Mitchell Wade, the defense contractor who pleaded guilty to bribing former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, will pay the second largest fine in Federal Election Commission history for his role in a scheme to funnel $78,000 in illegal contributions to federal political candidates. The FEC today announced a $1 million settlement with Wade and his company, MZM Inc., now called True Norte, Inc.

Wade used corporate funds to reimburse MZM employees for their contributions to Reps. Virgil Goode, a Virginia Republican, and Katherine Harris, formerly a Florida Republican. Wade pleaded guilty to a number of counts including election fraud in February, and an employee, Richard Berglund, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for making unlawful contributions in July. Berglund will pay a $42,000 penalty.

The FEC cleared Goode's and Harris's campaigns of wrongdoing, and both committees either returned the contributions or gave the money away.

Wade was the defense contractor who bought a house from Cunningham in Del Mar, California, for about $700,000 more than it was worth. After the purchase, and after other bribes including free rent and payments to a Pentagon official, MZM received more than $150 million in Defense Department contracts, thanks largely to Cunningham's position on the House Appropriations Committee. Cunningham is currently serving a 100-month prison term for his role in the public corruption scandal.