Saturday, May 29, 2010
Feds Building BP Criminal Case
The investigators, who have been quietly gathering evidence in Louisiana over the last three weeks, are focusing on whether BP skirted federal safety regulations and misled the U.S. government by saying it could quickly clean up an environmental accident.
The team has met with U.S. attorneys and state officials in the Gulf Coast region and has sent letters to executives of BP and Transocean Ltd., the drilling rig owner, warning them against destroying documents or other internal records.
Read on.
The team has met with U.S. attorneys and state officials in the Gulf Coast region and has sent letters to executives of BP and Transocean Ltd., the drilling rig owner, warning them against destroying documents or other internal records.
Read on.
SPB News for Saturday
Fitch Cuts Spain's AAA Rating
Soldier in Iraq Loses Home Over $800 Debt
Justice Stevens Denies Blagojevich Delay of Trial
Supreme Court asked to review an AZ law
Federal officials also deliver 'strong message' to state about immigration law.
Soldier in Iraq Loses Home Over $800 Debt
Justice Stevens Denies Blagojevich Delay of Trial
Supreme Court asked to review an AZ law
Federal officials also deliver 'strong message' to state about immigration law.
Free manuretv: Sunday's bobblehead show
Here are the line-ups for the Sunday talk shows this weekend:
• ABC, This Week: Former Secretary of State Colin Powell.
• CBS, Face The Nation: White House Energy Adviser Carol Browner, Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA), Louisiana State University environmental scientist Edward Overton, Ph.D.
• CNN, State Of The Union: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen, Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA), Sen. David Vitter (R-LA).
• Fox News Sunday: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen.
• NBC, Meet The Press: White House Energy Adviser Carol Browner, Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), former Rep. J.D. Hayworth (R-AZ).
• ABC, This Week: Former Secretary of State Colin Powell.
• CBS, Face The Nation: White House Energy Adviser Carol Browner, Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA), Louisiana State University environmental scientist Edward Overton, Ph.D.
• CNN, State Of The Union: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen, Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA), Sen. David Vitter (R-LA).
• Fox News Sunday: Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen.
• NBC, Meet The Press: White House Energy Adviser Carol Browner, Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), former Rep. J.D. Hayworth (R-AZ).
Subsidiary of Morgan Stanley with Worst Loan Mod Backlog
Last week, the government released data showing that there’s a big problem at Saxon Mortgage, a subsidiary of Morgan Stanley. Of all the mortgage companies participating in the administration’s mortgage modification program, Saxon has the largest proportion of homeowners caught in modification limbo.
Read more.
Read more.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Memo to GOP on Sestak: Move on and find another issue
Talkleft.com:
White House Counsel Robert Bauer issued a memo (available here) on the Joe Sestak "job" talks today.
An unpaid, advisory position within the executive branch is not a job.
We found that, as the Congressman has publicly and accurately stated, options for Executive Branch service were raised with him. Efforts were made in June and July of 2009 to determine whether Congressman Sestak would be interested in service on a Presidential or other Senior Executive Branch Advisory Board, which would avoid a divisive Senate primary, allow him to retain his seat in the House, and provide him with an opportunity for additional service to the public in a high-level advisory capacity for which he was highly qualified. The advisory positions discussed with Congressman Sestak, while important to the work of the Administration, would have been uncompensated.
White House Counsel Robert Bauer issued a memo (available here) on the Joe Sestak "job" talks today.
An unpaid, advisory position within the executive branch is not a job.
We found that, as the Congressman has publicly and accurately stated, options for Executive Branch service were raised with him. Efforts were made in June and July of 2009 to determine whether Congressman Sestak would be interested in service on a Presidential or other Senior Executive Branch Advisory Board, which would avoid a divisive Senate primary, allow him to retain his seat in the House, and provide him with an opportunity for additional service to the public in a high-level advisory capacity for which he was highly qualified. The advisory positions discussed with Congressman Sestak, while important to the work of the Administration, would have been uncompensated.
Feingold amendment for timetable for withdrawal from Afghanistan voted down.
Thinkprogress:
Thursday morning, the Senate debated Sen. Russ Feingold’s (D-WI) amendment to the war supplemental bill, which called on President Obama to provide a flexible timetable for withdrawal from Afghanistan to Congress. Arguing for the amendment on the floor, Feingold complained that he is “disppointed that” Congress is passing a bill “providing tens of billions of dollars to keep this war going with so little public debate about whether this approach makes any sense.” After Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) objected to the Feingold amendment, arguing that it sends the wrong message to the region, Feingold retorted, “The Senator suggests that somehow this sends the wrong message to the region. The real wrong message is that we intend to be there forever”:
FEINGOLD: In light of our deficit and domestic needs and in light of rising casualty rates in Afghanistan and in light of the growing Al Qaeda threat around the world, an expensive troop-intensive nation-building campaign just doesn’t add up for me. We should be focusing on Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, and other terrorist safe havens. Frankly I am disappointed that we are about to pass a bill providing tens of billions of dollars to keep this war going with so little public debate about whether this approach makes any sense.
LEVIN: If we adopt the Feingold amendment, Mrs. Madame president, we’ll be sending a…message to the government and people of Afghanistan. It would reinforce the fear, if we adopt this amendment, already a deep seated fear in Afghanistan, that the United States will abandon the region. That is a message that we can ill afford to send regarding the future stability of Afghanistan, and it is a particularly unwise message to send while our forces are still deploying to Afghanistan.
FEINGOLD: The Senator suggests that somehow this sends the wrong message to the region. The real wrong message is that we intend to be there forever.
Following the debate, the Feingold amendment was voted down 18-80. See the roll call vote here. This past Tuesday, the Defense Department released troop numbers that reveal there are now more U.S. troops deployed in Afghanistan than Iraq.
Thursday morning, the Senate debated Sen. Russ Feingold’s (D-WI) amendment to the war supplemental bill, which called on President Obama to provide a flexible timetable for withdrawal from Afghanistan to Congress. Arguing for the amendment on the floor, Feingold complained that he is “disppointed that” Congress is passing a bill “providing tens of billions of dollars to keep this war going with so little public debate about whether this approach makes any sense.” After Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) objected to the Feingold amendment, arguing that it sends the wrong message to the region, Feingold retorted, “The Senator suggests that somehow this sends the wrong message to the region. The real wrong message is that we intend to be there forever”:
FEINGOLD: In light of our deficit and domestic needs and in light of rising casualty rates in Afghanistan and in light of the growing Al Qaeda threat around the world, an expensive troop-intensive nation-building campaign just doesn’t add up for me. We should be focusing on Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, and other terrorist safe havens. Frankly I am disappointed that we are about to pass a bill providing tens of billions of dollars to keep this war going with so little public debate about whether this approach makes any sense.
LEVIN: If we adopt the Feingold amendment, Mrs. Madame president, we’ll be sending a…message to the government and people of Afghanistan. It would reinforce the fear, if we adopt this amendment, already a deep seated fear in Afghanistan, that the United States will abandon the region. That is a message that we can ill afford to send regarding the future stability of Afghanistan, and it is a particularly unwise message to send while our forces are still deploying to Afghanistan.
