For years, two corrupt Synagro Technologies salesmen courted Detroit power brokers with cash, Vegas getaways, booze, even a $1,200 strip-club outing as the company sought a $1.2-billion city contract for sludge disposal.
Both men were caught and sent to prison for bribery. No one else at Synagro has been charged.
But documents reviewed by the Free Press indicate that at least four Synagro executives — including the CEO at the time — were aware of thousands of dollars in questionable spending by the salesmen, James Rosendall and Rayford Jackson, with some executives approving payments on several occasions.
Taken together, the records portray top Synagro executives as being so eager to close the Detroit deal that they set aside ethical concerns over payments and perks to then-Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, his father, Bernard Kilpatrick, Councilwoman Monica Conyers and others. ...
Police have raided the home of L'Oréal heiress Liliane Bettencourt's financial adviser as the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, came under increasing pressure over alleged donations to his presidential campaign.
Officers also swooped on the offices of the company Clymène, which handles part of Bettencourt's fortune and where the wife of Eric Woerth, the employment minister, worked.
Bettencourt's former bookkeeper said financial adviser Patrice de Maistre had asked her to withdraw €150,000 (£125,000) from the heiress's bank account to help fund Sarkozy's presidential campaign in 2007.
The bookkeeper, Claire Thibout, claimed De Maistre told her to withdraw the cash which he allegedly indicated was to be given to Woerth, who is also treasurer of the ruling party, Le Mouvement Populaire (UMP).
Police have discovered that €50,000 was withdrawn from Bettencourt's account at the BNP Paribas branch near the Arc de Triomphe. The rest reportedly came from secret bank accounts in Switzerland. De Maistre has denied handing over any cash donation.
The raids came a day after De Maistre confronted Thibout in a meeting set up by police as part of their investigation into alleged illegal donations to Sarkozy's governing party.
French press described the atmosphere at the Elysée Palace as a "state of urgency" and claimed Sarkozy had been completely "thrown off track" by the recent series of damaging allegations. The president's popularity has fallen to an all-time low since the Bettencourt scandal took a political turn. ...
Officers also swooped on the offices of the company Clymène, which handles part of Bettencourt's fortune and where the wife of Eric Woerth, the employment minister, worked.
Bettencourt's former bookkeeper said financial adviser Patrice de Maistre had asked her to withdraw €150,000 (£125,000) from the heiress's bank account to help fund Sarkozy's presidential campaign in 2007.
The bookkeeper, Claire Thibout, claimed De Maistre told her to withdraw the cash which he allegedly indicated was to be given to Woerth, who is also treasurer of the ruling party, Le Mouvement Populaire (UMP).
Police have discovered that €50,000 was withdrawn from Bettencourt's account at the BNP Paribas branch near the Arc de Triomphe. The rest reportedly came from secret bank accounts in Switzerland. De Maistre has denied handing over any cash donation.
The raids came a day after De Maistre confronted Thibout in a meeting set up by police as part of their investigation into alleged illegal donations to Sarkozy's governing party.
French press described the atmosphere at the Elysée Palace as a "state of urgency" and claimed Sarkozy had been completely "thrown off track" by the recent series of damaging allegations. The president's popularity has fallen to an all-time low since the Bettencourt scandal took a political turn. ...
Nicolas Sarkozy urges cabinet to 'keep cool' over L'Oréal payment claims | World news | The Guardian
An embattled Nicolas Sarkozy urged members of his government to "keep cool" today after prosecutors opened an investigation into allegations that his 2007 presidential campaign was funded illegally by L'Oréal heiress Liliane Bettencourt.
Quashing any presidential hopes that reports of an alleged campaign donation of €150,000 (£125,000) would lead nowhere, anti-fraud investigators were ordered to look into claims that his employment minister, Eric Woerth, had been given the cash by France's richest woman two months before Sarkozy's election victory.
In allegations that have been denied by all implicated, Claire Thibout, a former accountant to Bettencourt, 87, told police the payment was made to Woerth, then UMP party treasurer, in March 2007 by Patrice de Maistre, the billionaire's financial advisor. She said that while she withdrew €50,000 from a bank in Paris, Maistre told her he had travelled to Switzerland to recoup the remainder and that the total was to be given to the Sarkozy campaign.
Woerth has questioned the reliability of her account, picking holes and implying she is part of a leftwing "political plot". A statement from his ministry today said he would be suing for slander. ...
Quashing any presidential hopes that reports of an alleged campaign donation of €150,000 (£125,000) would lead nowhere, anti-fraud investigators were ordered to look into claims that his employment minister, Eric Woerth, had been given the cash by France's richest woman two months before Sarkozy's election victory.
In allegations that have been denied by all implicated, Claire Thibout, a former accountant to Bettencourt, 87, told police the payment was made to Woerth, then UMP party treasurer, in March 2007 by Patrice de Maistre, the billionaire's financial advisor. She said that while she withdrew €50,000 from a bank in Paris, Maistre told her he had travelled to Switzerland to recoup the remainder and that the total was to be given to the Sarkozy campaign.
Woerth has questioned the reliability of her account, picking holes and implying she is part of a leftwing "political plot". A statement from his ministry today said he would be suing for slander. ...
After an initial denial, the state-owned Urban Development Corporation (UDC) has admitted that it hired and is still paying millions of dollars to a company partially owned by extradited west Kingston strongman Christopher 'Dudus' Coke.
The UDC says it has one contract with the firm Bulls Eye Security Services Limited, but it is still checking its records to see if there are any others.
Late last month, the UDC told The Gleaner that it had not issued any contract to Bulls Eye, which lists Coke as a shareholder. Coke was previously listed as a director but is believed to have pulled out because of requirements that would force him to be fingerprinted.
But, last week, in a letter to The Gleaner, the UDC said it erred in its denial.
"We wish to state for the record that the UDC, in expediting what was deemed to be an urgent request from a Gleaner reporter to meet a cut-off deadline for publication, stated: "The UDC has not awarded any contract to Bulls Eye Security Services Limited.
"The company was engaged by contractors Jatlin Construction and Associates and Alcar Construction Limited for the St William Grant Park and Downtown Transport Centre projects, respectively," read a section of the UDC's missive.
"However, a further review of our records has indicated that in one instance, July 2009, the services of Bulls Eye were contracted within the provisions of the Procurement Guidelines by way of limited tender. The contract, which is valued at $5.28 million, expires on March 4, 2011 and services the UDC project located at the corner of Church and North (streets)."
The UDC argued that the $5.28-million contract should be placed in the context of its entire security bill of $205.4 million, spread across seven contractors. ...
The UDC says it has one contract with the firm Bulls Eye Security Services Limited, but it is still checking its records to see if there are any others.
Late last month, the UDC told The Gleaner that it had not issued any contract to Bulls Eye, which lists Coke as a shareholder. Coke was previously listed as a director but is believed to have pulled out because of requirements that would force him to be fingerprinted.
But, last week, in a letter to The Gleaner, the UDC said it erred in its denial.
"We wish to state for the record that the UDC, in expediting what was deemed to be an urgent request from a Gleaner reporter to meet a cut-off deadline for publication, stated: "The UDC has not awarded any contract to Bulls Eye Security Services Limited.
"The company was engaged by contractors Jatlin Construction and Associates and Alcar Construction Limited for the St William Grant Park and Downtown Transport Centre projects, respectively," read a section of the UDC's missive.
"However, a further review of our records has indicated that in one instance, July 2009, the services of Bulls Eye were contracted within the provisions of the Procurement Guidelines by way of limited tender. The contract, which is valued at $5.28 million, expires on March 4, 2011 and services the UDC project located at the corner of Church and North (streets)."
The UDC argued that the $5.28-million contract should be placed in the context of its entire security bill of $205.4 million, spread across seven contractors. ...
A senior Vatican cardinal is under investigation for corruption, dragging the Catholic church into a public works scandal that has sent shockwaves through the Italian government.
Italian media reported today that Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, the archbishop of Naples, was suspected of striking cosy deals while head of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, the Vatican congregation that uses proceeds from a property empire including 2,000 Rome apartments to fund missionary efforts.
Sepe allegedly oversaw the sale in 2004 of a building in Rome to the then transport minister, Pietro Lunardi, for the suspiciously low price of €4.16m, newspapers reported, adding that magistrates wanted to know why Lunardi then freed up €2.5m in state funding the following year for the congregation to create a museum in its headquarters, and why that museum never opened.
Lunardi, who is also under investigation, said he would contact the magistrates looking into the deal "as soon as possible... to clear everything up". ...
Italian media reported today that Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, the archbishop of Naples, was suspected of striking cosy deals while head of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, the Vatican congregation that uses proceeds from a property empire including 2,000 Rome apartments to fund missionary efforts.
Sepe allegedly oversaw the sale in 2004 of a building in Rome to the then transport minister, Pietro Lunardi, for the suspiciously low price of €4.16m, newspapers reported, adding that magistrates wanted to know why Lunardi then freed up €2.5m in state funding the following year for the congregation to create a museum in its headquarters, and why that museum never opened.
Lunardi, who is also under investigation, said he would contact the magistrates looking into the deal "as soon as possible... to clear everything up". ...
Who is behind Jamaica's mayhem?
Published: Saturday | May 29, 2010
The Editor, Sir:
I have read and watched with interest the developments in Jamaica since the Christopher 'Dudus' Coke extradition issue has come to the forefront. And, I must say how interesting it is when one man must take the fall for the ills of many.
Yes, I say, many because, even though the spotlight is on Dudus, the real problem facing Jamaica is not Dudus; it is corruption in all levels of government. Dudus is just a product of the ongoing corruption that has infected Jamaican politics and society over the years.
Lest we forget, many members of parliament, in an effort to maintain power, have supported dons in garrison constituencies. And these events today are just a product of those actions. What is happening now, with the signing of the extradition order and the effort to arrest Dudus, is seemingly just a facade to save face and to appease the US State Department, which has stepped up pressure on the Jamaican government.
Let's ask the question, "what would have happened if there were no extradition request from the United States?", and "what will happen next?" Would the garrisons remain? Or rather, "will they remain when this is all over and Dudus is gone?"
It is time to hold members of parliament accountable for ills in their constituencies. Dudus has allegedly broken the law, but the politicians have been living above the law since independence. ...
Published: Saturday | May 29, 2010
The Editor, Sir:
I have read and watched with interest the developments in Jamaica since the Christopher 'Dudus' Coke extradition issue has come to the forefront. And, I must say how interesting it is when one man must take the fall for the ills of many.
Yes, I say, many because, even though the spotlight is on Dudus, the real problem facing Jamaica is not Dudus; it is corruption in all levels of government. Dudus is just a product of the ongoing corruption that has infected Jamaican politics and society over the years.
Lest we forget, many members of parliament, in an effort to maintain power, have supported dons in garrison constituencies. And these events today are just a product of those actions. What is happening now, with the signing of the extradition order and the effort to arrest Dudus, is seemingly just a facade to save face and to appease the US State Department, which has stepped up pressure on the Jamaican government.
Let's ask the question, "what would have happened if there were no extradition request from the United States?", and "what will happen next?" Would the garrisons remain? Or rather, "will they remain when this is all over and Dudus is gone?"
It is time to hold members of parliament accountable for ills in their constituencies. Dudus has allegedly broken the law, but the politicians have been living above the law since independence. ...
Massacre in Tivoli Gardens
Published: Saturday | May 29, 2010
Massacre in Tivoli Gardens
The Editor, Sir:
Since the prime minister's announcement that the process for the extradition of Christopher 'Dudus' Coke would take place, not only have we witnessed the physical and mental destruction of a community, but we have witnessed an intentional onslaught by the security forces on a poor, innocent and misled people. What makes it so difficult and painful is the fact that the invasion's main purpose was inconsequential.
How can a warrant be issued without any credible evidence as to the whereabouts of the person being sought? Refusing to acquire, or not acquiring, credible evidence suggests that other than issuing the warrant, the security forces could not wait to unleash their weaponry on a community which has been a target for them for quite a number of years....
A time to rejoice
The Editor, Sir;
While many Jamaicans lament the killing of innocent Jamaicans in this battle in Tivoli, many of us applaud the efforts of the military and the police to rid the country of criminal elements.
We are quite aware that politicians are guilty of the escalation of mafia-type crime in Jamaica through the granting of contracts to these criminal elements, which has served to safeguard the politicians' selfish desire for political power. So, while many politicians forge unholy alliances with criminals, many hardworking Jamaicans cowered in their communities as criminals ran amok, holding citizens hostage to violence and extortion.
Now that the politicians have empowered these criminals to the point where they can challenge the State, the Government has reacted to stave off international embarrassment. ...
...hard-working Jamaicans have had enough of crime and rejoice at the dismantling of this and hopefully many other garrisons across Jamaica....
Published: Saturday | May 29, 2010
Massacre in Tivoli Gardens
The Editor, Sir:
Since the prime minister's announcement that the process for the extradition of Christopher 'Dudus' Coke would take place, not only have we witnessed the physical and mental destruction of a community, but we have witnessed an intentional onslaught by the security forces on a poor, innocent and misled people. What makes it so difficult and painful is the fact that the invasion's main purpose was inconsequential.
How can a warrant be issued without any credible evidence as to the whereabouts of the person being sought? Refusing to acquire, or not acquiring, credible evidence suggests that other than issuing the warrant, the security forces could not wait to unleash their weaponry on a community which has been a target for them for quite a number of years....
A time to rejoice
The Editor, Sir;
While many Jamaicans lament the killing of innocent Jamaicans in this battle in Tivoli, many of us applaud the efforts of the military and the police to rid the country of criminal elements.
We are quite aware that politicians are guilty of the escalation of mafia-type crime in Jamaica through the granting of contracts to these criminal elements, which has served to safeguard the politicians' selfish desire for political power. So, while many politicians forge unholy alliances with criminals, many hardworking Jamaicans cowered in their communities as criminals ran amok, holding citizens hostage to violence and extortion.
Now that the politicians have empowered these criminals to the point where they can challenge the State, the Government has reacted to stave off international embarrassment. ...
...hard-working Jamaicans have had enough of crime and rejoice at the dismantling of this and hopefully many other garrisons across Jamaica....
Gov't hiding 'real issues' in Chinese deal - OCG
Published: Friday | May 28, 2010
Contractor General Greg Christie has slammed the Government for its attempt to justify a proposed multibillion-dollar deal to sell its 45 per cent stake of the Jamalco alumina refinery to Chinese firm Zhuhai Hongfan Non-ferrous Metals and Chemical Engineering Limited (Hongfan). He accused government bureaucrats of "obfuscating" the real issues when it responded to the initial alarm he raised about the deal.
In a media release, responding to concerns raised by the Office of the Contractor General (OCG) two weeks ago, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Energy and Mining (MEM), Hillary Alexander, pointed to, among other things, operating losses at Clarendon Alumina Production Company (CAP), which created a debt of more than US$400 million, an obligation, she said which cannot be accommodated in the current economic programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
But in a sharp rebuke, Christie described the ministry's response as an "interesting attempt ... to obfuscate the real issues which are the subject of the OCG's contention in the matter".
"As you are very much aware, the OCG's primary contention is that the proposed multibillion-dollar Government of Jamaica/Port Reliant/Hongfan contract award is not one which was borne out of an open, competitive and transparent tender process," the OCG letter which was released to the media said.
"Indeed, to date," the contractor general continued, "you have failed to provide to the OCG an acceptable explanation for your ministry's aberrant and potentially damaging conduct in not putting this major asset divestment to public competitive tender."
In the letter, which was copied to the prime minister and other state officials, Christie pointed to the ministry's references to the "drain on the public purse" and the allusion that the IMF standby agreement made no provision for the servicing of CAP's J$36-billion debt. ...
Published: Friday | May 28, 2010
Contractor General Greg Christie has slammed the Government for its attempt to justify a proposed multibillion-dollar deal to sell its 45 per cent stake of the Jamalco alumina refinery to Chinese firm Zhuhai Hongfan Non-ferrous Metals and Chemical Engineering Limited (Hongfan). He accused government bureaucrats of "obfuscating" the real issues when it responded to the initial alarm he raised about the deal.
In a media release, responding to concerns raised by the Office of the Contractor General (OCG) two weeks ago, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Energy and Mining (MEM), Hillary Alexander, pointed to, among other things, operating losses at Clarendon Alumina Production Company (CAP), which created a debt of more than US$400 million, an obligation, she said which cannot be accommodated in the current economic programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
But in a sharp rebuke, Christie described the ministry's response as an "interesting attempt ... to obfuscate the real issues which are the subject of the OCG's contention in the matter".
"As you are very much aware, the OCG's primary contention is that the proposed multibillion-dollar Government of Jamaica/Port Reliant/Hongfan contract award is not one which was borne out of an open, competitive and transparent tender process," the OCG letter which was released to the media said.
"Indeed, to date," the contractor general continued, "you have failed to provide to the OCG an acceptable explanation for your ministry's aberrant and potentially damaging conduct in not putting this major asset divestment to public competitive tender."
In the letter, which was copied to the prime minister and other state officials, Christie pointed to the ministry's references to the "drain on the public purse" and the allusion that the IMF standby agreement made no provision for the servicing of CAP's J$36-billion debt. ...
BRUCE GOLDING, prime minister of Jamaica, shares an intriguing relationship with Christopher 'Dudus' Coke, the 'President' of Tivoli Gardens.
The power-sharing framework between the man who formally represents the West Kingston constituency in which Tivoli Gardens is located, and the man who really runs the place, is just as fascinating.
The word from well-placed political sources is that Golding and Dudus are not particularly close.
More than a generation separates them.
While Golding revels in the political limelight, Dudus shirks it.
Why then would Golding sacrifice his political career for a man with whom he is not a particularly close friend?
A Sunday Gleaner probe reveals that Coke was instrumental in Golding's election as member of parliament (MP) for Western Kingston after he was elected leader of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) in 2005. ...
The power-sharing framework between the man who formally represents the West Kingston constituency in which Tivoli Gardens is located, and the man who really runs the place, is just as fascinating.
The word from well-placed political sources is that Golding and Dudus are not particularly close.
More than a generation separates them.
While Golding revels in the political limelight, Dudus shirks it.
Why then would Golding sacrifice his political career for a man with whom he is not a particularly close friend?
A Sunday Gleaner probe reveals that Coke was instrumental in Golding's election as member of parliament (MP) for Western Kingston after he was elected leader of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) in 2005. ...
Prime Minister talks it out - Golding holds Vale Royal meetings with JLP to decide on his future
Saturday | May 15, 2010
Gary Spaulding, Senior Gleaner Writer
As the calls for the resignation of the prime minister heighten, official word from the Government is that Bruce Golding is engaged in a series of consultations before deciding his future.
Information Minister Daryl Vaz feverishly sought to quash swirling rumours that Golding had tendered his resignation to a meeting of officers of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) yesterday.
"The prime minister, the Government and the party take very seriously what has transpired and, therefore, these consultations and discussions have to be done in a very organised way," asserted Vaz.
The information minister continued to be the face and voice of the party in turmoil even as scores of other party faithfuls wound up heavily tinted windows to avoid the media.
Vaz sought to stave off a rush on the prime minister's official residence, Vale Royal, in the face of the rumours that the prime minister had buckled under pressure. ...
Saturday | May 15, 2010
Gary Spaulding, Senior Gleaner Writer
As the calls for the resignation of the prime minister heighten, official word from the Government is that Bruce Golding is engaged in a series of consultations before deciding his future.
Information Minister Daryl Vaz feverishly sought to quash swirling rumours that Golding had tendered his resignation to a meeting of officers of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) yesterday.
"The prime minister, the Government and the party take very seriously what has transpired and, therefore, these consultations and discussions have to be done in a very organised way," asserted Vaz.
The information minister continued to be the face and voice of the party in turmoil even as scores of other party faithfuls wound up heavily tinted windows to avoid the media.
Vaz sought to stave off a rush on the prime minister's official residence, Vale Royal, in the face of the rumours that the prime minister had buckled under pressure. ...
Report: Tea Parties created as GOP political ploy
By David Edwards
Thursday, April 15th, 2010
The Tea Party has been billed as an organic grassroots operation, but a newly uncovered document obtained by Politico suggests the movement has been successfully co-opted as a Republican fundraising ploy.
GOP political consultant Joe Wierzbicki floated the proposal a year ago today to create the Tea Party Express, a nationwide bus tour to "give a boost to our PAC and position us as a growing force/leading force as the 2010 elections come into focus." His idea eventually became one of the best known brands in the Tea Party movement.
The document cautioned planners to be careful when discussing the ruse to use Tea Parties for political gain. "We have to be very, very careful about discussing amongst ourselves anyone we include 'outside of the family' because quite frankly, we are not only not part of the political establishment or conservative establishment, but we are also sadly not currently a part of the 'tea party' establishment," Wierzbicki wrote.
Wierzbicki, who works for the Sacramento firm Russo Marsh + Rogers, went on to outline how conservative media including Fox News could be leveraged to hype the Tea Party Express. He recommended using "mentions and possibly even promotion from conservative/pro-tea party bloggers, talk radio hosts, Fox News commentators, etc..."
Citing Michigan as an example, he noted that one of the plan's primary goals would be to elect Republican candidates. "It is also worth considering making a return run to Michigan. Former Republican Michigan governor, John Engler, has recently stated that he believes the Republican Party will do quite well in Michigan," he continued. ...
Ta much, dear Zaxy
By David Edwards
Thursday, April 15th, 2010
The Tea Party has been billed as an organic grassroots operation, but a newly uncovered document obtained by Politico suggests the movement has been successfully co-opted as a Republican fundraising ploy.
GOP political consultant Joe Wierzbicki floated the proposal a year ago today to create the Tea Party Express, a nationwide bus tour to "give a boost to our PAC and position us as a growing force/leading force as the 2010 elections come into focus." His idea eventually became one of the best known brands in the Tea Party movement.
The document cautioned planners to be careful when discussing the ruse to use Tea Parties for political gain. "We have to be very, very careful about discussing amongst ourselves anyone we include 'outside of the family' because quite frankly, we are not only not part of the political establishment or conservative establishment, but we are also sadly not currently a part of the 'tea party' establishment," Wierzbicki wrote.
Wierzbicki, who works for the Sacramento firm Russo Marsh + Rogers, went on to outline how conservative media including Fox News could be leveraged to hype the Tea Party Express. He recommended using "mentions and possibly even promotion from conservative/pro-tea party bloggers, talk radio hosts, Fox News commentators, etc..."
Citing Michigan as an example, he noted that one of the plan's primary goals would be to elect Republican candidates. "It is also worth considering making a return run to Michigan. Former Republican Michigan governor, John Engler, has recently stated that he believes the Republican Party will do quite well in Michigan," he continued. ...
Ta much, dear Zaxy
GOP operatives crash the tea party
By KENNETH P. VOGEL | 4/14/10
Just days after the first widespread tea party demonstrators hit the streets a year ago Thursday, Joe Wierzbicki, a Republican political consultant with the Sacramento firm Russo Marsh + Rogers, made a proposal to his colleagues that he said could “give a boost to our PAC and position us as a growing force/leading force as the 2010 elections come into focus.”
The proposal, obtained by POLITICO, was for a nationwide tea party bus tour, to be called the Tea Party Express, which over the past seven months has become among the most identifiable brands of the tea party movement. Buses emblazoned with the Tea Party Express logo have brought speakers and entertainers to rallies in dozens of small towns and big cities, including one in Boston on Wednesday that will feature former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.
Aided by campaign-style advance work and event planning, slick ads cut by Russo Marsh, impressive crowds and a savvy media operation, the political action committee run by Wierzbicki, Russo Marsh founder Sal Russo and a handful of other Republican operatives has also emerged as among the prolific fundraising vehicles under the tea party banner. Known as Our Country Deserves Better when it was founded during the 2008 election as a vehicle to oppose Barack Obama’s campaign for president, the PAC saw its fundraising more than quadruple after it took the Tea Party Express public in July, raising nearly $2.7 million in roughly the following six months, compared with less than $600,000 in the preceding six months, according to Federal Election Commission filings.
Its fundraising success has made the PAC — which formally filed with the FEC in October to change its name to “Our Country Deserves Better PAC–TeaPartyExpress.org” — a power player in the tea party and beyond, airing hundreds of thousands of dollars in ads supporting Republican campaigns such as Scott Brown’s successful special election for Senate in Massachusetts and blasting Democratic ones, such as Senate Majority Leader Reid’s reelection bid in Nevada.
And that fundraising success has also meant a brisk business for Russo March, which essentially runs the PAC. In that capacity, Russo Marsh and a sister firm called King Media Group have received $1.9 million of the $4.1 million in payments made by the committee — a financial relationship that is not uncommon between political action committees run by consultants and their consulting firms. ...
By KENNETH P. VOGEL | 4/14/10
Just days after the first widespread tea party demonstrators hit the streets a year ago Thursday, Joe Wierzbicki, a Republican political consultant with the Sacramento firm Russo Marsh + Rogers, made a proposal to his colleagues that he said could “give a boost to our PAC and position us as a growing force/leading force as the 2010 elections come into focus.”
The proposal, obtained by POLITICO, was for a nationwide tea party bus tour, to be called the Tea Party Express, which over the past seven months has become among the most identifiable brands of the tea party movement. Buses emblazoned with the Tea Party Express logo have brought speakers and entertainers to rallies in dozens of small towns and big cities, including one in Boston on Wednesday that will feature former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.
Aided by campaign-style advance work and event planning, slick ads cut by Russo Marsh, impressive crowds and a savvy media operation, the political action committee run by Wierzbicki, Russo Marsh founder Sal Russo and a handful of other Republican operatives has also emerged as among the prolific fundraising vehicles under the tea party banner. Known as Our Country Deserves Better when it was founded during the 2008 election as a vehicle to oppose Barack Obama’s campaign for president, the PAC saw its fundraising more than quadruple after it took the Tea Party Express public in July, raising nearly $2.7 million in roughly the following six months, compared with less than $600,000 in the preceding six months, according to Federal Election Commission filings.
Its fundraising success has made the PAC — which formally filed with the FEC in October to change its name to “Our Country Deserves Better PAC–TeaPartyExpress.org” — a power player in the tea party and beyond, airing hundreds of thousands of dollars in ads supporting Republican campaigns such as Scott Brown’s successful special election for Senate in Massachusetts and blasting Democratic ones, such as Senate Majority Leader Reid’s reelection bid in Nevada.
And that fundraising success has also meant a brisk business for Russo March, which essentially runs the PAC. In that capacity, Russo Marsh and a sister firm called King Media Group have received $1.9 million of the $4.1 million in payments made by the committee — a financial relationship that is not uncommon between political action committees run by consultants and their consulting firms. ...
Fuck yu, yu t'iefin' bastard! Yu h'alreddy t'ief from wi, an' now unu want wi help yu pey h'it baack? Mi na t'ink so, you faat t'iefin' fuckka!
A German-Canadian arms dealer who rose to prominence in the party funding scandal that damaged Germany's ruling Christian Democrats (CDU) in 1999 was today jailed for eight years.
A court in Augsburg, southern Germany, convicted 76-year-old Karlheinz Schreiber on six counts of tax evasion between 1988 and 1993. The verdict comes days before the CDU faces a key electoral test.
Schreiber was a central figure in a funding scandal involving Chancellor Angela Merkel's CDU that forced the former chancellor, Helmut Kohl – who was then honorary party leader – to resign after he admitted accepting illegal party donations.
The court found Schreiber had cheated the tax authorities of €7.3m (£6.2m).
Passing sentence, the presiding judge, Rudolf Weigell, said: "The accused is the type of person only concerned with his own advantage, who will bribe anyone and anything if things aren't going to plan, and who will cheat the taxman in any way he can." ...
