The 10 Worst Congressmen

4. THE BRIBE TAKER
WILLIAM JEFFERSON (D-LA.)

While his constituents back home were still reeling from the worst natural disaster in U.S. history, Jefferson was lining his own pockets in Washington. In May, the FBI raided his office after the Louisiana Democrat was caught accepting $100,000 in bribes -- most of which was later discovered in Jefferson's freezer. Vernon Jackson, the CEO of iGate, was sentenced to seven years for bribing Jefferson to push the tech company's products on the U.S. Army.

Democrats didn't fully abandon their most self-serving member. The party hosted a fund-raiser for Jefferson in March, long after it was clear he was under investigation. When he was busted, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi did force Jefferson to give up his seat on the Ways and Means Committee -- but then joined House Speaker Dennis Hastert in denouncing the FBI's raid on Jefferson's office as "unconstitutional."

Equally shameful were Jefferson's antics after Katrina struck: He commandeered a Coast Guard helicopter to gather personal effects from his home in New Orleans -- at a time when his constituents were literally drowning in their attics. Yet despite his unethical behavior, Jefferson is cruising to re-election. "In Louisiana, they have a long tradition of corruption -- a Huey Long tradition," says Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

TIM DICKINSON