Author Topic: Clinton Big Money Donor Wanted for Grand Theft (and other Democrat Misdeeds)  (Read 151060 times)

Dos Equis

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It's a story that shouldn't have even been brought up during the election in the first place.

Nothing legit about it.

He made it a story by lying about it.  If he tells the truth, we're probably not talking about it today. 

Dos Equis

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If he tells the truth, he doesn't get elected... You can't have it both ways Beach.

That's exactly the way it should be.  Tell the truth and let the people decide.

Are you saying people running for public office, a position of public trust, should lie to get elected? 

Dos Equis

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I'm saying their sex lives shouldn't be questioned in regards to them being elected to office.

Why the hell is it always some Republican's first thing to talk about who someone else is fucking?

What happens when they are asked questions?  Should they lie? 

Dos Equis

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No... they should say it's none of your business... but then you Neo cons wouldn't like that answer.

So they are FORCED to lie because it's NONE of your damn business.

Did you get upset when Bush lied all of those times?

But he didn't.  So now what?  Condone it? 

What does a "neo con" have to do with this issue? 

lol . . . No one is forced to lie.  That's ridiculous. 

shootfighter1

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Both sides have loads of misconduct, its just more democrats in the last few months.  Thats why we need to monitor the people elected to represent us.  Transparency is good.

Dos Equis

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Both sides have loads of misconduct, its just more democrats in the last few months.  Thats why we need to monitor the people elected to represent us.  Transparency is good.

Both sides do share about equal blame when it comes to misconduct, but Democrats have been disproportionately engaged in bad behavior at pretty high levels for a couple years now (governors, mayors, senators, etc.). 

Dos Equis

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What's ridiculous is asking a person about their sex life for a public office... THAT is ridiculous.

I'd lie too... because it's none of your damn business... I'd tell you I was busy fucking a purple elephant at the time.

Neo Cons always want to ask someone about who they're fucking.

I see you have your own definition of "neo con."  lol . . .

It's too bad we settle for liars in public office.  People running for positions of public trust should be persons of integrity.  The bar is set much higher for them.  Lying is unacceptable.  Although there are certainly people willing to settle for dishonest people in public office.  Shame.

It's really not hard to tell the truth.  If someone believes a matter is private, then he or she should simply say so, rather than pulling a John Edwards.   

Dos Equis

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Bump for the lying liar Senator Roland Burris. 

Burris spokesman resigns
Posted: 11:05 AM ET

(CNN) — A spokesman for embattled Illinois Sen. Roland Burris resigned Thursday in the wake of new disclosures about requests that Burris raise money for disgraced former Gov. Rod Blagojevich while seeking a U.S. Senate appointment.

"I initially began helping the Senator on a temporary basis because he is a long term friend who I served several years when he was (Illinois) Attorney General," Jason Erkes said in a written statement to CNN.

"It is now time for me to get back to focusing on … my newly formed strategic communications business."

The statement did not comment on his feelings about the new disclosures.

A defiant Sen. Burris insisted Wednesday that he was innocent of any wrongdoing in his appointment to President Barack Obama's former Senate seat, even as calls for his resignation intensified.

The Senate Ethics Committee has launched an investigation of Burris in the wake of disclosures that he spoke with the brother of Rod Blagojevich about possibly raising money for the former governor.

The Sangamon County, Illinois, state's attorney is also considering whether to file perjury charges against Burris.

"I've done nothing wrong, and I have absolutely nothing to hide," Burris said in a speech to the City Club of Chicago. "You know the real Roland … Stop the rush to judgment."

Burris told reporters earlier in the week that he informed Blagojevich's brother Robert in November that no one was willing to give to the governor and that it would be inappropriate to raise money because he was interested in being appointed to the Senate.

During his testimony under oath in Blagojevich's impeachment trial, however, Burris failed to mention any such conversations when asked about contacts with the governor's office. He later acknowledged that his testimony might be incomplete and filed an affidavit correcting it.

Burris said Wednesday that while he did not hide his desire to be appointed to the Senate, he never had a conversation about a possible Senate appointment with anyone close to Blagojevich other than the former governor's attorney.

He also insisted that nobody from Blagojevich's office contacted him to discuss a potential appointment.

"The governor's brother reached out to (me) to do fundraising," Burris conceded. "But I did not give one single dollar to the governor."

Illinois' senior senator, Dick Durbin, a member of the Senate Democratic leadership, told reporters during a congressional trip to Europe that "the Ethics Committee of the Senate is undertaking an investigation."

"Every day there are more and more revelations about contacts with Blagojevich advisors, efforts at fundraising and omissions from his list of lobbying clients," Durbin later said in a written release. "This was not the full disclosure under oath that we asked for.