FEINGOLD: The Senator suggests that somehow this sends the wrong message to the region. The real wrong message is that we intend to be there forever.
Following the debate, the Feingold amendment was voted down 18-80. See the roll call vote here. This past Tuesday, the Defense Department released troop numbers that reveal there are now more U.S. troops deployed in Afghanistan than Iraq.
Debt collectors gone wild
"We were scared," says Verizon customer Al Burrows of a menacing phone call he reportedly received from a Verizon Wireless debt collector.
Burrows is suing Verizon Wireless, alleging that a representative from the company "threatened to blow his house up over a $308 unpaid bill."
According to the lawsuit, Burrows arranged a 90-day payment plan with the help of one Verizon debt collector--but shortly thereafter, received a call from another, different representative. Although this bill collector had knowledge of the payment plan, the individual "pressed for immediate payment" and told Burrows, "I am gonna blow your m*****f***ing house up," ABC News reports. (Listen to Burrows' call with the Verizon below)
Burrows' incident seems not to be an isolated event. A former debt collector tells ABC News, "Mean works better than nice. In terms of being a debt collector, it does." He adds, "If you can get a woman to cry, that's a slap on the back. That's a badge of honor."
Hear a recording of Burrows' Verizon message, then watch ABC's report in the video below. Verizon came under fire earlier this year for its refusal to disactivate a dead man's account, saying a death certificate was not enough to cancel his service.
Read on.
Burrows is suing Verizon Wireless, alleging that a representative from the company "threatened to blow his house up over a $308 unpaid bill."
According to the lawsuit, Burrows arranged a 90-day payment plan with the help of one Verizon debt collector--but shortly thereafter, received a call from another, different representative. Although this bill collector had knowledge of the payment plan, the individual "pressed for immediate payment" and told Burrows, "I am gonna blow your m*****f***ing house up," ABC News reports. (Listen to Burrows' call with the Verizon below)
Burrows' incident seems not to be an isolated event. A former debt collector tells ABC News, "Mean works better than nice. In terms of being a debt collector, it does." He adds, "If you can get a woman to cry, that's a slap on the back. That's a badge of honor."
Hear a recording of Burrows' Verizon message, then watch ABC's report in the video below. Verizon came under fire earlier this year for its refusal to disactivate a dead man's account, saying a death certificate was not enough to cancel his service.
Read on.
The curious case of Rand Paul
TPM reports:
Zack Roth takes a look at the little-known not-for-profit founded and run by Kentucky GOP Senate candidate Rand Paul for the purpose of issuing board certification to ophthalmologists. Paul, himself an ophthalmologist, apparently set up his board as a competitor to the longstanding American Board of Ophthalmology, which certifies about 96 percent of the country's ophthalmologists. But the professional ophthalmology groups we talked to had never heard of Paul's National Board of Ophthalmology even though it's been around since 1999, and we could only find a few physicians claiming NBO certification.
Check out document filed online with the Kentucky Secretary of State's office.
And there is more. Paul's strange ties with big oil companies.
Page One Kentucky website reports:
Dow. He’s married to Rand’s sister, Dr. Joy Paul-LeBlanc. His bio on the Dow website caught my attention:
In Mr. Leblanc’s previous role, he provided business finance support for the VERSENEÒ chelating agents, Quaternaries, and DAXAD/Glycine value centers. In this role he participated in three separate strategy developments, a competitive mapping exercise and the divestiture of the DAXAD/Glycine business.
Chelating agents. What the heck are chelating agents?
According to Dow, they’re used in “several operations in the drilling, production, and recovery of oil. They can prevent plugging caused by iron precipitation during stimulation and fracturing.” They’re also used for scale removal and prevention on well casings and can prevent scaling in boilers used for enhanced oil recovery steam flooding.
Raises lots of questions… like whether or not those chelating agents could have been used in the well/rig/equipment involved in the Gulf disaster. Were they used? Are they used? Does Dow have a business relationship of any sort with BP or the company that owns the rig BP was leasing?
And for the record: there are direct ties to that particular oil rig and Dow. The Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer of the company that owns it – Transocean – is Michael Munro. Take a look at his bio:
Mr. Munro has extensive experience leading global compliance programs. Prior to joining Transocean as Chief Compliance Officer and Associate General Counsel in 2008, Mr. Munro served as Global Director of Ethics and Compliance at Baker Hughes, Director of Compliance and Associate General Counsel at the Bristow Group, and in various roles in his 17 years at Dow Chemical, including Deputy Director, Global Ethics and Compliance; Managing Counsel, International Trade and Logistics; Corporate Employment and Labor Counsel; Corporate M&A/Finance Counsel and Labor Relations Manager, North America.
Additionally, Rand Paul’s brother, Ronnie, works for Dow. Ronnie’s also a member of Rand Paul’s Alchemy, LLC (more on Alchemy here and here). Which begs the question of whether or not Rand himself is directly benefiting from his attack on Obama.
More on Paul's personal financial disclosures. Click here.
Zack Roth takes a look at the little-known not-for-profit founded and run by Kentucky GOP Senate candidate Rand Paul for the purpose of issuing board certification to ophthalmologists. Paul, himself an ophthalmologist, apparently set up his board as a competitor to the longstanding American Board of Ophthalmology, which certifies about 96 percent of the country's ophthalmologists. But the professional ophthalmology groups we talked to had never heard of Paul's National Board of Ophthalmology even though it's been around since 1999, and we could only find a few physicians claiming NBO certification.
Check out document filed online with the Kentucky Secretary of State's office.
And there is more. Paul's strange ties with big oil companies.
Page One Kentucky website reports:
Dow. He’s married to Rand’s sister, Dr. Joy Paul-LeBlanc. His bio on the Dow website caught my attention:
In Mr. Leblanc’s previous role, he provided business finance support for the VERSENEÒ chelating agents, Quaternaries, and DAXAD/Glycine value centers. In this role he participated in three separate strategy developments, a competitive mapping exercise and the divestiture of the DAXAD/Glycine business.
Chelating agents. What the heck are chelating agents?
According to Dow, they’re used in “several operations in the drilling, production, and recovery of oil. They can prevent plugging caused by iron precipitation during stimulation and fracturing.” They’re also used for scale removal and prevention on well casings and can prevent scaling in boilers used for enhanced oil recovery steam flooding.
Raises lots of questions… like whether or not those chelating agents could have been used in the well/rig/equipment involved in the Gulf disaster. Were they used? Are they used? Does Dow have a business relationship of any sort with BP or the company that owns the rig BP was leasing?
And for the record: there are direct ties to that particular oil rig and Dow. The Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer of the company that owns it – Transocean – is Michael Munro. Take a look at his bio:
Mr. Munro has extensive experience leading global compliance programs. Prior to joining Transocean as Chief Compliance Officer and Associate General Counsel in 2008, Mr. Munro served as Global Director of Ethics and Compliance at Baker Hughes, Director of Compliance and Associate General Counsel at the Bristow Group, and in various roles in his 17 years at Dow Chemical, including Deputy Director, Global Ethics and Compliance; Managing Counsel, International Trade and Logistics; Corporate Employment and Labor Counsel; Corporate M&A/Finance Counsel and Labor Relations Manager, North America.
