Randy “Duke” Cunningham, whose feats as a U.S. Navy flying ace during the Vietnam War catapulted him to a U.S House of Representatives career that ended in disgrace when he was convicted of accepting $2.4 million in bribes, has died. He was 83.
Cunningham died Wednesday at a hospital in a Little Rock, Arkansas, according to former Rep. Duncan L. Hunter, who spent time with him a week before his passing.
He “represented the very best of American heroes who go out to meet our enemies at the gates,” said Hunter, whose served alongside Cunningham in Congress.
Cunningham was one of the most highly decorated pilots in the Vietnam War, becoming the first Navy fighter ace in the war for shooting down five enemy aircraft. He received a Navy Cross, two Silver Stars, 15 Air Medals and a Purple Heart for his actions during the war.
“With complete disregard for his own personal safety he continued his attack through a hail of cannon fire to rescue his wingman,” read the citation for his second Silver Star.
Largest bribery scandal at the time
He went on to serve eight terms in Congress before pleading guilty in 2005 to receiving illegal gifts from defense contractors in exchange for government contracts and other favors, in what was considered at the time to be the largest bribery scandal in congressional history.
The Republican congressman from San Diego admitted to accepting a luxury house, a yacht, a Rolls-Royce, lavish meals and $40,000 in Persian rugs and antique furniture from companies in exchange for steering lucrative contracts their way. He was sentenced to eight years and four months in prison in March 2006.
His corruption case was one of several that led to the creation of the Office of Congressional Ethics in 2008.
“In my life, I have known great joy and great sorrow. And now I know great shame,” Cunningham said in his resignation statement. “I cannot undo what I have done. But I can atone.”
He took a less contrite tone as time went on, telling news organizations and others that he regretted his guilty plea and complaining that the Internal Revenue Service was draining his savings.
“A lot of these things that they say are bribes I can absolutely black-and-white prove 100% that they were reimbursement for things that I had already paid,” Cunningham said in a phone interview with KGTV while he was in prison.
In December 2012, Cunningham was released from a federal prison in Arizona to serve the remainder of his sentence in a federal halfway house in New Orleans. It was the longest prison sentence for a member of Congress for taking bribes until Louisiana Democrat William Jefferson got 13 years in 2009.
His sentence also required he pay $1.8 million for back taxes and forfeit an additional $1.85 million for bribes he received, plus proceeds from the sale of a home in the highly exclusive San Diego suburb of Rancho Santa Fe. He was ordered to pay $1,500 a month in prison and $1,000 monthly after his release.
A strong conservative voice
Cunningham was born in Los Angeles on Dec. 8, 1941, but grew up in Shelbina, Missouri, where his parents owned a five-and-dime store, according to court documents. He graduated from the University of Missouri and a few years later enlisted in the Navy in 1967.
He retired as a Navy commander in 1987 and gained national recognition as a media commentator on military topics. When he ran for office in 1990, he replaced Democratic Rep. Jim Bate in a left-leaning district who had been driven from office by charges of sexual harassment.
Cunningham took an interest in military affairs while in Congress and supported socially conservative positions. He drew attention for his outbursts — during a floor debate in 1995, he attacked his adversaries as “the same ones that would put homos in the military.”
“He brought military operational expertise to the debates in Congress,” said Hunter, recalling a debate he watched Cunningham have with a colleague over the fate of a fighter jet. “He was a strong conservative, strongly opinionated, and brought a real spark of light to the U.S. Congress.”
The disgraced former congressman received one of the pardons issued by President Donald Trump in 2021 at the end of his first term.
He has largely stayed out of the public eye since his release from prison, enjoying retirement in the countryside and serving as the president of the American Fighter Aces Association, according to Hunter.
He is survived by his wife, Sharon Cunningham, his adult son and two daughters, and other family members. His family could not be immediately reached for comment.
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Associated Press writer Elliot Spagat contributed from San Diego.
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