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Eight Dems Arrested in Bell, CA

hypocritexposer

Well-known member
Eight Dems Arrested in Bell, CA 'Corruption on Steroids' - Not a Single Mention of Party Affiliation From Media
By Lachlan Markay
Created 09/21/2010 - 15:19


Today, eight city council members were arrested in Bell, California for what Los Angeles County District Attorney labeled "corruption on steroids." Thus far, every major news outlet that has reported on the story has omitted the fact that all eight individuals arrested are Democrats.

These glaring omissions come only weeks after NewsBusters reported [0] that of the 351 stories on the then-brewing controversy, 350 had omitted party affiliations, and one had mentioned they were Democrats only in apologizing for not doing so sooner.

ABC [1], CBS [2], the Los Angeles Times [3], the Associated Press [4], Bloomberg [5], USA Today [6], CNN [7], MSNBC [8], NPR [9], and the San Francisco Chronicle [10] all reported on the arrests today without mentioning party affiliations.

One commenter at CNN's online story got it spot on: "I notice there is no mention of the party affiliation of the accused. I can find no mention of it in any story on the internet. This must mean they were all Democrats."

Give the man a cigar.

Together, the eight city officials "misappropriated" $5.5 million in municipal funds. Robert Rizzo, the chief culprit, was arrested on 53 counts of various brands of corruption.

Before the scandal came to light, Rizzo had been making roughly $1.5 million per year, even though the per capita income in Bell is roughly half the national average.

Pedro Carillo, Bell's interim city manager, released a statement on the arrests today:

Given the sheer volume of charges levied against former Bell Chief Administrative Officer Robert Rizzo and former Assistant CAO Angela Spaccia by the district attorney, it is clear that Rizzo and Spaccia were at the root of the cancer that has afflicted the City of Bell. Also, it is a sad day for Bell that four current and two former members of the council also have been arrested. I am prepared to double down our efforts to continue to restore order, establish good government reforms, and to ensure that Bell is providing needed services to its residents.


Despite arrests in one of the most massive cases of municipal corruption in recent memory, no media outlet could bring itself to mention the officials' party affiliations, a fact that has been widely reported since the scandal entered the national spotlight.

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/lachlan-markay/2010/09/21/eight-dems-arrested-bell-ca-corruption-steroids-not-single-mention-p
 

Tam

Well-known member
The Republican Party of Arkansas filed an ethics compliant today regarding Sen. Blanche Lincoln’s use of the franking privilege to send out mail. The franking privilege allows members of Congress to send out mail to their constitutes without being charged by the post office but their are many restrictions to prevent this privilege from being used for campaign material

Then you have Rangel and Waters with ethics charges. The Dems are not having a go time lately. :wink:
 

Mike

Well-known member
Tam said:
The Republican Party of Arkansas filed an ethics compliant today regarding Sen. Blanche Lincoln’s use of the franking privilege to send out mail. The franking privilege allows members of Congress to send out mail to their constitutes without being charged by the post office but their are many restrictions to prevent this privilege from being used for campaign material

Then you have Rangel and Waters with ethics charges. The Dems are not having a go time lately. :wink:

Don't forget:
ALEXANDRIA, Va., Aug. 5 (UPI) -- A federal jury in Virginia Wednesday found former U.S. Rep. William Jefferson, D-La., guilty of corruption charges.

Jefferson, 62, was indicted in 2007, about two years after government agents found $90,000 in his freezer. The cash was payment from an FBI informant in a transaction captured on video, prosecutors alleged during Jefferson's trial, which began June 16.
 

Tam

Well-known member
I hear Holder is being investigated for dropping the charges on the Black Panthers too.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Department of Justice Under Investigation by Department of Justice, over New Black Panther Pass
Document drop: Breaking: DOJ Inspector General will investigate Obama Voting Rights Record
By Michelle Malkin • September 13, 2010 04:27 PM

Just obtained this letter from Justice Department Inspector General Glenn Fine to members of Congress informing them that he will open up a review of the Obama administration’s selective enforcement of civil rights laws by the Voting Section office of DOJ.
 

Mike

Well-known member
And please don't forget Jesse Jr...........................
September 21, 2010

By NATASHA KORECKI AND ABDON M. PALLASCH Staff Reporters / [email protected]
U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.(D-Ill.) said Tuesday he is “deeply sorry” for having “disappointed some supporters” regarding his relationship with a female “social acquaintance.”

But the congressman vowed to stay in office in the wake of a Chicago Sun-Times report that a major political fund-raiser has told federal authorities that Jackson directed him to offer former Gov. Rod Blagojevich millions of dollars in campaign cash in return for an appointment for Jackson to the U.S. Senate, to succeed President Obama.

The allegation by Oak Brook businessman Raghuveer Nayak regarding fund-raising runs counter to public statements Jackson has made as recently as last week that he never authorized any deal to attempt to trade campaign cash for the Senate appointment, which ultimately went not to Jackson but to Sen. Roland Burris.