Additionally, Rand Paul’s brother, Ronnie, works for Dow. Ronnie’s also a member of Rand Paul’s Alchemy, LLC (more on Alchemy here and here). Which begs the question of whether or not Rand himself is directly benefiting from his attack on Obama.
More on Paul's personal financial disclosures. Click here.
BofA, Citi Made 'Repos' Errors
WSJ.com (subj. rec):
Bank of America Corp. and Citigroup Inc. incorrectly hid from investors billions of dollars of their debt, similar to what Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. did to obscure its level of risk, company documents show.
In recent filings with regulators, the two big banks disclosed that over the past three years, they at times erroneously classified some short-term repurchase agreements, or "repos," as sales when they should have been classified as borrowings. Though the classifications involved billions of dollars, they represented relatively small amounts for the banks.
Bank of America Corp. and Citigroup Inc. incorrectly hid from investors billions of dollars of their debt, similar to what Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. did to obscure its level of risk, company documents show.
In recent filings with regulators, the two big banks disclosed that over the past three years, they at times erroneously classified some short-term repurchase agreements, or "repos," as sales when they should have been classified as borrowings. Though the classifications involved billions of dollars, they represented relatively small amounts for the banks.
SPB News for Friday
National debt tops $13 trillion
McConnell cites debt as criticism of unemployment benefits extension.
Sandra Day O'Connor: Arizona Must Show It's Not 'Biased'
Scalia, O'Connor Praise Elena Kagan's Lack Of Judicial Experience
Wars Get Funded, Laid-Off Workers Don't
DADT repeal passed by full House of Representatives and Senate Armed Services committee
Top BP official on rig takes the Fifth
McConnell cites debt as criticism of unemployment benefits extension.
Sandra Day O'Connor: Arizona Must Show It's Not 'Biased'
Scalia, O'Connor Praise Elena Kagan's Lack Of Judicial Experience
Wars Get Funded, Laid-Off Workers Don't
DADT repeal passed by full House of Representatives and Senate Armed Services committee
Top BP official on rig takes the Fifth
"Pants Judge" Pearson Loses Appeal in D.C. Circuit
Former administrative law judge Roy Pearson Jr. just can't catch a break in his quest to hold someone accountable for losing his job with the District of Columbia.
Pearson, recall, was the judge who filed a multimillion-dollar suit against a dry cleaner over a lost pair of pants. The suit didn't go unnoticed. In 2007, Pearson was denied reappointment to his post as a D.C. administrative law judge. Pearson sued, making a host of claims.
When Pearson’s wrongful termination suit was dismissed by the federal district court in Washington, he turned to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Today, a three-judge panel upheld the dismissal of the suit.
Read on.
Pearson, recall, was the judge who filed a multimillion-dollar suit against a dry cleaner over a lost pair of pants. The suit didn't go unnoticed. In 2007, Pearson was denied reappointment to his post as a D.C. administrative law judge. Pearson sued, making a host of claims.
When Pearson’s wrongful termination suit was dismissed by the federal district court in Washington, he turned to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Today, a three-judge panel upheld the dismissal of the suit.
Read on.
US Probes Goldman's Timberwolf Deal
The federal prosecutors investigating Goldman Sachs are focusing on Timberwolf, the infamous "shitty deal" repeatedly cited in a tense Senate hearing last month, according to people who have been contacted by the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's office.
The probe raises the possibility of criminal charges against the storied Wall Street firm, which was charged in April by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission with civil fraud for allegedly misleading investors about another subprime mortgage-related security called Abacus.
Investigators from the U.S. Attorney's office have reached out to individuals involved in the deal, including David Mapley, the former independent director of an Australian hedge fund who claims that the firm collapsed shortly after Goldman sold it $100 million of securities in Timberwolf, a $1 billion collateralized debt obligation.
Read on.
The probe raises the possibility of criminal charges against the storied Wall Street firm, which was charged in April by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission with civil fraud for allegedly misleading investors about another subprime mortgage-related security called Abacus.
Investigators from the U.S. Attorney's office have reached out to individuals involved in the deal, including David Mapley, the former independent director of an Australian hedge fund who claims that the firm collapsed shortly after Goldman sold it $100 million of securities in Timberwolf, a $1 billion collateralized debt obligation.
Read on.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
BGA/FOX EXPOSÉ OF COOK COUNTY JUDGES
From BGA:
CHICAGO - The Better Government Association and Fox Chicago News expose a taxpayer ripoff---some Cook County judges routinely close their courtrooms to go home early. Tune in tonight at 9 p.m. to Fox Chicago News for our joint investigation with Dane Placko and Larry Yellen. We've documented how some judges work part-time but get full-time pay despite a court system clogged with a backlog of cases. And we've obtained a confidential government study that suggests at least one elected official harbors his own concerns about empty courtrooms and absent judges in an overburdened system. This on-going investigation raises troubling questions about the possibilities that citizens are waiting longer than necessary for their cases to be heard and defendants may be sitting in jail longer than necessary because a judge is working half a day.
STARTING SALARY FOR COOK COUNTY JUDGES IS $160,000 PER YEAR. Tonight you'll see what happened when we caught one judge going home early to sit in her backyard and soak up some sun. Judge Gloria Chevere told us she leaves early because she's so efficient she finishes her work and there isn't anything else for her to do at the courthouse. Judge Chevere is paid over $173,000 a year.
BGA CALLS FOR ACCOUNTABILITY AND OVERSIGHT
BGA Executive Director Andy Shaw said, "Illinois taxpayers should not be paying Judge Chevere to sit in the sun! With 420 judges sitting in Cook County, maybe we simply have too many if some don't even have enough work to do to keep them busy for 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week? Chief Judge Tim Evans should consider installing time clocks for judges so they have to punch in and punch out everyday just like factory workers. Whether judges are elected or appointed, they should work a full day and be accountable. Judge Evans must come up some answers and some solutions. Taxpayers demand better oversight and organization so we are not saddled with the costs of a court system that is inefficient and wasteful."
GO TO FOX CHICAGO NEWS ONLINE TO SEE THE INVESTIGATION AFTER IT AIRS: http://www.myfoxchicago.com/subindex/news/investigative
CHICAGO - The Better Government Association and Fox Chicago News expose a taxpayer ripoff---some Cook County judges routinely close their courtrooms to go home early. Tune in tonight at 9 p.m. to Fox Chicago News for our joint investigation with Dane Placko and Larry Yellen. We've documented how some judges work part-time but get full-time pay despite a court system clogged with a backlog of cases. And we've obtained a confidential government study that suggests at least one elected official harbors his own concerns about empty courtrooms and absent judges in an overburdened system. This on-going investigation raises troubling questions about the possibilities that citizens are waiting longer than necessary for their cases to be heard and defendants may be sitting in jail longer than necessary because a judge is working half a day.
STARTING SALARY FOR COOK COUNTY JUDGES IS $160,000 PER YEAR. Tonight you'll see what happened when we caught one judge going home early to sit in her backyard and soak up some sun. Judge Gloria Chevere told us she leaves early because she's so efficient she finishes her work and there isn't anything else for her to do at the courthouse. Judge Chevere is paid over $173,000 a year.