A court in Augsburg, southern Germany, convicted 76-year-old Karlheinz Schreiber on six counts of tax evasion between 1988 and 1993. The verdict comes days before the CDU faces a key electoral test.
Schreiber was a central figure in a funding scandal involving Chancellor Angela Merkel's CDU that forced the former chancellor, Helmut Kohl – who was then honorary party leader – to resign after he admitted accepting illegal party donations.
The court found Schreiber had cheated the tax authorities of €7.3m (£6.2m).
Passing sentence, the presiding judge, Rudolf Weigell, said: "The accused is the type of person only concerned with his own advantage, who will bribe anyone and anything if things aren't going to plan, and who will cheat the taxman in any way he can." ...
NPR and other outlets are reporting today that there seems to be a federal criminal probe into allegations of bribery by Massey Energy - Don Blankenship's company, the one involved in last month's horrible disaster - of federal mine-regulating officials.
Ken Ward, who writes the excellent Coal Tattoo blog for the Charleston (WV) Gazette, offers the best summary here. It's early on this story and still a bit fuzzy, but it's something we shall keep an eye on.
When last we spoke of this general matter, the subject of why MSHA, the mine safety and health administration, didn't do more to prevent such disasters was the topic of lots of down-thread discussion. Well, one answer might be that some officials took bribes. But let me take pains to say that we're a long long way from having that established as a fact, or even officially alleged.
Even so, here's another reason, from the AP:
The nation's top mine safety official told lawmakers earlier this week that the government will start going directly to federal court to shut down mines that make a habit of ignoring safety.
Joe Main, director of the Mine Safety and Health Administration, said his agency has had the power to seek federal injunctions for years, but has never tried to use it.
"I can't speak for past administrations," Main said during the Senate's first hearing on the accident that killed 29 men. "We're going to use it."
Main also called for a slew of other legal and regulatory reforms to beef up safety enforcement in the wake of this month's deadly explosion at a mine in West Virginia. ...
Ken Ward, who writes the excellent Coal Tattoo blog for the Charleston (WV) Gazette, offers the best summary here. It's early on this story and still a bit fuzzy, but it's something we shall keep an eye on.
When last we spoke of this general matter, the subject of why MSHA, the mine safety and health administration, didn't do more to prevent such disasters was the topic of lots of down-thread discussion. Well, one answer might be that some officials took bribes. But let me take pains to say that we're a long long way from having that established as a fact, or even officially alleged.
Even so, here's another reason, from the AP:
The nation's top mine safety official told lawmakers earlier this week that the government will start going directly to federal court to shut down mines that make a habit of ignoring safety.
Joe Main, director of the Mine Safety and Health Administration, said his agency has had the power to seek federal injunctions for years, but has never tried to use it.
"I can't speak for past administrations," Main said during the Senate's first hearing on the accident that killed 29 men. "We're going to use it."
Main also called for a slew of other legal and regulatory reforms to beef up safety enforcement in the wake of this month's deadly explosion at a mine in West Virginia. ...
Sixty Russian officials should be banned from the United States over the torture and death in prison of a lawyer who exposed a $230 million (£149 million) fraud by corrupt policemen, a powerful US government body has urged Hillary Clinton, the Secretary of State.
Senator Benjamin Cardin, the chairman of the Commission on Security and Co-operation in Europe, sent Mrs Clinton a list of security service agents, police, prosecutors, judges, tax officials and prison wardens who he said were implicated in the killing of Sergei Magnitsky.
The request threatens to cause a row between the Kremlin and the Obama Administration.
The list includes Viktor Grin, Russia’s Deputy General Prosecutor Viktor Grin, Aleksei Anichin, the Interior Ministry’s chief investigator Alexei Anichin, and 11 senior judges.
Mr Magnitsky, 37, died in November in Matrosskaya Tishina prison, Moscow, where he was held in pre-trial detention for almost a year for an alleged tax crime. He was refused medical treatment despite serious illnesses and denied access to his family.
Mr Magnitsky, a lawyer for the US firm Firestone Duncan, represented Hermitage Capital, a London-based hedge fund, in a battle with Kremlin officials allegedly involved in the theft of companies belonging to Hermitage and HSBC.
He was arrested on the orders of a group of Interior Ministry officers whom he had accused of fraudulently reclaiming $230 million in state taxes paid by Hermitage. ...
Senator Benjamin Cardin, the chairman of the Commission on Security and Co-operation in Europe, sent Mrs Clinton a list of security service agents, police, prosecutors, judges, tax officials and prison wardens who he said were implicated in the killing of Sergei Magnitsky.
The request threatens to cause a row between the Kremlin and the Obama Administration.
The list includes Viktor Grin, Russia’s Deputy General Prosecutor Viktor Grin, Aleksei Anichin, the Interior Ministry’s chief investigator Alexei Anichin, and 11 senior judges.
Mr Magnitsky, 37, died in November in Matrosskaya Tishina prison, Moscow, where he was held in pre-trial detention for almost a year for an alleged tax crime. He was refused medical treatment despite serious illnesses and denied access to his family.
Mr Magnitsky, a lawyer for the US firm Firestone Duncan, represented Hermitage Capital, a London-based hedge fund, in a battle with Kremlin officials allegedly involved in the theft of companies belonging to Hermitage and HSBC.
He was arrested on the orders of a group of Interior Ministry officers whom he had accused of fraudulently reclaiming $230 million in state taxes paid by Hermitage. ...
Barely 6 1/2 months before the midterm elections, an internal investigation by the Republican National Committee has revealed that the organization is beset with questionable financial management and oversight and is spending more money courting top-dollar donors than it raises.
The investigation found that the Republican Party's national governing body is losing money on its major-donors' fundraising program -- spending $1.09 for each $1.00 raised, according to RNC members privy to the investigation's findings. It typically costs about 40 cents for every dollar raised from donors who give more than $1,000.
The investigation also found that the RNC has allowed employees to forge Finance Director Rob Bickhart's initials on expense-reimbursement request approvals, according to an RNC member who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. The RNC's top elected and appointed management have united in defense of the committee's practices. RNC Chairman Michael S. Steele can withhold or increase RNC contributions to a state party.
The Washington Times obtained a copy of a report on the investigation -- prepared by RNC Treasurer Randy Pullen -- that he sent to the 28-member RNC Executive Committee before a conference call hastily scheduled for Wednesday afternoon by Mr. Steele's office. It includes some of the findings.
RNC communications director Doug Heye disputed the fundraising figures when reached for comment about the report. He said year-to-date the RNC has received $2,649,586 from major donors at a cost of $1,832,642, netting the organization more than $800,000.
The report says several RNC Finance Department employees have been forging Mr. Bickhart's signature for reimbursement for the purchase of clothing, wine and entertainment expenses, including some that were labeled as office supplies.
One such expense was the nearly $2,000 that a Finance Department employee named Allison Myers -- since fired -- received for money spent by a friend and non-employee at an Los Angeles nightclub that featured a sexual-bondage theme. Many small and large RNC donors alike were not amused. ...
Ta much, dear Anneliese
The investigation found that the Republican Party's national governing body is losing money on its major-donors' fundraising program -- spending $1.09 for each $1.00 raised, according to RNC members privy to the investigation's findings. It typically costs about 40 cents for every dollar raised from donors who give more than $1,000.
The investigation also found that the RNC has allowed employees to forge Finance Director Rob Bickhart's initials on expense-reimbursement request approvals, according to an RNC member who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. The RNC's top elected and appointed management have united in defense of the committee's practices. RNC Chairman Michael S. Steele can withhold or increase RNC contributions to a state party.
The Washington Times obtained a copy of a report on the investigation -- prepared by RNC Treasurer Randy Pullen -- that he sent to the 28-member RNC Executive Committee before a conference call hastily scheduled for Wednesday afternoon by Mr. Steele's office. It includes some of the findings.
RNC communications director Doug Heye disputed the fundraising figures when reached for comment about the report. He said year-to-date the RNC has received $2,649,586 from major donors at a cost of $1,832,642, netting the organization more than $800,000.
The report says several RNC Finance Department employees have been forging Mr. Bickhart's signature for reimbursement for the purchase of clothing, wine and entertainment expenses, including some that were labeled as office supplies.
One such expense was the nearly $2,000 that a Finance Department employee named Allison Myers -- since fired -- received for money spent by a friend and non-employee at an Los Angeles nightclub that featured a sexual-bondage theme. Many small and large RNC donors alike were not amused. ...
Ta much, dear Anneliese
The head of Kyrgyzstan's new interim government yesterday revealed that her country was broke and said that the former president who was overthrown in a street-led revolution this week had left only $80m in the budget.
In an interview with the Guardian, Roza Otunbayeva appealed for urgent international aid so that the impoverished Central Asian nation could meet its immediate bills. "Tomorrow we should pay pensions. This is a really serious problem," she said.
Otunbayeva said that the ousted president Kurmanbek Bakiyev had plundered the economy, installing his sons in key government positions and flogging off strategic state industries for a fraction of their true value.
She said the country's leading telecoms firm had been sold to an offshore company in the Canary Islands, belonging to a friend of the president's son Maxim. "We had an absolutely scandalous situation where Kyrgyzstan had become a family-run regime," she said.
Otunbayeva, a former foreign minister, said popular anger against the president and his relatives exploded after he imposed new tariffs on 1 January on electricity and hot water. She said the revolt started in the freezing mountain town of Talas in early March, then spread across the country. ...
In an interview with the Guardian, Roza Otunbayeva appealed for urgent international aid so that the impoverished Central Asian nation could meet its immediate bills. "Tomorrow we should pay pensions. This is a really serious problem," she said.
Otunbayeva said that the ousted president Kurmanbek Bakiyev had plundered the economy, installing his sons in key government positions and flogging off strategic state industries for a fraction of their true value.
She said the country's leading telecoms firm had been sold to an offshore company in the Canary Islands, belonging to a friend of the president's son Maxim. "We had an absolutely scandalous situation where Kyrgyzstan had become a family-run regime," she said.
Otunbayeva, a former foreign minister, said popular anger against the president and his relatives exploded after he imposed new tariffs on 1 January on electricity and hot water. She said the revolt started in the freezing mountain town of Talas in early March, then spread across the country. ...
George W. Bush, Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld covered up that hundreds of innocent men were sent to the Guantánamo Bay prison camp because they feared that releasing them would harm the push for war in Iraq and the broader War on Terror, according to a new document obtained by The Times.
The accusations were made by Lawrence Wilkerson, a top aide to Colin Powell, the former Republican Secretary of State, in a signed declaration to support a lawsuit filed by a Guantánamo detainee. It is the first time that such allegations have been made by a senior member of the Bush Administration.
Colonel Wilkerson, who was General Powell’s chief of staff when he ran the State Department, was most critical of Mr Cheney and Mr Rumsfeld. He claimed that the former Vice-President and Defence Secretary knew that the majority of the initial 742 detainees sent to Guantánamo in 2002 were innocent but believed that it was “politically impossible to release them”.
General Powell, who left the Bush Administration in 2005, angry about the misinformation that he unwittingly gave the world when he made the case for the invasion of Iraq at the UN, is understood to have backed Colonel Wilkerson’s declaration. ...
The accusations were made by Lawrence Wilkerson, a top aide to Colin Powell, the former Republican Secretary of State, in a signed declaration to support a lawsuit filed by a Guantánamo detainee. It is the first time that such allegations have been made by a senior member of the Bush Administration.
Colonel Wilkerson, who was General Powell’s chief of staff when he ran the State Department, was most critical of Mr Cheney and Mr Rumsfeld. He claimed that the former Vice-President and Defence Secretary knew that the majority of the initial 742 detainees sent to Guantánamo in 2002 were innocent but believed that it was “politically impossible to release them”.
General Powell, who left the Bush Administration in 2005, angry about the misinformation that he unwittingly gave the world when he made the case for the invasion of Iraq at the UN, is understood to have backed Colonel Wilkerson’s declaration. ...
US-Afghan relations sink further as Hamid Karzai accused of drug abuse | World news | guardian.co.uk
US-Afghan relations sink further as Hamid Karzai accused of drug abuse
Former UN diplomat Peter Galbraith questions Afghan premier's mental stability
Jon Boone in Kabul
Wednesday 7 April 2010
... A White House spokesman, Robert Gibbs, has said the US will consider cancelling Karzai's invitation to meet Obama in Washington on 12 May in the light of any "further remarks" the Afghan president makes.
The foreign secretary, David Miliband, has intervened in the row, saying that "malign suggestions" the UK was involved in interfering with the elections were "completely without foundation".
Karzai's claims that foreigners were responsible for "very widespread fraud" during the election were first made shortly after Barack Obama made a fleeting visit to Kabul last week.
The US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, tried to defuse the row during a phone call with Karzai on Friday, but he went on to repeat his claims to Afghan MPs and rhetorically threatened to "join the Taliban" if foreigners continued to interfere in the country's affairs.
On Sunday, during a trip to Kandahar, he told the BBC that he stood by his allegations despite the furore they had created.
There is some evidence that by sticking up for Afghan sovereignty he has gained some kudos among ordinary Afghans, but many MPs and members of the country's establishment have been horrified to see him jeopardise the critical Afghan-US relationship. ...
Former UN diplomat Peter Galbraith questions Afghan premier's mental stability
Jon Boone in Kabul
Wednesday 7 April 2010
... A White House spokesman, Robert Gibbs, has said the US will consider cancelling Karzai's invitation to meet Obama in Washington on 12 May in the light of any "further remarks" the Afghan president makes.
The foreign secretary, David Miliband, has intervened in the row, saying that "malign suggestions" the UK was involved in interfering with the elections were "completely without foundation".
Karzai's claims that foreigners were responsible for "very widespread fraud" during the election were first made shortly after Barack Obama made a fleeting visit to Kabul last week.
The US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, tried to defuse the row during a phone call with Karzai on Friday, but he went on to repeat his claims to Afghan MPs and rhetorically threatened to "join the Taliban" if foreigners continued to interfere in the country's affairs.
On Sunday, during a trip to Kandahar, he told the BBC that he stood by his allegations despite the furore they had created.
There is some evidence that by sticking up for Afghan sovereignty he has gained some kudos among ordinary Afghans, but many MPs and members of the country's establishment have been horrified to see him jeopardise the critical Afghan-US relationship. ...
Obama sidelines Karzai as Washington alleges drug use
Afghan leader increasingly isolated as Washington strikes back at charges of foreign electoral fraud
Jon Boone in Kabul and Ewen MacAskill in Washington
Wednesday 7 April 2010
The Obama administration is to step up efforts to bypass Hamid Karzai after a series of controversial remarks by the Afghan president over recent days renewed concern about his reliability as an ally.
With relations between Washington and Kabul at a new low, the former UN envoy to Kabul Peter Galbraith said Karzai's comments raised questions about his mental stability and blamed them on alleged drug use.
Galbraith, an American who was the former deputy UN chief in Afghanistan, was responding to allegations first made by the Afghan president last Thursday. Karzai said the international community, and Galbraith in particular, had been responsible for "massive fraud" during last year's disastrous presidential election.
"He's prone to tirades, he can be very emotional, act impulsively," Galbraith said on MSNBC television. "In fact, some of the palace insiders say that he has a certain fondness for some of Afghanistan's most profitable exports." When asked whether he was saying Karzai had a substance abuse problem, Galbraith said there were "reports to that effect". ...
Afghan leader increasingly isolated as Washington strikes back at charges of foreign electoral fraud
Jon Boone in Kabul and Ewen MacAskill in Washington
Wednesday 7 April 2010
The Obama administration is to step up efforts to bypass Hamid Karzai after a series of controversial remarks by the Afghan president over recent days renewed concern about his reliability as an ally.
With relations between Washington and Kabul at a new low, the former UN envoy to Kabul Peter Galbraith said Karzai's comments raised questions about his mental stability and blamed them on alleged drug use.
Galbraith, an American who was the former deputy UN chief in Afghanistan, was responding to allegations first made by the Afghan president last Thursday. Karzai said the international community, and Galbraith in particular, had been responsible for "massive fraud" during last year's disastrous presidential election.
"He's prone to tirades, he can be very emotional, act impulsively," Galbraith said on MSNBC television. "In fact, some of the palace insiders say that he has a certain fondness for some of Afghanistan's most profitable exports." When asked whether he was saying Karzai had a substance abuse problem, Galbraith said there were "reports to that effect". ...
General election 2010: Tory adviser's firm stands to benefit from cuts
• Key expert chairs health company
• Labour to mount fightback on NI
• More business chiefs back Tories
Patrick Wintour, political editor
Wednesday 7 April 2010
One of David Cameron's independent efficiency experts who identified the £12bn spending savings an incoming Conservative government could make this year chairs a private healthcare firm that openly admits it will benefit from NHS spending cutbacks.
Sir Peter Gershon chairs General Healthcare Group, the largest private sector health firm in the UK. The Conservatives have relied on Gershon's analysis of efficiency savings to enable them to promise scrapping most of the government's planned national insurance increase – a move that has left Labour flatfooted at the outset of the election campaign.
The disclosure, which will open the Tories to the charge that they have not been transparent about the interests of a key adviser, came after the issue dominated the second day of formal campaigning. Cameron pummelled Gordon Brown over Labour's insistence that it had to raise NI contributions (NICs) – rather than cut spending immediately – in the last prime minister's questions before polling day, and the Tories announced that they had secured the support of another 30 business leaders, taking to 68 the number who have backed their plans to scrap the rise.
The Conservatives claim that the £12bn savings would enable them to cut spending this year by £6bn and channel a further £6bn into other areas. But at a potentially crucial press conference tomorrow – at which Brown and Alistair Darling, the chancellor, will attempt to stem the damage caused by the business assault on the NI rise – Labour will argue that it would be more damaging to take £6bn out of the economy this year than to increase Nics next year.
They will also seek to rebut the Tory claim that Labour is not willing to make efficiency savings of its own in the current financial year. ...
• Key expert chairs health company
• Labour to mount fightback on NI
• More business chiefs back Tories
Patrick Wintour, political editor
Wednesday 7 April 2010
One of David Cameron's independent efficiency experts who identified the £12bn spending savings an incoming Conservative government could make this year chairs a private healthcare firm that openly admits it will benefit from NHS spending cutbacks.
Sir Peter Gershon chairs General Healthcare Group, the largest private sector health firm in the UK. The Conservatives have relied on Gershon's analysis of efficiency savings to enable them to promise scrapping most of the government's planned national insurance increase – a move that has left Labour flatfooted at the outset of the election campaign.
The disclosure, which will open the Tories to the charge that they have not been transparent about the interests of a key adviser, came after the issue dominated the second day of formal campaigning. Cameron pummelled Gordon Brown over Labour's insistence that it had to raise NI contributions (NICs) – rather than cut spending immediately – in the last prime minister's questions before polling day, and the Tories announced that they had secured the support of another 30 business leaders, taking to 68 the number who have backed their plans to scrap the rise.
The Conservatives claim that the £12bn savings would enable them to cut spending this year by £6bn and channel a further £6bn into other areas. But at a potentially crucial press conference tomorrow – at which Brown and Alistair Darling, the chancellor, will attempt to stem the damage caused by the business assault on the NI rise – Labour will argue that it would be more damaging to take £6bn out of the economy this year than to increase Nics next year.
They will also seek to rebut the Tory claim that Labour is not willing to make efficiency savings of its own in the current financial year. ...
March 28, 2010
DPS: Scam cost $57M
FBI investigates ex-risk manager; district sues to recover money
BY JENNIFER DIXON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
A former department chief at Detroit Public Schools and his assistant used secret offices and their own computer system to improperly divert more than $57 million in school funds to vendors who provided little, if anything, in return, according to sworn records reviewed by the Free Press.
Documents in a Wayne County Circuit Court lawsuit brought by DPS allege that Stephen Hill of Detroit -- director of DPS risk management from 2001-05 -- received luxury vehicles and other kickbacks. Some of the vendors who benefitted were friends or associates of Hill's or relatives of Hill's assistant, Christina Polk-Osumah of Detroit, court records allege.
When Hill left the district in September 2005, he received a champagne-and-tenderloin farewell bash that cost the impoverished school system $40,000, according to the suit.
The FBI now is investigating the alleged fraud scheme.
Robert Bobb, the district's emergency financial manager, said in a statement that the case is another example of how "DPS has been a place where people use the district as their personal banker and where there has been a cesspool of corruption, and in cases such as this one, both national corporations and local individuals took advantage of Detroit Public Schools."
Hill could not be reached for comment. His former attorney denied that Hill acted improperly and said he will be vindicated. ...
DPS: Scam cost $57M
FBI investigates ex-risk manager; district sues to recover money
BY JENNIFER DIXON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
A former department chief at Detroit Public Schools and his assistant used secret offices and their own computer system to improperly divert more than $57 million in school funds to vendors who provided little, if anything, in return, according to sworn records reviewed by the Free Press.
Documents in a Wayne County Circuit Court lawsuit brought by DPS allege that Stephen Hill of Detroit -- director of DPS risk management from 2001-05 -- received luxury vehicles and other kickbacks. Some of the vendors who benefitted were friends or associates of Hill's or relatives of Hill's assistant, Christina Polk-Osumah of Detroit, court records allege.
When Hill left the district in September 2005, he received a champagne-and-tenderloin farewell bash that cost the impoverished school system $40,000, according to the suit.
The FBI now is investigating the alleged fraud scheme.
Robert Bobb, the district's emergency financial manager, said in a statement that the case is another example of how "DPS has been a place where people use the district as their personal banker and where there has been a cesspool of corruption, and in cases such as this one, both national corporations and local individuals took advantage of Detroit Public Schools."
Hill could not be reached for comment. His former attorney denied that Hill acted improperly and said he will be vindicated. ...
March 31, 2010
$57-MILLION ALLEGATIONS
Ex-official facing DPS suit loses job offer
Ill. county rescinds proposal for top spot after troubles found
BY JENNIFER DIXON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
On Sunday, the Free Press reported that a former Detroit schools official was accused of running a $57-million scam and accepting kickbacks while at Detroit Public Schools.
On Monday, Cook County, which covers Chicago and its environs, announced that the former official, Stephen Hill, had been offered a job as that county's director of risk management.
Oops.
When the Free Press called to inquire Tuesday, Cook County officials -- hours later -- confirmed the job offer. But they said the offer was rescinded after someone performed a Google search, which turned up the Free Press article, and other material on the DPS lawsuit against Hill, set for trial this summer. ...
$57-MILLION ALLEGATIONS
Ex-official facing DPS suit loses job offer
Ill. county rescinds proposal for top spot after troubles found
BY JENNIFER DIXON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
On Sunday, the Free Press reported that a former Detroit schools official was accused of running a $57-million scam and accepting kickbacks while at Detroit Public Schools.
On Monday, Cook County, which covers Chicago and its environs, announced that the former official, Stephen Hill, had been offered a job as that county's director of risk management.
Oops.
When the Free Press called to inquire Tuesday, Cook County officials -- hours later -- confirmed the job offer. But they said the offer was rescinded after someone performed a Google search, which turned up the Free Press article, and other material on the DPS lawsuit against Hill, set for trial this summer. ...
The Republican chairman, Michael Steele, promised on taking office that he would bring the party to corners of America it had not reached before. It is a fair bet that most Republicans did not expect these corners to include the Voyeur West Hollywood, a bondage and S&M club in Los Angeles.
It emerged today that the Republicans spent almost $2,000 last month on a visit to the club where topless women hang from nets on the ceiling and simulate sex in a glass case.
The lavish spending will anger grassroots Republicans who are bombarded almost every day with more requests for contributions to help the cash-strapped party. A Republican National Committee spokesman said that it was looking into the matter. It insisted Steele was not at the club, but did not identify who had spent the money.
Such extravagance, in a time of recession and by the party that bills itself as fiscally conservative and reflecting family and Christian values, will renew questions about Steele's leadership.
The spending is disclosed in a Republican filing, as required by US law, to the Federal Election Commission.
It says that $1,946.25 (£1,300) was spent on 4 February for meals at the Voyeur West Hollywood by the Republican National Committee. ...
It emerged today that the Republicans spent almost $2,000 last month on a visit to the club where topless women hang from nets on the ceiling and simulate sex in a glass case.
The lavish spending will anger grassroots Republicans who are bombarded almost every day with more requests for contributions to help the cash-strapped party. A Republican National Committee spokesman said that it was looking into the matter. It insisted Steele was not at the club, but did not identify who had spent the money.
Such extravagance, in a time of recession and by the party that bills itself as fiscally conservative and reflecting family and Christian values, will renew questions about Steele's leadership.
The spending is disclosed in a Republican filing, as required by US law, to the Federal Election Commission.
It says that $1,946.25 (£1,300) was spent on 4 February for meals at the Voyeur West Hollywood by the Republican National Committee. ...
A nonprofit run by Kwame Kilpatrick's family paid more than $100,000 to a consulting firm formed by Christine Beatty after she resigned as his chief of staff during the text message scandal.
State records show that Beatty incorporated Maiyen Consulting the morning of Jan. 28, 2008 -- within hours of resigning from her $142,813 a year city job.
A federal tax report filed by the Kilpatrick Civic Fund says the fund -- whose mission was voter education and community improvement -- paid at least $100,000 to Maiyen Consulting as a "publication and print consultant." The report does not list the exact amount paid to the firm.
Beatty, who pleaded guilty to two felony charges in the text message scandal but refused to cooperate with prosecutors investigating Kilpatrick, didn't respond to requests for comment Wednesday.
Her lawyer, Mayer Morganroth, said Beatty was hired to work on publications for the civic fund and spent some of her fee on subcontractors, including printers. He said Beatty disclosed the payments to probation officials in her criminal case and declared it on her tax return.
In light of the Free Press' findings, the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office plans to examine the civic fund's dealings with Maiyen Consulting.
"There was some preliminary research regarding this particular consulting contract, however, we focused on other matters connected to the civic fund," prosecutor spokeswoman Maria Miller said Wednesday. "Given this information, we will be looking into this further." ...
State records show that Beatty incorporated Maiyen Consulting the morning of Jan. 28, 2008 -- within hours of resigning from her $142,813 a year city job.
A federal tax report filed by the Kilpatrick Civic Fund says the fund -- whose mission was voter education and community improvement -- paid at least $100,000 to Maiyen Consulting as a "publication and print consultant." The report does not list the exact amount paid to the firm.
Beatty, who pleaded guilty to two felony charges in the text message scandal but refused to cooperate with prosecutors investigating Kilpatrick, didn't respond to requests for comment Wednesday.
Her lawyer, Mayer Morganroth, said Beatty was hired to work on publications for the civic fund and spent some of her fee on subcontractors, including printers. He said Beatty disclosed the payments to probation officials in her criminal case and declared it on her tax return.
In light of the Free Press' findings, the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office plans to examine the civic fund's dealings with Maiyen Consulting.
"There was some preliminary research regarding this particular consulting contract, however, we focused on other matters connected to the civic fund," prosecutor spokeswoman Maria Miller said Wednesday. "Given this information, we will be looking into this further." ...
Last Updated: March 26. 2010 1:00AM
Ex-Kilpatrick aide Beatty under scrutiny over civic fund contract
Prosecutors give her 90 days before review of her restitution
Doug Guthrie and Mike Wilkinson / The Detroit News
Detroit --Wayne County prosecutors who put Kwame Kilpatrick's personal finances under a microscope at a probation violation hearing this week are giving the former mayor's criminal co-defendant and lover Christine Beatty 90 days before also reviewing her ability to pay restitution.
Kilpatrick's high lifestyle in Texas and claims that he is unable to meet the court's demands for payment on $1 million restitution have been spotlighted in court by Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy. Meanwhile, Beatty, who promised to pay the city $100,000, has faced no public pressure from authorities while paying just $2,302 so far. She was allowed in January to move to Georgia to search for work.
