Cunningham cancels local Fourth of July engagements

By: Wire Reports | Monday, July 4, 2005 8:10 AM PDT ∞

Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, under scrutiny for his dealings with a defense contractor he supported for government jobs, canceled his Fourth of July schedule today.

The Republican from Rancho Santa Fe sold his Del Mar-area home to Mitchell Wade of MZM Inc., and Wade, who never lived in the home, sold the place at a $700,000 loss.

In Washington, D.C., Cunningham has been living on a yacht owned by Mitchell.

A federal grand jury is investigating the home sale.

Cunningham was to have attended a pancake breakfast, among other holiday events. His speech at the Encinitas Fourth of July Community Celebration and Pancake Breakfast was to be his first public appearance in the two weeks since he has become the subject of investigations by the FBI, the U.S. Attorney's Office and a grand jury in connection with his financial dealings with a defense contractor.

"It is clear from all the advanced publicity that any Fourth of July celebration he is scheduled to attend will become a media frenzy," Cunningham aide Mark Olson told the San Diego Union-Tribune last night. The eight-term congressman and his wife, Nancy, did not want "to detract from community events celebrating our country's freedom," Olson said.

Cunningham has denied any wrongdoing.

Cunningham, who sits on a defense subcommittee, fell under suspicion after Copley News Service revealed details of the November 2003 sale of his Del Mar Heights home to Wade.

Wade bought the residence for $1.67 million, then resold it eight months later at a $700,000 loss. Cunningham used the proceeds from the sale to buy a home in Ranch Santa Fe for about $2.5 million.

Cunningham admitted showing "poor judgment" in the transaction. But the 63-year-old decorated Vietnam War fighter pilot, who was elected in 1990, denied doing anything illegal.

Democrats have called for an inquiry into whether the transaction effectively was a way for Wade to illicitly funnel money to Cunningham. They've also questioned how Wade lost money in such a hot real estate market.

The congressman also has come under fire for living for more than a year on Wade's moored 42-foot cabin cruiser docked on the Potomoc River -- it's called Duke-Stir -- while staying in the capital.

Cunningham has said he has paid $13,000 in dock fees and maintenance while living on the boat at the Capital Yacht Club.

MZM has been a major contributor to Cunningham's campaigns, donating $13,000 in the 2003-04 election cycle. Wade was a Pentagon program manager before starting MZM in 1993.

MZM announced this week that Wade was replaced by James C. King, a retired Army lieutenant general and intelligence expert, and that two other executives voluntarily resigned.

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