You know that whole "culture of corruption" thing has got to be getting pretty old. First you've got the Mollohan thing (D-W.Va.) and now you've got Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.).

Federal authorities ratcheted up their case against Rep. William Jefferson, D-New Orleans, on Wednesday, when a Kentucky businessman admitted in court to paying more than $400,000 in bribes to a bogus company controlled by the congressman's wife and family in exchange for official favors.

Vernon L. Jackson's guilty plea is the second since January in the case, an investigation into what prosecutors describe as Jefferson's four-year scheme to promote a small technology company in the United States and in Africa for secret monthly payments and a share of the company's stock and profits.

Jefferson has not been charged and said Wednesday that he was "surprised and disappointed" by Jackson's plea. He again denied taking improper payments for performing his public duties and said in a statement that "this simple fact will be established in the proper forum, as I am innocent."

Jefferson may be innocent, but Mollohan's and Jefferson's situations sure make Pelosi's "culture of corruption" refrain look a little silly.