"Christine Beatty recently moved to Atlanta to begin a new job. We will review her case in 90 days," Assistant Prosecutor Maria Miller said about the possibility of asking her sentencing judge for a restitution hearing where Beatty's ability to start making regular payments would be established.
"Until then, she will continue being supervised by probation authorities there (in Georgia)," Miller said.
Both Beatty and Kilpatrick pleaded guilty to felony charges of obstruction of justice for committing perjury during a 2007 trial. Their extramarital affair was revealed in Kilpatrick's infamous text messages. Both went to jail and both promised to pay the city hefty restitution.
Beatty, who now lives in a condominium near the heart of Atlanta, has made seven payments toward her $100,000 restitution. Her last payment of $350 was made Jan. 4, a week before she asked permission of the court to move. No more payments have been made since, according to Wayne Circuit Court records. ...
Ex-Kilpatrick aide Beatty under scrutiny over civic fund contract
Prosecutors give her 90 days before review of her restitution
Doug Guthrie and Mike Wilkinson / The Detroit News
Detroit --Wayne County prosecutors who put Kwame Kilpatrick's personal finances under a microscope at a probation violation hearing this week are giving the former mayor's criminal co-defendant and lover Christine Beatty 90 days before also reviewing her ability to pay restitution.
Kilpatrick's high lifestyle in Texas and claims that he is unable to meet the court's demands for payment on $1 million restitution have been spotlighted in court by Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy. Meanwhile, Beatty, who promised to pay the city $100,000, has faced no public pressure from authorities while paying just $2,302 so far. She was allowed in January to move to Georgia to search for work.
"Christine Beatty recently moved to Atlanta to begin a new job. We will review her case in 90 days," Assistant Prosecutor Maria Miller said about the possibility of asking her sentencing judge for a restitution hearing where Beatty's ability to start making regular payments would be established.
"Until then, she will continue being supervised by probation authorities there (in Georgia)," Miller said.
Both Beatty and Kilpatrick pleaded guilty to felony charges of obstruction of justice for committing perjury during a 2007 trial. Their extramarital affair was revealed in Kilpatrick's infamous text messages. Both went to jail and both promised to pay the city hefty restitution.
Beatty, who now lives in a condominium near the heart of Atlanta, has made seven payments toward her $100,000 restitution. Her last payment of $350 was made Jan. 4, a week before she asked permission of the court to move. No more payments have been made since, according to Wayne Circuit Court records. ...
... In Detroit, there have been no charges to date from the East Coast sting, but federal documents portray the father of former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and a mayoral aide as front men in a deal that would have resulted in payoffs to the Detroiters in exchange for the city hiring the fake company.
The deal never went through. But documents contend that over a period of months in 2007, Bernard Kilpatrick, mayoral aide Marc Cunningham and others were eagerly courted by officials with Coastal Solutions. Cunningham allegedly had Coastal Solutions send a $3,000 Super Bowl ticket to him at City Hall.
Bernard Kilpatrick's meetings with Coastal took him from the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City to a championship fight in Las Vegas. Also in Vegas were Kwame Kilpatrick and Cunningham.
After the fight, the documents say, Cunningham left a voice mail with Coastal Solutions saying Kwame Kilpatrick favored the deal. The FBI interpreted that to mean the mayor and others were willing to do a deal in return for bribes.
Bernard Kilpatrick did not return messages over recent weeks. James Thomas, a criminal attorney for Kwame Kilpatrick, said: "Mr. Kilpatrick has not been charged and to my knowledge, he's not been indicted. Of course, he denies the allegations. It's always been my practice that I'd rather discuss this case in court, if it comes to that."
Cunningham, the mayoral aide, could not be reached for comment. Cunningham quit his job in July 2008, on the same day the Free Press reported that a cell phone assigned to him had been tapped by federal agents. Cunningham said then that he quit to pursue other opportunities.
The FBI briefly listened in on conversations on that phone in June 2007. By then, the sting operation using Coastal Solutions was in full swing. ...
The deal never went through. But documents contend that over a period of months in 2007, Bernard Kilpatrick, mayoral aide Marc Cunningham and others were eagerly courted by officials with Coastal Solutions. Cunningham allegedly had Coastal Solutions send a $3,000 Super Bowl ticket to him at City Hall.
Bernard Kilpatrick's meetings with Coastal took him from the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City to a championship fight in Las Vegas. Also in Vegas were Kwame Kilpatrick and Cunningham.
After the fight, the documents say, Cunningham left a voice mail with Coastal Solutions saying Kwame Kilpatrick favored the deal. The FBI interpreted that to mean the mayor and others were willing to do a deal in return for bribes.
Bernard Kilpatrick did not return messages over recent weeks. James Thomas, a criminal attorney for Kwame Kilpatrick, said: "Mr. Kilpatrick has not been charged and to my knowledge, he's not been indicted. Of course, he denies the allegations. It's always been my practice that I'd rather discuss this case in court, if it comes to that."
Cunningham, the mayoral aide, could not be reached for comment. Cunningham quit his job in July 2008, on the same day the Free Press reported that a cell phone assigned to him had been tapped by federal agents. Cunningham said then that he quit to pursue other opportunities.
The FBI briefly listened in on conversations on that phone in June 2007. By then, the sting operation using Coastal Solutions was in full swing. ...
I briefly knew the guy ferguson threatened; we were kids.
... The Free Press has learned that at least nine businesspeople have testified to a grand jury or told federal investigators in interviews that they paid Bernard Kilpatrick, who ran a consulting firm called Maestro Associates, tens of thousands of dollars to try to get contracts from the city run by his son, former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.
FBI agents don't believe Bernard Kilpatrick actually was consulting. They think he was paid for access to Detroit's mayor.
The revelations, from documents and interviews by the Free Press, paint the most detailed portrait yet of the slow-building, cat-and-mouse game between FBI agents and their quarry.
They detail payoffs and perks that investigators say Bernard Kilpatrick received from contractors and other people seeking city business, including tickets to a prizefight in Las Vegas, Cristal champagne and a $7,000 discount on a leased Cadillac Escalade.
The investigation, some five years old, is still ongoing. There have been no charges against either Kilpatrick in the federal corruption probe. Kwame Kilpatrick declined to comment when reached on his cell phone Friday. Bernard Kilpatrick didn't respond to requests for comment in recent weeks.
The FBI has not gone away. ...
FBI agents don't believe Bernard Kilpatrick actually was consulting. They think he was paid for access to Detroit's mayor.
The revelations, from documents and interviews by the Free Press, paint the most detailed portrait yet of the slow-building, cat-and-mouse game between FBI agents and their quarry.
They detail payoffs and perks that investigators say Bernard Kilpatrick received from contractors and other people seeking city business, including tickets to a prizefight in Las Vegas, Cristal champagne and a $7,000 discount on a leased Cadillac Escalade.
The investigation, some five years old, is still ongoing. There have been no charges against either Kilpatrick in the federal corruption probe. Kwame Kilpatrick declined to comment when reached on his cell phone Friday. Bernard Kilpatrick didn't respond to requests for comment in recent weeks.
The FBI has not gone away. ...
Last Updated: March 22. 2010 1:00AM
N.J. FBI case led to Detroit
Ex-mayor's father linked to two corruption investigations in 2007
Paul Egan / The Detroit News
Detroit -- The father of former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was a subject of not just one -- but two -- FBI public corruption investigations in 2007.
FBI agents investigating political corruption in New Jersey followed leads in late 2006 that led them to Bernard N. Kilpatrick and raising concerns about upsetting a separate probe by the FBI in Detroit, a person familiar with the investigation said Sunday.
Bernard Kilpatrick had been under investigation by the FBI in Detroit for about two years when he came to the attention of FBI agents in New Jersey conducting Operation Broken Boards, a corruption probe that would lead to convictions of 14 New Jersey officials, including state assemblymen and school board officials.
The New Jersey FBI snagged corrupt politicians by setting up a dummy company called Coastal Solutions LLC and offering bribes in return for insurance-related contracts.
Those agents were put in touch with Marc Andre Cunningham, a former Kilpatrick aide, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported in 2007. Cunningham, who was a fraternity brother of Kilpatrick and former city treasurer and pension fund official Jeff Beasley at Florida A&M University, left City Hall in 2008 after media reports said his phone had been briefly tapped by the FBI. ...
... Both Kilpatricks remain under federal investigation in Detroit, amid allegations they were involved in a "pay to play" scheme in which contractors seeking city work were pressured to hire Bernard Kilpatrick as a consultant or make other illegal payments. Former Cobo Center contractor Karl Kado has told federal officials he made close to $100,000 in illegal payments to Kwame Kilpatrick and paid close to $300,000 to Kilpatrick's father, according to court records and a person familiar with the investigation.
Bernard Kilpatrick has not returned phone calls. James C. Thomas, an attorney for Kwame Kilpatrick, has denied his client took illegal payments from Kado.
Also Sunday, Detroit-area contractor Andrew Housey confirmed an incident in 2003 at a political fundraiser for Kilpatrick in which contractor and close Kilpatrick friend Bobby Ferguson allegedly threatened Housey with a handgun. ...
N.J. FBI case led to Detroit
Ex-mayor's father linked to two corruption investigations in 2007
Paul Egan / The Detroit News
Detroit -- The father of former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was a subject of not just one -- but two -- FBI public corruption investigations in 2007.
FBI agents investigating political corruption in New Jersey followed leads in late 2006 that led them to Bernard N. Kilpatrick and raising concerns about upsetting a separate probe by the FBI in Detroit, a person familiar with the investigation said Sunday.
Bernard Kilpatrick had been under investigation by the FBI in Detroit for about two years when he came to the attention of FBI agents in New Jersey conducting Operation Broken Boards, a corruption probe that would lead to convictions of 14 New Jersey officials, including state assemblymen and school board officials.
The New Jersey FBI snagged corrupt politicians by setting up a dummy company called Coastal Solutions LLC and offering bribes in return for insurance-related contracts.
Those agents were put in touch with Marc Andre Cunningham, a former Kilpatrick aide, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported in 2007. Cunningham, who was a fraternity brother of Kilpatrick and former city treasurer and pension fund official Jeff Beasley at Florida A&M University, left City Hall in 2008 after media reports said his phone had been briefly tapped by the FBI. ...
... Both Kilpatricks remain under federal investigation in Detroit, amid allegations they were involved in a "pay to play" scheme in which contractors seeking city work were pressured to hire Bernard Kilpatrick as a consultant or make other illegal payments. Former Cobo Center contractor Karl Kado has told federal officials he made close to $100,000 in illegal payments to Kwame Kilpatrick and paid close to $300,000 to Kilpatrick's father, according to court records and a person familiar with the investigation.
Bernard Kilpatrick has not returned phone calls. James C. Thomas, an attorney for Kwame Kilpatrick, has denied his client took illegal payments from Kado.
Also Sunday, Detroit-area contractor Andrew Housey confirmed an incident in 2003 at a political fundraiser for Kilpatrick in which contractor and close Kilpatrick friend Bobby Ferguson allegedly threatened Housey with a handgun. ...
Posted: March 6, 2010
Will Kilpatrick face jail time?
Some say it is possible, but there are defenses
BY BEN SCHMITT and JIM SCHAEFER
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS
... "It seems that Judge Groner has lost his patience with Mr. Kilpatrick," Dubin said. "Judge Groner, in his opinions, has expressed the fact that the court has been offended by the nature of Kilpatrick's testimony, or the disingenuousness of Kilpatrick's testimony. For those reasons, the possibility of sending him to jail for a period of time so that he can contemplate the seriousness of abiding by his terms of probation seems real."
The state Court of Appeals said Kilpatrick and his lawyers do have defenses.
"At the probation violation hearings, defendant can raise the issue of ability to pay," Presiding Judge Karen Fort Hood wrote.
But Kilpatrick still could be in trouble over other allegations including: that he failed to provide a complete financial accounting for himself and his wife, Carlita Kilpatrick; did not surrender all tax refunds as ordered by the court, and did not disclose any gifts or benefits as ordered by the court.
Kilpatrick testified during previous restitution hearings that he received $240,000 in loans from local businessmen Peter Karmanos, Roger Penske, Dan Gilbert and Jim Nicholson.
"The trial court did not abuse its discretion by concluding that the $240,000 transfer of the loan from the defendant to his wife constituted a fraudulent conveyance," the appellate judges wrote.
In 2008, Kilpatrick pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice and no contest to assault, and resigned from office.
The plea came after the Free Press broke the text message scandal in January 2008 with a series of stories showing that Kilpatrick and his former chief of staff Christine Beatty perjured themselves during a 2007 civil whistle-blowers trial involving police officers.
Kilpatrick served 99 days in jail and was ordered to pay $1 million in restitution to the City of Detroit. He lives in a Dallas suburb and works at a $120,000-a-year sales job for Covisint, a subsidiary of Detroit-based Compuware. ...
Will Kilpatrick face jail time?
Some say it is possible, but there are defenses
BY BEN SCHMITT and JIM SCHAEFER
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS
... "It seems that Judge Groner has lost his patience with Mr. Kilpatrick," Dubin said. "Judge Groner, in his opinions, has expressed the fact that the court has been offended by the nature of Kilpatrick's testimony, or the disingenuousness of Kilpatrick's testimony. For those reasons, the possibility of sending him to jail for a period of time so that he can contemplate the seriousness of abiding by his terms of probation seems real."
The state Court of Appeals said Kilpatrick and his lawyers do have defenses.
"At the probation violation hearings, defendant can raise the issue of ability to pay," Presiding Judge Karen Fort Hood wrote.
But Kilpatrick still could be in trouble over other allegations including: that he failed to provide a complete financial accounting for himself and his wife, Carlita Kilpatrick; did not surrender all tax refunds as ordered by the court, and did not disclose any gifts or benefits as ordered by the court.
Kilpatrick testified during previous restitution hearings that he received $240,000 in loans from local businessmen Peter Karmanos, Roger Penske, Dan Gilbert and Jim Nicholson.
"The trial court did not abuse its discretion by concluding that the $240,000 transfer of the loan from the defendant to his wife constituted a fraudulent conveyance," the appellate judges wrote.
In 2008, Kilpatrick pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice and no contest to assault, and resigned from office.
The plea came after the Free Press broke the text message scandal in January 2008 with a series of stories showing that Kilpatrick and his former chief of staff Christine Beatty perjured themselves during a 2007 civil whistle-blowers trial involving police officers.
Kilpatrick served 99 days in jail and was ordered to pay $1 million in restitution to the City of Detroit. He lives in a Dallas suburb and works at a $120,000-a-year sales job for Covisint, a subsidiary of Detroit-based Compuware. ...
February 24. 2010 1:00AM
Judge expected to expand charges against Kilpatrick
Doug Guthrie / The Detroit News
Detroit --When former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick returns from Texas on Friday for arraignment on criminal probation violation charges, he will face far more accusations than missing a single restitution payment.
Wayne County prosecutors Tuesday were ordered by Circuit Judge David Groner to assist Michigan Department of Corrections authorities in expanding the single charge recommended by agents overseeing Kilpatrick's probation to include numerous alleged violations revealed during six days of recent hearings on Kilpatrick's finances.
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy's spokeswoman, Maria Miller, declined to provide details, but legal experts say the charges could include perjury and fraud.
"We are prepared to proceed on Friday," Miller said. "We have assisted the probation department in their preparation of the warrant. The allegations will be contained in that petition."
With the charges broadened beyond Kilpatrick's failure to meet a deadline last week to pay $79,000 toward the $1 million restitution in the text message scandal, his lawyers' efforts to get the Michigan Court of Appeals to overturn Groner's recent restitution orders will likely have no impact on the coming proceedings, said Curt Benson, professor at Cooley School of Law. The higher court is likely to focus only on Kilpatrick's complaint that the judge overstepped his authority in ordering him to make more than $300,000 in accelerated restitution payments, because he determined Kilpatrick hid assets from the court.
The Court of Appeals agreed to consider Kilpatrick's appeal, but only after receiving transcripts of the lengthy restitution hearings. Groner's court reporter has almost a month to prepare the transcripts. The appeals court refused to delay payment deadlines. The first deadline, for $79,011, passed last Friday. The second, for $240,000, comes in April. ...
Judge expected to expand charges against Kilpatrick
Doug Guthrie / The Detroit News
Detroit --When former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick returns from Texas on Friday for arraignment on criminal probation violation charges, he will face far more accusations than missing a single restitution payment.
Wayne County prosecutors Tuesday were ordered by Circuit Judge David Groner to assist Michigan Department of Corrections authorities in expanding the single charge recommended by agents overseeing Kilpatrick's probation to include numerous alleged violations revealed during six days of recent hearings on Kilpatrick's finances.
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy's spokeswoman, Maria Miller, declined to provide details, but legal experts say the charges could include perjury and fraud.
"We are prepared to proceed on Friday," Miller said. "We have assisted the probation department in their preparation of the warrant. The allegations will be contained in that petition."
With the charges broadened beyond Kilpatrick's failure to meet a deadline last week to pay $79,000 toward the $1 million restitution in the text message scandal, his lawyers' efforts to get the Michigan Court of Appeals to overturn Groner's recent restitution orders will likely have no impact on the coming proceedings, said Curt Benson, professor at Cooley School of Law. The higher court is likely to focus only on Kilpatrick's complaint that the judge overstepped his authority in ordering him to make more than $300,000 in accelerated restitution payments, because he determined Kilpatrick hid assets from the court.
The Court of Appeals agreed to consider Kilpatrick's appeal, but only after receiving transcripts of the lengthy restitution hearings. Groner's court reporter has almost a month to prepare the transcripts. The appeals court refused to delay payment deadlines. The first deadline, for $79,011, passed last Friday. The second, for $240,000, comes in April. ...
Posted: Feb. 21, 2010
Feds have evidence ex-Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick took bribes
Contractor said Kilpatrick got up to $100K, his father up to $290K; Kilpatrick's lawyer says he knows nothing of bribery accusation
BY JENNIFER DIXON and JIM SCHAEFER
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS
A contractor who pleaded guilty in an ongoing corruption probe in Detroit has told investigators that he handed as much as $100,000 in bribes to then-Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick in 2002, according to interviews and sworn documents reviewed by the Free Press.
The contractor, Karl Kado of West Bloomfield, also told the FBI he paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to the mayor's father, and thousands more to a close mayoral aide, according to the records and interviews.
Kado told authorities he paid Kwame Kilpatrick in four or five installments of about $20,000 each. Kado, who is awaiting sentencing for paying bribes to protect multimillion-dollar Cobo Center contracts, said he sometimes delivered the money in envelopes to Kilpatrick's office on the 11th floor at City Hall, and sometimes Kilpatrick dropped by Cobo to get the cash.
The allegations are significant because they show, for the first time, that the government has secured the cooperation of someone who says he gave payoffs directly to Kilpatrick.
Authorities obtained the information as part of a years-long, complex and wide-ranging investigation in Detroit and Southfield that has produced a series of public corruption charges and 10 guilty pleas.
In pursuing Kilpatrick, investigators tracked cash moving in and out of bank accounts and wiretapped the phone of his father, among others, while slowly trying to build a case.
FBI agents also contend in sworn statements that they have grounds to believe Kilpatrick and his associates used the mayor's office to run a criminal enterprise, a term the FBI reserves for organized crime and racketeering cases. ...
Feds have evidence ex-Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick took bribes
Contractor said Kilpatrick got up to $100K, his father up to $290K; Kilpatrick's lawyer says he knows nothing of bribery accusation
BY JENNIFER DIXON and JIM SCHAEFER
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS
A contractor who pleaded guilty in an ongoing corruption probe in Detroit has told investigators that he handed as much as $100,000 in bribes to then-Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick in 2002, according to interviews and sworn documents reviewed by the Free Press.
The contractor, Karl Kado of West Bloomfield, also told the FBI he paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to the mayor's father, and thousands more to a close mayoral aide, according to the records and interviews.
Kado told authorities he paid Kwame Kilpatrick in four or five installments of about $20,000 each. Kado, who is awaiting sentencing for paying bribes to protect multimillion-dollar Cobo Center contracts, said he sometimes delivered the money in envelopes to Kilpatrick's office on the 11th floor at City Hall, and sometimes Kilpatrick dropped by Cobo to get the cash.
The allegations are significant because they show, for the first time, that the government has secured the cooperation of someone who says he gave payoffs directly to Kilpatrick.
Authorities obtained the information as part of a years-long, complex and wide-ranging investigation in Detroit and Southfield that has produced a series of public corruption charges and 10 guilty pleas.
In pursuing Kilpatrick, investigators tracked cash moving in and out of bank accounts and wiretapped the phone of his father, among others, while slowly trying to build a case.
FBI agents also contend in sworn statements that they have grounds to believe Kilpatrick and his associates used the mayor's office to run a criminal enterprise, a term the FBI reserves for organized crime and racketeering cases. ...
Last Updated: February 22. 2010 1:00AM
Feds plan Kilpatrick charges
Ex-mayor, dad expected to face felonies in 'pay to play' probe
Paul Egan / The Detroit News
Detroit -- Federal officials are preparing felony charges against former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his father, business consultant Bernard N. Kilpatrick, The Detroit News has learned.
For at least five years, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office have been investigating an alleged "pay to play" system at City Hall under Kilpatrick and allegations that contractors wanting City Hall business were directed to hire the former mayor's father as a consultant.
Now there are new allegations that former Cobo Center contractor Karl Kado, who has been cooperating with the FBI since 2005, not only paid close to $300,000 to the mayor's father but made about $100,000 in illegal cash payments directly to the former mayor.
Those allegations are contained in sworn statements that are part of the evidence in the wide-ranging corruption probe, a person familiar with the investigation said Sunday. Charges are expected against both Kwame Kilpatrick and his father, though the timing and specific nature of those charges are still being determined, the source said.
It's the first time a source close to the investigation has said corruption charges against the former mayor are planned, though there have been strong signals Kilpatrick was the ultimate target of a long-running investigation that has netted nine guilty pleas.
A federal grand jury has subpoenaed records and testimony related to possible abuses in fundraising and expenditures connected with the former mayor's nonprofit foundation, the Kilpatrick Civic Fund, and possible felony income tax violations are being examined, people familiar with the investigation said. ...
Feds plan Kilpatrick charges
Ex-mayor, dad expected to face felonies in 'pay to play' probe
Paul Egan / The Detroit News
Detroit -- Federal officials are preparing felony charges against former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his father, business consultant Bernard N. Kilpatrick, The Detroit News has learned.
For at least five years, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office have been investigating an alleged "pay to play" system at City Hall under Kilpatrick and allegations that contractors wanting City Hall business were directed to hire the former mayor's father as a consultant.
Now there are new allegations that former Cobo Center contractor Karl Kado, who has been cooperating with the FBI since 2005, not only paid close to $300,000 to the mayor's father but made about $100,000 in illegal cash payments directly to the former mayor.
Those allegations are contained in sworn statements that are part of the evidence in the wide-ranging corruption probe, a person familiar with the investigation said Sunday. Charges are expected against both Kwame Kilpatrick and his father, though the timing and specific nature of those charges are still being determined, the source said.
It's the first time a source close to the investigation has said corruption charges against the former mayor are planned, though there have been strong signals Kilpatrick was the ultimate target of a long-running investigation that has netted nine guilty pleas.
A federal grand jury has subpoenaed records and testimony related to possible abuses in fundraising and expenditures connected with the former mayor's nonprofit foundation, the Kilpatrick Civic Fund, and possible felony income tax violations are being examined, people familiar with the investigation said. ...
The troubled American private security company Blackwater faced fresh controversy today when two former employees accused it of defrauding the US government for years, including billing for a Filipina prostitute on its payroll in Afghanistan.
According to Melan Davis, a former employee, Blackwater listed the woman for payment under the "morale welfare recreation" category.
The company, which allegedly employed her in Kabul, billed the government for her plane tickets and monthly salary, Davis said.
Blackwater, renamed Xe last year apparently because of the bad publicity attached to its original name, is among the biggest private security firms employed by the state department and Pentagon in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The most notorious incident involving Blackwater was the shooting of 17 Iraqis in Baghdad in 2007. Charges against Blackwater employees in the US over the incident were dropped last year, prompting the Iraqi government to order hundreds of its security staff out of the country within the next few days.
The latest accusations are contained in court records that have been recently unsealed and reveal details of a lawsuit by Davis and her husband, Brad, who both worked for Blackwater. According to Associated Press, the records say they had personal knowledge of the company falsifying invoices, double-billing federal agencies and charging the government for personal and inappropriate items whose real purpose was hidden.
They said they witnessed "systematic" fraud on the company's security contracts with the state department in Iraq and Afghanistan, and with the department of homeland security and federal emergency management agency in Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina. ...
According to Melan Davis, a former employee, Blackwater listed the woman for payment under the "morale welfare recreation" category.
The company, which allegedly employed her in Kabul, billed the government for her plane tickets and monthly salary, Davis said.
Blackwater, renamed Xe last year apparently because of the bad publicity attached to its original name, is among the biggest private security firms employed by the state department and Pentagon in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The most notorious incident involving Blackwater was the shooting of 17 Iraqis in Baghdad in 2007. Charges against Blackwater employees in the US over the incident were dropped last year, prompting the Iraqi government to order hundreds of its security staff out of the country within the next few days.
The latest accusations are contained in court records that have been recently unsealed and reveal details of a lawsuit by Davis and her husband, Brad, who both worked for Blackwater. According to Associated Press, the records say they had personal knowledge of the company falsifying invoices, double-billing federal agencies and charging the government for personal and inappropriate items whose real purpose was hidden.
They said they witnessed "systematic" fraud on the company's security contracts with the state department in Iraq and Afghanistan, and with the department of homeland security and federal emergency management agency in Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina. ...
Three Labour MPs and one Tory peer face expenses abuse charges
Keir Starmer announces Elliot Morley, David Chaytor, Jim Devine and Lord Hanningfield will be charged with fraudulently claiming expenses
Andrew Sparrow
Friday 5 February 2010
Three Labour MPs and a Tory peer will be charged with false accounting in relation to their parliamentary expenses, it was announced today.
Keir Starmer, the director of public prosecutions, revealed that Elliot Morley, a former minister, David Chaytor, the MP for Bury North, Jim Devine, the MP for Livingston, and Lord Hanningfield, a former Conservative business spokesman, will be charged under the Theft Act.
Morley, Chaytor and Devine are Labour MPs; Hanningfield is a Conservative peer and was leader of Essex county council until he resigned this afternoon following the statement from the DPP. Starmer said the four would be charged with offences under section 17 of the Theft Act relating to false accounting.
Starmer said the four were being charged following a "careful and detailed" police investigation and that the CPS had reviewed the files carefully before deciding there was "sufficient evidence to bring criminal charges". ...
Keir Starmer announces Elliot Morley, David Chaytor, Jim Devine and Lord Hanningfield will be charged with fraudulently claiming expenses
Andrew Sparrow
Friday 5 February 2010
Three Labour MPs and a Tory peer will be charged with false accounting in relation to their parliamentary expenses, it was announced today.
Keir Starmer, the director of public prosecutions, revealed that Elliot Morley, a former minister, David Chaytor, the MP for Bury North, Jim Devine, the MP for Livingston, and Lord Hanningfield, a former Conservative business spokesman, will be charged under the Theft Act.
Morley, Chaytor and Devine are Labour MPs; Hanningfield is a Conservative peer and was leader of Essex county council until he resigned this afternoon following the statement from the DPP. Starmer said the four would be charged with offences under section 17 of the Theft Act relating to false accounting.
