that was a function that malek has great experience with. he was involved with firing so many people. >> but that created an opportunity for you to write a story because people were complaining about his past. what is the moral of the story? >> the moral of the story is that if you make a serious mistake in washington, it will follow you around for a long time. >> will you continue pursuing these pac stories? >> sure. we will follow the money right up to the election this year. this is an important election. they always are. who is spending? who is getting? those are big questions. >> jeff smith, of the "the washington post." thank you for joining us. >> for a dvd copy of this program call 1-877-662-7726. for free transcripts or to give us your comments about this program, visit us at q&a.org. episodes are also available as podcasts. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] >> we bring you a intellect like to public affairs, history, and nonfiction books. this is created

what's he appointed malek to -- >> he appointed malek to work on a commission that was meant to examine ways to fix the budget in virginia. that was a function that malek is great experience with. -- has great experience with. he was known as the hatchet man. he was involved with firing so many people. >> but that created an opportunity for you to write a story because people were complaining about his past. what is the moral of the story? what's the moral of the story is -- >> the moral of the story is that if you make a serious mistake in washington, it will follow you around for a long time. >> will you continue pursuing these pac stories? >> sure. we will follow the money right up to the election this year. this is an important election. they always are. who is spending? who is getting? those are big questions. >> jeff smith, of the "the washington post." thank you for joining us. >> you are welcome. james grimaldi was a great contributor to that work we did. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] >> for a dvd