Eddie Bernice Johnson Repays Foundation Scholarship Money She Steered To Family, Friends

WASHINGTON — Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, the Texas Democrat who broke scholarship eligibility rules set by a black lawmakers group by awarding about $31,000 to her relatives and an aide's children, said Wednesday she didn't shortchange others to benefit her own family.

Since 2005, Johnson, who represents a Dallas-area district, awarded about a third of scholarships she had available through the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation to two grandsons and two great-nephews and to the son and daughter of her top aide in Dallas. After the Dallas Morning News reported the awards on Sunday, Johnson repaid the foundation.

Foundation rules for its scholarships prohibit nepotism and providing awards to students living or attending schools outside a lawmaker's district. None of the six related to Johnson or her aide lived in her district, the Morning News reported.

In a letter Wednesday to the newspaper that her office released to other news media, Johnson repeated her earlier statement that she had violated the foundation's rules unknowingly. She also said the story was a source of criticism of her.

"This for me has been quite challenging because I believe it was intended to cast me in an unfair light that was intended to distort my image before my constituents and those who know of my personal commitment to public service," the congresswoman wrote. "This article gave the appearance that I overlooked the needs of a segment of my constituency to benefit my family; this was not the case."

After the scholarships from Johnson came to light, the chairman of the foundation, Rep. Donald Payne, D-N.J., said, "There will be no self-dealing or nepotism in the awarding of college scholarships" and ordered an immediate audit of the program.

Amy Goldson, the foundation's attorney, has said there were false certifications in Johnson's scholarship awards and pointed out that, under foundation rules, the lawmaker awarding the scholarships or the lawmaker's designee must certify that the recipients are not related to the lawmaker.

Comments

[hotrod51]

11:52 AM on 09/08/2010

Seems there is more to this story. http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/090810dntexebj.ce52ce69.html

[andrew warner]

02:32 PM on 09/05/2010

Wow does this mean i can walk in my job steal $31000.00 of benefits and just pay them and not go to jail? Why isn't this woman in jail or on the way there? I can not believe that the people of her district are not calling for her to step down from public office. She should be in jail not in the Senate. I calling for the recount of supporters to that office. Can we start a petition to have her removed from office? You can not blame stupidity or old age! If that is the case get her out of there and put in a old age home ASAP! We do not want you MS JOHNSON not now and not ever. You are walking embarrassment to the black community and your district!

[Sloane7]

10:22 PM on 09/02/2010

As a Dem, this is incredibly depressing. Anderson Cooper just interviewed her and there was just nothing she said that didn't make it worse. That was embarrassing.

[libertasdon]

11:02 AM on 09/02/2010

Congratulations HP for sitting on this story for a week. The news is: she took the money and gave it to her family and friends; not -- she gave it back. Her comment that the news was meant to distort her image is a laugh. She did it. She converted the money for personal use. She sat on the foundation that awards the money. She knew the rules. She failed to advertise the scholarship. She stated there weren't any worthy applicants, but how would they know to apply? Everyone of her family, who got money, signed a statement certifying they were not related to the Congresswoman. Way to go corrupting those kids, Eddie.

[LivingDebtFree]

10:29 AM on 09/02/2010

Par for the course in Dallas. Especially for her district. Look up "Love Field No-Bid Concessions" to see more of it. City council, elected reps. They are all rotten from that area. I used to work for a non-profit in that district and dealt directly with a lot of these people. They are interested in nothing but hand outs and consolidating political power.

[rockintheboat]

09:53 AM on 09/02/2010

How about forgive and forget people ? Ye without sin cast the first stone. Give this woman a break. She made a mistake !!!

Geeeesh !

[LivingDebtFree]

10:24 AM on 09/02/2010

Ha, this isn't the first time. Unfortunately, this is the norm in Dallas. We've got nothing but corrupt government officials in south Dallas.

[verypragmatic]

10:20 PM on 09/02/2010

It affected the education - and therefore probably future - of other deserving students. Should they forgive and forget? If she was a white republican you'd probably at the least be calling her a racist and demanding an investigation.

[cdnrod1]

08:53 AM on 09/02/2010

jail baby jail, she can share a cell with rangle

[NickGranite]

08:49 AM on 09/02/2010

Didn't know? Returns the money after she gets caught? The accountability level of some of these people is on par with that of a 15 year old shop-lifter. "I didn't know that was in my purse, officer". Your a friggin Congresswoman, have a shred of integrity and resign your office.

[rightydan]

08:15 AM on 09/02/2010

I don't understand. You steal money from the tax payers. You get caught and admit stealing the money. Then nothing happens becausue you returned the stolen money. If you or I did that we would be in jail. But if your in congress, all it is OK because you paid it back. Something is really wrong with this picture. What is happening to our country.

[BEvans]

08:04 AM on 09/02/2010

Common sense is that you don't give money away to relatives...even promotions done locally tell you that employees of the sponsor are ineligible, but she didn't know...please. Another lying politician. And great she is paying the money back, but the recipients got a free education while someone else didn't get the money to go to school...what about other ramifications for this...she should be kicked off of this committee and they should go back and see who should have received the money and give it to them and she needs to not only pay the money back, but with interest. Another story swept under the rug by the mainstream media because she is a woman, an african american and a Democrat...no matter how you slice it, she is liar and a thief.

[Vince Weiguang Li]

04:46 AM on 09/02/2010

Note, I could be wrong on that, as Maxine Waters did the same thing and somehow got off the hook.

[Vince Weiguang Li]

04:45 AM on 09/02/2010

Embezzlers usually do make restitution. However they still go to jail.

[illus2003]

04:36 AM on 09/02/2010

Have you asked Senators Vitter, Ensign, Kyl, to step down for their unethical breaches and Senator Ensign paid his mistress?

[Michael Shanahan]

02:34 AM on 09/02/2010

She represents a district of freeloaders and grifters. 18 years she has been buying their votes. The democratic party way, just pay it back on the rare occasion you get caught. And she will almost certainly get re-elected.

[DLCA]

03:17 AM on 09/02/2010

I don't know of any district of "freeloaders and grifers" - districts are made of people - maybe you don't like them, but that's your issue.

[LivingDebtFree]

10:26 AM on 09/02/2010

No, he is right. I used to work for a non-profit in that part of town. And people like Eddie do nothing but feed off of them. Nothing is done to help people. It is only to consolidate more political power.

[Nichole Boultas]

02:27 AM on 09/02/2010

One question: what was she thinking?

[DLCA]

03:18 AM on 09/02/2010

go the GOP way maybe? works for Vitter

[Vince Weiguang Li]

04:50 AM on 09/02/2010

If she is your crooked politician she is ok,

But if she did the same thing and isn't on your side she is not OK.

That creates some sort of twisted legal system. Where cronies of the leadership get away with criminal acts due to connections or political patronage. That is not the type of country I want to live in. If we go that way, we will end up like Mexico.