Senator Ted Stevens' Record of Service Tarnished

• Feds probe whether Ted Stevens used his position to enrich self, family and friends
• Ted's son Ben also under investigation
• Ted's problematic connections
• How Ted got rich

Sen. Ted Stevens is being investigated by the FBI and IRS.

Did Ted Stevens abuse his public office by enriching himself and his family members?

Federal investigators are probing whether Ted directly took bribes, illegal gratuities or unreported gifts from VECO Corp. One example being examined is the Stevens' Girdwood home remodel that doubled the size of his home and was overseen by VECO's Bill Allen. Allen has already confessed to bribery.

Ted's son Ben Stevens and other associates also are being investigated by the FBI. Under scrutiny are massive fees paid to Ben by recipients of federal grants earmarked for Ted's special interests.

The unfolding corruption investigation became public in August 2006 when the FBI searched Legislative offices in Juneau, Anchorage and elsewhere, including the offices of Ben Stevens, then President of the Alaska State Senate.

Ted's Problematic Connections

The specific potential charges against Ted and Ben have not been released, and neither one has been charged as of this writing (early September, 2007). However, the charging documents and legal pleas of others, as well as investigative news reports, have exposed Ted's beneficial relationships with recipients of earmarked federal funds and revealed others who benefited from his official actions.

How Ted Got Rich

Ted Stevens became a rich man after entering the Senate. How did he do it? Some of the ways that Ted and his family got rich are outlined in an investigative piece by the Los Angeles Times published in 2003. According to the Times, in 1997, after becoming chair of the Senate's appropriations committee, Ted got serious about making money and soon passed into millionaire status.

The Los Angeles Times reported that Ted became a millionaire "thanks to investments with businessmen who received government contracts or other benefits with his help." Stevens took advantage of loopholes and used his political position to amass a large amount of his personal wealth, the paper said.

Stevens' financial fortune improved as he entered into a series of real-estate and other investments with Alaska business associates, the Seattle Times reported.

Biographical Information

Name: Theodore Fulton "Ted" Stevens
Age: 83
Born: Nov. 18, 1923
Appointed to U.S. Senate: 1968
Net worth: between $1.1 million and $2.6 million
Current U.S. Senate annual salary: $165,200
Ted's Salary as Senate president pro tempore from 2003-2006: $183,500
U.S. Senate health benefits: same health plan as federal employees. Ted also has access to Congress' Attending Physician's Office, which provides top of the line health care for a small annual fee.

U.S. Senate retirement benefits: depend on length of service, salary, and plan chosen. Ted's pension would be about $125,000 a year if he retired at the end of his current term, the AP reported.