Citigroup and ACORN Sign Groundbreaking Agreement

Citigroup and ACORN Sign Groundbreaking Agreement to Expand Access to Financial Services in Communities Around the Country

NEW YORK — Citigroup and the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) today announced a landmark partnership that advances the goals of both organizations to promote homeownership in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods, especially in immigrant communities, increase the availability of affordable credit, and promote financial education. The partnership also reinforces Citigroup's position as a key industry leader in responsible and innovative lending practices.

As part of the partnership, announced today at an event in New York City, Citigroup and ACORN have agreed to collaborate on several initiatives, including to:

* Form an affordable mortgage-lending program between Citigroup and ACORN Housing Corp. (AHC) to develop a specialized mortgage product for all AHC's homeownership centers, and make mortgages available to immigrants who have previously been shut out of credit markets. * Work together to expand access to the Earned Income Tax Credit, and, in immigrant communities, expand access to Citibank's Access Account and low-cost remittance program. * Expand financial education to assist low- and moderate-income consumers in saving, obtaining credit, and using credit wisely. * Focus on community development lending to increase affordable housing in areas where the Citibank Community Development and ACORN footprints coincide. * Provide borrowers with access to the best combination of loan product, price, service, and attributes. * Establish a net-benefit test for real estate secured loans.

"Citigroup is excited to announce this historic agreement," said Marge Magner, Chairman and CEO of Citigroup's Global Consumer Group. "By joining forces we can make great strides in building stronger communities and helping consumers who have not historically had banking relationships reach their goals and dreams."

"With this agreement, ACORN will be able to expand our mission of strengthening communities by helping low- and moderate-income families, including new immigrants to this country, become homeowners," said Maude Hurd, National President of ACORN.

Through the alliance, Citigroup and ACORN will work together to reach out to low- and moderate-income, underserved consumers across the country. In addition to real estate loans, Citigroup's affiliates are offering their breadth of products and services, including Citibank's Access Account, designed as a starter account for consumers who have not traditionally had banking relationships; Citipro, the bank's complimentary financial needs checkup; free online banking; and affordable money remittance services, among others.

For three decades ACORN has worked on behalf of its communities and constituents, and this agreement is a testament to its efforts. As a result of the agreement, ACORN communities will benefit even more from some of the best loan products, lending terms, and sales practices in the industry.

Among the changes made over the last three years, Citigroup's consumer finance unit, CitiFinancial, has halted the sale of single premium credit insurance on real estate secured loans, eliminated balloon payments on loans, and capped points on real estate loans originated through the CitiFinancial branch network at three points. CitiFinancial also agreed with ACORN to remove prepayment penalties after the third year of a real estate loan and to reduce the amount of the prepay penalty in the second and third years of the loan; CitiFinancial already offers borrowers the option of a loan without a prepayment penalty.

"This is another strong step in Citigroup's responsible, fair, and innovative leadership in the industry," said Kevin Kessinger, Executive Vice President of the Global Consumer Group and President of Consumer Finance North America. "By working together, Citigroup and ACORN can use the power of both organizations to improve the lives of our customers and create stable, healthy communities for the long term. This is the beginning of what we believe will be a long and successful relationship."

About ACORN The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now is the nation's largest community organization of low- and moderate-income families, with over 150,000 member families organized into 750 neighborhood chapters in 65 cities across the country. Since 1970 ACORN has taken action and won victories on issues of concern to its members. Priorities include better housing for first time homebuyers and tenants, living wages for low-wage workers, more investment in communities from banks and governments, and better public schools. ACORN achieves these goals by building community organizations that have the power to win changes – through direct action, negotiation, legislation, and voter participation.

About Citigroup Inc. Citigroup is the preeminent global financial services company with some 200 million customer accounts in more than 100 countries, which provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, insurance, securities brokerage, and asset management. Major brand names under Citigroup's trademark red umbrella include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Smith Barney, Banamex, and Travelers Life and Annuity. Additional information may be found at: www.citigroup.com.

