Military Hero Falls

In 2006, Congressmember Randy "Duke" Cunningham was sentenced to 8 years in prison and ordered to pay $1.8 million in restitution for his role in a "pay to play" scandal.

In his tearful resignation, Cunningham noted:

“In my life,“I have known great joy and great sorrow. And now I know great shame. I learned in Viet Nam that the true measure of a man is how he responds to adversity. I cannot undo what I have done. But I can atone. I am now almost 65 years old and, as I enter the twilight of my life, I intend to use the remaining time that God grants me to make amends. The first step in that journey is to admit fault and apologize. The next step is to face the consequences of my actions like a man. Today, I have taken the first step and, with God's grace, I will soon take the second.”

The Pulitzer Prize-winning author who uncovered the scandal wrote a book about Cunningham's rise and fall: The Wrong Stuff: The Extraordinary Saga of Randy "Duke" Cunningham which is available at Amazon.  Proceeds from the referral fee to Amazon support the Institute's Don Benninghoven Fellowship Program designed to encourage graduate students to enter public service.