Free Republic

Employee misconduct investigations, often involving workers accessing pornography from their government computers, grew sixfold last year inside the taxpayer-funded foundation that doles out billions of dollars of scientific research grants, according to budget documents and other records obtained by The Washington Times. The problems at the National Science Foundation (NSF) were so pervasive they swamped the agency's inspector general and forced the internal watchdog to cut back on its primary mission of investigating grant fraud and recovering misspent tax dollars. (snip) For instance, one senior executive spent at least 331 days looking at pornography on his government computer and chatting...

News just on FOX: An Acorn Field Director has "flipped", is now working with Nevada Attorney General on case against ACORN. Nevada Acorn offices raided, field manuals on how to commit Voter Registration Fraud seized.

Never underestimate the power of a 20-year-old woman in hot pants. Just hook her up with an apple-cheeked young man dressed as a sort of preppy pimp, add a video camera and send them off for a chat with some dimwitted neighborhood financial counselors for ACORN. Stir in enough chutzpah to make Borat look like a shrinking violet and you've got one heckuva scandal. Young conservative activists James O'Keefe and Hannah Giles hardened up their fresh-faced looks just enough to pose as a pimp and prostitute seeking advice at ACORN offices on setting up a brothel...

When did we become such an unforgiving people? Former U.S. Sen. Robert Torricelli says he'll root for any team that plays the Eagles, now that Michael Vick is on their roster. The decision of who to support in this year's NFL match ups just got easier. I'm for anybody who plays against the Eagles. Michael Vick is joining the team. The same man who just left a federal jail on felony counts involving the torturing and death of animals is about to reenter center stage. That's quite a message about the state of our culture and the role that NFL...

To all you would-be politicians hoping to jump start a career in the public spotlight at the local level, be fore-warned: Local politics can be a pretty cut-throat business. And you'd be well served to not provide your political opponents with any ammunition to help them bring you down East Cleveland Mayor Eric Brewer blasted a local television station Thursday, one day after it aired photographs that purported to show the mayor wearing a wig and lingerie. The news conference came less than a week before voters decide if he should be re-elected. You see, that guy didn't think ahead....

Federal authorities Thursday arrested the chief of staff to D.C. Council member Jim Graham and charged him with two counts of accepting bribes. In an indictment unsealed Thursday, authorities say Ted Loza, 45, received cash payments on two separate occasions in exchange for agreeing to promote legislation favorable to the taxicab industry. Mr. Graham is chairman of the Committee on Public Works and Transportation, which oversees and regulates the city's taxicab commission. Mr. Graham is not mentioned by name in the indictment.

Americans believe Washington squanders half of every tax dollar. BY STEPHEN MOORE If you want to know why Americans are so fearful of a government takeover of the health-care system, take a look at the results of a new Gallup poll on government waste released Sept. 15. One question posed was: "Of every tax dollar that goes to Washington, D.C., how many cents of each dollar would you say is wasted?" Gallup found that the mean response was 50 cents. With Uncle Sam spending just shy of $4 trillion this year, that means the public believes that $2 trillion is...

Click source link for enlarged version of photo that shows details of torn, frayed flag and for Amanda Carpenter's video report. Inspirational artist Thomas Kinkade's renowned "Flags Over the Capitol" painting depicted Old Glory flying pristinely and proudly over Congress. But the American flags fluttering this month atop the House office buildings on Capitol Hill where lawmakers and their staffs work each day were tattered, torn and neglected - hardly worthy of a patriotic portrait. The flags - in various states of disrepair - were captured in photos and videos by The Washington Times as they rippled atop the Rayburn,...

San Diego County will not open its own investigation into ACORN, the community organizing nonprofit that has become embroiled in a national scandal over video showing employees advising potential criminals. Instead, county officials will assist the state attorney general and the district attorney in auditing thousands of voter-registration cards submitted with the Registrar of Voters Office before the November 2008 election, the Board of Supervisors decided on Tuesday. “This is not about politics,” Supervisor Pam Slater-Price said. “This is about the use of taxpayer money and taxpayer resources and public trust. We should have a thorough investigation from top to...