"These news reports and the public statements by Roland Burris himself are troubling and raise serious questions which need to be looked at very carefully."

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/02/19/burris-spokesman-resigns/

Dos Equis

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And the hypocrite ex-Gov Spitzer:

Judge Rules to Release Spitzer Wiretaps
A U.S. district judge said tapes of the former New York governor making calls to a prostitution ring can be made public.

AP

Thursday, February 19, 2009

NEW YORK -- A Manhattan judge has ordered the government to make public sealed documents about wiretaps in the Eliot Spitzer scandal.

U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff ordered prosecutors Thursday to release documents detailing calls on cell phones used by a prostitution ring whose clients included the former governor. The documents were not immediately released; prosecutors will have a chance to appeal.

The New York Times sued late last year to get the material unsealed. The newspaper has agreed to allow the government to withhold the names of 67 customers named in the documents.

Spitzer resigned last year after details were revealed of a tryst with one of the ring's prostitutes in a Washington hotel. Investigators had been looking into the governor's affairs after noticing unusual activity -- later shown to be payments to prostitutes -- in his bank accounts.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/02/19/judge-rules-release-spitzer-wiretaps/

Dos Equis

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Court upholds most charges against former Alabama governor

(CNN) -- A federal appeals court on Friday upheld most of the charges against former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman, and it upheld all of the charges against former HealthSouth executive Richard Scrushy.

Siegelman, a Democrat, served as governor of Alabama for one term, from 1999-2003. A jury in 2006 convicted him of bribery, conspiracy to commit mail fraud, mail fraud and obstruction of justice. But he was acquitted of other charges, including racketeering and extortion.

Critics of Siegelman's prosecution allege he was the target of a politically motivated smear campaign by President Bush's longtime strategist Karl Rove. Rove has denied the charge through his lawyer, who called it "false and foolish."

Prosecutors alleged Siegelman's mail fraud convictions arose from a "pay-for-play" scheme in which he exchanged official acts and influence for cash, property and services from a businessman and consultant. He also was accused of taking part in a scheme under which his co-defendant, Scrushy, allegedly paid Siegelman $500,000 in laundered money to obtain a seat on the state regulatory board governing HealthSouth.

Scrushy was sentenced to six years and 10 months in prison.

Siegelman served nine months of a seven-year sentence before being released in March 2008.

His release was ordered by a federal appeals court that said he was not a flight risk and he had shown his appeal would raise "substantial questions of law or fact."

In a 68-page ruling, the three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, Georgia, affirmed all the convictions except for two counts, then ordered that Siegelman's case be sent back so that he could be resentenced on the remaining counts.

Siegelman's lawyer, David McDonald, said he would move for the entire circuit to hear the case.

"We've been fortunate to knock counts out each time," he told CNN in a telephone interview. Siegelman originally faced 29 counts that included some 70 charges and now faces just five, he said, adding, "We feel we're at the middle, not at the end. ... We're down to this one so-called bribe and an obstruction of justice count."

Acting U.S. Attorney Louis Franklin did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/03/06/alabama.governor.charges/index.html

Dos Equis

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Blagojevich indicted on 16 federal felony charges
     
CHICAGO, Illinois (CNN) -- Impeached former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who was arrested in December on charges of conspiracy and

The 19-count indictment charges Blagojevich and some of his closest aides and advisers with a wide-ranging "scheme to deprive the people of Illinois of honest government," according to a statement by the attorney's office.

Blagojevich, 52, faces charges including racketeering, conspiracy, wire fraud and making false statements to investigators, according to the release. Three counts in the indictment are against the aides and advisers.

In a written statement, Blagojevich maintained his innocence -- as he has done throughout a political soap opera that captivated the nation.

"I'm saddened and hurt but I am not surprised by the indictment," he said. "I am innocent. I now will fight in the courts to clear my name."

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, said he hoped the former governor wouldn't use the announcement as a reason to hit the media circuit again.

"We can only hope the former governor will not view this indictment as a green light for another publicity tour," he said. "Rod Blagojevich deserves his day in court, but the people of Illinois deserve a break."

Blagojevich and his chief of staff, John Harris, were arrested in December on federal corruption charges alleging that, among other things, they conspired to sell President Obama's vacant U.S. Senate seat.

Harris and Blagojevich's brother, Robert Blagojevich, were among the others indicted on Thursday.

In early January, federal Judge James Holderman gave the attorney's office three additional months to decide whether to indict Blagojevich, who was impeached by the state legislature and resigned from office. That deadline ends Tuesday.

