Koreagate

Koreagate was a major congressional corruption scandal of the mid-1970s involving South Korean efforts to influence U.S. policy through systematic bribery of American legislators. The scandal centered on Tongsun Park, a South Korean businessman and rice dealer, who distributed cash payments, expensive gifts, and lavish entertainment to dozens of U.S. House members between 1970 and 1977.

Park operated under direction from South Korea's Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA) as part of a broader campaign to maintain favorable U.S. military and economic support for the authoritarian regime of President Park Chung-hee. The influence operation aimed to prevent reductions in American troop levels in South Korea and to secure continued military aid during the post-Vietnam War period.

The scandal broke publicly in 1976 when *The Washington Post* reported on Park's activities, leading to a House Ethics Committee investigation that ultimately implicated 115 members of Congress in accepting inappropriate gifts or payments. The investigation revealed that Park had distributed approximately $750,000 in cash bribes and provided expensive entertainment at his Georgetown social events.

Three House members were formally reprimanded by Congress: Charles Wilson of California, Edward Roybal of California, and John McFall of California. Representative Richard Hanna of California, who had served as Park's primary congressional contact, was convicted of conspiracy and served 30 months in federal prison. Park himself fled to South Korea but later returned to testify before Congress in exchange for immunity from prosecution.