BGA CALLS FOR ACCOUNTABILITY AND OVERSIGHT
BGA Executive Director Andy Shaw said, "Illinois taxpayers should not be paying Judge Chevere to sit in the sun! With 420 judges sitting in Cook County, maybe we simply have too many if some don't even have enough work to do to keep them busy for 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week? Chief Judge Tim Evans should consider installing time clocks for judges so they have to punch in and punch out everyday just like factory workers. Whether judges are elected or appointed, they should work a full day and be accountable. Judge Evans must come up some answers and some solutions. Taxpayers demand better oversight and organization so we are not saddled with the costs of a court system that is inefficient and wasteful."
GO TO FOX CHICAGO NEWS ONLINE TO SEE THE INVESTIGATION AFTER IT AIRS: http://www.myfoxchicago.com/subindex/news/investigative
Puerto Rican Man Almost Deported To Mexico
From Guanabee.com: Puerto Rican Man Almost Deported To Mexico:
This is why Arizona SB 1070 will backfire: Immigration authorities in Berwyn, Illinois arrested Puerto Rican Eduardo Caraballo in a stolen car case, but when his mother posted his bail, he was detained because authorities didn’t believe he was a legal citizen. His mother brought his birth certificate, but Eduardo was unable to answer some questions about the island because he’s lived all his life on the mainland. Eduardo was detained for more three days and threatened with deportation–to Mexico.
This is why Arizona SB 1070 will backfire: Immigration authorities in Berwyn, Illinois arrested Puerto Rican Eduardo Caraballo in a stolen car case, but when his mother posted his bail, he was detained because authorities didn’t believe he was a legal citizen. His mother brought his birth certificate, but Eduardo was unable to answer some questions about the island because he’s lived all his life on the mainland. Eduardo was detained for more three days and threatened with deportation–to Mexico.
Lehman's Bankruptcy Estate Sues J.P. Morgan Chase
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.'s estate sued J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., alleging J.P. Morgan illegally siphoned billions of dollars from Lehman in the days before the troubled investment bank filed for the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history.
The lawsuit alleges that J.P. Morgan Chief Executive James Dimon and other top executives used inside knowledge to take advantage of Lehman as its financial state worsened. J.P. Morgan, the suit alleged, coerced Lehman to turn over $8.6 billion in collateral in September 2008, triggering a liquidity squeeze that contributed to Lehman's collapse. The estate is hoping to recoup billions in collateral the bank demanded, and billions in other damages.
J.P. Morgan spokesman Joe Evangelisti said the lawsuit "is ill-conceived and meritless, and we will vigorously defend it."
Read on.
The lawsuit alleges that J.P. Morgan Chief Executive James Dimon and other top executives used inside knowledge to take advantage of Lehman as its financial state worsened. J.P. Morgan, the suit alleged, coerced Lehman to turn over $8.6 billion in collateral in September 2008, triggering a liquidity squeeze that contributed to Lehman's collapse. The estate is hoping to recoup billions in collateral the bank demanded, and billions in other damages.
J.P. Morgan spokesman Joe Evangelisti said the lawsuit "is ill-conceived and meritless, and we will vigorously defend it."
Read on.
Palin, Natural Gas Company Worked Together To Sell Alaska Pipeline
JUNEAU, Alaska — Sarah Palin's administration paid close attention two years ago to how the public perceived her plans to bring a massive natural gas pipeline to Alaska, with one aide worrying the then-governor would face criticism of grandstanding for traveling out of state at a critical time for the plan's prospects.
E-mail exchanges also show at-times close communication between staff and representatives of the Canadian company Palin picked to build the line. In June 2008, after her recommendation of the company and less than two months before the Legislature voted on the contract, Palin agreed to host people involved with the project at her home for a salmon feast and "informal gasline chat."
"There's a Costco in Juneau, if you know what I mean," Palin wrote. "And my family is quite capable of setting out food and cleaning up afterwards."
The correspondence is contained in more than 2,000 pages of e-mails between Palin's office and others surrounding the pipeline process. The e-mails were released to The Associated Press this week under a public records request filed in 2008, when Palin was the Republican vice presidential nominee. Palin resigned as governor last year.
Read on.
E-mail exchanges also show at-times close communication between staff and representatives of the Canadian company Palin picked to build the line. In June 2008, after her recommendation of the company and less than two months before the Legislature voted on the contract, Palin agreed to host people involved with the project at her home for a salmon feast and "informal gasline chat."
"There's a Costco in Juneau, if you know what I mean," Palin wrote. "And my family is quite capable of setting out food and cleaning up afterwards."
The correspondence is contained in more than 2,000 pages of e-mails between Palin's office and others surrounding the pipeline process. The e-mails were released to The Associated Press this week under a public records request filed in 2008, when Palin was the Republican vice presidential nominee. Palin resigned as governor last year.
Read on.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Unemployed Philadelphia Man, Indicted For 'Harassing Email' To Sen. Bunning
Huffington Post:
When Sen. Jim Bunning complained on the Senate floor in February that he'd missed the Kentucky-South Carolina basketball game because of a debate on unemployment benefits -- a debate the Kentucky Republican himself prevented from proceeding to a vote -- Bruce Shore got angry.
"I was livid. I was just livid," said Shore, 51, who watched the floor proceedings on C-SPAN from his home in Philadelphia. "I'm on unemployment, so it affects me. I'm in shock."
Instead of just being angry, Shore took action: He sent several emails to Bunning staffers, blasting the senator for blocking the benefits.
"ARE you'all insane," said part of one letter Shore sent on Feb. 26 (which he shared with HuffPost). "NO checks equal no food for me. DO YOU GET IT??"
In that letter he signed off as "Brad Shore" from Louisville. He said he did the same thing in several other messages sent via the contact form on Bunning's website. "My assumption was that if he gets an email from Philadelphia, who cares?" he said. "Why would he even care if a guy from Philadelphia gets upset?"
Bunning might not have cared, but the FBI did. Sometime in March, said Shore, agents came calling to ask about the emails. They read from printouts of the messages sent via the contact form and asked if Shore was the author, which he readily admitted. They asked a few questions, and then, according to Shore, they said, "All right, we just wanted to make sure it wasn't anything to worry about."
But on May 13, U.S. Marshals showed up at Shore's house with a grand jury indictment. Now he's got to appear in federal court in Covington, Ky. on May 28 to answer for felony email harassment. Specifically, the indictment (PDF) says that on Feb. 26, Shore "did utilize a telecommunications device, that is a computer, whether or not communication ensued, without disclosing his identity and with the intent to annoy, abuse, threaten, and harass any person who received the communication."
When Sen. Jim Bunning complained on the Senate floor in February that he'd missed the Kentucky-South Carolina basketball game because of a debate on unemployment benefits -- a debate the Kentucky Republican himself prevented from proceeding to a vote -- Bruce Shore got angry.
"I was livid. I was just livid," said Shore, 51, who watched the floor proceedings on C-SPAN from his home in Philadelphia. "I'm on unemployment, so it affects me. I'm in shock."