Yup.

And further connecting the dots ... take the Saudi Prince — called by Time magazine the “Warren Buffett of Saudi Arabia.” He is an entrepreneur and international investor with a net worth estimated in 2008 at $21 billion, and he is ranked as the nineteenth richest person in the world by Forbes. Al Waleed runs the international Kingdom Holding Company, and is one of the most visible funders of Islamist organizations in the United States. Prince Alwaleed’s Kingdom Foundation has given millions of dollars to Muslim charities in the United States, including several whose leaders have been indicted on terrorism-related charges in federal courts.

In 2001, Prince Al-Waleed’s donation of $10 million dollars to New York City in the wake of the September 11 World Trade Center attack was rebuffed by Mayor Giuliani when he blamed the terror attacks on U.S. Middle East policy. The Saudi Prince released a statement which rationalized the murder of 3,000 innocent Americans, blaming U.S. foreign policy and “suggesting” it be changed. In 2002, the Saudi Arabian government raised more than $100 million for Palestinians through live, government-organized telethons. The purpose for hosting the telethons was to benefit the families of “martyrs,” otherwise known as suicide bombers. Billionaire investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal donated $27 million to the Palestinian fund. In 2005, he donated $20 million each to Harvard and Georgetown Universities for Islamic studies programs. The purchase of a large share of Fox News Channel via News Corps. stock, is just one sign that militant Islam is steadily making, virtually unnoticed, inroads into the political fabric of American society.

Then there’s Dr. Khalid Abdullah Tariq al-Mansour. He met Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal in the mid-1970s and formed a relationship that led to al-Mansour’s hiring as attorney to King Saud. He was employed as an adviser to the Saudi Royal Family and other Saudi billionaires seeking to do business and exert influence in the United States. Al-Monsour was a mentor to the founder of the Black Panther Party.

Although al-Mansour glosses over his ties to the Saudi mega-billionaire in some of his public talks, he has represented the Saudi’s interests in the United States, in Britain, and in Africa for more than a quarter century, according to public records. He told Newsmax.com that he has personally introduced Prince Alwaleed to “51 of the 53 leaders of Africa,” traveling from country to country on the Saudi prince’s private jet.
Skip ahead to 1989, for example — just one year after Obama entered Harvard Law School — The Los Angeles Times revealed that al-Mansour had been advising Saudi billionaires Abdul Aziz and Khalid al-Ibrahim in their secret effort to acquire a major stake in prime oceanfront property in Marina del Rey, California through “an elaborate network of corporate shells in California, the Caribbean and Europe.”

Now let’s look at Percy Sutton. Who’s he? According to various sources on the Internet, he’s a prominent African-American businessman, political figure, the founder of Inner City Broadcasting, former Manhattan borough president and a credible candidate for mayor of New York in 1977. He told NY1 reporter Dominic Carter in 2008 on “Inside City Hall,” that he was introduced to Obama by a friend raising money for him. The friend asked Sutton to write a letter in support of Obama’s application to Harvard Law School. “The friend’s name is Dr. Khalid al-Mansour, from Texas,” Sutton said. “He is the principal adviser to one of the world’s richest men. He told me about Obama.” Sutton recalled that al-Mansour said, “There is a young man that has applied to Harvard. I know that you have a few friends up there because you used to go up there to speak. Would you please write a letter in support of him?” Sutton did. According to Ken Timmerman of Newsmax.com, “At the time Percy Sutton, a former lawyer for Malcolm X and a former business partner of al-Mansour, says he (al-Mansour) was raising money for Obama’s graduate school education (and) al-Mansour was representing top members of the Saudi Royal family seeking to do business and exert influence in the United States.” One of those Saudi royals was Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, a nephew of Saudi King Abdullah. Interestingly, Obama has maintained that he paid his own way through Harvard via student loans.

Obama has a lot of connections. And very few support our military, our Christian heritage, or America as we know it.

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