He calls for an investigation—of the investigators.. In a letter published nearby, Representative Barney Frank takes us to task for an editorial last week in which we noted his absence from the House's 345-75 vote to defund Acorn, the "community organizing" group that has been caught on video at least five times offering advice on how to evade the authorities while enslaving children as prostitutes. Mr. Frank, whose spokesman tells us he would have voted against the measure (that is, in favor of funding Acorn), has a point. Any implication that he is trying to dodge the matter is mistaken.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Hassan Nemazee, a fund-raiser for Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and other Democrats, has been indicted for defrauding Bank of America, HSBC and Citigroup Inc out of more than $290 million in loan proceeds, U.S. prosecutors said on Monday. The announcement follows last month's indictment of Nemazee, head of a private equity firm and an Iranian American Political Action Committee board member, on one count of defrauding Citigroup's Citibank. The new indictment adds allegations that he defrauded two other banks, Bank of America and HSBC Bank USA, in a similar fashion by falsifying documents and signatures to...

John Edwards Promised to Wed Mistress; Dave Matthews to Play Ceremony Monday – September 21, 2009 11:51am John Edwards promised mistress Rielle Hunter that he'd marry her once his wife Elizabeth died of cancer, Edwards' former aide alleges in a shocking new book proposal. According to a copy obtained by the New York Times, Andrew Young claims Edwards told Hunter that the ceremony would take place on a New York rooftop and feature an appearance by the Dave Matthews Band.

WASHINGTON – A federal judge has denied the request for a new trial by a former Louisiana congressman convicted on corruption charges. U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III ruled against a motion by former Rep. William Jefferson on Friday in Alexandria, Va. Jefferson was convicted Aug. 5 on 11 of 16 federal counts for using his influence to broker business deals in Africa after federal agents found cash in his freezer. A jury ruled Jefferson must forfeit roughly $470,000. He later filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation.

RALEIGH, N.C. — State Rep. Ty Harrell, D-Wake, who is under investigation over campaign expenditures, has resigned, according to Bill Holmes, a spokesman for House Speaker Joe Hackney. "With the recent turbulence in my personal life and continued speculation about my campaign expenditures, I do not feel that I can provide the high standard of representation that my constituents expect and deserve," Harrell said in his resignation letter submitted to Hackney on Sunday. Harrell's spending in recent months has been called into question. Harrell and his wife have also separated amidst allegations he has engaged in extramarital affairs, according to...

This is unbelievable. ACORN - JUST THE TIP OF THE ROTTING FLESH STINK OF THE CHICAGO STYLE ICEBERG MAN-CHILD, NEOPHYTE OBA-HUSSEIN HAS TRIED TO CONCEAL IN WASHINGTON. BTW - After Russia refuses to support his request to help him with islamic iran, he STILL caves and sends senior emissaries to kill off the missile defense shield planned for Poland and Czechoslovakia to intercept Iranian missiles but grumbled about by Russia! What a leader! (not!) If the lapdog Media did its job, this could be a scandal of epic proportions and one that makes Nixon's Watergate or Clinton 's Monica Lewinsky...

Watching the developing courageous and romantic story of two young people brave enough go undercover and discover the truth can distract us from seeing the obvious. By following the unfolding story of ACORN, one has enough information to conclude that there is a pattern of bad conduct embedded in the culture of those who associate themselves with an organization that claims to be interested in the good of the community. They have cloaked themselves with the official documents of state corporation papers, and an extensive review by the Internal Revenue Service to enable nonprofit status. It is neither here nor...

Very, say longtime watchers of the extreme leftwing group that sprouted out of a radical 60s anti-government movement. For decades ACORN has presented itself as a grassroots network dedicated to improving the lives of the poor. But there's more to ACORN than its do-gooder veneer. Just ask the banks, corporations and politicians who've been the target of ACORN's shameless shenanigans over the past 40 years. Here's how the tiny seed of 1960s radicalism blossomed into a well-funded, national organization with political connections reaching all the way to the White House:

The liberal political organizing group ACORN faced internal chaos and allegations of financial mismanagement and fraud long before two young conservatives embarrassed the group with undercover videos made at field offices in Washington and across the country.

chicagotribune.com Independent prosecutor for ACORN By Charles Lipson September 20, 2009 ACORN is in very deep, very public trouble, and the U.S. attorney general should appoint an independent prosecutor to investigate. What we know so far is due entirely to two amateur reporters, James E. O'Keefe III, 25, and Hannah Giles, 20, who managed to videotape a web of corrupt practices in ACORN offices. Dressed as a pimp and prostitute, O'Keefe and Giles walked into ACORN offices from New York to California and simply asked for business advice. ACORN officials were happy to provide it and were secretly recorded explaining...