On Thursday, current Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn called the charges a reminder for political leaders in the state to help stamp out corruption, and he pledged to "work night and day to clean up our government."

"Today, more than ever, I'm committed to making sure our government has fundamental reform from top to bottom," said Quinn, also a Democrat and the former lieutenant governor who was appointed governor in January. "We need to overhaul Illinois government to make sure everything is done right for the people."

The charges are part of what investigators have dubbed "Operation Board Games," an ongoing investigation into political corruption in the state.

Among the specific claims in the 75-page indictment are that Blagojevich schemed with others in 2002 -- even before he took office -- to use his position to make money, which they would split after he left office.

Blagojevich is accused of denying state business to companies that would not hire his wife, extorting campaign contributions from a children's hospital that was set to get state money and pressuring a racetrack executive to give political contributions before the governor signed a gambling bill.

The indictment said that after Obama was elected president, Blagojevich began meeting with others to figure out a way he could make money off his duty to appoint a replacement senator.

It said Blagojevich asked others, including state employees, to contact people who may be interested in the seat, and that he believed an associate of someone referred to in the indictment as "Senate Candidate A" had offered $1.5 million in campaign contributions in exchange for the appointment.

He had asked his brother to meet with an associate of "Senate Candidate A" and say that some of those contributions needed to come through before he made the appointment, but the meeting was canceled after a newspaper article reported that Blagojevich had been recorded talking about selling the seat.

A lengthy FBI affidavit alleges that Blagojevich was intercepted on court-authorized wiretaps trying to profit from the Senate vacancy.

The indictment said that Blagojevich communicated "directly and with the assistance of others" with people he believed were in contact with Obama, trying to gain political favor by possibly appointing someone the president-elect supported.

He ultimately appointed a former state comptroller and attorney general, Roland Burris, who was seated in the Senate despite protests from the chamber's Democratic leaders. Those leaders said a special election should be called because of the controversy over the appointment.

Thursday's charges supersede the ones filed in December.

The Illinois House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly in January to impeach Blagojevich, accusing him of abusing his gubernatorial power.

Blagojevich faces up to 20 years in prison for each of the 15 most serious charges in the indictment, and five years on a single indictment of making false statements.

The government also charges that Blagojevich has bought property with money he got illegally, and is going after homes he owns in Chicago and Washington.

"I would ask the good people of Illinois to wait for the trial and afford me the presumption of innocence that they would give to all their friends and neighbors," Blagojevich, who was vacationing with his family, said in the statement.

In addition to the Blagojevich brothers and Harris, also charged in the indictments were businessman and fundraiser Christopher Kelly, 50; lobbyist and longtime Blagojevich associate Alonzo Monk, 50; and William F. Cellini Sr., 74, another businessman who raised money for Blagojevich.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/04/02/illinois.blagojevich/index.html

tonymctones

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i hope he squeals like a stuck pig

Dos Equis

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Trying to reenter public life.   ::)

Spitzer: 'no excuses' for prostitution scandal
Posted: 12:52 PM ET

From CNN's Lauren Kornreich

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer said Monday said his involvement with a prostitution ring caused "excruciating pain" to his family, but that he is trying to balance it with an "obligation" to speak out about issues plaguing the economy.

Spitzer told NBC's Today Show he has been asked repeatedly for his expertise on issues that are "shaking the very foundations of our economy," but that he only agreed to return to the public eye after consulting his wife and daughters.

"I have flaws," Spitzer said. "I've tried to think about it deeply, address it. As I say, there are no excuses. I've tried to address these gremlins and confront them. What I did was an egregious violation of trust to my family, colleagues, to the state. I paid a price and appropriately so."

In the interview, Spitzer was asked to estimate how often and for how long he was involved with prostitutes.

"Not frequently, not long in the grand context of my life," Spitzer said. "It was an egregious violation of behavior that I fell into for many reasons, but none of them an excuse or justifiable."

Spitzer resigned from office last March after it was revealed that he had patronized a prostitution ring. He has not been charged with any crime connected to those allegations.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/

Dos Equis

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Is the man who would be president the daddy?  He should get counsel from Jesse Jackson about this.   

Paternity Questions Swirl as Elizabeth Edwards Speaks Out
Fresh questions are surfacing over whether John Edwards is the father of the child born to his ex-mistress last year as she reportedly debates whether to submit the baby to a paternity test. 

FOXNews.com

Thursday, May 07, 2009

John Edwards' ex-mistress reportedly is interested in seeking a paternity test for her 1-year-old daughter after Edwards' wife, Elizabeth, sparked fresh questions over whether the father might be her husband.

