Overview

Alan MacGregor Cranston was a U.S. Senator from California who served from 1969 to 1993 and became one of the most prominent figures in the savings and loan scandal as a member of the "Keating Five." Cranston received $1.3 million in campaign contributions from Charles Keating Jr.; the head of Lincoln Savings and Loan Association; and then pressured federal banking regulators to go easy on Lincoln's risky investments and accounting practices. When the Federal Home Loan Bank Board attempted to investigate Lincoln; Cranston and four other senators intervened on Keating's behalf; meeting with regulators to discourage enforcement action. Lincoln Savings ultimately collapsed in 1989 at a cost of $3.4 billion to taxpayers; the most expensive S&L failure in history. The Senate Ethics Committee found that Cranston's conduct was the most egregious of the five senators; issuing a formal reprimand for "improper and repugnant" behavior and finding substantial evidence of a quid pro quo between his interventions and Keating's donations. Cranston's defense was that he had done nothing different from what other politicians routinely did for major donors; a claim that highlighted the systemic corruption of money in politics. Before the scandal; Cranston had an otherwise distinguished career and had been Senate Majority Whip. He did not seek re-election in 1992; partly due to the Keating scandal and partly due to prostate cancer. Keating himself was later convicted of fraud.

Key Affiliations

Controversies & Concerns

Related Investigations (1)

Known Associates & Connections

Sources & Documentation

1 documented sources from official records, investigations, and reports