Steve Burns
WASHINGTON – (WMAL) His work is not over.
Virginia State Senator Chap Petersen (D-Fairfax) has been at the forefront of what he called a “culture change” of ethics regulations in Richmond since former Governor Bob McDonnell was indicted in 2014. But it hasn’t gone far enough for him.
“(The ruling) doesn’t change what I’ve been trying to do, which is to have a more transparent system,” Petersen told WMAL. “Of course we have new laws, and we’ve restricted any gift over $100. All of that has gone into effect since the time of the indictment.”
Petersen said it’s a sea change since 2001, when he started in Richmond, where free meals, gifts and trips were “not just normal, it was accepted.” There are now more restrictions and forms to fill out, he said.
Even though McDonnell’s conviction was vacated and he served no jail time, Petersen doesn’t think it encourages others to follow his path.
“Who would want to go through the situation that Bob McDonnell went through? None of us,” he said. “I don’t think anyone thinks ‘Gosh, Bob McDonnell got off easy.’ His life was ruined. He’s probably spent a million dollars on legal fees. It’s probably cost him his marriage.”
Petersen said his work to reform Virginia’s ethics laws will continue in the next legislative session.
“What we have now is a very unwieldy system, where basically any gift you receive over $50 you have to report, which is fine,” Petersen said. “But there’s so many definitions it’s literally mind-numbing, and sometimes it gives people an opportunity to avoid detection.”
In a perfect world, Petersen said, no politician would accept any gifts outside of family and personal business.
“I’m not trying to say you should have ‘gotchas’ where people end up picking up a free cupcake and then get indicted. There has to be some type of minimum standard,” he said. “In your capacity as an elected official, you should not be treated any differently than any member of the general public. You should not be taking free gifts, free meals, free anything. Just none of it.”
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