“We encourage free speech and defend everyone's right to express unpopular points of view…” This statement can be found on YouTube's Community Guidlines page, and in general this statement holds true. Take, for example: the animalistic view of women that rappers promote amongst the youth of this nation, or the violent street fighting clips that develop fanbases. These videos are popular because they raise some level of controversy, and aren't considered “socially” acceptable in America.

Juan Carlos Vera of San Diego ACORN was fired after being caught on tape providing advice to a couple posing as a pimp and a prostitute. ACORN community head, David Lagstein, had said he believed Juan Carlos Vera did his best to deal with a challenging situation. But 3 hours later, Lagstein reversed himself after reevaluating video in which Juan Carlos Vera was seen advising he could smuggle underage girls through Tijuana.

50 year old Jaime Enrique Feliciano was sentenced yesterday in Sacramento to 25 years in prison. He was convicted of child molestation, possession of child pornography, and manufacturing child pornography. Feliciano was working for the state of California when the Sacramento County's DA's office was tipped off to his illegal activity last September. They searched his home, where they found thousands of pictures depicting children in various sex acts, Also found were countless images and videos both on his personal laptop and his State owned computer. He also raped a young girl, then attempted to keep the woman from going...

-snip- Only 15% of voters now have even a somewhat favorable opinion of ACORN, while 67% have an unfavorable view of the group. Those figures include only three percent (3%) with a very favorable opinion and 47% with a very unfavorable view. Eighty-five percent (85%) of Republicans, 73% of voters not affiliated with either major political party, and 44% of Democrats have an unfavorable view of ACORN. Liberal voters are evenly divided—35% favorable and 38% unfavorable. Eighty-two percent (82%) of conservative voters give ACORN unfavorable marks along with 60% of political moderates. -snip-

Anti-ACORN Guerilla Art goes viral in Los Angeles. Obama “Hope” poster artist Shepard Fairey’s studio targeted (below). “ACORN Funded Prostitution Zone” tagged on the wall of the Shepard Fairey-owned Studio Number One. Fairey became a household name after designing the Obama “Hope” Poster..

The House voted Thursday to deny federal money to the community-organizing group Acorn after a video emerged in which employees of the group gave advice to two conservative activists posing as a prostitute and a pimp who said they wanted buy a house in Baltimore and start a brothel. Republicans added the prohibition to a Democratic bill on college lending by a bipartisan vote of 345-75, showing that Acorn, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, was increasingly seen by Democrats as a political liability. “Acorn has violated serious federal laws, and today the House voted to ensure that...

Zina C. Pierre, a virtual unknown in Annapolis politics whose primary victory this week put her on track to become the city's first African-American mayor, dropped out of the race Friday evening in the wake of revelations of personal financial problems. Pierre was besieged with questions about the foreclosure of her Bowie home and several state tax liens. "Zina Pierre has decided that for personal reasons she will withdraw from the race for the city of Annapolis," said her spokeswoman, Michael Matthews, who declined to comment further. According to city code, the Annapolis Democratic Central Committee must choose a replacement...

Reporting from Washington - The House Ethics Committee is investigating Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles), who has come under scrutiny because of her husband's ties to a bank that received federal bailout funds. The panel's chairwoman and ranking member announced the committee was extending by 45 days a determination on whether it would conduct a more thorough review of Waters' conduct, but they declined to say what was being investigated. Waters, one of Los Angeles' most enduring liberal politicians, also declined to comment.

BATON ROUGE - Governor Bobby Jindal has issued an executive order cutting off current and future state funding to ACORN following a series of incidents captured on videotape and the subpoena of documents from the group’s national headquarters in New Orleans by the state attorney general's office. The executive order states that, “ACORN’s actions make clear that financial involvement with ACORN is contrary to the public policy of the State of Louisiana and the best interests of its citizens.” The order prohibits all state agencies from entering into future contracts with ACORN or its subsidiaries and directs the agencies to...