Instead of just being angry, Shore took action: He sent several emails to Bunning staffers, blasting the senator for blocking the benefits.
"ARE you'all insane," said part of one letter Shore sent on Feb. 26 (which he shared with HuffPost). "NO checks equal no food for me. DO YOU GET IT??"
In that letter he signed off as "Brad Shore" from Louisville. He said he did the same thing in several other messages sent via the contact form on Bunning's website. "My assumption was that if he gets an email from Philadelphia, who cares?" he said. "Why would he even care if a guy from Philadelphia gets upset?"
Bunning might not have cared, but the FBI did. Sometime in March, said Shore, agents came calling to ask about the emails. They read from printouts of the messages sent via the contact form and asked if Shore was the author, which he readily admitted. They asked a few questions, and then, according to Shore, they said, "All right, we just wanted to make sure it wasn't anything to worry about."
But on May 13, U.S. Marshals showed up at Shore's house with a grand jury indictment. Now he's got to appear in federal court in Covington, Ky. on May 28 to answer for felony email harassment. Specifically, the indictment (PDF) says that on Feb. 26, Shore "did utilize a telecommunications device, that is a computer, whether or not communication ensued, without disclosing his identity and with the intent to annoy, abuse, threaten, and harass any person who received the communication."
U.S. Citizen Arrested, Held For Three Days On Suspicion Of Being Illegal Immigrant
Huffington Post:
Eduardo Caraballo, a U.S. citizen born in the United States, was detained for over three days on suspicion of being an illegal immigrant.
Despite presenting identifying documents and even his birth certificate, Caraballo was held by federal immigration authorities over the weekend and threatened with deportation, according to an NBC Chicago report. He was only released when his congressman, Luis Gutierrez -- a vocal supporter of immigration reform -- intervened on his behalf.
Eduardo Caraballo, a U.S. citizen born in the United States, was detained for over three days on suspicion of being an illegal immigrant.
Despite presenting identifying documents and even his birth certificate, Caraballo was held by federal immigration authorities over the weekend and threatened with deportation, according to an NBC Chicago report. He was only released when his congressman, Luis Gutierrez -- a vocal supporter of immigration reform -- intervened on his behalf.
SPB News for Wednesday
Palin-Backed Candidate Accused Of Plagiarizing Obama's 2004 Convention Speech
Kilpatrick gets to 1.5 to 5 years in prison, loses job
Exclusive: FBI details surge in death threats against lawmakers
Officials Work for Firm that Receives Schools’ Cash - The Virginian-Pilot
Oil Companies Have a Rich History of U.S. Subsidies - LA Times
Investments Show Congress’s Leeway in Trading - The Washington Post
U.S. Is Said to Expand Secret Actions in Mideast - The New York Times
Inspector General’s Inquiry Faults Regulators - The New York Times
Kilpatrick gets to 1.5 to 5 years in prison, loses job
Exclusive: FBI details surge in death threats against lawmakers
Officials Work for Firm that Receives Schools’ Cash - The Virginian-Pilot
Oil Companies Have a Rich History of U.S. Subsidies - LA Times
Investments Show Congress’s Leeway in Trading - The Washington Post
U.S. Is Said to Expand Secret Actions in Mideast - The New York Times
Inspector General’s Inquiry Faults Regulators - The New York Times
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
There will be none of this in Nevada: Chicken suits!
Chicken suits are officially banned from all polling places in Nevada after GOP NV candidate for Senator, Sue Lowden's, Chickens for Checkups debacle.
Gulf Drilling Regulators Let Oil Companies Fill Out Their Own Inspection Reports
WASHINGTON — Federal regulators responsible for oversight of drilling in the Gulf of Mexico allowed industry officials several years ago to fill in their own inspection reports in pencil — and then turned them over to the regulators, who traced over them in pen before submitting the reports to the agency, according to an inspector general’s report to be released this week.
The report, which describes inappropriate behavior by the staff at the Minerals Management Service from 2005 to 2007, also found that inspectors had accepted meals, tickets to sporting events and gifts from at least one oil company while they were overseeing the industry.
Although there is no evidence that those events played a role in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the report offers further evidence of what many critics of the Minerals Management Service have described as a culture of lax oversight and cozy ties to industry.
The report includes other examples of troubling behavior discovered by investigators.
Read on.
The report, which describes inappropriate behavior by the staff at the Minerals Management Service from 2005 to 2007, also found that inspectors had accepted meals, tickets to sporting events and gifts from at least one oil company while they were overseeing the industry.
Although there is no evidence that those events played a role in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the report offers further evidence of what many critics of the Minerals Management Service have described as a culture of lax oversight and cozy ties to industry.
The report includes other examples of troubling behavior discovered by investigators.
Read on.
Planet Wingnut News for Tuesday
Arizona cracking down on teachers with heavy accents
Absurd: Governor defends immigration law with frog puppet
CA GOP Guv. candidate Chuck DeVore: 'Jack Bauer' Would Support Me (VIDEO)
Chuck DeVore, a California state legislator and Tea Party-backed candidate for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate, has a new Web video claiming that "Jack Bauer," the protagonist of the action-adventure show 24, would support him for Senate.
"Ask yourself this question, Jack Bauer fans: Which person would Jack want as his U.S. Senator?" the announcer says. "Barbara Boxer, a Guantanamo-closing, tax-raising, big-government growing ultra-liberal who reads Miranda rights to foreign terrorists? Or Chuck DeVore, a U.S. Army Reserve intelligence officer, who likes Guantanamo Bay as it is, thinks foreign terrorists should have an interrogator, not a lawyer, and supports lower taxes and smaller government?"
Of course, it should be noted that "Jack Bauer" is a fictional character portrayed by the actor Kiefer Sutherland. In real life, Sutherland is a Canadian democratic socialist whose grandfather, the late Saskatchewan Premier Tommy Douglas, was the founder of his country's single-payer health care system. The real-life Kiefer Sutherland remains a staunch supporter of his grandfather's left-wing New Democratic Party, and is a vocal advocate for single-payer health care.
Palin gives ‘disastrous speech’ at real estate conference, doesn’t bother talking about real estate.
Fox News analyst Sarah Palin reportedly charges $100,000 to give a speech, and has some pretty big demands, including “first-class airfare for two, several luxury hotel rooms and water bottles with ‘bendable straws.’” For this price, one might expect Palin to tailor her message to her audience, instead of giving the same tea party rant every time. But her keynote at a commercial real estate conference in Las Vegas this weekend was “disastrous” and went over like a ton of bricks, owing to the fact that she didn’t touch on real estate.” Industry blog The Dirt Lawyer’s Blog reports:
Speaking of disappointment, let’s talk about the keynote address from Sarah Palin. In short, it was a standard stump speech with a few superficial comments about shopping centers and retail real estate. It was awful and a borderline train wreck in my opinion. All Palin had to do was add in a paragraph about the pending disaster of carried interest and she would have not only won over the crowd but gotten significant fundraiser cash from the industry if she runs in 2012. As it stands, I do not know if she knows what carried interest is.