Starmer said the four were being charged following a "careful and detailed" police investigation and that the CPS had reviewed the files carefully before deciding there was "sufficient evidence to bring criminal charges". ...
February 6, 2010
Accused MPs argue they are above the law
Sam Coates and Francis Elliott
Three Labour MPs charged yesterday with theft over fraudulent expense claims declared that they were above the law and would fight attempts to put them on trial.
Elliot Morley, David Chaytor and Jim Devine each face up to seven years in jail after Keir Starmer, QC, the Director of Public Prosecutions, announced that he was charging them under the Theft Act 1968.
Lord Hanningfield, the Tory frontbencher and leader of Essex County Council, faces six charges over his expense claims.
In a joint statement, the three MPs announced that they would fight the charges by claiming parliamentary privilege over their expense claims. It said: “We maintain that this is an issue that should be resolved by the parliamentary commissioner, who is there to enforce any breach of the rules.” ...
Accused MPs argue they are above the law
Sam Coates and Francis Elliott
Three Labour MPs charged yesterday with theft over fraudulent expense claims declared that they were above the law and would fight attempts to put them on trial.
Elliot Morley, David Chaytor and Jim Devine each face up to seven years in jail after Keir Starmer, QC, the Director of Public Prosecutions, announced that he was charging them under the Theft Act 1968.
Lord Hanningfield, the Tory frontbencher and leader of Essex County Council, faces six charges over his expense claims.
In a joint statement, the three MPs announced that they would fight the charges by claiming parliamentary privilege over their expense claims. It said: “We maintain that this is an issue that should be resolved by the parliamentary commissioner, who is there to enforce any breach of the rules.” ...
Expenses claims: MPs not above the law, say legal experts
Lawyers say bid to test legal immunity in the courts will fail because alleged offences at Westminster are criminal deeds
Afua Hirsch
Friday 5 February 2010
Senior legal figures say there is no basis for MPs and peers to be above the law following the statement by the director of public prosecutions, Keir Starmer, saying the four parliamentarians charged over expenses claims had raised a defence of parliamentary privilege.
"We have considered that question and concluded that the applicability and extent of any parliamentary privilege claimed should be tested in court," Starmer said when announcing charges today.
Hugh Tomlinson QC, at Matrix chambers, said: "MPs don't enjoy any kind of immunity from the ordinary criminal law. It seems to me that any privilege arguments are unlikely to be successful because the alleged offences are in substance just ordinary criminal offences. They are no different from the kind of offences any member of the public could also be accused of through their work." ...
Lawyers say bid to test legal immunity in the courts will fail because alleged offences at Westminster are criminal deeds
Afua Hirsch
Friday 5 February 2010
Senior legal figures say there is no basis for MPs and peers to be above the law following the statement by the director of public prosecutions, Keir Starmer, saying the four parliamentarians charged over expenses claims had raised a defence of parliamentary privilege.
"We have considered that question and concluded that the applicability and extent of any parliamentary privilege claimed should be tested in court," Starmer said when announcing charges today.
Hugh Tomlinson QC, at Matrix chambers, said: "MPs don't enjoy any kind of immunity from the ordinary criminal law. It seems to me that any privilege arguments are unlikely to be successful because the alleged offences are in substance just ordinary criminal offences. They are no different from the kind of offences any member of the public could also be accused of through their work." ...
BAE deal with Tanzania: Military air traffic control – for country with no airforce
Claire Short and Robin Cook had tried to stop the sale of a hugely expensive radar to the poverty- stricken Tanzanians
Rob Evans and Paul Lewis
Saturday 6 February 2010
Tony Blair was at the centre of controversy over BAE's arms deal with Tanzania, just as he was in the Saudi contracts.
Cabinet ministers Claire Short and Robin Cook had tried to stop the sale of the hugely expensive radar to the poverty- stricken Tanzanians. But, as prime minister, he overruled them and insisted that the deal had to go through.
It left Cook ruefully muttering that it seemed that Dick Evans, BAE's then chairman, seemed to have "the key to the garden door of No 10".
The World Bank and the International Civil Aviation Organisation judged that the 2001 purchase was unnecessary and overpriced.
But the £28m deal started to look even worse when the SFO discovered that a third of the contract's price had been diverted into secret offshore bank accounts.
The SFO believed that this money was used to pay bribes to Tanzanian politicians and officials.
Yesterday Short, who resigned from the government, said : "Every way you looked at it, it [the deal] was outrageous and disgraceful. And guess who absolutely insisted on it going through? My dear friend Tony Blair, who absolutely, adamantly, favoured all proposals for arms deals.
"It was an obviously corrupt project. Tanzania didn't need a new military air traffic control, it was out-of-date technology, they didn't have any military aircraft – they needed a civilian air traffic control system and there was a modern, much cheaper one. Everyone talks about good governance in Africa as though it is an African problem, and often the roots of the 'badness' is companies in Europe." ...
Claire Short and Robin Cook had tried to stop the sale of a hugely expensive radar to the poverty- stricken Tanzanians
Rob Evans and Paul Lewis
Saturday 6 February 2010
Tony Blair was at the centre of controversy over BAE's arms deal with Tanzania, just as he was in the Saudi contracts.
Cabinet ministers Claire Short and Robin Cook had tried to stop the sale of the hugely expensive radar to the poverty- stricken Tanzanians. But, as prime minister, he overruled them and insisted that the deal had to go through.
It left Cook ruefully muttering that it seemed that Dick Evans, BAE's then chairman, seemed to have "the key to the garden door of No 10".
The World Bank and the International Civil Aviation Organisation judged that the 2001 purchase was unnecessary and overpriced.
But the £28m deal started to look even worse when the SFO discovered that a third of the contract's price had been diverted into secret offshore bank accounts.
The SFO believed that this money was used to pay bribes to Tanzanian politicians and officials.
Yesterday Short, who resigned from the government, said : "Every way you looked at it, it [the deal] was outrageous and disgraceful. And guess who absolutely insisted on it going through? My dear friend Tony Blair, who absolutely, adamantly, favoured all proposals for arms deals.
"It was an obviously corrupt project. Tanzania didn't need a new military air traffic control, it was out-of-date technology, they didn't have any military aircraft – they needed a civilian air traffic control system and there was a modern, much cheaper one. Everyone talks about good governance in Africa as though it is an African problem, and often the roots of the 'badness' is companies in Europe." ...
Perseverance and bluff – how the legal deal was done that sees BAE pay £285m fines
That the arms giant has finally been forced to pay substantial penalties is due to the doggedness of a small group of prosecutors
David Leigh and Rob Evans
Friday 5 February 2010
Since the Guardian first exposed BAE's worldwide system of undercover payments to secure contracts in 2003, the company has fought hard to deny its guilt, using every lobbying tool at its disposal and exploiting its influence within the offices of the then prime minister, Tony Blair.
That the arms giant has finally been forced to pay substantial penalties is due to the doggedness of a small group of prosecutors, currently led by Richard Alderman, director of the Serious Fraud Office, and his US counterpart, Mark Mendelsohn, at the department of justice in Washington.
Alderman's predecessor, Robert Wardle, stepped down from his post at the SFO in 2008, a frustrated man, having seen BAE and its friends persuade Blair to intervene and force a halt to extensive and long running criminal inquiries into the £43bn al-Yamamah arms deal with Saudi Arabia.
But that turned out to be the high-water mark of BAE's political influence. The US authorities promptly picked up the Saudi case which Blair had claimed would be so damaging to Britain's "national security".
Washington officials were vigorously attempting to enforce their own Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and were long suspicious of BAE's surprising arms deals in the Czech Republic, about which they had vainly protested at the time.
Meanwhile Alderman, when he succeeded Wardle at the SFO, insisted he was no patsy. He ordered renewed investigations into BAE's remaining suspect contracts in Tanzania, South Africa, Romania and the Czech Republic. Alderman staked much of his credibility on attempts to change the lumbering SFO style of investigation. ...
That the arms giant has finally been forced to pay substantial penalties is due to the doggedness of a small group of prosecutors
David Leigh and Rob Evans
Friday 5 February 2010
Since the Guardian first exposed BAE's worldwide system of undercover payments to secure contracts in 2003, the company has fought hard to deny its guilt, using every lobbying tool at its disposal and exploiting its influence within the offices of the then prime minister, Tony Blair.
That the arms giant has finally been forced to pay substantial penalties is due to the doggedness of a small group of prosecutors, currently led by Richard Alderman, director of the Serious Fraud Office, and his US counterpart, Mark Mendelsohn, at the department of justice in Washington.
Alderman's predecessor, Robert Wardle, stepped down from his post at the SFO in 2008, a frustrated man, having seen BAE and its friends persuade Blair to intervene and force a halt to extensive and long running criminal inquiries into the £43bn al-Yamamah arms deal with Saudi Arabia.
But that turned out to be the high-water mark of BAE's political influence. The US authorities promptly picked up the Saudi case which Blair had claimed would be so damaging to Britain's "national security".
Washington officials were vigorously attempting to enforce their own Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and were long suspicious of BAE's surprising arms deals in the Czech Republic, about which they had vainly protested at the time.
Meanwhile Alderman, when he succeeded Wardle at the SFO, insisted he was no patsy. He ordered renewed investigations into BAE's remaining suspect contracts in Tanzania, South Africa, Romania and the Czech Republic. Alderman staked much of his credibility on attempts to change the lumbering SFO style of investigation. ...
January 22, 2010
Public support teenager who killed Communist Party leader Li Shiming
Jane Macartney in Beijing
Everybody hated Li Shiming. Those who got on the wrong side of the district Communist Party secretary, or challenged his bullying or arbitrary land seizures, could be beaten up or driven away by his hired thugs.
So when Zhang Xuping, 19, drove a knife into Li’s heart, killing him with a single thrust, there were few who mourned. Quite the opposite: more than 20,000 residents signed a petition appealing for leniency even though the murder had been plotted for two years.
The case, and the clamour surrounding it, illustrates one of the greatest challenges facing the regime: corruption and abuse of power.
Li lorded it over Xiashuixi, an arid mining region where farmers struggle to find water to grow vegetables to sustain themselves or corn to feed their pigs. His position as local party boss gave him the power to run the district like a fiefdom.
That came to an end when Li visited a school in September 2008 and was stabbed. The official could only muster enough strength to stagger to his Audi car before he collapsed and died.The teenager, who had made a careful study of anatomy so that could kill Mr Li with a single strike, confessed to the crime.
Zhang had been paid 1,000 yuan (£90) by Zhang Huping, 35, a farmer who had been harassed by the official for years. The farmer said that he had been detained routinely on trumped-up charges after he led a group of neighbours to seek redress from provincial authorities. They complained that Li had razed 28 acres of woodland without permission or compensation in 2003.
Many residents had a grievance with the haughty apparatchik. Xin Xiaomei, another villager, said: “I didn’t feel surprised at all when I heard that Li Shiming had been killed because people wanted to kill him a long time ago. I wanted to kill Li myself but I was too weak.” She said that Li had harassed her husband for years after a dispute. ...
Public support teenager who killed Communist Party leader Li Shiming
Jane Macartney in Beijing
Everybody hated Li Shiming. Those who got on the wrong side of the district Communist Party secretary, or challenged his bullying or arbitrary land seizures, could be beaten up or driven away by his hired thugs.
So when Zhang Xuping, 19, drove a knife into Li’s heart, killing him with a single thrust, there were few who mourned. Quite the opposite: more than 20,000 residents signed a petition appealing for leniency even though the murder had been plotted for two years.
The case, and the clamour surrounding it, illustrates one of the greatest challenges facing the regime: corruption and abuse of power.
Li lorded it over Xiashuixi, an arid mining region where farmers struggle to find water to grow vegetables to sustain themselves or corn to feed their pigs. His position as local party boss gave him the power to run the district like a fiefdom.
That came to an end when Li visited a school in September 2008 and was stabbed. The official could only muster enough strength to stagger to his Audi car before he collapsed and died.The teenager, who had made a careful study of anatomy so that could kill Mr Li with a single strike, confessed to the crime.
Zhang had been paid 1,000 yuan (£90) by Zhang Huping, 35, a farmer who had been harassed by the official for years. The farmer said that he had been detained routinely on trumped-up charges after he led a group of neighbours to seek redress from provincial authorities. They complained that Li had razed 28 acres of woodland without permission or compensation in 2003.
Many residents had a grievance with the haughty apparatchik. Xin Xiaomei, another villager, said: “I didn’t feel surprised at all when I heard that Li Shiming had been killed because people wanted to kill him a long time ago. I wanted to kill Li myself but I was too weak.” She said that Li had harassed her husband for years after a dispute. ...
... It is claimed they offered to pay a 20% "commission" as a bribe to win part of a $15m (£9.1m) deal to equip an African country's presidential guard. But a sales agent who they believed represented the defence minister was in fact an undercover FBI agent. No actual defence minister was involved.
During the two-and-a-half year investigation, which involved 250 FBI agents, it is claimed defendants sought to obtain contracts for the sale of a range of products including grenade and teargas launchers, pistols, ammunition and explosive detection kits.
Raids were carried out across the US, and by City of London police in seven parts of the UK, which they declined to name. All those arrested had been attending the 2010 Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade Show and Conference in Las Vegas.
Assistant attorney general Lanny Breuer said: "The fight to erase foreign bribery from the corporate playbook will not be won overnight, but these actions are a turning point."
Those arrested face charges under laws governing payments to foreign officials, and are also accused of corruption. These offences would involve a maximum prison sentence of five years. It is alleged they were involved in money laundering, which would carry a maximum prison sentence of 20 years.
All the accused are executives or employees of companies in the "military and law enforcement products industry", the Department of Justice said.
During the two-and-a-half year investigation, which involved 250 FBI agents, it is claimed defendants sought to obtain contracts for the sale of a range of products including grenade and teargas launchers, pistols, ammunition and explosive detection kits.
Raids were carried out across the US, and by City of London police in seven parts of the UK, which they declined to name. All those arrested had been attending the 2010 Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade Show and Conference in Las Vegas.
Assistant attorney general Lanny Breuer said: "The fight to erase foreign bribery from the corporate playbook will not be won overnight, but these actions are a turning point."
Those arrested face charges under laws governing payments to foreign officials, and are also accused of corruption. These offences would involve a maximum prison sentence of five years. It is alleged they were involved in money laundering, which would carry a maximum prison sentence of 20 years.
All the accused are executives or employees of companies in the "military and law enforcement products industry", the Department of Justice said.
The grand obstructionist party is at it again, girls and boys.
He said he expected the taxpayers would foot only half the bill.
WTF,politicos parasites?
WTF,
One of the FBI's top agents warned yesterday that corruption in the US was increasing and tearing at the fabric of society.
Special agent John Gillies, who has led major anti-corruption drives during his 27-year career with the bureau, focused his words primarily on crooked financiers and unscrupulous officials. ...
Can you say, 'greed?'
Can you say, 'capitalism?'
I knew you could.
Special agent John Gillies, who has led major anti-corruption drives during his 27-year career with the bureau, focused his words primarily on crooked financiers and unscrupulous officials. ...
Can you say, 'greed?'
Can you say, 'capitalism?'
I knew you could.
A convicted hitman-turned-supergrass told a court yesterday that Silvio Berlusconi has had ties to the Mafia and that a crime boss once boasted that this relationship had “put the country in our hands”.
Gaspare Spatuzza was testifying in Turin in the appeal of Marcello Dell’Utri, an associate of Mr Berlusconi and co-founder of the Forza Italia party. He is appealing against a nine-year sentence for association with the Mafia. Mr Berlusconi and Dell’Utri deny involvement with the Mafia.
Spatuzza told the court about a meeting in Rome in 1994 with Giuseppe Graviano, a godfather from Palermo, Sicily, who was convicted later with his brother Filippo for bombings in Rome, Milan and Florence. “Two names were mentioned, one of them was Berlusconi’s,” he said.
“Graviano told me that thanks to the seriousness of these people we had the country in our hands.” He had referred specifically to Mr Berlusconi, giving the other name as Dell’Utri. ...
Gaspare Spatuzza was testifying in Turin in the appeal of Marcello Dell’Utri, an associate of Mr Berlusconi and co-founder of the Forza Italia party. He is appealing against a nine-year sentence for association with the Mafia. Mr Berlusconi and Dell’Utri deny involvement with the Mafia.
Spatuzza told the court about a meeting in Rome in 1994 with Giuseppe Graviano, a godfather from Palermo, Sicily, who was convicted later with his brother Filippo for bombings in Rome, Milan and Florence. “Two names were mentioned, one of them was Berlusconi’s,” he said.
“Graviano told me that thanks to the seriousness of these people we had the country in our hands.” He had referred specifically to Mr Berlusconi, giving the other name as Dell’Utri. ...
The secret video tapes could not be more damning. A newspaper owner shoves 30,000 reals (£10,000) in cash into his underpants. A state deputy stuffs a thick wad into her handbag. A press secretary and a Cabinet chief dump bricks of money into a hold-all.
Even corruption-hardened Brazilians have been shocked by the spectacle of their greedy leaders, capped by footage of the governor of the capital city pocketing an envelope said to contain R$50,000.
José Roberto Arruda, the Governor of Brasilia, says that it is a misunderstanding but the dialogue accompanying the video seems convincing: “Let me pay before I forget,” says Durval Barbosa, Mr Arruda’s former secretary for institutional affairs. “Great,” the governor replies. “Give me a hamper.”
The footage, now entertaining millions of Brazilians courtesy of television stations, was recorded secretly by Mr Barbosa, who has agreed to co-operate with a police investigation codenamed Operation Pandora. ...
Even corruption-hardened Brazilians have been shocked by the spectacle of their greedy leaders, capped by footage of the governor of the capital city pocketing an envelope said to contain R$50,000.
José Roberto Arruda, the Governor of Brasilia, says that it is a misunderstanding but the dialogue accompanying the video seems convincing: “Let me pay before I forget,” says Durval Barbosa, Mr Arruda’s former secretary for institutional affairs. “Great,” the governor replies. “Give me a hamper.”
The footage, now entertaining millions of Brazilians courtesy of television stations, was recorded secretly by Mr Barbosa, who has agreed to co-operate with a police investigation codenamed Operation Pandora. ...
A university that accepted £25 million from Tesco has published a report with misleading figures to endorse the supermarket’s policy of giving away billions of single-use carrier bags.
The University of Manchester’s Sustainable Consumption Institute allowed senior Tesco staff to contribute to the report but failed to disclose the extent of the company’s involvement. David Cameron, the Conservative leader, joined Sir Terry Leahy, Tesco chief executive, at the publication of the report at the Royal Society in London last month.
The report includes an analysis of different approaches to reducing the number of disposable bags issued annually by supermarkets. It claims that Tesco’s approach of giving customers a loyalty card point for reusing a bag is more effective than requiring shops to charge for bags, which is used in the Republic of Ireland.
The reduction in Ireland was five times greater than that achieved across Tesco shops in Britain. Ireland cut plastic bag consumption by 90 per cent when it introduced a 15 cent charge per bag in 2002. The Tesco reward method took three years to cut the number of plastic bags by less than 50 per cent. ...
The University of Manchester’s Sustainable Consumption Institute allowed senior Tesco staff to contribute to the report but failed to disclose the extent of the company’s involvement. David Cameron, the Conservative leader, joined Sir Terry Leahy, Tesco chief executive, at the publication of the report at the Royal Society in London last month.
The report includes an analysis of different approaches to reducing the number of disposable bags issued annually by supermarkets. It claims that Tesco’s approach of giving customers a loyalty card point for reusing a bag is more effective than requiring shops to charge for bags, which is used in the Republic of Ireland.
The reduction in Ireland was five times greater than that achieved across Tesco shops in Britain. Ireland cut plastic bag consumption by 90 per cent when it introduced a 15 cent charge per bag in 2002. The Tesco reward method took three years to cut the number of plastic bags by less than 50 per cent. ...
... D'Addario also gives her version of the two candle-lit dinners at the residence on October 16 and November 4 - she only stayed the night on the second occasion.
Both events, she said, were attended by dozens of showgirls and would-be actresses and gave the lie to Berlusconi's claim that the evenings were party political gatherings.
"First of all, such a political club would have to consist only of young, beautiful women dressed only in skin-tight black dresses, because they were the only sort of person I saw," she writes.
"Secondly, the party members let themselves be caressed, kissed and touched in an unequivocal manner by their boss? If this is how politics is now conducted, I'm well qualified." ...
Both events, she said, were attended by dozens of showgirls and would-be actresses and gave the lie to Berlusconi's claim that the evenings were party political gatherings.
"First of all, such a political club would have to consist only of young, beautiful women dressed only in skin-tight black dresses, because they were the only sort of person I saw," she writes.
"Secondly, the party members let themselves be caressed, kissed and touched in an unequivocal manner by their boss? If this is how politics is now conducted, I'm well qualified." ...
/me quietly hums Baretta theme song
David Curry, the Conservative MP who is head of the committee responsible for policing Commons expenses, has resigned his position before the start of a formal inquiry into his own claims.
He is standing down as chairman of the Parliamentary Standards and Privileges Committee after reports that he has claimed almost £30,000 for a second home that he rarely stays in.
Mr Curry’s claims followed the temporary break-up of his marriage in 2004. Later that year, after moving back into the family home in Essex, he designated a cottage near Masham, a town in his North Yorkshire constituency of Skipton and Ripon, as his second home. Since then he has claimed £28,078.
One of his neighbours, however, said: “I have lived in the village for five years but I have never seen him. I have never even seen a car in the driveway.” ...
He is standing down as chairman of the Parliamentary Standards and Privileges Committee after reports that he has claimed almost £30,000 for a second home that he rarely stays in.
Mr Curry’s claims followed the temporary break-up of his marriage in 2004. Later that year, after moving back into the family home in Essex, he designated a cottage near Masham, a town in his North Yorkshire constituency of Skipton and Ripon, as his second home. Since then he has claimed £28,078.
One of his neighbours, however, said: “I have lived in the village for five years but I have never seen him. I have never even seen a car in the driveway.” ...
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Intel Corp was sued by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who accused the world's largest chipmaker of threatening computer makers and paying billions of dollars in kickbacks to maintain its market dominance.
The lawsuit accuses Intel of violating state and federal antitrust law through a "systematic worldwide campaign" of bullying and coercion to monopolize the market for personal computer chips, at the expense of rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc.
Intel's microprocessors power more than 80 percent of the world's PCs. Wednesday's lawsuit comes on the heels of several antitrust probes throughout the world into the Santa Clara, California-based company's business practices. ...
The lawsuit accuses Intel of violating state and federal antitrust law through a "systematic worldwide campaign" of bullying and coercion to monopolize the market for personal computer chips, at the expense of rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc.
Intel's microprocessors power more than 80 percent of the world's PCs. Wednesday's lawsuit comes on the heels of several antitrust probes throughout the world into the Santa Clara, California-based company's business practices. ...
A pot of £30m compensation due to be paid to thousands of African victims of toxic waste may end up being stolen thanks to the Ivory Coast regime's corruption, their lawyers said today.
The money was handed over by oil traders Trafigura in an out-of-court settlement in London and deposited in a bank in the west African state's capital, Abidjan, ready to be shared out in cash to each of the 30,000 victims. But the entire sum has been frozen in a sudden move backed by the local state prosecutor, according to Martyn Day, the senior partner at Leigh Day, the London lawyers who won the landmark settlement.
Moves are now in train, he said, to order all the cash to be handed over to a local group claiming to represent the victims. At the same time, Day has received a request to meet representatives of a senior Ivorian figure in Paris, to agree to come to an "arrangement".
"Blatant corruption" could be occurring, Day, who has flown back to London from Ivory Coast, said today. "There is a very serious risk that the compensation monies will simply disappear and our clients will see none of it." ...
The money was handed over by oil traders Trafigura in an out-of-court settlement in London and deposited in a bank in the west African state's capital, Abidjan, ready to be shared out in cash to each of the 30,000 victims. But the entire sum has been frozen in a sudden move backed by the local state prosecutor, according to Martyn Day, the senior partner at Leigh Day, the London lawyers who won the landmark settlement.
Moves are now in train, he said, to order all the cash to be handed over to a local group claiming to represent the victims. At the same time, Day has received a request to meet representatives of a senior Ivorian figure in Paris, to agree to come to an "arrangement".
"Blatant corruption" could be occurring, Day, who has flown back to London from Ivory Coast, said today. "There is a very serious risk that the compensation monies will simply disappear and our clients will see none of it." ...
... Fighting corruption depends on the complex business of helping people to believe in their long-term future. But we can also make progress in small steps. Here is a simple example. My office recently carried out a pilot reform of the vehicle registration process. We found that it takes more than a month, 51 steps or signatures and on average $400-500 in bribes for an Afghan to be able to register his vehicle. ...
T'row da bum out, I tells ya!
Mr Tipping, a former junior minister, became the 46th MP to step down since the Daily Telegraph began its investigation into parliamentary expenses in May.
Earlier this year he paid back more than £14,000 in mortgage interest payments for his London flat, after it emerged that he had increased the size of the loan to refurbish the property. ...
Earlier this year he paid back more than £14,000 in mortgage interest payments for his London flat, after it emerged that he had increased the size of the loan to refurbish the property. ...
Rep. Buyer's scholarship fund hasn't helped a single student
Steve Buyer defends his scholarship foundation, which has yet to help a single student.
By Mary Beth Schneiderand Maureen Groppe
Posted: October 18, 2009
The biggest accomplishment so far of U.S. Rep. Steve Buyer's scholarship foundation has been to send the Indiana congressman to play golf with donors at luxury locales such as the Bahamas and Disney World.
The fundraising golf outings have raised more than $880,000 for the Frontier Foundation that Buyer founded in 2003. Almost all the contributions are from 20 companies and trade organizations that have interests before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on which Buyer serves.
Advertisement
The foundation has yet to award its first scholarship, and it has handed out only $10,500 in charitable grants.
Of those grants, $4,500 went to a cancer fund run by the chief Washington lobbyist for Eli Lilly and Co. That lobbyist, Joe Kelley, said he is refunding the money because Lilly is among the groups that have supported Buyer's foundation.
In addition, the foundation gave $1,450 in 2008 to the National Rifle Association Foundation.
The lack of scholarships, plus the fact that the foundation's money is coming from groups that might want to curry favor with the congressman, has come under fire by Democrats.
Indiana Democratic Party Chairman Dan Parker...said...."No good deed goes unpunished? Where's the good deed, if they haven't given out any scholarships?" he said. "It looks like this organization is a shadow campaign organization that's utilized to fly him around the country raising money from corporations that he can't legally raise (contributions from) to his campaign committee." ...
Ta much, dear Anneliese
Steve Buyer defends his scholarship foundation, which has yet to help a single student.
By Mary Beth Schneiderand Maureen Groppe
Posted: October 18, 2009
The biggest accomplishment so far of U.S. Rep. Steve Buyer's scholarship foundation has been to send the Indiana congressman to play golf with donors at luxury locales such as the Bahamas and Disney World.
The fundraising golf outings have raised more than $880,000 for the Frontier Foundation that Buyer founded in 2003. Almost all the contributions are from 20 companies and trade organizations that have interests before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on which Buyer serves.
Advertisement
The foundation has yet to award its first scholarship, and it has handed out only $10,500 in charitable grants.
Of those grants, $4,500 went to a cancer fund run by the chief Washington lobbyist for Eli Lilly and Co. That lobbyist, Joe Kelley, said he is refunding the money because Lilly is among the groups that have supported Buyer's foundation.
In addition, the foundation gave $1,450 in 2008 to the National Rifle Association Foundation.
The lack of scholarships, plus the fact that the foundation's money is coming from groups that might want to curry favor with the congressman, has come under fire by Democrats.