The Acorn scandal, in which amateur journalists posing as a prostitute and a pimp went seeking a mortgage for a house of prostitution and received advice on how to evade the law, is a fitting new chapter in the controversial history of the advocacy group.Acorn found its way into the mortgage business through the Community Reinvestment Act, the 1977 legislation that community groups have used as a cudgel to force lenders to lower their mortgage underwriting standards in order to make more loans in low-income communities. Often the groups, after making protests under CRA, were then rewarded by banks with...

Breaking

WASHINGTON -- Federal and local authorities are considering pulling back on funding Acorn, a leading community organizing group, after videos showed employees at a number of Acorn offices allegedly advising a filmmaker how to evade taxes in operating a brothel. New York City is "treating this very seriously," a spokesman for Mayor Michael Bloomberg said, adding that the city will await an investigation by the Brooklyn district attorney before deciding whether to curtail funding the city channels to Acorn. The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, or Acorn, is the landlord for some of the city's affordable housing units....

You've got to just love John Fund and the work he has done on voter fraud and ACORN. Here's a video of John Fund discussing ACORN, which includes voter fraud, of course.

For months during last year’s presidential race, conservatives sought to tar the Obama campaign with accusations of voter fraud and other transgressions by the national community organizing group Acorn, which had done some work for the campaign. But it took amateur actors, posing as a prostitute and a pimp and recorded on hidden cameras in visits to Acorn offices, to send government officials scrambling in recent days to sever ties with the organization. Conservative advocates and broadcasters were gleeful about the success of the tactics in exposing Acorn workers, who appeared to blithely encourage prostitution and tax evasion. It was,...

Oversight: As the Senate votes to de-fund Acorn, add pimping, tax evasion and human trafficking to voter fraud paid for with taxpayer dollars and you have an organized criminal enterprise. It's time to investigate.After Acorn workers were caught on tape in three cities allegedly abetting what they believed was a fraudulent-mortgage and sex-trafficking scheme, the Senate has voted overwhelmingly to strip the group of funding in the Transportation/Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill. The amendment, offered by Nebraska Republican Sen. Mike Johanns, passed by an 83-to-7 margin and marked the third time this year that Republicans have tried to block...

Now that ACORN is getting stomped, maybe Congress will look at their own report released on July 23, 2009, by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. At 88 pages, the report provides enough detail to turn the tables back to Congress: Why did you keep these people on the payroll?

Stimulus: The group that pushed banks into the risky loans that brought the economy down is now eligible for a huge chunk of stimulus cash. The stimulus plan does create jobs — for community activists.As in any agreement, contract or piece of legislation, the devil is in the details. So it is with the stimulus package percolating in Congress. Analysts are beginning to figure out that only a small percentage of the money will actually trickle down into the economy in the first two years, not enough to do much stimulating. Yet in this package is a $4 billion pot...

Don: Okay, here’s my news question. A Senate bill yesterday passes, cutting off funds to this group called ACORN. Now, we got that bill passed and we have the embarrassing video of ACORN staffers giving tax advice on how to set up a brothel with 13-year-old hookers. It has everything you could want – corruption and sleazy action at tax-funded organizations and it’s got government ties. But nobody’s covering that story. Why? Gibson: HAHAHAHAHA. HEHEHE. I didn’t even know about it. Um. So, you’ve got me at a loss. I don’t know. Uh. Uh. But my goodness, if it’s got...

New Acorn Video Tomorrow - On Hannity

A growing number of Republican lawmakers are calling for congressional hearings and IRS audits of ACORN following the release of three videotapes that show the group's employees offering advice to a "pimp" and a "prostitute" on how to skirt the law.

Ho, no! A tag team pair of undercover activists, posing as a pimp and prostitute, has exposed the Brooklyn office of the left-leaning organization ACORN as the latest branch of the embattled group to be caught up in a housing scandal, the New York Post reported. "Honesty is not going to get you the house," a loan counselor at the officers told the conservative activists turned faux flesh-peddlers who were posing as a couple seeking a mortgage, according to the Post. The Brooklyn office was the latest branch of the organization exposed in a hidden-camera operation. Four ACORN employees have...

Politics: The senator who called the president a liar and never apologized may have worn out his welcome in his home state. Harry Reid may be riding the liberal agenda into political oblivion.In 2004, Republicans defeated Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle largely on the theme that he neglected his home state in favor of national party interests. The GOP is hoping that in 2010 lightning will strike a second time, and Nevada polls indicate it may be more than wishful thinking. In 1998, Reid beat John Ensign by a hair-thin 428 votes. Ensign would go on to win Nevada's other...

