When the Spitzer prostitution story broke yesterday, I was wondering what led the feds to investigate the Emperor’s Club and its, um, services. This question was further raised by the news in the today’s WaPo that Spitzer had been the target of a federal wiretap.

ABC News has the answer, and it ends up Spitzer brought all of this on himself (It Wasn’t the Sex; Suspicious $$ Transfers Led to Spitzer):

The federal investigation of a New York prostitution ring was triggered by Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s suspicious money transfers, initially leading agents to believe Spitzer was hiding bribes, according to federal officials.

It was only months later that the IRS and the FBI determined that Spitzer wasn’t hiding bribes but payments to a company called QAT, what prosecutors say is a prostitution operation operating under the name of the Emperor’s Club.

[...]

The suspicious financial activity was initially reported by a bank to the IRS which, under direction from the Justice Department, brought in the FBI’s Public Corruption Squad.

“We had no interest at all in the prostitution ring until the thing with Spitzer led us to learn about it,” said one Justice Department official.

So, the February 13th encounter at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC wasn’t a one time dalliance.¹ Of course, it does beg the question as to where Spitzer was getting the multiple thousands of dollars needed for each appointment–and it would appear that there were several.

I can’t imagine that he can keep his job, and therefore concur with the following assessment (also via WaPo):

“This is not even a nail in the coffin — this is a spike,” said Douglas Muzzio, a political science professor at Baruch College. “It would be difficult for him to govern. His moral authority is nonexistent.”

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1. As if to add insult to injury, for the POV of Spitzer’s wife anyway, it appear that Spitzer’s “visit” from Kristen ended on the few minutes of Valentine’s Day. [↩]

2 Responses to “Suspicious Financial Transactions Led to Prostitution Discovery”

1. MSS Says:
   March 11th, 2008 at 11:14 am

   So, he is horny and a sinner, but he’s not corrupt.

   If President Bush can keep his job through far worse scandals that have shredded the constitution and killed tens of thousands of innocents, I see no reason why Spitzer, who has been an excellent public servant, should be driven from office over this.

   Embarrassing? Yes. Immoral? Yes. But grounds for forcing him from office? No.

2. Dr. Steven Taylor Says:
   March 11th, 2008 at 11:19 am

   I think that given that he has built his career on being an anti-crime crusader, that will be unable to weather this storm (unlike, say, David Vitter or Larry Craig, to name two).

   I think that his own self-definition over the years will be his undoing in this case.

   For what it is worth, I see no point in the behavior in question being illegal (even if I find it immoral).