Indiana Democratic Party Chairman Dan Parker...said...."No good deed goes unpunished? Where's the good deed, if they haven't given out any scholarships?" he said. "It looks like this organization is a shadow campaign organization that's utilized to fly him around the country raising money from corporations that he can't legally raise (contributions from) to his campaign committee." ...
Ta much, dear Anneliese
President Karzai's camp today declared a "deadlock" as a UN-backed watchdog reported "clear and convincing evidence of fraud" in Afghanistan's election and reportedly revised the results to force a second round of voting.
Mohammad Moin Marastyal, an Afghan MP and leading member of Mr Karzai’s campaign team. said that the UN-backed Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC) had twisted the facts in a deliberate attempt to trigger a run-off vote.
“Effort has been made to lower Karzai’s vote to below 50 per cent," Mr Marastyal said. "Now we are in a deadlock.”
Mr Karzai's campaign spokesman Waheed Omar added: “I don’t think we can make any judgment based on the figures announced today.” ...
Mohammad Moin Marastyal, an Afghan MP and leading member of Mr Karzai’s campaign team. said that the UN-backed Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC) had twisted the facts in a deliberate attempt to trigger a run-off vote.
“Effort has been made to lower Karzai’s vote to below 50 per cent," Mr Marastyal said. "Now we are in a deadlock.”
Mr Karzai's campaign spokesman Waheed Omar added: “I don’t think we can make any judgment based on the figures announced today.” ...
A UN-backed election watchdog has declared invalid hundreds of thousands of votes for Afghanistan's president in the disputed August election, apparently stripping Hamid Karzai of outright victory and setting the stage for a second round.
After nearly two months of investigations, the Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC) – controlled by a majority of non-Afghans – found Karzai's total had fallen to 48.3%, according to an independent analysis. He needed 50% to clinch another term in office.
A separate election commission that backs the president will have to endorse the findings and call for a second-round vote to be held in the next few weeks.
"Now that we have the ECC orders, we expect the IEC [Independent Election Commission] to implement those orders with haste and move swiftly to issue the final certified results or the need for a runoff as required by Afghan electoral law," said Aleem Siddique, a UN spokesman in Kabul.
According to the independent analysis by the US-based Democracy International, Karzai's share of the vote fell from 55% to 48.3% after fraudulent votes identified by the EEC were stripped away. The figures confirmed views expressed anonymously by several foreign diplomats and election workers that Karzai's share of the vote had dropped to around 48%.
The president's closest rival, Abdullah Abdullah, gained from his preliminary tally of 28% to 31.6%.
A spokesman for the Karzai campaign, Moen Marastial, said they would accept only the results published by the Independent Election Commission, an Afghan-led organisation thought to be heavily partisan in favour of Karzai. ...
After nearly two months of investigations, the Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC) – controlled by a majority of non-Afghans – found Karzai's total had fallen to 48.3%, according to an independent analysis. He needed 50% to clinch another term in office.
A separate election commission that backs the president will have to endorse the findings and call for a second-round vote to be held in the next few weeks.
"Now that we have the ECC orders, we expect the IEC [Independent Election Commission] to implement those orders with haste and move swiftly to issue the final certified results or the need for a runoff as required by Afghan electoral law," said Aleem Siddique, a UN spokesman in Kabul.
According to the independent analysis by the US-based Democracy International, Karzai's share of the vote fell from 55% to 48.3% after fraudulent votes identified by the EEC were stripped away. The figures confirmed views expressed anonymously by several foreign diplomats and election workers that Karzai's share of the vote had dropped to around 48%.
The president's closest rival, Abdullah Abdullah, gained from his preliminary tally of 28% to 31.6%.
A spokesman for the Karzai campaign, Moen Marastial, said they would accept only the results published by the Independent Election Commission, an Afghan-led organisation thought to be heavily partisan in favour of Karzai. ...
oth Silvio Berlusconi and his predecessor Romano Prodi have issued denials following the report in the Times yesterday that 10 French servicemen died in Afghanistan last year because their superiors did not realise the Italians who preceded them had been bribing the Taliban not to attack.
As The First Post reported yesterday, the French underestimated the Taliban threat as a result and suffered a brutal attack on one of their convoys. Insurgents later paraded trophies taken from the dead solders, to the disgust of the French.
A statement from the Italian prime minister's office said the Berlusconi government had never authorised or allowed payments to insurgents, and nor was it aware of "any such initiatives set in motion by the previous government".
Prodi himself told the Times: "This is the first time I have ever heard such accusations and I can say that there is no base for them. I know absolutely nothing of this."
Ignazio La Russa, the Italian defence minister, dismissed the claim as "rubbish" and said he was taking steps to sue the Times.
However, the Times today quotes a Taliban commander, Mohammed Ishmayel, confirming that Italian forces paid protection money. Ishmayel said a deal was struck last year so that Italian forces in the Sarobi valley, east of Kabul, would not be attacked.
Ishmayel told the Times that it was agreed that "neither side should attack one another. That is why we were informed at that time, that we should not attack the Nato troops".
However, he said, the Taliban were not informed when the Italian forces left the area to be replaced by the French and so they assumed the deal had been broken. ...
As The First Post reported yesterday, the French underestimated the Taliban threat as a result and suffered a brutal attack on one of their convoys. Insurgents later paraded trophies taken from the dead solders, to the disgust of the French.
A statement from the Italian prime minister's office said the Berlusconi government had never authorised or allowed payments to insurgents, and nor was it aware of "any such initiatives set in motion by the previous government".
Prodi himself told the Times: "This is the first time I have ever heard such accusations and I can say that there is no base for them. I know absolutely nothing of this."
Ignazio La Russa, the Italian defence minister, dismissed the claim as "rubbish" and said he was taking steps to sue the Times.
However, the Times today quotes a Taliban commander, Mohammed Ishmayel, confirming that Italian forces paid protection money. Ishmayel said a deal was struck last year so that Italian forces in the Sarobi valley, east of Kabul, would not be attacked.
Ishmayel told the Times that it was agreed that "neither side should attack one another. That is why we were informed at that time, that we should not attack the Nato troops".
However, he said, the Taliban were not informed when the Italian forces left the area to be replaced by the French and so they assumed the deal had been broken. ...
NICK GRIFFIN, the BNP leader, has put his personal bodyguard on the European Union payroll as his party becomes the latest to exploit the political expenses system.
A dozen senior figures from the party make up a BNP entourage of publicly funded assistants. As MEPs, Griffin and Andrew Brons are entitled to claim a combined £382,000 a year to pay for their colleagues’ salaries.
Martin Reynolds, a 20-stone bodybuilder who is head of security and Griffin’s bodyguard, said he “honestly didn’t know” why he was justified in being paid by the taxpayer. ...
A dozen senior figures from the party make up a BNP entourage of publicly funded assistants. As MEPs, Griffin and Andrew Brons are entitled to claim a combined £382,000 a year to pay for their colleagues’ salaries.
Martin Reynolds, a 20-stone bodybuilder who is head of security and Griffin’s bodyguard, said he “honestly didn’t know” why he was justified in being paid by the taxpayer. ...
David Wilshire, the Tory MP for Spelthorne, announced last night that he will stand down at the next election after allegations that he had funnelled £100,000 in parliamentary expenses into a private company owned by himself and his partner.
Wilshire agreed to stand down after a meeting with the chief whip, Patrick McLoughlin, but Conservative sources said it was his own decision after discussions with his family and friends.
Earlier, Wilshire had submitted the allegations to the parliamentary commissioner for standards, John Lyon, but it was clear during the day that his efforts to defer the issue would not satisfy the Tory high command.
Wilshire, a former whip and a rightwing moralist, had insisted that his arrangement had been agreed with the fees office, but it is not clear if he had invoices to justify payments to the private company. He said in a statement: "I am very conscious that the allegations and investigation will cause great distress to my family and friends. These allegations also run the risk of harming my local party and our national party's chances of winning at the next general election. In the circumstances I have reluctantly concluded that it is sensible for me not to seek re-election next year." ...
Wilshire agreed to stand down after a meeting with the chief whip, Patrick McLoughlin, but Conservative sources said it was his own decision after discussions with his family and friends.
Earlier, Wilshire had submitted the allegations to the parliamentary commissioner for standards, John Lyon, but it was clear during the day that his efforts to defer the issue would not satisfy the Tory high command.
Wilshire, a former whip and a rightwing moralist, had insisted that his arrangement had been agreed with the fees office, but it is not clear if he had invoices to justify payments to the private company. He said in a statement: "I am very conscious that the allegations and investigation will cause great distress to my family and friends. These allegations also run the risk of harming my local party and our national party's chances of winning at the next general election. In the circumstances I have reluctantly concluded that it is sensible for me not to seek re-election next year." ...
Women MPs fight back as Berlusconi lashes out
You are increasingly more beautiful than intelligent, PM tells furious Bindi
By Jack Bremer
FIRST POSTED OCTOBER 9, 2009
Amid warnings that Italy is on the edge of a constitutional crisis after Silvio Berlusconi was stripped of his immunity from prosecution, the man himself has been flailing around like a bear with a thorn in its foot. Taking part by phone in a late-night television discussion, he struck out at President Giorgio Napolitano saying he should have used "his influence" to get a different ruling from the Constitutional Court.
When a studio guest, Rosy Bindi, a former family minister in Romano Prodi's centre-left government, expressed shock at this suggestion, Berlusconi replied: "I recognise you are increasingly more beautiful than intelligent".
Even coming from Berlusconi, this was over the top and Bindi answered that she was "not a woman at your disposal", alluding to the call-girls and television showgirls at the centre of the long-running Berlusconi sex scandal.
Among the first to leap to Bindi's defence was another former minister under Prodi, the American-born Italian MP Giovanna Melandri. She said the remark summed up "the Berlusconi philosophy towards women". The diminutive prime minister, she went on, had shown himself to be "taller than he is well-mannered". ...
He has also shown himself to have more height than integrity - and wisdom.
You are increasingly more beautiful than intelligent, PM tells furious Bindi
By Jack Bremer
FIRST POSTED OCTOBER 9, 2009
Amid warnings that Italy is on the edge of a constitutional crisis after Silvio Berlusconi was stripped of his immunity from prosecution, the man himself has been flailing around like a bear with a thorn in its foot. Taking part by phone in a late-night television discussion, he struck out at President Giorgio Napolitano saying he should have used "his influence" to get a different ruling from the Constitutional Court.
When a studio guest, Rosy Bindi, a former family minister in Romano Prodi's centre-left government, expressed shock at this suggestion, Berlusconi replied: "I recognise you are increasingly more beautiful than intelligent".
Even coming from Berlusconi, this was over the top and Bindi answered that she was "not a woman at your disposal", alluding to the call-girls and television showgirls at the centre of the long-running Berlusconi sex scandal.
Among the first to leap to Bindi's defence was another former minister under Prodi, the American-born Italian MP Giovanna Melandri. She said the remark summed up "the Berlusconi philosophy towards women". The diminutive prime minister, she went on, had shown himself to be "taller than he is well-mannered". ...
He has also shown himself to have more height than integrity - and wisdom.
October 10, 2009
Expenses bills return to haunt up to 100 MPs
Tom Baldwin, Chief Reporter
The expenses scandal is set to engulf the House of Commons again on Monday when MPs will be sent an auditor’s letter about the claims they made over the past five years.
The Times has learnt that up to 100 MPs will be asked to repay expenses, or prove that their claims were legitimate. About a dozen are likely to face demands to hand back significant sums, in some cases “tens of thousands of pounds”.
Investigators working for Sir Thomas Legg, a former civil servant appointed by the Commons to audit MPs’ expenses, are understood to have focused on big mortgage claims, as well as extravagant charges for household services.
Sir Thomas is also said to have widened the net of his investigation to include MPs who exploited loopholes to make claims that were in breach of the spirit, if not the letter, of the fees system. ...
Expenses bills return to haunt up to 100 MPs
Tom Baldwin, Chief Reporter
The expenses scandal is set to engulf the House of Commons again on Monday when MPs will be sent an auditor’s letter about the claims they made over the past five years.
The Times has learnt that up to 100 MPs will be asked to repay expenses, or prove that their claims were legitimate. About a dozen are likely to face demands to hand back significant sums, in some cases “tens of thousands of pounds”.
Investigators working for Sir Thomas Legg, a former civil servant appointed by the Commons to audit MPs’ expenses, are understood to have focused on big mortgage claims, as well as extravagant charges for household services.
Sir Thomas is also said to have widened the net of his investigation to include MPs who exploited loopholes to make claims that were in breach of the spirit, if not the letter, of the fees system. ...
Silvio Berlusconi defiant as court throws out immunity law
Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi laughs off legal proceedings against him as he loses immunity from prosecution ...
T'row da bum owt!
Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi laughs off legal proceedings against him as he loses immunity from prosecution ...
T'row da bum owt!
In an Italy abuzz with claims of subversive plots and speculation about a snap election, the judges of its constitutional court today began deliberating whether to strip Silvio Berlusconi of his immunity from prosecution.
Italy's prime minister, already on the defensive because of a lurid sex-and-drugs scandal, could go back on trial in two cases if an act passed last year to shield him from the law is thrown out. ...
T'row out da law an' da bum wid it!
Italy's prime minister, already on the defensive because of a lurid sex-and-drugs scandal, could go back on trial in two cases if an act passed last year to shield him from the law is thrown out. ...
T'row out da law an' da bum wid it!
Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe calls for 'friendly relations' with west
• Speech to parliament raises hopes of diplomatic thaw
• President renews call for EU and US sanctions to be lifted
[brilliant snooty English butler]I'm sorry, mr mugabe, but no one is accepting your calls.[/brilliant snooty English butler]
• Speech to parliament raises hopes of diplomatic thaw
• President renews call for EU and US sanctions to be lifted
[brilliant snooty English butler]I'm sorry, mr mugabe, but no one is accepting your calls.[/brilliant snooty English butler]
The long awaited trial of South Africa’s former police chief and ex-head of Interpol, finally opened today in dramatic fashion.
Jackie Selebi, 58, the most senior official of the ruling African National Congress (ANC) yet to be charged with corruption and close ally of ousted president Thabo Mbeki, denied taking bribes from a convicted drug smuggler and immediately pointed the finger at two other top party officials who he said were involved in a conspiracy to bring him down.
“I am ready to drop some bombshells,” he told reporters as he left court after an initial 30-minute session. State prosecutors, who intend to call a host of senior ANC figures, asked for the case to be set aside until tomorrow, but promised to be ready to proceed then after almost two years of preparation. ...
Jackie Selebi, 58, the most senior official of the ruling African National Congress (ANC) yet to be charged with corruption and close ally of ousted president Thabo Mbeki, denied taking bribes from a convicted drug smuggler and immediately pointed the finger at two other top party officials who he said were involved in a conspiracy to bring him down.
“I am ready to drop some bombshells,” he told reporters as he left court after an initial 30-minute session. State prosecutors, who intend to call a host of senior ANC figures, asked for the case to be set aside until tomorrow, but promised to be ready to proceed then after almost two years of preparation. ...
Well done, Waitrose, et al...but why hasn't sky network dumped faux news?
The woman at the centre of the sex scandal involving Silvio Berlusconi has claimed the Italian prime minister knew she was an escort when she spent the night with him last November.
In her first live interview on Italian television, Patrizia D'Addario, 42, said: "Certainly he knew that I was an escort."
She added she was not the only escort present at two parties she attended at Berlusconi's Rome residence. "When I arrived it seemed like a harem," she told the current affairs programme Annozero last night.
Berlusconi has denied ever paying for sex and has said he was unaware escorts were brought to his parties by Gianpaolo Tarantini, a Bari businessman being investigated for drug dealing and prostitution. Berlusconi is not under investigation. ...
In her first live interview on Italian television, Patrizia D'Addario, 42, said: "Certainly he knew that I was an escort."
She added she was not the only escort present at two parties she attended at Berlusconi's Rome residence. "When I arrived it seemed like a harem," she told the current affairs programme Annozero last night.
Berlusconi has denied ever paying for sex and has said he was unaware escorts were brought to his parties by Gianpaolo Tarantini, a Bari businessman being investigated for drug dealing and prostitution. Berlusconi is not under investigation. ...
Gordon Brown is ready to leave Britain’s biggest defence manufacturer, BAE Systems, to the mercy of the courts over allegations that it paid millions of pounds in bribes to win contracts, The Times has learnt.
Senior Downing Street sources said last night that he was adopting a “strictly hands-off approach” to the case. It is understood that a plea from BAE for the Prime Minister to intervene — as Tony Blair did three years ago in helping to halt a previous investigation — has already been “firmly rebuffed” by officials.
Yesterday an ultimatum issued by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) for the arms giant to accept an out-of-court settlement expired. Instead, the agency charged with stamping out corruption by British business vowed to pursue claims that BAE paid out millions of pounds for lucrative defence contracts in Tanzania, the Czech Republic, South Africa and Romania. ...
Senior Downing Street sources said last night that he was adopting a “strictly hands-off approach” to the case. It is understood that a plea from BAE for the Prime Minister to intervene — as Tony Blair did three years ago in helping to halt a previous investigation — has already been “firmly rebuffed” by officials.
Yesterday an ultimatum issued by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) for the arms giant to accept an out-of-court settlement expired. Instead, the agency charged with stamping out corruption by British business vowed to pursue claims that BAE paid out millions of pounds for lucrative defence contracts in Tanzania, the Czech Republic, South Africa and Romania. ...
BARONESS SCOTLAND was saved from facing questions about her expenses last week by a swift government U-turn that at a stroke changed its policy on allowances.
The Sunday Times revealed last week that Scotland had received £170,000 from an allowance intended for ministers in the House of Lords who live outside London. This was despite the fact that the baroness has owned a family home in the capital for 15 years and tells the Lords it is her main address.
Before our article, the Cabinet Office could not have been more clear that Scotland should have received the allowance only if her main home was outside the capital.
However, less than 24 hours after the article was published, Baroness Royall, the leader of the Lords, sanctioned a statement by the Cabinet Office which overturned all its previous advice. It said the allowance was available to all lords who serve as ministers, regardless of where they live.
The guidance contradicts information the government had given to the Senior Salaries Review Body (SSRB) and creates new anomalies, with a number of ministers being entitled to ask why they, too, did not receive the cash. It also took the pressure off Scotland, who was facing calls for her resignation for hiring a cleaner who was an illegal immigrant. The cleaner will give her side of her story to a Sunday newspaper this weekend.
Ministers in the Lords are given a taxed annual allowance of £38,280 to help them live in the capital. Backbench peers receive £174 a night tax-free for staying overnight in London.
As a minister in the Home Office and then as attorney-general, Scotland was paid the allowance despite being based in London. Her defence is that the law that created the allowance made no reference to where a peer lived.
The Ministerial and other Pensions and Salaries Act 1991 says the allowance is available to all ministers in the Lords, but in practice it has been interpreted differently for years.
The SSRB, which advises on ministers’ pay, states in its publications the allowance is for peers who live outside London. Parliament’s own publications repeat this. Before the U-turn, a Cabinet Office spokesman said departments assessed a minister’s entitlement based on their home address.
Spokesman: “The point of it was so they can maintain a life in London. In practice it is looked at where they have a primary or secondary home . . .”
Reporter: “If the Cabinet Office made that assessment why on earth did they give it to Baroness Scotland?”
Spokesman: "Well, she does have a home outside London." ...
The Sunday Times revealed last week that Scotland had received £170,000 from an allowance intended for ministers in the House of Lords who live outside London. This was despite the fact that the baroness has owned a family home in the capital for 15 years and tells the Lords it is her main address.
Before our article, the Cabinet Office could not have been more clear that Scotland should have received the allowance only if her main home was outside the capital.
However, less than 24 hours after the article was published, Baroness Royall, the leader of the Lords, sanctioned a statement by the Cabinet Office which overturned all its previous advice. It said the allowance was available to all lords who serve as ministers, regardless of where they live.
The guidance contradicts information the government had given to the Senior Salaries Review Body (SSRB) and creates new anomalies, with a number of ministers being entitled to ask why they, too, did not receive the cash. It also took the pressure off Scotland, who was facing calls for her resignation for hiring a cleaner who was an illegal immigrant. The cleaner will give her side of her story to a Sunday newspaper this weekend.
Ministers in the Lords are given a taxed annual allowance of £38,280 to help them live in the capital. Backbench peers receive £174 a night tax-free for staying overnight in London.
As a minister in the Home Office and then as attorney-general, Scotland was paid the allowance despite being based in London. Her defence is that the law that created the allowance made no reference to where a peer lived.
The Ministerial and other Pensions and Salaries Act 1991 says the allowance is available to all ministers in the Lords, but in practice it has been interpreted differently for years.
The SSRB, which advises on ministers’ pay, states in its publications the allowance is for peers who live outside London. Parliament’s own publications repeat this. Before the U-turn, a Cabinet Office spokesman said departments assessed a minister’s entitlement based on their home address.
Spokesman: “The point of it was so they can maintain a life in London. In practice it is looked at where they have a primary or secondary home . . .”
Reporter: “If the Cabinet Office made that assessment why on earth did they give it to Baroness Scotland?”
Spokesman: "Well, she does have a home outside London." ...
A parliamentary aide stood down today in protest at Lady Scotland's refusal to resign after paying a £5,000 fine for employing an illegal immigrant.
Stephen Hesford told the Guardian he was quitting because "in [Scotland's] position as chief legal adviser to the government she has to consider her position. She can't be seen to be doing anything to damage her office or the government."
In his resignation letter to Gordon Brown, he added: "In my view the facts of the case do not matter. It is the principle which counts, particularly at a time when the public's trust of Whitehall is uncertain to say the least. We have to be seen to be accountable." ...
Stephen Hesford told the Guardian he was quitting because "in [Scotland's] position as chief legal adviser to the government she has to consider her position. She can't be seen to be doing anything to damage her office or the government."
In his resignation letter to Gordon Brown, he added: "In my view the facts of the case do not matter. It is the principle which counts, particularly at a time when the public's trust of Whitehall is uncertain to say the least. We have to be seen to be accountable." ...
AT least 80 MPs are to face further humiliation over their expenses, as auditors have found they claimed too much for their mortgages and must pay it back.
Many face repaying thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ money. Informed sources say an investigation ordered by Gordon Brown has found a “ticking time bomb” of irregularities.
Investigators working for Sir Thomas Legg, a QC and former civil servant, have found MPs have routinely been claiming the full cost of mortgages on their second homes, even though they are only allowed to recoup the interest.
Whitehall sources predict that many MPs will be ordered to pay back thousands of pounds claimed over the past five years in breach of the rules. ...
Many face repaying thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ money. Informed sources say an investigation ordered by Gordon Brown has found a “ticking time bomb” of irregularities.
Investigators working for Sir Thomas Legg, a QC and former civil servant, have found MPs have routinely been claiming the full cost of mortgages on their second homes, even though they are only allowed to recoup the interest.
Whitehall sources predict that many MPs will be ordered to pay back thousands of pounds claimed over the past five years in breach of the rules. ...
Formula One's governing body was made aware of allegations that Renault had fixed the Singapore grand prix by ordering the Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet Jnr to crash last year, according to reports.
The driver's father, Nelson Piquet Sr, told investigators that he had spoken informally to the FIA's race director Charlie Whiting at the season-ending Brazilian race in November, days after the Singapore incident.
Piquet and Whiting worked together at the Brabham team in the 1980s, with the Briton acting as the world champion's chief mechanic.
"When this thing happened in Singapore I couldn't believe it," the Brazilian declared in excerpts from an interview that the Daily Mirror said was conducted by private investigators Quest in London on 17 August.
"Anyway, in Brazil I talk to Charlie," he continued. "I got him and said, 'Look what could happen to Nelson if I bring this up?' I was afraid to screw up his career."
Piquet added later: "In the race in Brazil I called Charlie and I told the whole story to Charlie."
Speaking to the Guardian last week, Max Mosley, the outgoing FIA president, said he had been made aware of the allegations in late July.
"Of course there was nothing one could do then because there was no evidence – it was all rumour and hearsay," he said. ...
The driver's father, Nelson Piquet Sr, told investigators that he had spoken informally to the FIA's race director Charlie Whiting at the season-ending Brazilian race in November, days after the Singapore incident.
Piquet and Whiting worked together at the Brabham team in the 1980s, with the Briton acting as the world champion's chief mechanic.
"When this thing happened in Singapore I couldn't believe it," the Brazilian declared in excerpts from an interview that the Daily Mirror said was conducted by private investigators Quest in London on 17 August.
"Anyway, in Brazil I talk to Charlie," he continued. "I got him and said, 'Look what could happen to Nelson if I bring this up?' I was afraid to screw up his career."
Piquet added later: "In the race in Brazil I called Charlie and I told the whole story to Charlie."
Speaking to the Guardian last week, Max Mosley, the outgoing FIA president, said he had been made aware of the allegations in late July.
"Of course there was nothing one could do then because there was no evidence – it was all rumour and hearsay," he said. ...
Nelson Piquet Sr is threatening to take Flavio Briatore to court in order to prevent his son from continuing to pay the disgraced former Renault team principal 20 per cent of his earnings.
Briatore resigned on Wednesday after apparently ordering Piquet Jr to deliberately crash his car in last September's Singapore Grand Prix but he continues to manage the Brazilian driver through his management company FFBB. Piquet Jr signed for FFBB in October 2006 and his contract means a fifth of his earnings go directly to Briatore.
The FIA's World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) will hear the case against Renault in Paris on Monday and Piquet Sr says he will wait to hear their findings before deciding whether to pursue a case against the Italian.
"I could not talk to other team members about it [the contract], because Nelson was working for Flavio and his management has a contract with the team," Piquet Sr said. "Now I finally have something - contract violation - to put pressure on Flavio. ...
Briatore resigned on Wednesday after apparently ordering Piquet Jr to deliberately crash his car in last September's Singapore Grand Prix but he continues to manage the Brazilian driver through his management company FFBB. Piquet Jr signed for FFBB in October 2006 and his contract means a fifth of his earnings go directly to Briatore.
The FIA's World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) will hear the case against Renault in Paris on Monday and Piquet Sr says he will wait to hear their findings before deciding whether to pursue a case against the Italian.
"I could not talk to other team members about it [the contract], because Nelson was working for Flavio and his management has a contract with the team," Piquet Sr said. "Now I finally have something - contract violation - to put pressure on Flavio. ...
Vladimir Putin hands over Swiss watch to astonished factory worker
Questions over Russian prime minister's salary after spontaneous gift of £5,500 watch
rootin' tootin' vladimir putin should be living in a goddam shoebox.
Oh, and lotsa luck with your anti-corruption crusade, mr putin's lapdog, er medvedev.
Bobb to announce criminal charges in DPS probe
BY BEN SCHMITT • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • August 11, 2009
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy issued a press release today stating she and Public Schools Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb will announce criminal charges Wednesday stemming from an investigation into the public schools. ...
BY BEN SCHMITT • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • August 11, 2009
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy issued a press release today stating she and Public Schools Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb will announce criminal charges Wednesday stemming from an investigation into the public schools. ...
Cockrel goes to cops on Conyers' missing stuff
BY NAOMI R. PATTON AND BEN SCHMITT • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS • August 7, 2009
Detroit City Council President Ken Cockrel Jr. today asked police to investigate the disappearance of more than $21,000 worth of city-owned equipment from the office of former Detroit City Council President Pro Tem Monica Conyers.
A Cockrel staffer hand-delivered to police a package that included the inventory of equipment found missing after she resigned, plus correspondence with Cockrel and her attorney.
Cockrel said he has not yet spoken to Police Chief Warren Evans or Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy since the package was delivered.
“We just got to a point where it became very clear we were not getting cooperation from either her or her attorney,” Cockrel said. “We’ve been promised, on a couple of occasions, a written response.”