The former North Carolina senator and presidential candidate denied being the father of Frances Quinn Hunter during a TV interview in August. But Elizabeth Edwards, in an interview on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" that aired Thursday afternoon, didn't sound so sure.

"I've seen a picture of the baby," she said. "I have no idea. It doesn't look like my children, but I don't have any idea."

On Wednesday, one day after Oprah's production company released excerpts of the interview, The National Enquirer reported that Rielle Hunter, John Edwards' former mistress, is working with a lawyer to seek a paternity test from him.

That's a reversal from last August, when Hunter's attorney Robert Gordon released a statement saying she "will not participate in DNA testing or any other invasion of her or her daughter's privacy now or in the future."

Edwards said at the time that he would "welcome" a paternity test, and that because of the "timing" of his affair "it's not possible that this child could be mine." But he indicated that his apparent willingness to take the test would lead nowhere unless Hunter consented.

"I'm only one side. I can run only one side of the test, but I'm happy to participate in one," Edwards said at the time.

It's unclear whether Edwards would be as willing to submit to a test if Hunter is on board with the idea.

His wife said in the interview Thursday that, "I suppose it would be easy" to determine the paternity but she did not press for a test.

"Whatever the facts are doesn't change my life in a sense," she said, adding that if the child is her husband's, "then that would be a part of John's life, but it's not part of mine."

When it was initially reported that Edwards was the love child's father, a former aide to the ex-senator, Andrew Young, claimed paternity.

Gordon, reached by FOXNews.com Thursday, said he did not know whether Hunter was seeking a paternity test and that he no longer represents her.

"I haven't been involved in that in a long time," Gordon said. "I can't speak to anything. I don't know anything."

Pigeon O'Brien, a former close friend of Hunter's who publicly questioned Edwards' account of the affair last year, said in an e-mail to FOXNews.com that she didn't know whether Hunter is seeking a paternity test. But she added: "It all has to do with [Elizabeth Edwards'] book and the resulting chaos."

In her book, "Resilience," due out next week, Elizabeth Edwards calls Hunter's life "pathetic" and writes that she threw up when she learned of her husband's affair.

A source reportedly told the Enquirer that Hunter decided to abandon the "cover-up" over the paternity of her daughter after learning about the contents of Elizabeth Edwards' book, in which she reportedly refers to the baby only as "it" and does not name Hunter.

While Andrew Young, a former Edwards campaign aide, claimed to be the father of Frances Hunter, another former campaign worker told FOXNews.com last summer that he and Hunter had "no relationship." The birth certificate for Frances Quinn Hunter does not list a father.

The question of paternity isn't the only matter still dogging Edwards in the wake of the affair and his subsequent confession. Federal investigators are also looking into how he's managed his campaign funds -- finance questions arose last year after his political action committee  paid more than $100,000 to Hunter's company for the production of short videos.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/05/07/paternity-questions-swirl-elizabeth-edwards-speaks/

Dos Equis

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Report: Hillary Clinton Big Money Donor Wanted for Grand Theft
Wednesday, August 29, 2007

U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton
A Democratic fundraiser who has raised $1 million for presidential candidate Hillary Clinton says he has done nothing wrong and has asked no favors in return, but Norman Hsu didn't mention that he's a wanted man.

A California prosecutor says Hsu pleaded no contest to grand theft, was sentenced to three years in prison and then disappeared, The Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday.

. . .

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,295031,00.html


Took a while. 

May 19, 2009
Former top Democratic fund-raiser convicted of campaign fraud
Posted: 12:58 PM ET

NEW YORK (CNN) – A former Democratic fund-raiser who contributed to the presidential campaigns of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama has been convicted in federal court on four counts of campaign fraud — one for each year from 2004 to 2007.

Norman Hsu, 57, was indicted in 2007 after an investigation into his two investment companies. He was accused of running a massive fraud scheme.

Earlier this month, Hsu was found guilty on 10 counts of mail and wire fraud surrounding his investment practices. In convicting Hsu of campaign fraud, the same court court found that he was involved in illegal "conduit" campaign contributions from 2005 to 2007 that exceeded $25,000 — a finding that will be used to determine the length of Hsu's sentencing, which is scheduled for August 19.

Lev Dassin, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said that Hsu not only swindled investors out of at least $20 million but, according to the indictment, also told some investors to make campaign contributions to the candidates he supported, and suggested that their investments could be jeopardized if they didn't do as he asked.

He "also asked victims to contribute to specific candidates for federal office, and then directly reimbursed the victims for their contributions from his fraud proceeds, in violation of federal campaign finance laws," the indictment said.