David Bodamer of TrafficCourt, another industry blog, reports “most people I spoke with were massively disappointed with Sarah Palin’s keynote.” “[M]any felt disappointed that Palin didn’t make more of an effort to talk about issues important to the industry,” Bodamer added. In her speech, Palin rolled out the standard trope about how President Obama is ruining the country with big government, and also said he is an “addict of other people’s money — OPM, which she pronounced ‘opium.’”
Absurd: Governor defends immigration law with frog puppet
CA GOP Guv. candidate Chuck DeVore: 'Jack Bauer' Would Support Me (VIDEO)
Chuck DeVore, a California state legislator and Tea Party-backed candidate for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate, has a new Web video claiming that "Jack Bauer," the protagonist of the action-adventure show 24, would support him for Senate.
"Ask yourself this question, Jack Bauer fans: Which person would Jack want as his U.S. Senator?" the announcer says. "Barbara Boxer, a Guantanamo-closing, tax-raising, big-government growing ultra-liberal who reads Miranda rights to foreign terrorists? Or Chuck DeVore, a U.S. Army Reserve intelligence officer, who likes Guantanamo Bay as it is, thinks foreign terrorists should have an interrogator, not a lawyer, and supports lower taxes and smaller government?"
Of course, it should be noted that "Jack Bauer" is a fictional character portrayed by the actor Kiefer Sutherland. In real life, Sutherland is a Canadian democratic socialist whose grandfather, the late Saskatchewan Premier Tommy Douglas, was the founder of his country's single-payer health care system. The real-life Kiefer Sutherland remains a staunch supporter of his grandfather's left-wing New Democratic Party, and is a vocal advocate for single-payer health care.
Palin gives ‘disastrous speech’ at real estate conference, doesn’t bother talking about real estate.
Fox News analyst Sarah Palin reportedly charges $100,000 to give a speech, and has some pretty big demands, including “first-class airfare for two, several luxury hotel rooms and water bottles with ‘bendable straws.’” For this price, one might expect Palin to tailor her message to her audience, instead of giving the same tea party rant every time. But her keynote at a commercial real estate conference in Las Vegas this weekend was “disastrous” and went over like a ton of bricks, owing to the fact that she didn’t touch on real estate.” Industry blog The Dirt Lawyer’s Blog reports:
Speaking of disappointment, let’s talk about the keynote address from Sarah Palin. In short, it was a standard stump speech with a few superficial comments about shopping centers and retail real estate. It was awful and a borderline train wreck in my opinion. All Palin had to do was add in a paragraph about the pending disaster of carried interest and she would have not only won over the crowd but gotten significant fundraiser cash from the industry if she runs in 2012. As it stands, I do not know if she knows what carried interest is.
David Bodamer of TrafficCourt, another industry blog, reports “most people I spoke with were massively disappointed with Sarah Palin’s keynote.” “[M]any felt disappointed that Palin didn’t make more of an effort to talk about issues important to the industry,” Bodamer added. In her speech, Palin rolled out the standard trope about how President Obama is ruining the country with big government, and also said he is an “addict of other people’s money — OPM, which she pronounced ‘opium.’”
Ex-lawyer jailed 14 months: no crime
Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- Once a dapper Beverly Hills attorney known for his bow tie, Richard Fine has been held in solitary confinement at Los Angeles County Men's Central Jail for 14 months, even though he's never been charged with a crime.
Fine, a 70-year- old taxpayer's advocate who once worked for the Department of Justice, is being held for contempt of court.
Superior Court Judge David Yaffe found Fine in contempt after he refused to turn over financial documents and answer questions when ordered to pay an opposing party's attorney's fees, according to court documents.
Fine says his contempt order masks the real reason why he's in jail. He claims he's a political prisoner.
"I ended up here because I did the one thing no other lawyer in California is willing to do. I took on the corruption of the courts," Fine said in a jailhouse interview with CNN.
Read on.
Fine, a 70-year- old taxpayer's advocate who once worked for the Department of Justice, is being held for contempt of court.
Superior Court Judge David Yaffe found Fine in contempt after he refused to turn over financial documents and answer questions when ordered to pay an opposing party's attorney's fees, according to court documents.
Fine says his contempt order masks the real reason why he's in jail. He claims he's a political prisoner.
"I ended up here because I did the one thing no other lawyer in California is willing to do. I took on the corruption of the courts," Fine said in a jailhouse interview with CNN.
Read on.
Monday, May 24, 2010
World's Largest Environmental Group Has Ties To BP
Washington Post:
"The first thing I did was sell my shares in BP, not wanting anything to do with a company that is so careless," wrote one. Another added: "I would like to force all the BP executives, the secretaries and the shareholders out to the shore to mop up oil and wash the birds."
Reagan De Leon of Hawaii called for a boycott of "everything BP has their hands in."
What De Leon didn't know was that the Nature Conservancy lists BP as one of its business partners. The organization also has given BP a seat on its International Leadership Council and has accepted nearly $10 million in cash and land contributions from BP and affiliated corporations over the years.
"Oh, wow," De Leon said when told of the depth of the relationship between the nonprofit she loves and the company she hates. "That's kind of disturbing."
The Conservancy, already scrambling to shield oyster beds from the spill, now faces a different problem: a potential backlash as its supporters learn that the giant oil company and the world's largest environmental organization long ago forged a relationship that has lent BP an Earth-friendly image and helped the Conservancy pursue causes it holds dear.
"The first thing I did was sell my shares in BP, not wanting anything to do with a company that is so careless," wrote one. Another added: "I would like to force all the BP executives, the secretaries and the shareholders out to the shore to mop up oil and wash the birds."
Reagan De Leon of Hawaii called for a boycott of "everything BP has their hands in."
What De Leon didn't know was that the Nature Conservancy lists BP as one of its business partners. The organization also has given BP a seat on its International Leadership Council and has accepted nearly $10 million in cash and land contributions from BP and affiliated corporations over the years.
"Oh, wow," De Leon said when told of the depth of the relationship between the nonprofit she loves and the company she hates. "That's kind of disturbing."
The Conservancy, already scrambling to shield oyster beds from the spill, now faces a different problem: a potential backlash as its supporters learn that the giant oil company and the world's largest environmental organization long ago forged a relationship that has lent BP an Earth-friendly image and helped the Conservancy pursue causes it holds dear.
CEOs Getting Increased Perks, Benefits
NEW YORK -- Some of the nation's biggest financial firms have increased the perks and benefits they pay their chief executives, despite the glaring spotlight from a public fed up with handsome bonuses at bailed-out Wall Street banks.
The lavish fringe benefits included country club dues, chauffeured drivers, personal financial planning services, home security systems and parking. Some increases were in perks that Obama administration officials consider among the most egregious, such as corporate aircrafts for personal travel.
J.P. Morgan Chase awarded its chairman and chief executive, Jamie Dimon, $91,000 in personal travel on the company jet in 2009, up from about $54,000 the previous year. His total perks increased 19 percent, to $266,000. Dimon, along with Goldman Sachs chief executive Lloyd Blankfein and McLean-based Capital One chief executive Richard Fairbank, also received sharply higher perks related to personal and home security.