He said attorneys with the council’s Research and Analysis Division have been the primary contact with Conyers' lawyer, Steve Fishman.
Fishman laughed today when informed of Cockrel’s report to police.
“I don’t have anything to add to what I said before,” Fishman said, before hanging up the phone.
Last month, Fishman said of the allegations: “"Monica Conyers did not take any property belonging to the City of Detroit, nor did she authorize anyone else to do so."
Cockrel initially sent Conyers a letter, dated July 23, telling her her that 29 items, valued at $21,300, were missing from her council offices. He asked her to arrange for the items – including, desktop computers, printers, a camcorder; and two digital cameras – to be returned, or “the items will be deemed stolen property and I will forward this documentation to the Detroit Police Department and the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office."
Since then two of the laptops -- an Apple MacBook and a Hewlett Packard PC -- and a computer carrying case have been returned, reportedly on Conyers behalf, by a former staffer. ...
She's just an evil, lyin,' t'iefin' bitch.
BY NAOMI R. PATTON AND BEN SCHMITT • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS • August 7, 2009
Detroit City Council President Ken Cockrel Jr. today asked police to investigate the disappearance of more than $21,000 worth of city-owned equipment from the office of former Detroit City Council President Pro Tem Monica Conyers.
A Cockrel staffer hand-delivered to police a package that included the inventory of equipment found missing after she resigned, plus correspondence with Cockrel and her attorney.
Cockrel said he has not yet spoken to Police Chief Warren Evans or Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy since the package was delivered.
“We just got to a point where it became very clear we were not getting cooperation from either her or her attorney,” Cockrel said. “We’ve been promised, on a couple of occasions, a written response.”
He said attorneys with the council’s Research and Analysis Division have been the primary contact with Conyers' lawyer, Steve Fishman.
Fishman laughed today when informed of Cockrel’s report to police.
“I don’t have anything to add to what I said before,” Fishman said, before hanging up the phone.
Last month, Fishman said of the allegations: “"Monica Conyers did not take any property belonging to the City of Detroit, nor did she authorize anyone else to do so."
Cockrel initially sent Conyers a letter, dated July 23, telling her her that 29 items, valued at $21,300, were missing from her council offices. He asked her to arrange for the items – including, desktop computers, printers, a camcorder; and two digital cameras – to be returned, or “the items will be deemed stolen property and I will forward this documentation to the Detroit Police Department and the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office."
Since then two of the laptops -- an Apple MacBook and a Hewlett Packard PC -- and a computer carrying case have been returned, reportedly on Conyers behalf, by a former staffer. ...
She's just an evil, lyin,' t'iefin' bitch.
A couple of audits of Detroit Public Schools uncovered rampant financial waste, Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb announced today.
One audit of health-care workers revealed that there were 411 people, some of them deceased, who were on the payrolls even though they were not eligible, the district said. Removing the 411 people will save about $2.1 million, according to the district.
Another audit of the district’s Office of Public Safety uncovered wasted equipment that was not being used –- including 160 BlackBerry phones, 97 two-way phones, 1,872 master locks, 132 safety kits, 50 handheld radios, and 13 printers. Eleven motorcycles were not being used.
“It’s now time to bring all of this BS to a standstill,” Bobb said at a news conference today. “This school system cannot be viewed as a personal bank.” ...
One audit of health-care workers revealed that there were 411 people, some of them deceased, who were on the payrolls even though they were not eligible, the district said. Removing the 411 people will save about $2.1 million, according to the district.
Another audit of the district’s Office of Public Safety uncovered wasted equipment that was not being used –- including 160 BlackBerry phones, 97 two-way phones, 1,872 master locks, 132 safety kits, 50 handheld radios, and 13 printers. Eleven motorcycles were not being used.
“It’s now time to bring all of this BS to a standstill,” Bobb said at a news conference today. “This school system cannot be viewed as a personal bank.” ...
The Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, has ordered a £20,000 refurbishment of his grace-and-favour residence – including spending £7,524.30 on a sofa suite and window seat cushions for the drawing room, it emerged last night.
When he was appointed in June, Bercow pledged to forego the £24,000-a-year second home allowance as part of moves to restore trust in the wake of the expenses scandal.
However, details of the expenditure on improvements at the Palace of Westminster's Speaker's house were revealed in a confidential document seen by the Daily Telegraph.
The improvements include a series of alterations, redecoration and new furnishings for the rent-free home. One of the two studies is to become a playroom for Bercow's three young children, with a £1,087 bill for redecorating it.
Some £3,600 is being spent on fitting locks to the windows and paying workmen to check that access ducts in the wall panelling are lockable or childproof. A further £3,880 has been spent on planters to provide additional child safety on the terrace. ...
Believe it or else, the list goes on on and on!
When he was appointed in June, Bercow pledged to forego the £24,000-a-year second home allowance as part of moves to restore trust in the wake of the expenses scandal.
However, details of the expenditure on improvements at the Palace of Westminster's Speaker's house were revealed in a confidential document seen by the Daily Telegraph.
The improvements include a series of alterations, redecoration and new furnishings for the rent-free home. One of the two studies is to become a playroom for Bercow's three young children, with a £1,087 bill for redecorating it.
Some £3,600 is being spent on fitting locks to the windows and paying workmen to check that access ducts in the wall panelling are lockable or childproof. A further £3,880 has been spent on planters to provide additional child safety on the terrace. ...
Believe it or else, the list goes on on and on!
Former Detroit police monitor Sheryl Robinson Wood was ousted under a cloud. Some experts say a review of her ties to then-Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick may eventually turn into a criminal investigation.
"With the possibility of federal charges, there are no minor concerns," said Detroit attorney Bill Goodman, who represented the City Council in its efforts to oust Kilpatrick.
Wood has been in talks this week with attorney Richard Craig Smith, an expert in white-collar crime and government investigations with the Washington, D.C., firm Fulbright & Jaworski. The firm was once home to Watergate special prosecutor Leon Jaworski.
Wood has not returned calls seeking comment. Carl Racine, managing partner at her law firm, Venable LLP, based in Washington and Baltimore, declined to discuss her status.
As first reported on freep.com, the judge overseeing Detroit Police Department reform efforts forced her ouster last week after being shown text messages that, the judge concluded, revealed Wood had engaged in an inappropriate relationship with Kilpatrick, even as she was monitoring the city's compliance with police reforms. ...
"With the possibility of federal charges, there are no minor concerns," said Detroit attorney Bill Goodman, who represented the City Council in its efforts to oust Kilpatrick.
Wood has been in talks this week with attorney Richard Craig Smith, an expert in white-collar crime and government investigations with the Washington, D.C., firm Fulbright & Jaworski. The firm was once home to Watergate special prosecutor Leon Jaworski.
Wood has not returned calls seeking comment. Carl Racine, managing partner at her law firm, Venable LLP, based in Washington and Baltimore, declined to discuss her status.
As first reported on freep.com, the judge overseeing Detroit Police Department reform efforts forced her ouster last week after being shown text messages that, the judge concluded, revealed Wood had engaged in an inappropriate relationship with Kilpatrick, even as she was monitoring the city's compliance with police reforms. ...
Operation Bid Rig was a long-term investigation into money laundering and political corruption conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, and the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey. In the third phase of the investigation, from 2007 to 2009, sting operations resulted in the July 2009 arrest of 44 people in New Jersey and New York, including 29 public servants and five orthodox rabbis from the Syrian Jewish community. A number of high-level New Jersey elected officials were arrested in the operation, including Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano, Secaucus Mayor Dennis Elwell, Ridgefield Mayor Anthony R. Suarez, Assemblyman L. Harvey Smith, Assemblyman Daniel M. Van Pelt, and former Assemblyman Louis Manzo. ...
July 26, 2009
Millionaire Lord Bhatia claimed £20,000 on small flat
A MILLIONAIRE peer has claimed more than £20,000 in allowances from the House of Lords by saying that a small rented flat occupied by his brother is his main home. Last week he could not even remember its address.
Lord Bhatia, a businessman and philanthropist, has lived with his wife in a £1.5m home in southwest London for 20 years. Almost two years ago he decided to “flip” the designation of his primary residence to a two-bedroom flat in Reigate, Surrey, which has been his brother’s home for three years. The town is a mile beyond the M25 motorway, a boundary used by peers to define whether they live outside London for expenses purposes.
By saying the Reigate flat was his main home, Bhatia was able to claim lucrative “overnight” allowances from the Lords. Peers whose main home is outside the capital are able to collect £174 a night as reimbursement for the cost of a hotel or maintaining a second home while attending parliament.
Bhatia could not remember the address of the flat when repeatedly asked last week. He had to look it up and even then misspelt the name of the block. A neighbour could not recall him living there, but Bhatia insisted he had spent many weekends at the flat and said he intended to move there with his wife when he sells his family home. ...
...The Sunday Times has highlighted the need for an overhaul of the Lords’ expenses system. Unlike the Commons no new legislation is being introduced to change Lords’ allowances, despite a series of scandals.
The police are already investigating the overnight allowance claims made by Baroness Uddin and Lord Clarke of Hampstead following inquiries by this newspaper. Uddin faces fresh questions about her travel expenses as it emerged that she claimed for 89 round trips to a flat at which her neighbours had never seen her.
Bhatia is a 77-year-old Labour party donor who sits as a crossbencher. He is a successful businessman who has been prominent in several charities. After being made a peer by Tony Blair in 2001, he went on to lead the Edutrust Academies Charitable Trust which was formed to open and run city academies. He quit the board of the trust after a government inquiry found evidence of financial and governance mismanagement at the charity.
The Sunday Times began looking into his allowance claims after examining his record in the Lords. Although his attendance record is high, he has taken part in only 15% of votes since becoming a peer and has not spoken in the House for four years. Some peers are known to “clock in” frequently, securing a daily attendance allowance without staying to do any work. ...
Greedy greedy greedy greedy.
Millionaire Lord Bhatia claimed £20,000 on small flat
A MILLIONAIRE peer has claimed more than £20,000 in allowances from the House of Lords by saying that a small rented flat occupied by his brother is his main home. Last week he could not even remember its address.
Lord Bhatia, a businessman and philanthropist, has lived with his wife in a £1.5m home in southwest London for 20 years. Almost two years ago he decided to “flip” the designation of his primary residence to a two-bedroom flat in Reigate, Surrey, which has been his brother’s home for three years. The town is a mile beyond the M25 motorway, a boundary used by peers to define whether they live outside London for expenses purposes.
By saying the Reigate flat was his main home, Bhatia was able to claim lucrative “overnight” allowances from the Lords. Peers whose main home is outside the capital are able to collect £174 a night as reimbursement for the cost of a hotel or maintaining a second home while attending parliament.
Bhatia could not remember the address of the flat when repeatedly asked last week. He had to look it up and even then misspelt the name of the block. A neighbour could not recall him living there, but Bhatia insisted he had spent many weekends at the flat and said he intended to move there with his wife when he sells his family home. ...
...The Sunday Times has highlighted the need for an overhaul of the Lords’ expenses system. Unlike the Commons no new legislation is being introduced to change Lords’ allowances, despite a series of scandals.
The police are already investigating the overnight allowance claims made by Baroness Uddin and Lord Clarke of Hampstead following inquiries by this newspaper. Uddin faces fresh questions about her travel expenses as it emerged that she claimed for 89 round trips to a flat at which her neighbours had never seen her.
Bhatia is a 77-year-old Labour party donor who sits as a crossbencher. He is a successful businessman who has been prominent in several charities. After being made a peer by Tony Blair in 2001, he went on to lead the Edutrust Academies Charitable Trust which was formed to open and run city academies. He quit the board of the trust after a government inquiry found evidence of financial and governance mismanagement at the charity.
The Sunday Times began looking into his allowance claims after examining his record in the Lords. Although his attendance record is high, he has taken part in only 15% of votes since becoming a peer and has not spoken in the House for four years. Some peers are known to “clock in” frequently, securing a daily attendance allowance without staying to do any work. ...
Greedy greedy greedy greedy.
Funding of some of the most prestigious cultural grand projects in Britain is in jeopardy because a £100m black hole has been discovered in the budgets of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Whitehall sources disclosed tonight.
The scale of the department's spending over-commitment could derail ambitious building projects such as the British Museum's new exhibition wing, Tate Modern's redevelopment, the British Film Institute's film centre on the South Bank in London and the Stonehenge visitor centre.
The shortfall has emerged in the capital budget for the financial years 2009-10 and 2010-11. Senior arts sources today variously called the funding crisis "a cock-up" and "quite astonishing". One source said: "It's hopeless management. Everyone will blame the DCMS for being hopeless, and they are fairly hopeless, so it's not unjustified."
According to another source: "Financial directors of interested bodies received a letter saying they were £100m overspent on capital and seeking contributions from unspent capital money."
The DCMS refused to comment on why it had got into a situation in which it had overpromised funds for capital projects by approximately £100m. However, it is understood that the problem was noted several weeks ago and is being addressed by ministers. A DCMS spokesperson said: "Our capital budget is currently overcommitted. Ministers are examining the reasons for this and looking for solutions. It is possible that difficult decisions will be needed, but none has been taken yet." [Italics mine.]
A senior arts source said: "They will solve it by scrabbling around, and delaying things here and there[; b]ut my goodness, it's no way to run a railroad." ...
Dem a t'ief it, Mon!
The scale of the department's spending over-commitment could derail ambitious building projects such as the British Museum's new exhibition wing, Tate Modern's redevelopment, the British Film Institute's film centre on the South Bank in London and the Stonehenge visitor centre.
The shortfall has emerged in the capital budget for the financial years 2009-10 and 2010-11. Senior arts sources today variously called the funding crisis "a cock-up" and "quite astonishing". One source said: "It's hopeless management. Everyone will blame the DCMS for being hopeless, and they are fairly hopeless, so it's not unjustified."
According to another source: "Financial directors of interested bodies received a letter saying they were £100m overspent on capital and seeking contributions from unspent capital money."
The DCMS refused to comment on why it had got into a situation in which it had overpromised funds for capital projects by approximately £100m. However, it is understood that the problem was noted several weeks ago and is being addressed by ministers. A DCMS spokesperson said: "Our capital budget is currently overcommitted. Ministers are examining the reasons for this and looking for solutions. It is possible that difficult decisions will be needed, but none has been taken yet." [Italics mine.]
A senior arts source said: "They will solve it by scrabbling around, and delaying things here and there[; b]ut my goodness, it's no way to run a railroad." ...
Dem a t'ief it, Mon!
Judge to review more Kilpatrick texts for possible release
By JOE SWICKARD • Free Press Staff Writer • July 24, 2009
Wayne County Circuit Judge Robert Colombo approved a deal this morning between the Free Press and the City of Detroit that could lead to the release of more text messages from former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his chief aide Christine Beatty.
Under the deal, Colombo will review a sampling of text messages for possible evidence of civic corruption. Messages would then be released if the judge finds the possible evidence.
The deal was struck after months of negotiations between the newspaper and the city. In the deal, the city – as subscriber of the SkyTel text messaging service-- consented to the release of the messages.
Colombo said that Beatty and Kilpatrick will be allowed to object to release of the messages, but only if they admit authorship – something they have not done. ...
By JOE SWICKARD • Free Press Staff Writer • July 24, 2009
Wayne County Circuit Judge Robert Colombo approved a deal this morning between the Free Press and the City of Detroit that could lead to the release of more text messages from former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his chief aide Christine Beatty.
Under the deal, Colombo will review a sampling of text messages for possible evidence of civic corruption. Messages would then be released if the judge finds the possible evidence.
The deal was struck after months of negotiations between the newspaper and the city. In the deal, the city – as subscriber of the SkyTel text messaging service-- consented to the release of the messages.
Colombo said that Beatty and Kilpatrick will be allowed to object to release of the messages, but only if they admit authorship – something they have not done. ...
... Lattimore was charged this month with a single felony charge that he took $7,500 in 2007 as a councilman, "intending to be rewarded and influenced in connection with his official duties," according to court documents.
According to federal indictments handed down last week, political consultant Sam Riddle and former state Rep. Mary Waters, both charged with corruption, conspired to bribe Lattimore with $12,500 to gain his support for the relocation and expansion of a Southfield pawnshop.
Lattimore, according to the indictments, used the City of Southfield letterhead to write two letters supporting the project. In an interview with the Free Press in June, the councilman denied writing any letters supporting Zeidman's Jewelry & Loan -- the business implicated in the probe.
Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence said that if Lattimore pleads guilty to the felony charge, the city's charter "gives the city the right to ask for removal." But she said he should resign before the council is forced to act.
According to federal indictments handed down last week, political consultant Sam Riddle and former state Rep. Mary Waters, both charged with corruption, conspired to bribe Lattimore with $12,500 to gain his support for the relocation and expansion of a Southfield pawnshop.
Lattimore, according to the indictments, used the City of Southfield letterhead to write two letters supporting the project. In an interview with the Free Press in June, the councilman denied writing any letters supporting Zeidman's Jewelry & Loan -- the business implicated in the probe.
Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence said that if Lattimore pleads guilty to the felony charge, the city's charter "gives the city the right to ask for removal." But she said he should resign before the council is forced to act.
If Silvio Berlusconi thought he'd shaken off the furore over his alleged use of escort girls, he was in for a nasty surprise today.
The Italian prime minister has successfully deflected and sidestepped lurid allegations about his supposed liaisons in recent weeks, helped by some timely international summitry which let him demonstrate his statesmanship, not to mention his commitment to dealing with the aftermath of the L'Aquila earthquake.
But today it was all about call girls, giant beds and the suggestion of a menage-a-trois, after a left-leaning news magazine, L'Espresso, posted "pillow talk" recordings that an escort said she made during a night with the septuagenarian Italian leader.
The escort, Patrizia D'Addario, claims the tapes relate to the night of 4 November last year, when the leaders of the world were holding their breath, waiting to see if Americans would elect their first black president.
Berlusconi, apparently, had other things on his mind. ...
I've never been able to understand why as soon as men get power, they want shedloads of whores. Were I rich and powerful I'd pay off all our bills first, (and then I'd want books, a laptop, some nice moisturis/zer, and someone from World Wildlife Fund [among other great charities] to relieve me of some of my ca$h) not buy a buncha whores.
The Italian prime minister has successfully deflected and sidestepped lurid allegations about his supposed liaisons in recent weeks, helped by some timely international summitry which let him demonstrate his statesmanship, not to mention his commitment to dealing with the aftermath of the L'Aquila earthquake.
But today it was all about call girls, giant beds and the suggestion of a menage-a-trois, after a left-leaning news magazine, L'Espresso, posted "pillow talk" recordings that an escort said she made during a night with the septuagenarian Italian leader.
The escort, Patrizia D'Addario, claims the tapes relate to the night of 4 November last year, when the leaders of the world were holding their breath, waiting to see if Americans would elect their first black president.
Berlusconi, apparently, had other things on his mind. ...
I've never been able to understand why as soon as men get power, they want shedloads of whores. Were I rich and powerful I'd pay off all our bills first, (and then I'd want books, a laptop, some nice moisturis/zer, and someone from World Wildlife Fund [among other great charities] to relieve me of some of my ca$h) not buy a buncha whores.
Monica Conyers' wrist slap is wrong message
BY STEPHEN HENDERSON • FREE PRESS COLUMNIST • July 16, 2009
Someone in the local U.S. Attorney's Office may have some 'splainin to do.
They have it all backward in the ongoing city hall corruption probe.
Here's why.
Based on the indictment handed down Wednesday of political consultant Sam Riddle, it seems prosecutors believe Riddle and former Detroit City Councilwoman Monica Conyers were running a pretty robust shakedown operation.
The documents say they hit up a strip club owner for $25,000, extorted $20,000 each from a technology company and a restaurant, and tried to put the arm on a real estate developer.
Riddle's facing a slew of charges related to each of those acts, as well as his involvement with Conyers on the rotten Synagro sludge deal and some other stuff. By statute, he could face a sentence in excess of 100 (yes, one hundred) years.
But Conyers, if you'll remember, copped a plea a few weeks ago to one count of conspiracy in the Synagro deal. And even though she's mentioned about as often as Riddle in his indictment, she isn't being charged for any of the non-Synagro schemes they allegedly hatched. She faces 5 years max in federal prison -- one-twentieth of the time Riddle could get.
Sorry, but that doesn't make sense.
Conyers was the public official involved here, the one who took an oath to serve the public faithfully, and the one who had the power to deliver on any favors she and Riddle concocted to sell. ...
BY STEPHEN HENDERSON • FREE PRESS COLUMNIST • July 16, 2009
Someone in the local U.S. Attorney's Office may have some 'splainin to do.
They have it all backward in the ongoing city hall corruption probe.
Here's why.
Based on the indictment handed down Wednesday of political consultant Sam Riddle, it seems prosecutors believe Riddle and former Detroit City Councilwoman Monica Conyers were running a pretty robust shakedown operation.
The documents say they hit up a strip club owner for $25,000, extorted $20,000 each from a technology company and a restaurant, and tried to put the arm on a real estate developer.
Riddle's facing a slew of charges related to each of those acts, as well as his involvement with Conyers on the rotten Synagro sludge deal and some other stuff. By statute, he could face a sentence in excess of 100 (yes, one hundred) years.
But Conyers, if you'll remember, copped a plea a few weeks ago to one count of conspiracy in the Synagro deal. And even though she's mentioned about as often as Riddle in his indictment, she isn't being charged for any of the non-Synagro schemes they allegedly hatched. She faces 5 years max in federal prison -- one-twentieth of the time Riddle could get.
Sorry, but that doesn't make sense.
Conyers was the public official involved here, the one who took an oath to serve the public faithfully, and the one who had the power to deliver on any favors she and Riddle concocted to sell. ...
... “You’d better get my loot, that’s all I know,” Conyers is quoted as telling Riddle regarding a payment from a restaurant owner.
Riddle passed her $10,000 in that caper, the indictment says. ...
... Conyers first took office in January 2006. Just 15 months later, according to the indictment, Conyers and Riddle began their extortion racket.
The indictment charges:
• Conyers conspired with Riddle to hit up the owner of a technology company for $20,000 to make Riddle a bogus “consultant.”
• Conyers and Riddle pressured a Detroit restaurant owner to pay Riddle $20,000 for another “consulting job” that didn’t exist.
• Conyers and Riddle received $25,000 from the owner of a strip club with an issue before the city council.
• Conyers and Riddle attempted to receive money in another faux “consulting contract” for Riddle, this time with a real estate developer.
Conyers, the wife of U.S. Rep. John Conyers, a Detroit Democrat, became notorious for her bad temper in public. In private, she appears to be equally difficult. The indictment portrays her as nagging Riddle and ordering him to carry out her orders in their various schemes.
“This bitch is a trip,” Riddle told an owner of the technology company, explaining Conyers was eager to receive the owner’s final $5,000 payment.
“Work on the, uh, five thing,” Riddle advised, “so I can keep her chilled out and stuff.”
Riddle passed her $10,000 in that caper, the indictment says. ...
... Conyers first took office in January 2006. Just 15 months later, according to the indictment, Conyers and Riddle began their extortion racket.
The indictment charges:
• Conyers conspired with Riddle to hit up the owner of a technology company for $20,000 to make Riddle a bogus “consultant.”
• Conyers and Riddle pressured a Detroit restaurant owner to pay Riddle $20,000 for another “consulting job” that didn’t exist.
• Conyers and Riddle received $25,000 from the owner of a strip club with an issue before the city council.
• Conyers and Riddle attempted to receive money in another faux “consulting contract” for Riddle, this time with a real estate developer.
Conyers, the wife of U.S. Rep. John Conyers, a Detroit Democrat, became notorious for her bad temper in public. In private, she appears to be equally difficult. The indictment portrays her as nagging Riddle and ordering him to carry out her orders in their various schemes.
“This bitch is a trip,” Riddle told an owner of the technology company, explaining Conyers was eager to receive the owner’s final $5,000 payment.
“Work on the, uh, five thing,” Riddle advised, “so I can keep her chilled out and stuff.”
Stupid...well, I can't very well call her a cow - that's insulting a noble beast.
... The Bing administration told the Free Press that White was unavailable to answer questions about the emergency check system -- not the sort of response voters anticipated when Bing was elected on a promise to provide transparency in the city's financial dealings. It's disturbing that the Free Press even had to file a FOIA request to obtain information that ought to be readily available online to any Detroit taxpayer.
No one should hold the new administration responsible for its predecessors' fiscal irresponsibility. But everyone should expect candor about any abuse of the emergency check system, especially when questions arise about the role played by a member of the current administration.
No one should hold the new administration responsible for its predecessors' fiscal irresponsibility. But everyone should expect candor about any abuse of the emergency check system, especially when questions arise about the role played by a member of the current administration.
July 6, 2009
FSA to triple fines and dock pay for market abuse
Patrick Hosking, Financial Editor
Companies guilty of the biggest financial offences could be fined as much as £50 million after the Financial Services Authority (FSA) today announced a step change in the size of penalties it wants to mete out.
The City regulator said some fines could treble in size as it seeks to address concerns that penalties thus far have not proved much of a deterrent in improving company behaviour.
It also announced proposals for a minimum fine of £100,000 for individuals found guilty of market abuse offences such as insider dealing. Up to 40 per cent of an individual's salary and benefits could be taken, it said.
Fines would amount to 20 per cent of turnover from the relevant product or business area over the period of the offences, the FSA said. ...
FSA to triple fines and dock pay for market abuse
Patrick Hosking, Financial Editor
Companies guilty of the biggest financial offences could be fined as much as £50 million after the Financial Services Authority (FSA) today announced a step change in the size of penalties it wants to mete out.
The City regulator said some fines could treble in size as it seeks to address concerns that penalties thus far have not proved much of a deterrent in improving company behaviour.
It also announced proposals for a minimum fine of £100,000 for individuals found guilty of market abuse offences such as insider dealing. Up to 40 per cent of an individual's salary and benefits could be taken, it said.
Fines would amount to 20 per cent of turnover from the relevant product or business area over the period of the offences, the FSA said. ...
PM warned that elevation of Michael Martin could damage Lords
Nicholas Watt, chief political correspondent
* guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 30 June 2009 23.28 BST
Michael Martin, the former Speaker of the Commons, was today elevated to the House of Lords despite a warning from the independent appointments commission that his presence could "diminish" the upper house.
In an unprecedented move, the commission wrote to Gordon Brown to warn that Martin's conduct in recent months, which led him to become the first Speaker of the modern era to be forced out, could damage the Lords' reputation.
The intervention by the commission, chaired by the former Foreign Office permanent secretary Lord Jay, is understood to be the first time in modern times that questions have been raised about elevating a former Speaker to the Lords. ...
Nicholas Watt, chief political correspondent
* guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 30 June 2009 23.28 BST
Michael Martin, the former Speaker of the Commons, was today elevated to the House of Lords despite a warning from the independent appointments commission that his presence could "diminish" the upper house.
In an unprecedented move, the commission wrote to Gordon Brown to warn that Martin's conduct in recent months, which led him to become the first Speaker of the modern era to be forced out, could damage the Lords' reputation.
The intervention by the commission, chaired by the former Foreign Office permanent secretary Lord Jay, is understood to be the first time in modern times that questions have been raised about elevating a former Speaker to the Lords. ...
Yup. Apple, tree, the whole shebang.
Hey, bing! When the hell you gonna get off yo' ass and do something, other than tryin' ta raise our water rates, you idiot?
This gaping hole calls for a new party. Let's call it Labour
The party I joined as a gullible student has been dismantled by Blair and Brown, and with it any voice for those on the left
o Simon Jenkins
o Tuesday 23 June 2009
Iknow what this country needs. It needs a Labour party. The old one is not fit for purpose. What finally convinced me was Labour MPs voting on Monday for John Bercow as Speaker. It was a dollop of cynicism on what has surely been the worst parliament of modern times, a tawdry somnolence of sleaze and squandermania, authoritarian in its law-making, reckless in its warmongering and immoral in its self-regulation.
