Frank Murkowski's dirty deal and Ben Stevens as Allen's Vice-president

Excerpt Three:

"Last Bridge To Nowhere" is an inside look at the shenanigans of the "Corrupt Bastard Club" of Alaska.

Former FBI "Confidential Source" J. Frank Prewitt's book is based on hundreds of hours of undercover meetings with perps and other persons of interest to the FBI, conversations with agents and attorneys in the U.S. Department of Justice, secret recordings, transcripts and public records.

 Political corruption cases can be very confusing. After the Confidential Source signing ceremony we all shook hands and agreed to work together to stomp out crime and crush the bad guys. I was assigned to Special Agent Kepner and my code name was Patient. She never said whether the name was due to my status or long-suffering nature, but there was no confusion over the anatomy under her control, when she said to turn my head and cough, I did.

Introduction into the Society of Confidential Sources equips one with a wide array of gifts and talents that I mostly can't talk about, you know, for your own security. But I was just learning how to operate my phone device when I got a call from my old friend Bill Weimar telling me that our old friend, former Senator Jerry Ward, who was running for reelection, was being bribed by Jim Clark, the governor's chief of staff, to drop out of the 2004 primary election.

I dropped the phone, scrambled to untangle the wires to my little silver box, stuck the combined receiver/transmitter in my ear and said, "Bill, sorry, I dropped the phone, what'd you say?" Bill said Ward received an offer from Clark, through Allen, to drop out of the state senate race. I said, "Bill Allen?"

Weimar replied, "Yeah, VECO Bill Allen told Ward that he would hire him for seventy thousand dollars between now and the end of the year and after that the governor would hire Ward and his wife into a couple of big-bucks state jobs until the end of his administration." I heard a muffled cough and Weimar continued, "He said Clark also agreed to settle Ward's wife's ten-year-old EEO claim against the State for one hundred thousand dollars, can you believe it!?"

"Yesss!" I thought, "I can believe it." I had told Kepner a week earlier she needed to keep the case covert as long as she could because there were fish out there that made Bill Weimar look like a minnow, and VECO Bill Allen was one of them. I wrapped up the call with Weimar and dialed Kepner's cell. 

From pages 72-73 of "Last Bridge to Nowhere"

 Kott winked at Allen as he passed, went out the first-floor side door and stood under an awning until Allen and Smith caught up. A splash of adrenaline, two shots of rain and a twist of euphoria carried them down the hill to the Baranof. In Suite 604 Smith poured rounds. Kott lifted his and said, "Man, I got you pointin' and passin' notes on one side and I'm lyin' in their ears on the other. we just usin' 'em and abusin' 'em. But I had to get 'er done. I had to come back and face this man right here [pointing to Allen]. I had to cheat, steal, beg, borrow, and lie to kill that sucker. Exxon's happy, BP's happy and I'll sell my soul to the devil!"

Lifting a glass to Kott, Allen laughed, leaned over, and whispered, "I own yer ass!"

The next two days were a round robin of floor debates on the pros and cons of variations on the PPT, brief at eases, huddles, note passing, cell-phone dialogue, votes on amendments, recesses to the call of the chair, closed-door caucus meetings, and calls to order. During a brief at ease on the last day of the session Weyhrauch nodded to Allen, left the floor and huddled in a corner away from reporters, staffers, and other inquiring eyes. Weyhrauch said, "Bill, I'm afraid we don't have the votes for the 20/20. I'll follow Kott's lead, but I'm afraid a twenty one percent tax is the political reality."

Allen studied Weyhrauch's face, nodded, and said, "Well then, we'll just have to kill it and call in reinforcements during the special session. The governor's gonna keep you guys here another thirty days to ratify his contract anyway, so just run the clock and we'll kick their asses later."

Allen slipped down the hall to the senate president's office and asked if Ben was available. A couple of lobbyists were leaving and Ben waved Allen in with, "Hey Bill, how's it going in the House?"

Allen said, "I don't think we got a snowball's chance of passin' the 20/20, and I don't trust 'em just to run the clock. My instincts tell me they're gonna pass somethin' we can't live with. Anything you can do?"

The senate president thought for a moment and replied, "Sure, it's my way or the highway. If they won't accept the senate's deal there won't be one, cause we're not gonna compromise!" Bill smiled at Ben and said, "How's senior vice president sound?"  

Excerpt's

• First excerpt - Don Young meets the FBI

• Second excerpt - Frank Murkowski, Lesil McGuire, and federal prisoner Tommy Anderson

The book will be available in local Alaska stores September 15. The book's website is at lastbridgetonowhere.com

Frank Prewitt served as an Assistant Attorney General, Deputy Commissioner and Commissioner under Alaska Governors Bill Sheffield, Steve Cowper, and Walter Hickel.

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