Department officials investigate Rep. Weldon's actions, leading to yesterday's searches....

Prosecutors are usually loath to conduct raids against a public official so close to an election. But some involved in the investigation debated whether holding off could also appear to have been influenced by the election, sources said.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/16/AR2006101600545_pf.html

[Greeby]

1. The FBI being used as a political tool.....

...just long enough to keep the skeletons in the closet until after an election? I'm shocked, I tell ya :sarcasm:

[rodeodance]

2. thanks god for LEAKERS------

[rodeodance]

4. some polls put Weldon behind in the race with Dem Sestak:

Weldon faces a difficult reelection campaign against a retired vice admiral, Democrat Joseph A. Sestak Jr., and has fallen behind in some polls. With 10 terms under his belt, Weldon is a House veteran but has not faced a real challenge in years.

His district gave Democratic presidential candidate John F. Kerry 53 percent of the vote in 2004. Sestak has painted him as out of touch with his district.

[madrchsod]

3. anyone leaking confidential information in an on going investigation

should be prosecuted. what other front were they investigating? would it lead to others that did not know they were being investigated? could the outing have been used to cover more politions before their elections? i wondering who had the most to lose if this wasn`t released. "according to two sources" had to be within the prosecutors office so what else and to who did they give information to?