Posted on 03/24/2015 7:04:34 AM PDT by ConservingFreedom
Operation “Choke Point” is not new. It began as an outgrowth of the President’s Financial Fraud Task Force in 2009. Choke Point never acquired congressional authority to begin operations though it was started by the DOJ, FDIC, and the newly formed Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in 2009. It is called “Choke Point” because its main purpose is to choke off lending to industries which are out of favor with the Obama Administration. In essence, if businesses can’t process payments, they can’t survive.
Choke Point operations were first begun against payday lenders in New York by the NY Financial Services Superintendent. The purpose was to “make payday lending, especially in New York, as unappetizing as possible.” The first public notice was by Michael Bresnick at the Exchequer Club in Washington in March of 2013. The Justice Department subpoenaed more than 50 banks and payment processing firms. Quite simply, the American people now have an administration that wants to close off funding to industries it doesn’t like even as it is pushing banks to loan money for marijuana sales.
Hearings concerning the administration’s Choke Point scheme will begin today, held by the House Financial Services Subcommittee. The question is whether there will be any repercussions. The New York Times was more than willing to dispense information concerning the ways in which government was tracking terrorist finances during the Bush administration. But why is the media silent now that the full force of government is being used to destroy the legal employment of honest citizens simply because the Obama Regime does not happen to favor the industries in which these people are working? Is a government which deliberately forces law abiding citizens into unemployment not worthy of news coverage?
Some of the industries being targeted are firearm sales, coin dealers, ammunition sales, payday loans and pharmaceutical sales. Do any of these pose a danger to the average citizen? Is there any justification for the targeted destruction of these businesses by the federal government?
The DOJ has used the intimidation of banks to force processors to drop clients and has employed smear tactics if they don’t comply. The nation’s banks are clearly being told that they will face government harassment, perhaps even financial ruin if they should do business with companies the Obama Administration does not support. It is in fact, befouling the open and free markets of this country, attempting to destroy legal business based on an authority that this government does not have. It is the denial of banking services to companies based solely on political differences. It is a deliberate threat of financial destruction against those in the free market simply because they do not share the “Moral Values” of a socialist administration. Knowing that subpoenas are difficult and expensive to comply with, companies will roll over and submit to federal pressure because they cannot afford to fight it. This leaves the DOJ even going so far as fining these companies and winning “sue and settle” awards through the courts, much like the EPA has done.
When Congress sent a letter requesting the DOJ answer questions about the project, a DOJ official told Congress they did not have to answer any questions about the project, and that the DOJ had no obligation to discuss any aspect of “Choke Point” with Congress at all. This same official even refused to give her name. She was later found to be Deputy Assistant Attorney General Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong. She refuses to discuss her confrontation with congress and responded to questions by referring reporters to DOJ Public Affairs.
As is usual with the Obama Administration, there undoubtedly exist more evasion and lying that may ever be known. At the same time the above named Deputy Assistant Attorney General was refusing to talk to Congress, another DOJ official, Trial Attorney Joel M. Sweet was providing details to bank examiners and financial institutions under the auspices of the Federal Financial Institution Examination Council. The question then becomes, what will the DOJ tell large bankers and examiners that they won’t tell Congress? The next question, at least for me, is why are these people not in jail!
There is bound to be much more to this story and the American public can only hope it will be revealed as the hearings progress.
That’s one way of looking at it, yes!
$4,999.00 withdrawals will trigger a red flag, too.
And the answer will be MYOB.
Remember Howard Cosell? His career ended because of a "monkey" comment.
I agree with you, as I understand the regulation it also kicks in if you take out a series of withdrawals over a fairly short period of time.
It’s all about control...
The difference being Howard Cosells employer was probably not urged on by the First Lady. It’s good to be queen.
“She was later found to be Deputy Assistant Attorney General Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong.”
Sorry, but that name alone should disqualify one from holding public office.
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