"Marie Antoinette could fit into this crowd without missing a beat," said Nell Minow, co-founder of the Corporate Library, which found in recent studies of several thousand U.S. companies that more chief executives received club memberships than a year earlier, and companies paid more to cover executives' personal use of corporate planes. "Many people would think the solution would be not to be so provocative of unrest and unhappiness, but no, they're saying, 'Go ahead and do that, just build bigger walls around your house.' "
Read on.
The lavish fringe benefits included country club dues, chauffeured drivers, personal financial planning services, home security systems and parking. Some increases were in perks that Obama administration officials consider among the most egregious, such as corporate aircrafts for personal travel.
J.P. Morgan Chase awarded its chairman and chief executive, Jamie Dimon, $91,000 in personal travel on the company jet in 2009, up from about $54,000 the previous year. His total perks increased 19 percent, to $266,000. Dimon, along with Goldman Sachs chief executive Lloyd Blankfein and McLean-based Capital One chief executive Richard Fairbank, also received sharply higher perks related to personal and home security.
"Marie Antoinette could fit into this crowd without missing a beat," said Nell Minow, co-founder of the Corporate Library, which found in recent studies of several thousand U.S. companies that more chief executives received club memberships than a year earlier, and companies paid more to cover executives' personal use of corporate planes. "Many people would think the solution would be not to be so provocative of unrest and unhappiness, but no, they're saying, 'Go ahead and do that, just build bigger walls around your house.' "
Read on.
Planet Wingnut News for Monday
Cornyn: Rand Paul Did 'The Right Thing' Canceling Meet The Press Appearance
Appearing on Meet The Press, National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman John Cornyn (R-TX) said: "Well, Dr. Paul's new to running for public office, and I think it's Bob's [Menendez] experience, I'm sure my experience, that you see novice candidates occasionally stumble on questions. I think he's clarified his position. But I think he's done the right thing. As much fun as this is, David [Gregory], to be here with you, I think he needs to be talking to the voters back in Kentucky, the people who actually will be able to cast a ballot on whether he's elected as the next United States senator or not."
Palin: Media Seizing An Opportunity To Get Rand Paul Like They Did Me
Appearing on Fox News Sunday, Sarah Palin defended Senate nominee Rand Paul (R-KY) over his comments opposing portions of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, saying that the media was out to get him in the same way they targeted herself: "One thing that we can learn in this lesson that I have learned and Rand Paul is learning now is don't assume that you can engage in a hypothetical discussion about constitutional impacts with a reporter or a media personality who has an agenda, who may be prejudiced before they even get into the interview in regards to what your answer may be -- and then the opportunity that they seize to get you."
Palin Criticizes 'Mainstream Media' Not Asking About Contributions From Oil Companies To Obama
Also during her appearance on Fox News Sunday, Sarah Palin questioned whether there was an improper relationship between the Obama administration and BP: "I don't know why the question isn't asked by the mainstream media and by others if there's any connection with the contributions made to President Obama and his administration and the support by the oil companies to the administration."
Steele On Rand Paul: 'It Doesn't Matter What I'm Comfortable With'
Appearing on This Week, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele was asked by Jake Tapper whether he was "comfortable" with Rand Paul's views on civil rights. "I am not comfortable with a lot of things, but it doesn't matter what I'm comfortable with and not comfortable with. I don't vote in that election. The people of Kentucky will," said Steele. "As a national chairman, I'm here to say that our party will move forward in fighting for the civil rights and liberties of the American people, especially minorities in this country, and we're going to do everything in our power to make sure that everyone who's going to come to the United States Congress or go to state capitals with a Republican label are in that fight with us."
Appearing on Meet The Press, National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman John Cornyn (R-TX) said: "Well, Dr. Paul's new to running for public office, and I think it's Bob's [Menendez] experience, I'm sure my experience, that you see novice candidates occasionally stumble on questions. I think he's clarified his position. But I think he's done the right thing. As much fun as this is, David [Gregory], to be here with you, I think he needs to be talking to the voters back in Kentucky, the people who actually will be able to cast a ballot on whether he's elected as the next United States senator or not."
Palin: Media Seizing An Opportunity To Get Rand Paul Like They Did Me
Appearing on Fox News Sunday, Sarah Palin defended Senate nominee Rand Paul (R-KY) over his comments opposing portions of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, saying that the media was out to get him in the same way they targeted herself: "One thing that we can learn in this lesson that I have learned and Rand Paul is learning now is don't assume that you can engage in a hypothetical discussion about constitutional impacts with a reporter or a media personality who has an agenda, who may be prejudiced before they even get into the interview in regards to what your answer may be -- and then the opportunity that they seize to get you."
Palin Criticizes 'Mainstream Media' Not Asking About Contributions From Oil Companies To Obama
Also during her appearance on Fox News Sunday, Sarah Palin questioned whether there was an improper relationship between the Obama administration and BP: "I don't know why the question isn't asked by the mainstream media and by others if there's any connection with the contributions made to President Obama and his administration and the support by the oil companies to the administration."
Steele On Rand Paul: 'It Doesn't Matter What I'm Comfortable With'
Appearing on This Week, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele was asked by Jake Tapper whether he was "comfortable" with Rand Paul's views on civil rights. "I am not comfortable with a lot of things, but it doesn't matter what I'm comfortable with and not comfortable with. I don't vote in that election. The people of Kentucky will," said Steele. "As a national chairman, I'm here to say that our party will move forward in fighting for the civil rights and liberties of the American people, especially minorities in this country, and we're going to do everything in our power to make sure that everyone who's going to come to the United States Congress or go to state capitals with a Republican label are in that fight with us."
Elementary students given unborn fetus dolls at school
PilotOnline
Oakwood Elementary's principal was placed on administrative leave Friday as school officials investigated why life like, 4-inch-long plastic fetus dolls were given to dozens of third-, fourth- and fifth-grade students.
Oakwood Elementary's principal was placed on administrative leave Friday as school officials investigated why life like, 4-inch-long plastic fetus dolls were given to dozens of third-, fourth- and fifth-grade students.
SPB News for Monday
Bill Clinton Calls On Yale Graduates To Fight Inequality, Work Together
Gibbs To Palin: 'Get Slightly More Informed' About Oil Drilling
Appearing on Face The Nation, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs responded to Palin's questioning of oil company contributions to President Obama. "Sarah Palin was involved in that [2008] election, but I don't think, apparently, was paying a whole lot of attention," said Gibbs. "I'm almost sure that the oil companies don't consider the Obama administration a huge ally - we proposed a windfall profits tax when they jacked their oil prices up to charge for gasoline. My suggestion to Sarah Palin would be to get slightly more informed as to what's going on in and around oil drilling in this country."
Read on.
Gibbs To Palin: 'Get Slightly More Informed' About Oil Drilling
Appearing on Face The Nation, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs responded to Palin's questioning of oil company contributions to President Obama. "Sarah Palin was involved in that [2008] election, but I don't think, apparently, was paying a whole lot of attention," said Gibbs. "I'm almost sure that the oil companies don't consider the Obama administration a huge ally - we proposed a windfall profits tax when they jacked their oil prices up to charge for gasoline. My suggestion to Sarah Palin would be to get slightly more informed as to what's going on in and around oil drilling in this country."