When Hsu's activities came to light, the campaigns of Obama and Clinton — as well as others — either returned his donations or gave them to charity.

Hsu could receive a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each count of mail and wire fraud, and a maximum of five years for each federal campaign finance violation. In addition to the prison time, Hsu also faces potential fines for his fraud and campaign finance crimes.

Hsu will likely also have to forfeit various bottles of wine and champagne from his New York City apartment, along with a saxophone autographed by former President Bill Clinton.

In September of 2007, Hsu was en route from California to Denver, Colorado, when he became ill on an Amtrak train and was taken to a hospital.

Later that day, FBI agents arrested him on charges of unlawful flight to avoid prosecution and he has been in jail since.

Those charges stemmed from an 18-year-old grand theft conviction in California. Hsu had posted a $2 million bond after he turned himself in to authorities in California on that conviction. But a bench warrant was issued for his arrest after he failed to show up for a bail reduction hearing the next week.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/05/19/former-top-democratic-fund-raiser-convicted-of-campaign-fraud/#more-52306

Dos Equis

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I smell trouble. 

Burris insists secret recordings show no corruption
Posted: 12:28 PM ET
 
CHICAGO, Illinois (CNN) – Embattled Illinois Sen. Roland Burris insisted Wednesday that recordings of secretly taped conversations between himself and former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich's brother show no evidence of corruption in his U.S. Senate appointment.

Burris also reiterated his assertion that he did not commit perjury in previous testimony regarding his involvement in an alleged "pay-for-play" scheme to fill the Senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama.

Burris's denials came one day after a federal judge approved sending to the U.S. Senate Ethics Committee recordings of the conversations, which took place before Burris was appointed.

The recordings, which show Burris offering to cut a check to then-Gov. Blagojevich's campaign, were requested by the Ethics Committee as part of an investigation into Burris' appointment and seating.

"I was truthful when I testified that at no time did I take any part in pay-to-play while lobbying for the Senate seat," Burris told a group of reporters in Chicago.

"Did I want to be appointed to the Senate seat? Yes I did. … Did I try to buy the seat? Never."

Burris added that while he wanted to keep a previous commitment "to make a personal contribution" to Blagojevich, he ultimately did not "because of the perception of impropriety that might arise."

Burris said he expects "the media and the public to review every word of the transcript (of the recordings) in context. At the end of the day, I expect both to judge me fairly … It is my belief the transcripts help set the record straight and should settle this issue once and for all."

During a November 18 conversation, Burris tells Robert Blagojevich, "I know I could give him a check" — then adds that he may make the contribution under the name of his attorney, Timothy Wright, "cause Tim's not looking for an appointment."

Burris then promises that he'll write the check by December 15.

Throughout the talk, Burris presses Blagojevich to tell him how he can help with the campaign without looking like he bought the appointment.

"I'm trying to figure out how to deal with this and still be in the consideration for the appointment," he says.

"I hear ya. No, I year ya," Robert Blagojevich responds.

"And, and if I do that, I guarantee you that, that will get out and people said, 'Oh, Burris is doing a fundraiser' and, and then Rod and I both gonna catch hell. … And if I do get appointed, that means I bought it."

Wright told the Chicago Sun-Times on Tuesday that the check would have been for $1,500, and denied that Burris' promise to write the check was part of any "pay-to-play" scheme.

"Fifteen-hundred dollars? Come on," Wright told the paper. "Burris had been a fund-raiser in years past. This had nothing to do with pay-to-play."

Burris, whom the Democratic governor appointed days before he was impeached by the Illinois legislature in January, never mentioned the conversations while testifying before the legislature during the impeachment trial.

Burris said Wednesday he didn't tell the legislature about the conversations because he wasn't asked.

According to Burris staffers and an affidavit obtained by CNN in February, Robert Blagojevich solicited Burris for up to $10,000 in campaign cash before Burris was named to his Senate seat. However, in the affidavit, Burris said he refused to contribute to Blagojevich or to assist in fund-raising for him.

Rod Blagojevich, who was removed from office earlier this year, has pleaded not guilty to federal corruption charges. A federal grand jury indicted him in April on 16 felony counts, including racketeering, conspiracy, wire fraud and making false statements to investigators.

Blagojevich denies all charges.

The indictment also charges some of Blagojevich's closest aides and advisers, including his brother, Robert, in a wide-ranging "scheme to deprive the people of Illinois of honest government," according to a statement released by the U.S. Attorney's office.

Robert Blagojevich also pleaded not guilty to the charges.

According to the indictment, the governor schemed with others in 2002 — even before he took office — to use his position to make money, which they were to share after he left office.

