Tricky Mirek's final days

"Follow the money," Deep Throat famously said to Woodward and Bernstein. That's exactly what the CR's own little Woodsteinová, Sabina Slonková, and her colleagues at HN did. The money trail led from KDU Chair Miroslav Kalousek to Richard Háva of Omnipol arms dealer and Aleš Hušák of Sazka lottery monopoly. Háva was the previous owner of a Kč 6.5m apartment the Kalouseks ended up owning, and Hušák got a huge break on his "public-interest" sports arena thanks largely to Kalousek. The implications of Kalousek's dealings are greater than those that brought down Stanislav Gross, but Kalousek has managed to I'm-no-crook his way out of trouble so far. As the 2006 elections approach, more revelations are sure to follow. Remember, there were two years between the Washington Post's first Watergate story and Aug. 9, 1974, when Nixon was finally forced out of office. [Czech Republic Bob Carl KDU-ČSL Richard M. Dick ČSSD chairman premier Hospodářské noviny]