“The allegations about fund-raising and the Senate seat are not new,” Jackson said in a written statement.“I’ve already talked with the authorities about these claims, told them they were false, and no charges have been brought against me.

“The very idea of raising millions of dollars for a campaign other than my own is preposterous,” Jackson’s statement said.“My interest in the Senate seat was based on years of public service, which I am proud of, not some improper scheme with anyone.”

The Sun-Times reported on Tuesday that sources said Nayak told authorities that on Oct. 8, 2008, Jackson directed him to offer Blagojevich $6 million in exchange for the Senate appointment.

Sources said Nayak also told authorities that Jackson asked him to pay to fly a Washington, D.C., restaurant hostess named Giovana Huidobro — described as a “social acquaintance” of the Democratic congressman — to Chicago to visit him. Nayak did so twice, according to the sources.

Jackson didn’t address Nayak’s allegation involving payment for those flights, which could raise ethical questions under the U.S. House of Representatives’ gift ban act.

But Jackson acknowledged knowing Huidobro and that the relationship was something he an his wife, Ald. Sandi Jackson, have had to deal with.

“The reference to a social acquaintance is a private and personal matter between me and my wife that was handled some time ago,” Jackson said in his statement.“I ask that you respect our privacy.

“I know I have disappointed some supporters, and for that I am deeply sorry. But I remain committed to serving my constituents and fighting on their behalf.”

Having a third party pay for flights at a congressman’s request and not reporting the value of those flights as a gift, if they were worth more than $50, would appear to be “something of value” under the House’s gift ban, according to an expert on the act.

“It defines ‘gift’ as any ‘item having monetary value,’” Kathleen Clark, a professor at Washington University School of Law in St. Louis said, quoting from the law.“‘The term includes gifts of ... transportation ... A gift to ... any ... individual based on that individual’s relationship with the Member ... shall be considered a gift to the Member .. if it is given with the knowledge and acquiescence of the Member.’”

Jackson did not disclose the gift from Nayak on his House ethics statements or on federal campaign contribution logs.

“Completely apart from disclosure, a member’s solicitation of a gift like this would be troubling,” Clark said.“The mere solicitation of a gift is problematic.”
It never ends................. :lol: :lol:
 

Tam

Well-known member
August 29, 2010
Categories:Bad Behavior.Texas Dem under fire for nepotism
Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson has steered thousands in scholarship dollars to relatives and the children of top aides, a Texas newspaper reported today.

The Dallas Democrat, a nine-term member of the House, awarded 15 Congressional Black Caucus scholarships to her grandchildren and great-nephew, among others, The Dallas Morning News reported Sunday.

The CBC, which Johnson once chaired, has anti-nepotism rules that prevent directing funds to caucus members' relatives. Furthermore, the scholarship recipients live outside her Dallas district, another violation of the caucus’ rules.

Johnson first skirted the question of favoritism when asked by The Dallas Morning News. Days later she issued a statement saying she “unknowingly” violated the rules and said she would work to “rectify the financial situation.”

This is just the latest in bad news for black members of Congress. Several CBC members have been under investigation in the past year — most visibly Reps. Charles Rangel of New York and Maxine Waters of California, who are both in the middle of high-profile ethics committee trials.

Democrats have been dogged by ethical missteps in recent months but say the process by which Congress polices its members is working.

I doubt when Nancy said she was going to drain the swamp she thought the scum on the bottom would be littered with Dems. :wink:
 

Mike

Well-known member
The scariest DEM of all because he is Taunting us with it:

A pro Cap and Trade Democrat, Tom Perriello of Virginia's 5th district, was caught on tape admitting that the US Congress is blatantly stealing from the American people.
While the
fact of congressional theft is hardly shocking or news to most Americans, the fact that a serving congressman would say it so shamelessly and bluntly most certainly is. In effect, Perriello was saying unless there are actual laws in place preventing Congress from relentlessly spending hard-working, taxpayers' money on waste, pork and unpopular legislation like Obamacare, Congress will continue stealing from the American people without hesitation. Perriello's exact quote was: "If you don't tie our hands, we will keep stealing!" His quote was in reference to how Congress has a notorious history of misspending and diverting money from programs like Social Security into other, undesirable pursuits...which in part contributes to the now-almost insolvent state of the program.

Perriello's ungainly admission—in all likelihood a complete accident and not something he'd willingly concede to, especially on tape of all places—is particularly self-damning and reflects even more poorly than usual on the Democrat Party because of the country's overwhelming opposition and sensitivity to deficit-raising pieces of legislation like Obamacare. For all intents and purposes, Perriello may as well have said, "Hahahahaha...we in Congress just loooove screwing you over, American people!" and then ended his admission with a more maniacal laugh along the lines of the Joker! Coincidentally—or, perhaps, interestingly—Perriello is one of the very troubled House Democrats whom The Hill pegs as "more vulnerable" in his reelection chances in the fall. I suppose this accidentally too-candid moment was Perriello's way of making himself look like he's really "talking straight" with his constituents, but it just sounds oh-so-bad anyway. And in politics, where perception is basically everything, that's not a favorable place to be if you're looking for reelection.
 
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