Leaders and frontbenchers of both main parties have paid back money filched from taxpayers under a regime that would have prosecuted those taxpayers if they had done the same. This patent admission of guilt left them blandly claiming that they had "done nothing wrong". In that case, why pay it back? Had the house-flipping and tax-dodging been isolated, the culprits would have been drummed from office. Instead, wrongdoing cleansed itself by strength in numbers. Hardly a member of this parliament will depart next year untainted by fiddle or fraud.
As a doubtless gullible student, I purchased a Labour party card, gulping at the notorious clause four on its reverse. Even when, disillusioned, I crossed the floor to a similar flirtation with Conservatism, I retained a respect for Labour as custodian of a fine genetic strain in British politics, an ambition for social liberalism, fairness in wealth distribution and ethical dealing in public life.
That party was dismantled, ideologically and constitutionally, by Tony Blair and his circle, to prevent it impeding his freedom of action in office, as it had done so many of his predecessors. He wanted no trouble from that quarter. ...
This man is a fucking genius.
The party I joined as a gullible student has been dismantled by Blair and Brown, and with it any voice for those on the left
o Simon Jenkins
o Tuesday 23 June 2009
Iknow what this country needs. It needs a Labour party. The old one is not fit for purpose. What finally convinced me was Labour MPs voting on Monday for John Bercow as Speaker. It was a dollop of cynicism on what has surely been the worst parliament of modern times, a tawdry somnolence of sleaze and squandermania, authoritarian in its law-making, reckless in its warmongering and immoral in its self-regulation.
Leaders and frontbenchers of both main parties have paid back money filched from taxpayers under a regime that would have prosecuted those taxpayers if they had done the same. This patent admission of guilt left them blandly claiming that they had "done nothing wrong". In that case, why pay it back? Had the house-flipping and tax-dodging been isolated, the culprits would have been drummed from office. Instead, wrongdoing cleansed itself by strength in numbers. Hardly a member of this parliament will depart next year untainted by fiddle or fraud.
As a doubtless gullible student, I purchased a Labour party card, gulping at the notorious clause four on its reverse. Even when, disillusioned, I crossed the floor to a similar flirtation with Conservatism, I retained a respect for Labour as custodian of a fine genetic strain in British politics, an ambition for social liberalism, fairness in wealth distribution and ethical dealing in public life.
That party was dismantled, ideologically and constitutionally, by Tony Blair and his circle, to prevent it impeding his freedom of action in office, as it had done so many of his predecessors. He wanted no trouble from that quarter. ...
This man is a fucking genius.
June 20, 2009
Drop the noble platitudes, what’s in it for me?
We shouldn’t be shocked that MPs have shown us they are an interest group like any other. Politics is about who benefits
Matthew Parris
This latest turn in the tale of our MPs’ expenses is intolerable. What blithering, blethering idiots. Have the Commons authorities and their black ink contrived deliberately to twist the knife into these pathetic parliamentarians? Now the MPs mumble something about being warned by the authorities that if they had stuck their necks out and published their uncensored expenses independently they’d be infringing the Data Protection Act.
So infringe it, you ninnies! Don’t you see you’re fighting for your lives? Wasn’t it obvious to you how those big blacked-out blocks on newspaper front pages were going to look? Those front pages could haunt our politics for a generation. Can’t you see that only a mass decision by most MPs to ignore the jobsworths’ legal warnings and volunteer everything that The Daily Telegraph had already knew, fast and early, could have saved you from being pitched by the media right back into the muck? In the face of such peril, fear of infringing data protection should have counted about as much as fear of a parking ticket.
But they just couldn’t let go, could they? Aptly did Kipling write: “That the dog returns to his vomit and the sow returns to her mire? And the burnt fool’s bandaged finger goes wobbling back to the fire.”
Parliamentarians’ cowardice, and the Commons authority’s goonish PR incompetence, have contrived to set this story alight again just when the flames were beginning to subside — and all without the fuel of a single big new discovery. They’ve made the cover-up the story. Again. What next? New leaks about how much black ink the MPs themselves added to the authorities’ first draft? ...
Drop the noble platitudes, what’s in it for me?
We shouldn’t be shocked that MPs have shown us they are an interest group like any other. Politics is about who benefits
Matthew Parris
This latest turn in the tale of our MPs’ expenses is intolerable. What blithering, blethering idiots. Have the Commons authorities and their black ink contrived deliberately to twist the knife into these pathetic parliamentarians? Now the MPs mumble something about being warned by the authorities that if they had stuck their necks out and published their uncensored expenses independently they’d be infringing the Data Protection Act.
So infringe it, you ninnies! Don’t you see you’re fighting for your lives? Wasn’t it obvious to you how those big blacked-out blocks on newspaper front pages were going to look? Those front pages could haunt our politics for a generation. Can’t you see that only a mass decision by most MPs to ignore the jobsworths’ legal warnings and volunteer everything that The Daily Telegraph had already knew, fast and early, could have saved you from being pitched by the media right back into the muck? In the face of such peril, fear of infringing data protection should have counted about as much as fear of a parking ticket.
But they just couldn’t let go, could they? Aptly did Kipling write: “That the dog returns to his vomit and the sow returns to her mire? And the burnt fool’s bandaged finger goes wobbling back to the fire.”
Parliamentarians’ cowardice, and the Commons authority’s goonish PR incompetence, have contrived to set this story alight again just when the flames were beginning to subside — and all without the fuel of a single big new discovery. They’ve made the cover-up the story. Again. What next? New leaks about how much black ink the MPs themselves added to the authorities’ first draft? ...
Why not term limits on campaign cash?
June 20, 2009
They concluded their last campaigns in 2006, and under Michigan law they're forbidden to seek re-election when their current terms end in 2010. So why are 30 term-limited Michigan senators still collecting campaign contributions?
The Michigan Information & Research Service reports that the 30 lawmakers in question have raised a combined $1.6 million for their respective campaign funds -- and spent an even larger sum -- since they were elected to their final terms more than 30 months ago.
The top five term-limited fund-raisers -- Sen. Jason Allen, R-Traverse City; Sen. Bruce Patterson, R-Canton; Sen. Bill Hardiman, R-Grand Rapids; Sen. Wayne Kuipers, R-Holland; and Sen. Alan Sanborn, R-Richmond -- each have raised more than $100,000 since beginning their last terms.
None of this is illegal. And some term-limited senators use proceeds from their post-election fund-raising to pay off debts incurred in the course of their campaigns.
But many of the uses to which these twilight donations are applied are more ethically problematic. Some term-limited lawmakers funnel their own surplus funds to colleagues' campaigns -- a money-laundering strategy that makes it harder for voters to know which special interests are bankrolling which candidates. According to MIRS, Allen has distributed more than a third of the $162,000 he has raised to other GOP candidates. ...
Why am I not surprised they're all rethuglicunts?
June 20, 2009
They concluded their last campaigns in 2006, and under Michigan law they're forbidden to seek re-election when their current terms end in 2010. So why are 30 term-limited Michigan senators still collecting campaign contributions?
The Michigan Information & Research Service reports that the 30 lawmakers in question have raised a combined $1.6 million for their respective campaign funds -- and spent an even larger sum -- since they were elected to their final terms more than 30 months ago.
The top five term-limited fund-raisers -- Sen. Jason Allen, R-Traverse City; Sen. Bruce Patterson, R-Canton; Sen. Bill Hardiman, R-Grand Rapids; Sen. Wayne Kuipers, R-Holland; and Sen. Alan Sanborn, R-Richmond -- each have raised more than $100,000 since beginning their last terms.
None of this is illegal. And some term-limited senators use proceeds from their post-election fund-raising to pay off debts incurred in the course of their campaigns.
But many of the uses to which these twilight donations are applied are more ethically problematic. Some term-limited lawmakers funnel their own surplus funds to colleagues' campaigns -- a money-laundering strategy that makes it harder for voters to know which special interests are bankrolling which candidates. According to MIRS, Allen has distributed more than a third of the $162,000 he has raised to other GOP candidates. ...
Why am I not surprised they're all rethuglicunts?
Library money paying city bills
Official: Cash supposed to go to benefits
By ZACHARY GORCHOW and CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS
June 20, 2009
The City of Detroit has been spending property tax money intended for Detroit Public Library employees' benefits on city operations instead, a library official said Friday.
Revelations about the city's use of library money came on the same day the Free Press reported that the city had been spending tax money it collects on behalf of the Detroit Public Schools to cover the city's payroll and other obligations.
The city would later reimburse DPS.
The library is a separate municipal corporation from the city with a dedicated millage that provides most of its $48-million annual budget.
On Friday, Library Commissioner Jonathan Kinloch said library staff learned this week that the city spent $6.2 million in property tax money that was supposed to go to the library, dating back to July 1.
The money was to cover employee benefits and contributions to the library workers' pension fund.
The city still owes the library the money.
"It's horrible, and it's illegal," Kinloch said. "There's a piggy bank that our money is supposed to be in, and the city is basically going into our piggy bank to pay their bills."
Joseph Harris, the chief financial officer during Mayor Ken Cockrel Jr.'s tenure, said he was unaware the practice of spending others' tax dollars dated back to July.
Financial experts say that the practice is a sign a municipality is in serious financial trouble.
A spokeswoman for Mayor Dave Bing did not respond to requests for comment Thursday and Friday about how close the city is to running out of cash. Nor is it known how, or if, the city plans on repaying the library. ...
Official: Cash supposed to go to benefits
By ZACHARY GORCHOW and CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS
June 20, 2009
The City of Detroit has been spending property tax money intended for Detroit Public Library employees' benefits on city operations instead, a library official said Friday.
Revelations about the city's use of library money came on the same day the Free Press reported that the city had been spending tax money it collects on behalf of the Detroit Public Schools to cover the city's payroll and other obligations.
The city would later reimburse DPS.
The library is a separate municipal corporation from the city with a dedicated millage that provides most of its $48-million annual budget.
On Friday, Library Commissioner Jonathan Kinloch said library staff learned this week that the city spent $6.2 million in property tax money that was supposed to go to the library, dating back to July 1.
The money was to cover employee benefits and contributions to the library workers' pension fund.
The city still owes the library the money.
"It's horrible, and it's illegal," Kinloch said. "There's a piggy bank that our money is supposed to be in, and the city is basically going into our piggy bank to pay their bills."
Joseph Harris, the chief financial officer during Mayor Ken Cockrel Jr.'s tenure, said he was unaware the practice of spending others' tax dollars dated back to July.
Financial experts say that the practice is a sign a municipality is in serious financial trouble.
A spokeswoman for Mayor Dave Bing did not respond to requests for comment Thursday and Friday about how close the city is to running out of cash. Nor is it known how, or if, the city plans on repaying the library. ...
OooooooooOOOOOOOoooooo!
'Oo's a nawty boy then, eh?
'Oo's a nawty boy then, eh?
I suppose the taxpayers are paying for this...........
June 5, 2008
Tory MEP Giles Chichester paid £400,000 expenses to his own firm
The row is especially embarrassing as Mr Chichester had been put in charge by Mr Cameron of ensuring full transparency in MEP expenses
David Charter, Europe Correspondent
The Conservative MEP charged by David Cameron with ensuring the probity of expenses claims admitted last night to breaking the rules by channelling thousands of pounds of allowances into a family company.
Giles Chichester paid more than £400,000 for office services to a company of which he was a director.
His admission caused alarm at Westminster by raising the spectre of sleaze for the Conservative Party just at it had reached a commanding lead in opinion polls over Labour.
It was especially embarrassing because Mr Chichester was put in charge of ensuring integrity in Tory MEP expenses after it was disclosed that the MP Derek Conway had paid his son more than £40,000 as a Commons researcher while he was a student at Newcastle University.
Mr Cameron has demanded a detailed account of the financial dealings of Mr Chichester, 61, the top Tory in Brussels and MEP for the South West of England and Gibraltar.
In a television interview last night, Mr Chichester appeared to make light of the situation, calling his transgression “technical”. ...
Tory MEP Giles Chichester paid £400,000 expenses to his own firm
The row is especially embarrassing as Mr Chichester had been put in charge by Mr Cameron of ensuring full transparency in MEP expenses
David Charter, Europe Correspondent
The Conservative MEP charged by David Cameron with ensuring the probity of expenses claims admitted last night to breaking the rules by channelling thousands of pounds of allowances into a family company.
Giles Chichester paid more than £400,000 for office services to a company of which he was a director.
His admission caused alarm at Westminster by raising the spectre of sleaze for the Conservative Party just at it had reached a commanding lead in opinion polls over Labour.
It was especially embarrassing because Mr Chichester was put in charge of ensuring integrity in Tory MEP expenses after it was disclosed that the MP Derek Conway had paid his son more than £40,000 as a Commons researcher while he was a student at Newcastle University.
Mr Cameron has demanded a detailed account of the financial dealings of Mr Chichester, 61, the top Tory in Brussels and MEP for the South West of England and Gibraltar.
In a television interview last night, Mr Chichester appeared to make light of the situation, calling his transgression “technical”. ...
GLENYS KINNOCK, the new minister for Europe, has amassed six publicly funded pensions worth £185,000 per year with her husband Neil, the former leader of the Labour party.
They have already received up to £8m of taxpayers’ money in pay and allowances, he as a European commissioner and she as a member of the European parliament.
The pair are already drawing payments from three of their taxpayer-funded pensions. Glenys Kinnock, 64, soon to be elevated to the House of Lords alongside her husband, is collecting a teacher’s pension and from next month is entitled to another from Brussels with an estimated annual value of £48,000.
Lord Kinnock, 67, is receiving one pension as a former MP and a second for his service in Brussels, together worth more than £112,000.
Glenys Kinnock is simultaneously drawing a ministerial salary of £83,275. Her job entitles her to a further ministerial pension.
After she retires from her job she will be eligible to draw a further UK-based pension related to her service as an MEP, worth £19,730 a year. ...
They have already received up to £8m of taxpayers’ money in pay and allowances, he as a European commissioner and she as a member of the European parliament.
The pair are already drawing payments from three of their taxpayer-funded pensions. Glenys Kinnock, 64, soon to be elevated to the House of Lords alongside her husband, is collecting a teacher’s pension and from next month is entitled to another from Brussels with an estimated annual value of £48,000.
Lord Kinnock, 67, is receiving one pension as a former MP and a second for his service in Brussels, together worth more than £112,000.
Glenys Kinnock is simultaneously drawing a ministerial salary of £83,275. Her job entitles her to a further ministerial pension.
After she retires from her job she will be eligible to draw a further UK-based pension related to her service as an MEP, worth £19,730 a year. ...
$380,000 TO TRAVEL THE WORLD
Detroit pension trustees take flight on funds' tab
The Free Press sued to get the records. Little is offered; some were destroyed. Are the assets of city workers safe?
BY JENNIFER DIXON • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • June 14, 2009
The trustees who oversee Detroit's two public pensions, their lawyers and staff spent $380,000 over the past year circling the globe to attend conferences -- often traveling in packs, with virtually no limitation on where they went or how often they traveled.
Trustee Ronald Gracia spent the most time on the road -- billing the General Retirement System for $105,000 in travel, including three trips to Singapore and $18,600 on travel to Hong Kong, according to records provided by the pension funds.
The two public pensions, with 21 trustees, have guarded their travel records from scrutiny. The Free Press sued to get the records -- which are actually only summaries from the past year.
The funds have yet to turn over actual receipts that would show, for instance, where trustees and staffers stayed and how they spent some of the money. Other documents have been destroyed.
However limited, these summaries provide a fuller snapshot than previously reported examples of the pensions' freewheeling travel practices.
The records also raise questions about how the travel squares with the trustees' legal duty to protect city workers' and retirees' assets, pension fund experts say.
Gracia declined to be interviewed. But in an e-mail, he said in today's world of global economics, trustees have an obligation to stay educated. He also said that the pension funds are in good financial shape.
Other pension officials declined comment. ...
Detroit pension trustees take flight on funds' tab
The Free Press sued to get the records. Little is offered; some were destroyed. Are the assets of city workers safe?
BY JENNIFER DIXON • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • June 14, 2009
The trustees who oversee Detroit's two public pensions, their lawyers and staff spent $380,000 over the past year circling the globe to attend conferences -- often traveling in packs, with virtually no limitation on where they went or how often they traveled.
Trustee Ronald Gracia spent the most time on the road -- billing the General Retirement System for $105,000 in travel, including three trips to Singapore and $18,600 on travel to Hong Kong, according to records provided by the pension funds.
The two public pensions, with 21 trustees, have guarded their travel records from scrutiny. The Free Press sued to get the records -- which are actually only summaries from the past year.
The funds have yet to turn over actual receipts that would show, for instance, where trustees and staffers stayed and how they spent some of the money. Other documents have been destroyed.
However limited, these summaries provide a fuller snapshot than previously reported examples of the pensions' freewheeling travel practices.
The records also raise questions about how the travel squares with the trustees' legal duty to protect city workers' and retirees' assets, pension fund experts say.
Gracia declined to be interviewed. But in an e-mail, he said in today's world of global economics, trustees have an obligation to stay educated. He also said that the pension funds are in good financial shape.
Other pension officials declined comment. ...
Water department gives him $56,600 a year, but Gracia focuses on pension
BY JENNIFER DIXON • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • June 14, 2009
Ronald Gracia, the $100,000-a-year traveler at Detroit's General Retirement System, also has a day job with the city's water department.
At least on paper.
Gracia receives $56,600 a year as a senior data processing program analyst with Detroit's Water and Sewerage Department, but spokesman George Ellenwood concedes Gracia doesn't actually work at his job.
Ellenwood said the department allows Gracia to devote full attention to his trustee duties for the pension fund, which typically meets once a week.
"All of his time is allocated to the pension work that he did," Ellenwood said, calling it a "long-term practice based on an understanding that is some years old."
Gracia, a trustee for 26 years, said in an e-mail he doesn't have to be on the job because he's a full-time union official and, like some other city employees, he's allowed to do union work full-time.
He did not respond to questions about whether he had a written agreement regarding his water department position. He also did not identify the union and his position.
Ellenwood said the water department is "trying to find if there was a written agreement with HR or some policy decision from perhaps labor relations that established this practice." ...
Yu a stinkin' t'ief, mon an' mi hope ya lose bot' ya jobs!
Rass claaat!
BY JENNIFER DIXON • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • June 14, 2009
Ronald Gracia, the $100,000-a-year traveler at Detroit's General Retirement System, also has a day job with the city's water department.
At least on paper.
Gracia receives $56,600 a year as a senior data processing program analyst with Detroit's Water and Sewerage Department, but spokesman George Ellenwood concedes Gracia doesn't actually work at his job.
Ellenwood said the department allows Gracia to devote full attention to his trustee duties for the pension fund, which typically meets once a week.
"All of his time is allocated to the pension work that he did," Ellenwood said, calling it a "long-term practice based on an understanding that is some years old."
Gracia, a trustee for 26 years, said in an e-mail he doesn't have to be on the job because he's a full-time union official and, like some other city employees, he's allowed to do union work full-time.
He did not respond to questions about whether he had a written agreement regarding his water department position. He also did not identify the union and his position.
Ellenwood said the water department is "trying to find if there was a written agreement with HR or some policy decision from perhaps labor relations that established this practice." ...
Yu a stinkin' t'ief, mon an' mi hope ya lose bot' ya jobs!
Rass claaat!
...Accompanying Rosendall's plea was an intriguing document that talked about questionable payments to unnamed city officials and relatives and associates.
But Rosendall did not publicly identify the members of former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's administration, City Council or other city officials who are described -- but not named -- in the documents laying out Rosendall's pay-to-play scheme.
It's unclear whether Jackson's plea will contain a similar document. Jackson, a developer known for his flashy style, moves freely in local political and business circles.
Several sources previously said there is a video showing Jackson talking with Rosendall about bribe payments that Jackson said he made. One source said Jackson ticked off amounts of bribe money he allegedly had spread around.
The sources, who viewed the videos some time ago, said they could not now recall the names of everyone Jackson said he had paid, or what those people may have done for the money. However, they said it was clear in the videotaped conversation that the pair talked about buying influence.
The Detroit council approved the Synagro sludge disposal contract in November 2007 by a 5-4 vote. At least three council members who voted for the Synagro facility have been contacted by the FBI: Monica Conyers, who had opposed the deal before voting for it, Martha Reeves and Barbara-Rose Collins. Collins announced in May she is not seeking re-election this year. ...
But Rosendall did not publicly identify the members of former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's administration, City Council or other city officials who are described -- but not named -- in the documents laying out Rosendall's pay-to-play scheme.
It's unclear whether Jackson's plea will contain a similar document. Jackson, a developer known for his flashy style, moves freely in local political and business circles.
Several sources previously said there is a video showing Jackson talking with Rosendall about bribe payments that Jackson said he made. One source said Jackson ticked off amounts of bribe money he allegedly had spread around.
The sources, who viewed the videos some time ago, said they could not now recall the names of everyone Jackson said he had paid, or what those people may have done for the money. However, they said it was clear in the videotaped conversation that the pair talked about buying influence.
The Detroit council approved the Synagro sludge disposal contract in November 2007 by a 5-4 vote. At least three council members who voted for the Synagro facility have been contacted by the FBI: Monica Conyers, who had opposed the deal before voting for it, Martha Reeves and Barbara-Rose Collins. Collins announced in May she is not seeking re-election this year. ...
I knew he wouldn't get away with keepin' that shit's shit secret.
Shell pays £9.7m to families of executed activist
Royal Dutch Shell sought to draw a line under one of the most damaging episodes in its history on Tuesday by agreeing to pay £9.7 million to Nigerians who accused the company of complicity in their relations' execution by a military regime.
By Mike Pflanz, West Africa Correspondent
Published: 4:45PM BST 09 Jun 2009
The out-of-court settlement comes 14 years after nine Nigerian activists, including Ken Saro-Wiwa, a playwright and prominent campaigner against Shell's presence in the Niger delta, were hanged by the country's military dictator, General Sani Abacha.
Their relations took legal action against Shell in America, intending to press their allegation of complicity, which the company denies. But an eleventh-hour agreement means the case will not come before the court in New York.
Shell said it was innocent of the charges, including the suggestion that it supported Nigeria's former military government when it arrested and executed the nine men.
But the company faces separate legal action in New York brought by another man from Mr Saro-Wiwa's Ogoni tribe, and in Amsterdam by a group of environmental activists.
"Shell will be dragged from the boardroom to the courthouse, time and again, until the company addresses the injustices at the root of the Niger delta crises and puts an end to its environmental devastation," said Elizabeth Bast of Friends of the Earth US.
In Nigeria, there was broad support for the agreement, reached late on Monday in New York. But there were also angry claims that Shell is still polluting the creeks of the delta, which produces more than 650,000 barrels of oil a day for the company.
Bari-Ara Kpalap, a spokesman for the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni people, the organisation co-founded by Mr Saro-Wiwa, said that Shell continued to exploit Nigerian oil without giving proper compensation to the country's people. ...
Royal Dutch Shell sought to draw a line under one of the most damaging episodes in its history on Tuesday by agreeing to pay £9.7 million to Nigerians who accused the company of complicity in their relations' execution by a military regime.
By Mike Pflanz, West Africa Correspondent
Published: 4:45PM BST 09 Jun 2009
The out-of-court settlement comes 14 years after nine Nigerian activists, including Ken Saro-Wiwa, a playwright and prominent campaigner against Shell's presence in the Niger delta, were hanged by the country's military dictator, General Sani Abacha.
Their relations took legal action against Shell in America, intending to press their allegation of complicity, which the company denies. But an eleventh-hour agreement means the case will not come before the court in New York.
Shell said it was innocent of the charges, including the suggestion that it supported Nigeria's former military government when it arrested and executed the nine men.
But the company faces separate legal action in New York brought by another man from Mr Saro-Wiwa's Ogoni tribe, and in Amsterdam by a group of environmental activists.
"Shell will be dragged from the boardroom to the courthouse, time and again, until the company addresses the injustices at the root of the Niger delta crises and puts an end to its environmental devastation," said Elizabeth Bast of Friends of the Earth US.
In Nigeria, there was broad support for the agreement, reached late on Monday in New York. But there were also angry claims that Shell is still polluting the creeks of the delta, which produces more than 650,000 barrels of oil a day for the company.
Bari-Ara Kpalap, a spokesman for the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni people, the organisation co-founded by Mr Saro-Wiwa, said that Shell continued to exploit Nigerian oil without giving proper compensation to the country's people. ...
WTF, you idiot? You gonna sue 'em for "making" your long-suffering wife leave you, too?
Kilpatrick's restitution payment late, $3,500 short
By M.L. ELRICK and JIM SCHAEFER
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS
June 2, 2009
Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's latest restitution payment arrived three days late and $3,500 short, the Free Press has learned.
A judge in March ordered Kilpatrick to pay $6,000 a month in restitution toward the $1 million he agreed to pay the City of Detroit when he pleaded guilty last year to two perjury-related felonies. His lawyer argued that Kilpatrick could afford to pay only $6 a month.
After mustering $6,000 for his April restitution payment, Kilpatrick sent only $2,500 last month. The payment, due on the 15th of each month, came on May 18, said Russ Marlan, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Corrections.
Failing to make full restitution payments could lead to Kilpatrick being found in violation of his probation.
In another complication for the former mayor, Compuware officials contradicted Kilpatrick's explanation for why he wanted to go on a congressional trip last month to the Middle East.
He said it was for work. They said it was not.
Mideast trip said to be business; company disagrees
Kilpatrick told probation officials he wanted to make a business trip to the Middle East in May, a state corrections official said.
But a spokeswoman for Compuware, which hired Kilpatrick, told the Free Press on Tuesday that the ex-Detroit mayor's planned trip was not for the company.
Kilpatrick could face sanctions if he misled probation officials about the reason for his proposed trip.
On May 18, Kilpatrick sought permission to go Dubai, Qatar and Iraq to assess the health care system of the military overseas, Marlan told the Free Press on Tuesday. ...
He needs to go back to jail -- in texass.
By M.L. ELRICK and JIM SCHAEFER
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITERS
June 2, 2009
Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's latest restitution payment arrived three days late and $3,500 short, the Free Press has learned.
A judge in March ordered Kilpatrick to pay $6,000 a month in restitution toward the $1 million he agreed to pay the City of Detroit when he pleaded guilty last year to two perjury-related felonies. His lawyer argued that Kilpatrick could afford to pay only $6 a month.
After mustering $6,000 for his April restitution payment, Kilpatrick sent only $2,500 last month. The payment, due on the 15th of each month, came on May 18, said Russ Marlan, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Corrections.
Failing to make full restitution payments could lead to Kilpatrick being found in violation of his probation.
In another complication for the former mayor, Compuware officials contradicted Kilpatrick's explanation for why he wanted to go on a congressional trip last month to the Middle East.
He said it was for work. They said it was not.
Mideast trip said to be business; company disagrees
Kilpatrick told probation officials he wanted to make a business trip to the Middle East in May, a state corrections official said.
But a spokeswoman for Compuware, which hired Kilpatrick, told the Free Press on Tuesday that the ex-Detroit mayor's planned trip was not for the company.
Kilpatrick could face sanctions if he misled probation officials about the reason for his proposed trip.
On May 18, Kilpatrick sought permission to go Dubai, Qatar and Iraq to assess the health care system of the military overseas, Marlan told the Free Press on Tuesday. ...
He needs to go back to jail -- in texass.
