My family originally hails from Louisiana, so growing up I was regaled with tales of Huey P. Long, who has now been immortalized in the novel and movie All the King’s Men. Imagine my surprise when The Daily Beast unveiled their most corrupt states in the nation. Louisiana wasn’t the worst.

Nope, a state that I’m a little more familiar with won the top dishonors. Tennessee now has the dubious award of no. 1 in the country for corruption.  This was followed by my current state of residence, Virginia. Louisiana was no. 19.

Should I be surprised? After all, the Ford family calls Memphis home. If you haven’t ever followed the politics of Harold Ford, Jr.’s extended family, you’re missing drama. They would make a fascinating cable television series on HBO or FX. Actually a television show focusing on the interworkings of Shelby County would make great TV.

Then we had Operation Tennessee Waltz, which brought down a few more state legislators, including a member of the Ford family, for getting caught in a FBI bribery sting.

Consider how Fred Thompson got his start in Hollywood. He did a screen test to play himself in the movie version of Marie, the story that brought down Governor Roy Blanton and corrupt state officials at the Tennessee Parole Board.

According to The Daily Beast, which examined public corruption, embezzlement, forgery and counterfeiting, fraud, racketeering and extortion over the past 10 years, Tennessee ranks at the top:

Public Corruption: 18
Racketeering & Extortion: 11
Fraud Rank: 7
Forgery & Counterfeiting: 5
Embezzlement: 9

Recent Scandal: Here’s a foolproof recipe for corruption: a former policeman commingling with gang members. Milburn Williams, a retired police captain from Newport, ringleaders Raymond Hawk and Grant Williams, and 20 others were indicted on racketeering, drug trafficking and a slew of other charges last year in Greeneville. The sting operation was headed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and centered around a chop shop called “H-1 Auto”, later renamed “A Automotive.” For six years the chop shop was the command post for an operation that allegedly moved stolen property and goods across state lines and sold cocaine and marijuana. The most serious of the charges carry up to $2 million in fines and 40 years in prison.

Normally, I’m proud of the state where I grew up. Not so much today.