Among other allegations, Blagojevich is accused of working with others to figure out how he could make money by appointing Obama's replacement.

The indictment says he believed an associate of someone referred to in the indictment as "Senate Candidate A" had offered $1.5 million in campaign contributions in exchange for the appointment.

Blagojevich had asked his brother to meet with an associate of "Senate Candidate A" and say that some of those contributions needed to come through before he made the appointment — but the meeting was canceled after a newspaper article reported that Blagojevich had been recorded talking about selling the seat.

A lengthy FBI affidavit alleges that Blagojevich was intercepted on court-authorized wiretaps trying to profit from the Senate vacancy.

The indictment said that Blagojevich communicated "directly and with the assistance of others" with people he believed were in contact with Obama — trying to gain political favor by possibly appointing someone the president-elect supported.

He ultimately appointed Burris, the Democratic former state comptroller and attorney general, who was seated in the Senate despite protests from the chamber's Democratic leaders. Those leaders said a special election should be called because of the controversy over the appointment.

If convicted, Blagojevich would face up to 20 years in prison for each of the 15 most serious charges in the indictment, and five years on a single charge of making false statements.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/05/27/burris-insists-secret-recordings-show-no-corruption/#more-53592

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Detroit politician admits bribery

By Edmund DeMarche
CNN
     
(CNN) -- Monica Conyers, Detroit's embattled City Council president pro tempore, pleaded guilty Friday to conspiring to commit bribery, a federal court representative in Michigan told CNN.

Conyers, 44, admitted accepting bribes in exchange for her vote to sway the City Council to approve Synagro Technologies Inc.'s $1.2 billion contract in 2007.

It's unclear when Conyers, the wife of U.S. Rep. John Conyers, began her relationship with Synagro, but court papers say she received money from Synagro until December 2007.

Conyers voted in favor of the wastewater treatment contract on November 20, 2007, the same day she received an envelope filled with cash from Detroit businessman Rayford Jackson, court papers say.

Jackson pleaded guilty to providing Conyers with the money. He had been a paid consultant of Synagro.

On December 4, 2007, Conyers received another envelope of cash from Jackson in a McDonald's parking lot, said Terrence Berg, the U.S. attorney from the eastern district of Michigan.

"She was the swing vote in this deal," Berg said. "She used her power to get the deal done, and she acknowledged that."

The mood was somber at Conyers' office on Friday, an official there told CNN.

A few office workers cried. They found out about the developments through news reports, said Denise Tolliver, Conyers' deputy chief of staff.

"We've been going through this for a while," Tolliver said. "Reporters would ask us questions about anonymous sources, and we just didn't believe them."

Office workers were preparing for an afternoon meeting with City Council President Kenneth V. Cockrel Jr. later Friday.

According to state law, Conyers will have to forfeit her seat, Tolliver said.

Cockrel said there's language in the law that makes it unclear whether she needs to forfeit her seat immediately or after sentencing

"It hurts the City Council's image, for sure," Cockrel said. "But we need to remember, this is only one member of the council. You can't paint the entire council with the same brush."

For a seven-month period in 2008, Cockrel replaced former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick after Kilpatrick pleaded guilty to two counts of obstructing justice. During that time Cockrel terminated the city's contract with Synagro because of rumors circulating about bribes, he said.

Conyers faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison, according to prosecutors.

Synagro would not comment on Conyers' plea, but a spokeswoman said, "We have cooperated fully with the federal investigation and will continue to do so."

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/06/26/monica.conyers.bribery/index.html

Dos Equis

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So not only was the man who would be president dumb enough to have an affair, in the middle of his campaign, with a terminally ill wife, but he made a tape of himself and his mistress getting his cheat on??   ::)

Report: Ex-Aid Claims John Edwards Made Sex Tape With Mistress
Andrew Young found the purported sex tape while he and his family were unpacking at their California home, the Daily News reported. 

FOXNews.com

Sunday, June 28, 2009

John Edwards and his former mistress Rielle Hunter once made a sex tape, the New York Daily News reported Sunday.

The tape was discovered by former Edwards' aide Andrew Young, claims a Daily News source who saw Young's book proposal.

Young and St. Martin's Press just signed a tell-all book deal in which he also claims the former presidential candidate is the father of Hunter's infant daughter, according to the Daily News.

Edwards has denied he is the father.

Young reportedly found the purported sex tape while he and his family were unpacking at their California home, the Daily News reported.

Click here to read more on this story from the Daily News.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/06/28/report-ex-aid-claims-john-edwards-sex-tape-mistress/?test=latestnews


240 is Back

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LOL... i heard somethign today that made sense... these guys spend their youth working constantly.  they're ambitious, which allows them to rise to the top, but they miss out on a lot of fun on their way up.