Read on.
Golf fishermen considering suicide
Wow, how sad.:
The situation in the gulf is getting so dire for some in the seafood industry, they've thought about committing suicide. Steps to intervene are underway.
Desperation is setting in in Southeast Louisiana. "I spoke to a group of fishermen, mainly Vietnamese Americans and a group of them came up to me and said, they told me that they contemplated suicide because they're in such despair," says Congressman Joseph Cao.
He says fishermen are feeling compounded stress on top of post-Katrina troubles. "For some people, this is almost a boiling point where they can no longer handle it and they're going to crack."
"These are grown men that broke down and cried this morning because they don't know what to do and we don't know how long it's going to be," says Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser.
That's why Cao and organizations like Volunteers of America are working to get mental health workers on the ground to intervene.
"They've just recovered as a result of their businesses, their homes and the rebuilding effort and now you have a number of these small businesses, these fishermen, who have to go through this all over again," says Voris Vigee with the Volunteers of America.
She says organizations are expediting crisis and mental health counseling among other disaster-related services.
The situation in the gulf is getting so dire for some in the seafood industry, they've thought about committing suicide. Steps to intervene are underway.
Desperation is setting in in Southeast Louisiana. "I spoke to a group of fishermen, mainly Vietnamese Americans and a group of them came up to me and said, they told me that they contemplated suicide because they're in such despair," says Congressman Joseph Cao.
He says fishermen are feeling compounded stress on top of post-Katrina troubles. "For some people, this is almost a boiling point where they can no longer handle it and they're going to crack."
"These are grown men that broke down and cried this morning because they don't know what to do and we don't know how long it's going to be," says Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser.
That's why Cao and organizations like Volunteers of America are working to get mental health workers on the ground to intervene.
"They've just recovered as a result of their businesses, their homes and the rebuilding effort and now you have a number of these small businesses, these fishermen, who have to go through this all over again," says Voris Vigee with the Volunteers of America.
She says organizations are expediting crisis and mental health counseling among other disaster-related services.
Prosecutors Said to Conclude Against Head of A.I.G. Unit
Federal prosecutors investigating the events leading up to the collapse of the American International Group in 2008 will not bring charges against Joseph Cassano, the chief executive of the unit that insured mortgage-related securities with calamitous results, according to two people briefed on the matter.
Mr. Cassano and other executives at A.I.G.’s Financial Products unit, which had insured almost $80 billion in mortgage-related securities, came under scrutiny by the Department of Justice after the insurer failed in September 2008. Investigators were examining whether Mr. Cassano misled investors when he stated in December 2007 that the company’s obligations on the mortgage securities it backed were unlikely to produce losses for A.I.G.
Read on.
Mr. Cassano and other executives at A.I.G.’s Financial Products unit, which had insured almost $80 billion in mortgage-related securities, came under scrutiny by the Department of Justice after the insurer failed in September 2008. Investigators were examining whether Mr. Cassano misled investors when he stated in December 2007 that the company’s obligations on the mortgage securities it backed were unlikely to produce losses for A.I.G.
Read on.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
They look alike; Open thread
Read the post here.
Five Lobbyists for Each Member of Congress on Financial Reforms
Businesses, trade groups and other interests hired more than five lobbyists for each member of Congress to influence financial regulatory reform legislation pending before the Senate, according to a Center for Public Integrity analysis.
More than 850 banks, hedge funds, companies, associations, and other organizations hired 3,000-plus lobbyists to work on the reform bills, according to the Center’s examination of lobbying disclosure data for all of 2009 and the first quarter of 2010. However, public outrage over Wall Street’s role in the 2007-09 financial meltdown blunted industry attempts to win loopholes in the measure now before the U.S. Senate.
Read on.
Download our Financial Regulation Reform Lobbying Data. Click here.
More than 850 banks, hedge funds, companies, associations, and other organizations hired 3,000-plus lobbyists to work on the reform bills, according to the Center’s examination of lobbying disclosure data for all of 2009 and the first quarter of 2010. However, public outrage over Wall Street’s role in the 2007-09 financial meltdown blunted industry attempts to win loopholes in the measure now before the U.S. Senate.
Read on.
Download our Financial Regulation Reform Lobbying Data. Click here.
SPB News for Sunday
Courts block California budget cuts
Arnold attacks courts for mandating prison health care, welfare payments.
Cuomo to run for NY governor
NY AG Andrew Cuomo announces bid for governor with Internet video.
Near-Record Numbers Protest New Jersey Budget Cuts Targeting Unions, Nonprofits
Last week's poll had asked:
Facebook has downplayed worries on privacy issues. Should Facebook rethink its privacy rules? Readers answered yes. This week's poll is now up.
Arnold attacks courts for mandating prison health care, welfare payments.
Cuomo to run for NY governor
NY AG Andrew Cuomo announces bid for governor with Internet video.
Near-Record Numbers Protest New Jersey Budget Cuts Targeting Unions, Nonprofits
Last week's poll had asked:
Facebook has downplayed worries on privacy issues. Should Facebook rethink its privacy rules? Readers answered yes. This week's poll is now up.
Karl Rove book event in Franklin attracts protesters, supporters
By Mitchell Kline /
The Tennessean
FRANKLIN, TN — A group of protesters crashed a Karl Rove book-signing event at the Borders in Cool Springs on Thursday.
Rove, a Fox News contributor, served as senior adviser to former president George W. Bush. He was signing copies of his new book Courage and Consequence: My Life as a Conservative in the Fight when a woman in a flowered blouse who stood in the autograph line pulled handcuffs out of a bag, placed them on a podium beside Rove and declared that she was placing him "under arrest for war crimes."
Another woman popped up from behind a bookshelf holding a pink sign that read "jail Karl Rove," and a pair of men unrolled a banner that said "jail Karl Rove for war crimes."
Rove handled the situation calmly, stepping out of the way while a security guard and a Franklin Police officer escorted the protesters out of the store. One of the protesters was placed in handcuffs and put in the back of a police car after sitting down in front of Borders. The woman was eventually released and received a warning against trespassing, Franklin Police spokesman Eric Johnson said.
The Tennessean
FRANKLIN, TN — A group of protesters crashed a Karl Rove book-signing event at the Borders in Cool Springs on Thursday.
Rove, a Fox News contributor, served as senior adviser to former president George W. Bush. He was signing copies of his new book Courage and Consequence: My Life as a Conservative in the Fight when a woman in a flowered blouse who stood in the autograph line pulled handcuffs out of a bag, placed them on a podium beside Rove and declared that she was placing him "under arrest for war crimes."
Another woman popped up from behind a bookshelf holding a pink sign that read "jail Karl Rove," and a pair of men unrolled a banner that said "jail Karl Rove for war crimes."
Rove handled the situation calmly, stepping out of the way while a security guard and a Franklin Police officer escorted the protesters out of the store. One of the protesters was placed in handcuffs and put in the back of a police car after sitting down in front of Borders. The woman was eventually released and received a warning against trespassing, Franklin Police spokesman Eric Johnson said.
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