ACORN releases statement saying they will take legal action against Fox and their co-conspirators, huh Fox? All Foxnews did was report on the video that was already all over the internet. Then James O'Keefe fires back at ACORN with "BRING IT ON." Video from Foxnews today...

Clarice Feldman The federal government should review all tax returns prepared by ACORN tax preparers (and all loan applications prepared by ACORN -- but that is a separate review process). That the IRS knows who these people are is suggested by this article, which I suppose was repeated throughout the country: ... ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) Tax and Benefits Centers in Hartford and Bridgeport are ready to assist CT Taxpayers. ACORN has partnered with the IRS Volunteer Income Tax Preparation (VITA) program to provide free tax preparation for low and moderate income taxpayers who cannot afford...

The independent filmmaker whose hidden-camera videos prompted the firing of four ACORN workers is demanding an apology from ACORN for calling his work a fabricated "scam" and daring the activist group to take legal action against him. "Bring it on," filmmaker James O'Keefe said Sunday on FOX News. That was after ACORN lashed out at O'Keefe, who with his friend Hannah Giles posed as a pimp and prostitute looking to evade the IRS and apply for an illegal housing loan for a brothel. The sting operation caught four ACORN workers in the Baltimore and Washington, D.C., offices appearing to offer...

City Lawmakers Rally Around Embattled Rep. RangelSep 13, 2009 10:04 am US/Eastern NEW YORK (CBS) - City lawmakers are rallying around Congressman Charles Rangel as the House Ethics Committee looks into his finances. Supporters say everyone needs to wait before passing judgment. There were dozens of voices Saturday, many of them local politicians, pleading for patience. "We ask for fairness," City Council member Inez Dickens said. "We want to expose the truth," councilwoman Melissa Mark Viverito said. Many of the demonstrators were livid. "Leave Charlie the hell alone!" Reverend Reggie Williams, of the American Red Cross, said. All of the...

Christopher Kelly, a key figure in the federal corruption probe into former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, is dead. The Cook County medical examiner’s office today confirmed that Christopher Kelly of Burr Ridge was pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital at 10:46 a.m. The office said Kelly died of salicylate intoxication. According to medical reference guides, salicylates are used in anti-inflammatory and pain relief medications. An autopsy is scheduled for Sunday. *snip* Kelly is a former confidant and top fundraiser for Blagojevich, who was accused of using his office to leverage campaign donations and benefits for himself and his family. *snip* Kelly’s attorney,...

Before we answer that question, we first have to know the person making the decisions about prosecutions in Maryland. Who exactly is Patricia Jessamy, the Baltimore City State’s Attorney whose office threatened to prosecute the undercover reporters that exposed ACORN’s pimp-protecting and tax-evasion operation? Chris at HAP does a lot of legwork on Jessamy — and finds a partisan Democrat who has invested both time and money in supporting Barack Obama: Chris also has links to Jessamy’s personal contribution to Obama’s campaign, as well as her position on a steering committee for his campaign. Jessamy isn’t exactly an uninterested party...

Breaking News on Fox, the Census Bureau has severed all ties to ACORN. Will not be working with ACORN for the census in 2010.

I thought I'd heard every possible charge about corruption at ACORN, a feisty, union-backed activist group that became infamous last year when it was investigated for voter registration fraud in 15 states. Just yesterday, 11 ACORN workers were accused by Florida prosecutors of falsifying information on some 900 voter registration forms. But this morning brings a Fox News report that ACORN officials in Baltimore offered to help get a housing loan and falsify tax documents for a proposed house of prostitution that would employ underage girls from El Salvador. ... In helping Mr. O'Keefe set up his supposed brothel, ACORN...

I think a lot of people are missing something here, I hoped I could bring focus to it more. This girl Kenya is trying to buy a house. That gets lost in the child prostitution part(and for good reason) but what it does is expose a part of the mortgage crisis that us conservatives have talked about for a while. ACORN couldn't do what it's doing without all the help it gets from government. Not just the 501c3 status, but also all the laws on the books that make way for politically correct loans. Now let's say this all actually...