Suddenly they're 50 years old and realize they'd better get a rush or two now when they're young enough to do it.  heck, I think most of us filmed our sex as a youth, right?  Fun to do.  imagine being 50 years olf and never having done that? 

I saw republican gov sanford was emailing that chick last july - when he was one of the top choices for VP.  the man is up for the biggest co-job on the planet, and can't help himself but to email a married chick. 

It is what it is.  they're human and they didn't get their rocks off in their 20s.  Suddenly they're 50 and it's now or never.  Which is fine - just dn't do it while preaching faily values.  Sanford and Ensign and Edwards preached on what good family guys they were, and the importance of marriage. 

Dos Equis

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That's absurd.  It assumes that being in a committed relationship with a good wife isn't "fun."  There are plenty of men who don't fantasize about cheating on their spouse and making a tape of the misdeed.  Whoever made those comments is grossly misinformed.   

These public officials, regardless of party, need to keep their pants up and obey and the law, or get the heck out of public office.  Everyone who holds public office is and should be held to a higher standard. 

Dos Equis

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Ex-Ala. Gov. Don Siegelman Asks for New Trial

Tuesday, June 30, 2009 11:25 AM

MONTGOMERY, Ala. -- Former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman is asking for a new trial following his convictions on bribery and other government corruption charges a few years ago.

Siegelman claims in court documents filed late Monday that the government's key witness at his 2006 trial was heavily coached by prosecutors and FBI agents. Siegelman cites statements that his former aide, Nick Bailey, made after the trial. Siegelman claims Bailey said prosecutors and agents had him write out some of his testimony.

Siegelman and former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy were convicted of bribery and other charges at the trial. Scrushy asked for a new trial Friday.

Siegelman is out on bail as he appeals. Scrushy is in federal prison.
 
http://www.newsmax.com/politics/us_siegelman_trial/2009/06/30/230445.html

Dos Equis

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Is this his ninth life already?   :)

Former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry Arrested
Police say former Washington Mayor Marion Barry has been arrested and charged with stalking a woman.

AP

Sunday, July 05, 2009

WASHINGTON - Police say former Washington Mayor Marion Barry has been arrested and charged with stalking a woman.

The United States Park Police said Barry, a current D.C. Council member, was arrested Saturday in Washington after a woman flagged down an officer and complained that Barry was stalking her.

Barry was charged with misdemeanor stalking and released.

A message left seeking comment from a spokeswoman for Barry wasn't immediately returned early Sunday.

Barry served four terms as mayor. In his third, he was videotaped in 1990 in a hotel room smoking crack cocaine in an FBI sting. He served six months in prison and in 1994 regained the mayor's office.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/elections/2009/07/05/report-dc-mayor-marion-barry-arrested/?test=latestnews

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It assumes that being in a committed relationship with a good wife isn't "fun."  There are plenty of men who don't fantasize about cheating on their spouse and making a tape of the misdeed.

I LOL'd at this.

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Top Blagojevich Aide Pleads Guilty to Fraud

By MONICA DAVEY
Published: July 8, 2009

CHICAGO — A former chief of staff to Rod R. Blagojevich, the ousted former governor of Illinois, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to wire fraud, describing in a court document how Mr. Blagojevich had pondered ways he might make money from his official role last year picking a replacement for Barack Obama in the United States Senate.

John Harris, the former chief of staff, is the first of Mr. Blagojevich’s allies to accept a plea deal to testify against Mr. Blagojevich in the federal corruption case against him.

In the plea agreement, which provided new details of what prosecutors say were Mr. Blagojevich’s efforts to benefit from the Senate appointment, Mr. Harris indicated that even a month before Mr. Obama was elected president in November, Mr. Blagojevich had begun searching for ways to make money or to gain a cabinet-level job, ambassadorship or private foundation job through his duty as governor to appoint a new senator — if Mr. Obama were in fact to leave the seat.

Mr. Blagojevich, who was arrested along with Mr. Harris on Dec. 9 on corruption charges, has pleaded not guilty and denied all wrongdoing.

In the plea agreement, Mr. Harris said that he had ignored and never carried out some of the governor’s more extreme requests, including one that Mr. Harris “reach out” to a member of Congress (unnamed in the document) to suggest that a nonprofit group be created to benefit Mr. Blagojevich in exchange for picking a particular Senate candidate.

The agreement outlined a complicated series of alternatives to appoint different candidates for the Senate job and gain different returns in exchange: Mr. Blagojevich wished to be given the leftover campaign money from one unnamed Senate hopeful, or a $1.5 million donation from another.

