The Daily Muck

The girlfriend of fugitive Samuel Israel III was arrested Thursday, for aiding and abetting his flight. Israel, recently sentenced to 20 years in prison for swindling his hedge fund clients out of almost $400 million, faked his suicide days before he was supposed to enter prison. His girlfriend told authorities that she had helped Israel pack a recreational vehicle, attach a motor scooter and then drove with him to a rest area, where the R.V. was left for later use. (New York Times)

Two former Bear Stearns senior executives were arrested on Thursday for securities fraud relating to the subprime mortgage fallout. The former hedge fund managers were among 60 people arrested this week in a sweep the Justice Department is calling “Operation Malicious Mortgage.” Over 400 people have been arrested since March on charges of mortgage fraud. (New York Times)

Former Deputy Undersecretary for Defense, Douglas Feith was a no-show on Wednesday to testify to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution. He was set to testify about the use of harsh interrogation techniques on detainees. Feith’s lawyer, in a letter, claimed that his client did not want to testify because because of the presence of another witness at the hearing, Lawrence Wilkerson. Wilkerson, former chief of staff for Secretary of State Colin Powell, allegedly made “reckless, bigoted and defamatory remarks” about Feith. (Washington Post)

Republican leaders are continuing to pursue their opposition to the housing bill now on the Senate floor, citing claims that it would potentially send billions of dollars to Countrywide. Countrywide has been accused of giving VIP loans with lower rates to members of the Senate, namely Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Kent Conrad (D-ND). (Politico.com, The Crypt)

Building off questions about lawmakers loans and mortgages in the wake of said Countrywide scandal, Politico is compiling a comprehensive list of Senate mortgage loans. (Politico.com)

Medical providers are skirting taxes on Medicare payments, a congressional investigation found yesterday. Over $2 billion is owed in back taxes, the Government Accountability Office announced yesterday, on $402 billion in payments made to physicians and other providers through Medicare. (Washington Post)