DPS audit shows missing funds, 'sloppy bookkeeping'
BY CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY
FREE PRESS EDUCATION WRITER
June 3, 2009
Detroit Public Schools Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb released audit findings this morning that show sloppy bookkeeping at 189 of 194 school buildings, some of which could result in criminal charges. The tax-exempt schools also may have lost about $1.7 million that was wrongly paid in sales taxes, a meeting with a vendor revealed this morning.
Advertisement
The audits showed loans made to school officials using school funds, missing funds from activities, school funds diverted to personal accounts, principals writing and signing checks, untimely deposits and money taken home by staff.
Three cases involving high schools and two involving elementary schools have been turned over to the district’s inspector general, former FBI official John Bell.
“We have a reason to believe some of them probably will” be turned over to the prosecutor’s office, Bobb said.
“How do you justify making loans to school officials?” he said.
Over a period of 21 days, 35 auditors investigated 194 schools that handle $2.5 million to $4 million in funds. Only five had “entirely proper bookkeeping,” he said. ...
BY CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY
FREE PRESS EDUCATION WRITER
June 3, 2009
Detroit Public Schools Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb released audit findings this morning that show sloppy bookkeeping at 189 of 194 school buildings, some of which could result in criminal charges. The tax-exempt schools also may have lost about $1.7 million that was wrongly paid in sales taxes, a meeting with a vendor revealed this morning.
Advertisement
The audits showed loans made to school officials using school funds, missing funds from activities, school funds diverted to personal accounts, principals writing and signing checks, untimely deposits and money taken home by staff.
Three cases involving high schools and two involving elementary schools have been turned over to the district’s inspector general, former FBI official John Bell.
“We have a reason to believe some of them probably will” be turned over to the prosecutor’s office, Bobb said.
“How do you justify making loans to school officials?” he said.
Over a period of 21 days, 35 auditors investigated 194 schools that handle $2.5 million to $4 million in funds. Only five had “entirely proper bookkeeping,” he said. ...
These pricks have no shame whatsoever.
The t'iefin' kinky bastard!
Good riddance to all bad rubbish.
... The Mole hears some Labour MPs are going to judge the mood at tonight's Parliamentary Labour Party meeting before putting their heads above the parapet. But they are saying privately they have had enough excuses from Brown.
After the crop of weekend polls giving Labour its lowest showing since records began, they are furious that he is determined to cling to office, regardless of the disaster he will inflict on the party. Echoing Charles Clarke's controversial remarks recently, one Labour MP said: "I feel ashamed to be a member of this party under Brown after the [Damian] McBride affair.
"Now he is riding rough-shod over the backbench. There's one law for people like David Chaytor and Elliot Morley [among the 12 MPs who have announced they will step down] and another law for ministers. Why haven't Tony McNulty and Jacqui Smith been told they have to step down?"
In a further example of double standards for ministers and backbenchers, Brown has defended Alistair Darling over 'flipping' his houses four times to avoid capital gains tax. Brown said there was 'no substance' to the claims. In spite of speculation that Darling will be axed in a reshuffle this week, Brown said: "He is a very good Chancellor, a very good colleague, and friend." ...
After the crop of weekend polls giving Labour its lowest showing since records began, they are furious that he is determined to cling to office, regardless of the disaster he will inflict on the party. Echoing Charles Clarke's controversial remarks recently, one Labour MP said: "I feel ashamed to be a member of this party under Brown after the [Damian] McBride affair.
"Now he is riding rough-shod over the backbench. There's one law for people like David Chaytor and Elliot Morley [among the 12 MPs who have announced they will step down] and another law for ministers. Why haven't Tony McNulty and Jacqui Smith been told they have to step down?"
In a further example of double standards for ministers and backbenchers, Brown has defended Alistair Darling over 'flipping' his houses four times to avoid capital gains tax. Brown said there was 'no substance' to the claims. In spite of speculation that Darling will be axed in a reshuffle this week, Brown said: "He is a very good Chancellor, a very good colleague, and friend." ...
Yu sey yu try a be 'a good mum an' a good EmmPee,' but yu jus' anudda t'ief h'until ya gat caaaght!
Do like dat daarries creature - go back a bed an' stey dere, mon.
Do like dat daarries creature - go back a bed an' stey dere, mon.
My thoughts are unfit for family reading, so I will reserve them.
I will point out she insists she won't return a farthing of what she's stolen.
I will point out she insists she won't return a farthing of what she's stolen.
Go back to bed and stay there.
Alex Salmond claims he was victim of MPs' expenses system
Alex Salmond has refused to apologise for his expense claims, arguing that he was the innocent victim of a system that was open to “widespread abuse”.
By Simon Johnson, Scottish Political Editor
Last Updated: 7:53PM BST 13 May 2009
'Nuff said.
Alex Salmond has refused to apologise for his expense claims, arguing that he was the innocent victim of a system that was open to “widespread abuse”.
By Simon Johnson, Scottish Political Editor
Last Updated: 7:53PM BST 13 May 2009
'Nuff said.
Scarecrow mocking MPs over expenses springs up in Jamie Oliver's village
A scarecrow poking fun at money-grabbing MPs is one of nearly 70 which have sprung up in Jamie Oliver's home village.
Last Updated: 5:04PM BST 25 May 2009
The scarecrow poking fun at money-grabbing MPs Photo: PETER LAWSON
The figure is part of an invasion of novelty bird-scarers, including Darth Vader, the Village People and Margaret Thatcher, which have popped up all over the tiny rural idyll of Clavering, Essex.
But one enterprising resident saw an opportunity to make a dig at scandal-hit politicians who have been exposed by the Daily Telegraph's investigation into MPs expenses.
The scarecrow of a gardener pushing a lawnmower has popped up outside a pretty thatched cottage in the village.
Signs offering 'moat clearing', 'removals organised for flipping' and stating 'Invoices can be sent direct to Westminster if desired' have also been errected.
Local MP for Saffron Walden Alan Hazlehurst spent £12,000 on gardening costs over five years.
Farmer Peter Balaam, who made the effigy, said he was not pointing the finger at him but at MPs in general.
He said: "I don't think our local MP has had his nose in the trough but it is a dig at all MPs who have had their noses in the trough.
"We are country people, leading an honest life.
"There is so much red tape attached to our industry and then you see there's so much money just being frittered away. It's not right."
He added: "The village came up with the scarecrow competition and I wasn't particularly motivated by building one and then I thought, I'll do one with the MPs in mind.
"We have had lots of people walking by and stopping for a look. I think it's gone down well."
Victoria Cook, who helped come up with the idea for the figures as part of the build-up for next week's village fete, said the scarecrow was "fantastic". ...
... Organisers of the fete have been astounded by the response to their idea after 67 figures appeared on grass verges, in gardens and on benches in the pretty village. ...
A scarecrow poking fun at money-grabbing MPs is one of nearly 70 which have sprung up in Jamie Oliver's home village.
Last Updated: 5:04PM BST 25 May 2009
The scarecrow poking fun at money-grabbing MPs Photo: PETER LAWSON
The figure is part of an invasion of novelty bird-scarers, including Darth Vader, the Village People and Margaret Thatcher, which have popped up all over the tiny rural idyll of Clavering, Essex.
But one enterprising resident saw an opportunity to make a dig at scandal-hit politicians who have been exposed by the Daily Telegraph's investigation into MPs expenses.
The scarecrow of a gardener pushing a lawnmower has popped up outside a pretty thatched cottage in the village.
Signs offering 'moat clearing', 'removals organised for flipping' and stating 'Invoices can be sent direct to Westminster if desired' have also been errected.
Local MP for Saffron Walden Alan Hazlehurst spent £12,000 on gardening costs over five years.
Farmer Peter Balaam, who made the effigy, said he was not pointing the finger at him but at MPs in general.
He said: "I don't think our local MP has had his nose in the trough but it is a dig at all MPs who have had their noses in the trough.
"We are country people, leading an honest life.
"There is so much red tape attached to our industry and then you see there's so much money just being frittered away. It's not right."
He added: "The village came up with the scarecrow competition and I wasn't particularly motivated by building one and then I thought, I'll do one with the MPs in mind.
"We have had lots of people walking by and stopping for a look. I think it's gone down well."
Victoria Cook, who helped come up with the idea for the figures as part of the build-up for next week's village fete, said the scarecrow was "fantastic". ...
... Organisers of the fete have been astounded by the response to their idea after 67 figures appeared on grass verges, in gardens and on benches in the pretty village. ...
Sir Nicholas and Ann Winterton to stand down from parliament: MPs expenses
Sir Nicholas and Ann Winterton, the Conservative MPs, are to resign from parliament at the next election.
By Christopher Hope and Jon Swaine
Last Updated: 4:31PM BST 25 May 2009
The couple will not run for re-election as the MPs for Macclesfield and Congleton.
In a letter to David Cameron, the Tory leader, the couple said that they could no longer "maintain the hectic pace" of political life and wanted to step down in order to spend more time with their family. [Ed. Note: Peut-êum;tre, mes chers!]
Their decision comes after the Telegraph disclosed that they claimed more than £80,000 in rent for a small London flat that was owned by a trust controlled by their children.
Expenses submitted by Sir Nicholas show he claimed for £41,508 in rent. His wife’s claims amounted to £41,584.
Since 2002 the Wintertons’ flat in Westminster has been owned by a trust which is controlled by their children.
The decision to pass the property into a family trust was reportedly designed to save hundreds of thousands of pounds in death duties.
The trustees are Sir Nicholas and Lady Winterton, together with the family’s lawyer. For four years the pair submitted rental claims of £900 a month each. ...
Sir Nicholas and Ann Winterton, the Conservative MPs, are to resign from parliament at the next election.
By Christopher Hope and Jon Swaine
Last Updated: 4:31PM BST 25 May 2009
The couple will not run for re-election as the MPs for Macclesfield and Congleton.
In a letter to David Cameron, the Tory leader, the couple said that they could no longer "maintain the hectic pace" of political life and wanted to step down in order to spend more time with their family. [Ed. Note: Peut-êum;tre, mes chers!]
Their decision comes after the Telegraph disclosed that they claimed more than £80,000 in rent for a small London flat that was owned by a trust controlled by their children.
Expenses submitted by Sir Nicholas show he claimed for £41,508 in rent. His wife’s claims amounted to £41,584.
Since 2002 the Wintertons’ flat in Westminster has been owned by a trust which is controlled by their children.
The decision to pass the property into a family trust was reportedly designed to save hundreds of thousands of pounds in death duties.
The trustees are Sir Nicholas and Lady Winterton, together with the family’s lawyer. For four years the pair submitted rental claims of £900 a month each. ...
Some interesting developments have happened overnight. Nadine Dorries has seen the blog part of her website instantly taken down after she made allegations against the owners of the Telegraph Group, Sir David Barclay and Sir Frederick Barclay.
Lawyers acting for the Barclay brothers, Withers, instructed the takedown carried out by Acidity via mail to Coreix last night, citing the Acceptable User Policy. The takedown will be bolstered by the Godfrey vs Demon precendent, where an order can be made and it will be done instantly.
Of course, if the website was being hosted in the USA it would be much harder to order the instant takedown. You'd think though, that if the allegations were moonbat untrue there would just be a "point, laugh and call them ridiculous" strategy rather than ordering a takedown to gag Nadine from saying it.
This is especially the case I would've thought because once Recess is over, Nadine would be free to say such things in the House and be protected by Parliamentary Privilege. By taken her down like this the Telegraph will have fed the very idea of some sort of hidden agenda. Suppression, whether it is of speech that is right or wrong, is usually counterproductive. ...
True dat, but allowing moronic wingnuts free rein (note correct spelling, please) is usually equally counterproductive. e.g., shrub jr
This also explains why I couldn't access her site yesterday in an attempt to inform her that being hysterical and stupid at the top of her lungs makes other women look bad.
Lawyers acting for the Barclay brothers, Withers, instructed the takedown carried out by Acidity via mail to Coreix last night, citing the Acceptable User Policy. The takedown will be bolstered by the Godfrey vs Demon precendent, where an order can be made and it will be done instantly.
Of course, if the website was being hosted in the USA it would be much harder to order the instant takedown. You'd think though, that if the allegations were moonbat untrue there would just be a "point, laugh and call them ridiculous" strategy rather than ordering a takedown to gag Nadine from saying it.
This is especially the case I would've thought because once Recess is over, Nadine would be free to say such things in the House and be protected by Parliamentary Privilege. By taken her down like this the Telegraph will have fed the very idea of some sort of hidden agenda. Suppression, whether it is of speech that is right or wrong, is usually counterproductive. ...
True dat, but allowing moronic wingnuts free rein (note correct spelling, please) is usually equally counterproductive. e.g., shrub jr
This also explains why I couldn't access her site yesterday in an attempt to inform her that being hysterical and stupid at the top of her lungs makes other women look bad.
What is wrong with you, so-called 'independent'?? Why on Earth are you making any sympathetic noises at all toward a group of people who has been robbing the public for God knows how long? Are you nuts?
After I post the rest of the whining tripe you'd published (Your gall galls me!) I will no longer visit your site.
No wonder you're fighting off bankruptcy: real journalism is reality-driven. I wish fox were in the same slimy leaky-ass boat you are, but I'll publicly limit myself to hoping you both reach complete Enlightenment.
Idiot apologists.
After I post the rest of the whining tripe you'd published (Your gall galls me!) I will no longer visit your site.
No wonder you're fighting off bankruptcy: real journalism is reality-driven. I wish fox were in the same slimy leaky-ass boat you are, but I'll publicly limit myself to hoping you both reach complete Enlightenment.
Idiot apologists.
You a t'iefin psycho-lady, mon. Gettin' yaase'f some last-gasp publicité 'fore da soe-called h'indipendant h'in bankrupsy caart while ya defend dem udda t'iefs dem?
Cha. Go 'wey, yu h'and dat damn rag what print ya shit.
Cha. Go 'wey, yu h'and dat damn rag what print ya shit.
... "I've always voted Labour," said Eileen Saines, 67. "I couldn't vote Tory after what Thatcher did to working people, so now I don't know what to do. What the hell was she thinking? People here are struggling and she has three houses paid for by us. Who does she think she is?"
The revelations that Moran spent £22,500 for dry rot repairs on a third home, in Southampton, 100 miles from her constituency and, according to Financial Times, that she used parliamentary resources to help a company partially run from her constituency office win up to £50,000 of public funding and sponsorship, have alienated many constituents so much that they are considering voting for a television celebrity to replace her. ...
The revelations that Moran spent £22,500 for dry rot repairs on a third home, in Southampton, 100 miles from her constituency and, according to Financial Times, that she used parliamentary resources to help a company partially run from her constituency office win up to £50,000 of public funding and sponsorship, have alienated many constituents so much that they are considering voting for a television celebrity to replace her. ...
John Wick is a God among insects.
Sit down and STFU nadine, you horrid little weasel. Your hysteria and stupidity undoes years of work real women have done convincing people that not all females are hysterical and stupid.
It's just that nadine sure as hell is.
We're not all hysterical and stupid, really we're not - just like not all men are testosterone-poisoned and violent.
It's just that nadine sure as hell is.
We're not all hysterical and stupid, really we're not - just like not all men are testosterone-poisoned and violent.
May 20, 2009
Collapse of the last bastion of old Labour
Michael Martin owed his position to loyalty - not to voters, but to a Scottish party machine that all but ignored them
Magnus Linklater
No explanation. No regrets. Just a 35-second resignation statement, with one curious reference to the unity of the House of Commons. But that reference is crucial. Michael Martin is, first and last, an organisation man, and the organisation to which he owes his loyalty is not the public, but the power base that he represents.
For most of his life that has been the Labour Party in Scotland - the old, pre-Blair party machine that still holds sway, particularly in the west. It has never set much store by openness or accountablity, it has protected its institutions and people with ruthless self-interest, and it resents bitterly any attempt to challenge its authority.
For more than 50 years after the war, it ran councils and constituencies as a self-perpetuating oligarchy, with a code as rigid as that of a latterday mafia. The assumption that Labour was the natural expression of the people's opinion was so endemic that the people themselves were rarely required to be involved in its affairs.
So, when Mr Martin responded to the wave of outrage that has swept the country in the wake of the expenses scandal by turning on his critics rather than promising to expose the abuse, he was merely reflecting the system he represents. ...
Collapse of the last bastion of old Labour
Michael Martin owed his position to loyalty - not to voters, but to a Scottish party machine that all but ignored them
Magnus Linklater
No explanation. No regrets. Just a 35-second resignation statement, with one curious reference to the unity of the House of Commons. But that reference is crucial. Michael Martin is, first and last, an organisation man, and the organisation to which he owes his loyalty is not the public, but the power base that he represents.
For most of his life that has been the Labour Party in Scotland - the old, pre-Blair party machine that still holds sway, particularly in the west. It has never set much store by openness or accountablity, it has protected its institutions and people with ruthless self-interest, and it resents bitterly any attempt to challenge its authority.
For more than 50 years after the war, it ran councils and constituencies as a self-perpetuating oligarchy, with a code as rigid as that of a latterday mafia. The assumption that Labour was the natural expression of the people's opinion was so endemic that the people themselves were rarely required to be involved in its affairs.
So, when Mr Martin responded to the wave of outrage that has swept the country in the wake of the expenses scandal by turning on his critics rather than promising to expose the abuse, he was merely reflecting the system he represents. ...
May 19, 2009
The little people no longer look up to the big
Rachel Sylvester
... The public reaction to claims for mortgages, manure and massage chairs is so intense because it is not just about MPs' expenses. It's about the inability of politicians to understand that the “little people” no longer look up to the “big people”, that the balance of power has shifted from institutions to individuals, that the iPod generation does not want to join party tribes. There has been an emotional outpouring, rather as there was after the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, because there is a cultural clash between Westminster and the modern world.
The moat is a metaphor for the barrier between the voters and their elected representatives. A revolution is under way, and not just in politics.
Bankers are facing a backlash over bonuses. Bloggers take on the mainstream media. Banksy is as desirable as Botticelli. A decade ago, celebrity magazines would portray Hollywood stars as higher beings - now they write flatteringly about reality TV contestants while highlighting millionaire actresses' cellulite.
Just as Galileo argued that the Earth moved around the Sun, so the “little people” insist that they, rather than the “big people”, are now the centre of the world. A Cabinet minister says: “When you're knocking on doors one of the hardest things is the amount of anger and hostility towards anybody in authority. It's like a flame thrower being directed against you.”
The Freedom of Information Act is the “little people's charter”, handing control from an elite to the masses. The Human Rights Act shifts the balance towards the individual too. The dreaded “elf and safety” irritates so many because it's a move back towards big state control. The implications are far-reaching and not always benign - is it really a good idea, for example, that the Ministry of Defence can be sued over injuries sustained on the battlefield? The danger is that selfish individualism triumphs over the collective good, popular mediocrity over intellectual substance, mob rule over representative democracy.
But the change has happened and politicians must understand the mood and try to harness the anger. Of course the expenses regime must be cleaned up, but that is only the start. The grip of the party machines must loosen...
The little people no longer look up to the big
Rachel Sylvester
... The public reaction to claims for mortgages, manure and massage chairs is so intense because it is not just about MPs' expenses. It's about the inability of politicians to understand that the “little people” no longer look up to the “big people”, that the balance of power has shifted from institutions to individuals, that the iPod generation does not want to join party tribes. There has been an emotional outpouring, rather as there was after the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, because there is a cultural clash between Westminster and the modern world.
The moat is a metaphor for the barrier between the voters and their elected representatives. A revolution is under way, and not just in politics.
Bankers are facing a backlash over bonuses. Bloggers take on the mainstream media. Banksy is as desirable as Botticelli. A decade ago, celebrity magazines would portray Hollywood stars as higher beings - now they write flatteringly about reality TV contestants while highlighting millionaire actresses' cellulite.
Just as Galileo argued that the Earth moved around the Sun, so the “little people” insist that they, rather than the “big people”, are now the centre of the world. A Cabinet minister says: “When you're knocking on doors one of the hardest things is the amount of anger and hostility towards anybody in authority. It's like a flame thrower being directed against you.”
The Freedom of Information Act is the “little people's charter”, handing control from an elite to the masses. The Human Rights Act shifts the balance towards the individual too. The dreaded “elf and safety” irritates so many because it's a move back towards big state control. The implications are far-reaching and not always benign - is it really a good idea, for example, that the Ministry of Defence can be sued over injuries sustained on the battlefield? The danger is that selfish individualism triumphs over the collective good, popular mediocrity over intellectual substance, mob rule over representative democracy.
But the change has happened and politicians must understand the mood and try to harness the anger. Of course the expenses regime must be cleaned up, but that is only the start. The grip of the party machines must loosen...
Good - he was starting to rather resemble kwame kilpatrick.
I'd cheerfully spit in this prick's eye - and I've got good aim.
/me sings
Baronet Oswald Ernald Mosely!
Baronet Oswald Ernald Mosely!
martin wants stringing up!
We have those exact same fabulous elephant lamps, and they sho as hell din't cost no dang £135! They din't even cost no dang $135!
They should lose their jobs, be disbarred if they're members of the bar, pay back all their absurd expense claims, go to trial, and then jail.
Simple as.
Simple as.
Two Labour peers face suspension from the House of Lords until the autumn after being found guilty of offering to try to change the law in return for money.
An investigation into the so-called "cash for amendments" affair published today concluded that Lord Truscott, a former energy minister, and Lord Taylor of Blackburn broke Lords rules saying that peers must "always act on their personal honour". ...
taylor strongly resembles Junior Soprano, and not just superficially as it happens.
An investigation into the so-called "cash for amendments" affair published today concluded that Lord Truscott, a former energy minister, and Lord Taylor of Blackburn broke Lords rules saying that peers must "always act on their personal honour". ...
taylor strongly resembles Junior Soprano, and not just superficially as it happens.
Sink meh, but Old Boris has actually spoken sense!
"...shamed and demoralised Members. ..."
snicker snicker snicker
snicker snicker snicker
Brown blames the system; his system
Martin Ivens
May 10, 2009
Winston Churchill’s reverence for the institution of parliament always was exceptional. “This little place is what makes the difference between us and Germany. This little room is the shrine of the world’s liberties,” he remarked to a fellow MP during wartime. But the gulf between the ideal and the grubby reality at Westminster is now gaping.
The devil is in the detail of MPs’ expenses – the dog food, the Kit Kats, the potted plants, the pram, the manure, the eyeliner, the 59p chocolate Santa. The mean Scottish MP who charged for a 5p carrier bag should be prosecuted for inciting racial hatred against his countrymen.
Responding to the publication of their expenses last week, cabinet ministers, led by Harriet Harman, insisted poker-faced that everything was done “within the rules”. This excuse certainly has echoes of wartime – but of Germany, not Britain – and the voters find it about as convincing as “we were only obeying orders”. The prime minister’s explanation sounds a little more up to date. Like a radical 1960s student, he blames “the system”. But, Mr Brown, you are the system. ...
Martin Ivens
May 10, 2009
Winston Churchill’s reverence for the institution of parliament always was exceptional. “This little place is what makes the difference between us and Germany. This little room is the shrine of the world’s liberties,” he remarked to a fellow MP during wartime. But the gulf between the ideal and the grubby reality at Westminster is now gaping.
The devil is in the detail of MPs’ expenses – the dog food, the Kit Kats, the potted plants, the pram, the manure, the eyeliner, the 59p chocolate Santa. The mean Scottish MP who charged for a 5p carrier bag should be prosecuted for inciting racial hatred against his countrymen.
Responding to the publication of their expenses last week, cabinet ministers, led by Harriet Harman, insisted poker-faced that everything was done “within the rules”. This excuse certainly has echoes of wartime – but of Germany, not Britain – and the voters find it about as convincing as “we were only obeying orders”. The prime minister’s explanation sounds a little more up to date. Like a radical 1960s student, he blames “the system”. But, Mr Brown, you are the system. ...
...How did the culture of letting the taxpayer pick up the tab become so universal?
Um, I think your politicians got the idea from your royals.
Um, I think your politicians got the idea from your royals.
May 8, 2009
Ministers under fire over lavish expenses
Sam Coates, Chief Political Correspondent
Gordon Brown came under renewed pressure after it emerged last night that more than half the Cabinet face embarrassment over expense claims.
Senior ministers were forced to explain a series of lavish, unusual and erroneous claims that highlight the lengths to which MPs have gone to exploit the system of taxpayer-funded allowances.
The revelations come days after the Prime Minister abandoned an attempt to reform the controversial £24,000 second-home allowance.
Mr Brown was thrust into the spotlight after it emerged he had paid his brother Andrew, a lobbyist for the energy company EDF, £241 a month for cleaning services.
The documents also show that Mr Brown transferred the location of his main home, from his constituency to his London flat, ten days after Tony Blair announced the date he would step down. Designating the North Queensferry property as his second home allowed Mr Brown to claim most of the running costs, including a gardener and cleaner, and carry out extensive repairs and redecoration at public expense. ...
More links from the page:
Full expense details | 'Pay for redecoration or I'll be divorced' | Tea room secrets exposed | 'Accountancy not my strong point' | Comment: Francis Elliott | The 10 most outrageous MP expense claims ever
Ministers under fire over lavish expenses
Sam Coates, Chief Political Correspondent
Gordon Brown came under renewed pressure after it emerged last night that more than half the Cabinet face embarrassment over expense claims.
Senior ministers were forced to explain a series of lavish, unusual and erroneous claims that highlight the lengths to which MPs have gone to exploit the system of taxpayer-funded allowances.
The revelations come days after the Prime Minister abandoned an attempt to reform the controversial £24,000 second-home allowance.
Mr Brown was thrust into the spotlight after it emerged he had paid his brother Andrew, a lobbyist for the energy company EDF, £241 a month for cleaning services.
The documents also show that Mr Brown transferred the location of his main home, from his constituency to his London flat, ten days after Tony Blair announced the date he would step down. Designating the North Queensferry property as his second home allowed Mr Brown to claim most of the running costs, including a gardener and cleaner, and carry out extensive repairs and redecoration at public expense. ...
More links from the page:
Full expense details | 'Pay for redecoration or I'll be divorced' | Tea room secrets exposed | 'Accountancy not my strong point' | Comment: Francis Elliott | The 10 most outrageous MP expense claims ever
STAFF at a government-backed fund supposed to help some of the poorest people in the world have been awarded £65m in bonuses – equivalent to an annual £350,000 per employee.
The bonuses have largely come from investments intended to tackle poverty in the developing world. The fund was part of the Department for International Development (DFID) until it was part-privatised in 2004.
Charity workers say the government has allowed the fund, Actis, to skew Britain’s priorities overseas in its pursuit of high returns by depriving poor rural communities of investment. Actis manages funds for DFID’s investment body, CDC, tasked with reducing poverty, and has been praised for its success. But it has been awarding staff bonuses of up to £3m out of investments built up over years in developing countries.
Average pay for employees in 2007 was on a par with those at Goldman Sachs, the US investment bank. ...
The bonuses have largely come from investments intended to tackle poverty in the developing world. The fund was part of the Department for International Development (DFID) until it was part-privatised in 2004.
Charity workers say the government has allowed the fund, Actis, to skew Britain’s priorities overseas in its pursuit of high returns by depriving poor rural communities of investment. Actis manages funds for DFID’s investment body, CDC, tasked with reducing poverty, and has been praised for its success. But it has been awarding staff bonuses of up to £3m out of investments built up over years in developing countries.
Average pay for employees in 2007 was on a par with those at Goldman Sachs, the US investment bank. ...
Class.
It wouldn't be nearly as bad if only marijuana were legalized. Coke's no good, and it's a dangerous business as well as a dangerous drug - but if law enforcement didn't have to waste time with pot smokers they could focus on the cocaine bastards instead.