At one point, Mr. Blagojevich considered a private foundation job as a return, though an aide suggested the salary might be $200,000 to $300,000. Mr. Blagojevich’s response, according to the plea agreement, was disappointment: “Oh is that all?”

Mr. Harris will be sentenced later, and prosecutors have agreed to recommend he serve for no more than 35 months.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/09/us/09harris.html?ref=us

Dos Equis

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Both mayors are Democrats. 

New Jersey Mayors, Rabbis Allegedly Trafficked Knock-Off Gucci Bags With Laundered Money
Thursday, July 23, 2009 

Some of the more than four dozen politicians and rabbis caught Thursday in a sweeping corruption sting trafficked items like fake Gucci bags as well as laundering thousands in cash, federal authorities said.

The mayors of two New Jersey cities, some rabbis and a current and former state legislator were among 44 arrested in the widespread investigation into the alleged scheme.

Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano III, Secaucus Mayor Dennis Elwell, Jersey City Deputy Mayor Leona Beldini, former Jersey City Council President L. Harvey Smith and state Assemblyman Daniel Van Pelt were among those taken into custody, .

"It's a very sad day for the citizens of New Jersey," Fred Tecce, a former federal prosecutor not involved in the case, told FOX News.

Search and arrest warrants were issued in 54 separate locations, the FBI said.

Ridgefield Mayor Anthony Suarez, who is also an attorney, is charged with agreeing to accept an illegal $10,000 cash payment for his legal defense fund.

Gov. Jon Corzine reacted to the corruption probe Thursday morning by saying, "any corruption is unacceptable — anywhere, anytime, by anybody. The scale of corruption we're seeing as this unfolds is simply outrageous and cannot be tolerated."

In separate money laundering complaints, several rabbis from Brooklyn and New Jersey were charged with offenses ranging from the trafficking of kidneys from Israeli donors to laundering proceeds from selling fake Gucci and Prada bags.

Van Pelt is accused of accepting $10,000 from a cooperating government witness posing as a developer who sought help in getting permits for a project in Ocean County.

Smith, the Jersey City Council President, and several other current and former Jersey City public officials also are accused of accepting money to help the fake developer gain permits and approvals.

Beldini, 74, is charged with conspiracy to commit extortion by taking $20,000 in illegal campaign contributions. Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy said Thursday the charges were "a little shocking."

"I have full faith in Leona," Healy said. "She's a good friend of mine — was and will be."

Cammarano, 32, who won a runoff election last month, is charged with accepting $25,000 in cash bribes from an undercover cooperating witness. Elwell is charged with taking $10,000.

Joseph Hayden, an attorney representing Cammarano, said his client "is innocent of these charges. He intends to fight them with all his strength until he proves his innocence."

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the investigation initially focused, with the help of the cooperating witness, on the money laundering network that operated between Brooklyn, Deal, N.J. and Israel. The network is alleged to have laundered tens of millions of dollars through charities controlled by rabbis in New York and New Jersey.

Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said he has heard of the story but knows nothing of kidneys being sold by Israelis.

The investigation widened to include official corruption in July 2007 when the cooperating witness approached public officials in Hudson County posing as a developer seeking to build in the Jersey City area.

Hoboken's waterfront has proven to be an especially lucrative piece of real estate across from midtown Manhattan. Developers have put up dozens of buildings in the last 15 years in the mile-square city. It had a prime view on July 4 of fireworks over the Hudson River.

The fears that the city was being overdeveloped has become a hot topic during elections among candidates.

In secretly recorded conversations outlined in the complaint against Cammarano, the candidate made it clear to prospective campaign donors that he was a friend of developers.

When a cooperating witness posing as a developer who was donating $5,000 to the campaign told Cammarano just days before the mayoral election that he wanted to make sure he had his support with "some properties we're working on," Cammarano is quoted as saying, "I'll be there."

In Deal, Mike Winnick of the Elberon section of Long Branch was praying inside the Deal Synagogue when it was raided by FBI, IRS and Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office agents.

"Everyone was looking at each other, like, `What's going on here?' " he said.

Winnick said four FBI agents escorted a rabbi from the synagogue into his office and blocked the doorway.

Winnick said he left shortly afterward.

Nearby, FBI and IRS agents removed several boxes from the Deal Yeshiva, a school that educates the children of Sephardic Jews.

Busloads carrying those arrested were brought to the FBI's Newark field office Thursday morning. One agent slowly walked an elderly rabbi into the building as another covered his face with a felt hat.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,534522,00.html