Posted on 10/19/2004 5:59:37 PM PDT by Notch
Breaking News from NewsMax.com
Billionaires Secretly Met in Aspen to Defeat Bush
In the days following the Democratic National Convention in Boston this past August, several billionaire Democratic activists secretly met at the famed Aspen Institute in Colorado.
The purpose of their clandestine meeting was "to use their fortunes to engineer the defeat of President George W. Bush," The New Yorker magazine reports in its most recent edition.
Details of the meeting remain sketchy, but the magazine described the Aspen conference this way: "Five billionaires joined half a dozen liberal leaders in a lengthy conversation about the future of progressive politics in America."
For sure, there were differences of opinion in the group, but they all shared one goal: to get George Bush this November.
The Aspen meeting was supposed to have been a top secret within Democratic Party circles.
When The New Yorker inquired about the meeting, an assistant to one of the attendees was surprised by the call.
"No one was supposed to know about this," the aide told the magazine. "We don't want people thinking it's a cabal or some sort of Masonic plot!"
Apparently the leader of the secret cabal is billionaire Peter B. Lewis, chairman of the Cleveland, Ohio-based insurance company Progressive Corporation.
Like another attendee, wealthy financier George Soros, Lewis has poured millions into Democratic 527 groups, including Americans Coming Together and MoveOn.org.
One of Lewis' top agenda items has been the decriminalization of marijuana, a policy position also shared by Soros.
Another billionaire who attended was John Sperling, founder of the online University of Phoenix.
Also present were Herb and Marion Sandler from California. The couple founded Golden West Financial Corporation, a California bank reportedly worth $17 billion.
The key agenda items for the Sandlers has been "preserving progressive income taxes and inheritance taxes," the magazine reported.
The wealthiest and most notable of those attending the meeting was George Soros, the 74-year-old Hungarian immigrant who desperately wants to defeat George Bush and has even compared him to the likes of Adolf Hitler.
Apparently, all was not roses at the billionaire confab, according to The New Yorker.
"The billionaires spent much of the time moaning the superior powers of the GOP," the magazine said, and the group even needed some cheerleading from Harold Ickes, a former top aide to Bill Clinton who is involved in the 527 efforts.
There was disagreement about some of the issues and policy positions the group should take.
Sperling, for one, argued that the main target of their efforts should be Wal-Mart. He wants to push for unionizing the giant retailer.
That idea was apparently vetoed by George Soros, who reportedly told the group he had no desire to support union initiatives and that his only single goal at this point was "ousting Bush."
Though not the leader of the group, Soros holds the largest bank account and as such is the 800-pound gorilla, having given more than $18 million to the 527s in an effort to defeat Bush.
The magazine said Soros had planned to keep a low profile in the closing months of the election, but suddenly changed course this summer when he decided to "jettison the strategy in favor of waging his own media-grabbing political campaign."
Soros hired a publicist and began a 12-city, $3 million personal crusade to defeat George Bush.
According to the magazine, Soros has nothing but contempt for Bush, who he considers "an ignorant fool."
More than that, he sees Bush as the face man for a secret cabal. "Bush was just chosen as a figurehead, an acceptable face for a sinister group," Soros told The New Yorker, adding, "Cheney is the Capo."
Clearly, Soros knows a thing or two about secret cabals and capos.
BUMP from Smokers for Bush.
Well .. you make a good point about the courts.
And I agree about the takeover having to do with the damage caused by the SBVs.
#32. Good post.
What were you thinking? Man, the name was a dead giveaway. Okay, that mistake is soon to be behind you. You can make it up by sending one month's insurance payment to the RNC.
If you read between the lines, their agenda was to use their money to BUY THE ELECTION.
#64. Right on the money. Freepers rule.
"It" joined from Californication, USA.
:-)
True- But buying the election is just a method to their maddness!
Can you imagine having this as your "agenda"? Rich socialist pigs, one and all.
Maybe all freepers and Republicans who have Progessive should switch insurance companies and send a letter to corporate HQ telling them that this is the reason.
I once had the great misfortune of working for Progressive Insurance in Ca.
To put it bluntly, the "Rainbow Flag" outnumbered the Stars and Stripes about 8-1 in our office. And we're also talking some very angry liberals.
We lowly college workers were cajoled into donating to every ridiculious cause there was.
The parking lot reeked of pot every lunch break, at least the managers side did.
The workers in the call center didn't give a d@mn, because managers didn't either. Management consisted mostly of left over hippies, Humanities degrees types, and flakes who couldn't cut it in a real company. We college workers mocked the fat old hippies without mercy..
One girl I personally worked with got breast implants paid for by her 50yr. old married boss.
She was his "special assistant" (wink wink)and she bragged about it, thought it was hilarious. He had "performance issues", and compensated by buying her nice things. Easy money for an attractive coed.
It was just a summer job for me, I felt bad for the few sensible people trapped in that environment. Progressive Insurance is ran by some of the most lefty wackos you'll ever meet in a business setting. The Exec's....If they didn't inherit the business, Daddy's money and the seat on the board, they'd be unemployed performance artist in San Fransicko.
I am not in the least suprised that Progressive is part of this sort of thing.
The name Progressive gives it away already. I am not surprised by it one bit.
When I worked there they gave us the spiel about the history of the company...actually kinda interesting.
They made a niche for themselves early on insuring the "hard to insure".
Conviently states had passed "mandatory minimum" insurance laws, thus people with bad records or celebrities, etc. are forced by law to obtain insurance at higher rates, well shazam! they now have a "state approved" option in Progressive.
Clever little business model. Sell products people are forced to buy.....hehe. Charge really high to people who have no option, sell to average customers at average rates....
Progressive actually handles a lot of the celebrity clients. It seems rates for Hollywood types are excessive. I remember you could look up celebrity names on the computer system and check out their stuff, etc. We used to do this for purely entertainment value.
Some of these "stars" literally had dozens of high end vehicles. It wasn't unusual for a low level "star" to have 10-20 vehicles, cars, trucks, SUV's, motorcycles, boats. Huge montlies as well..
but looking this stuff was a big naughty...hehe.
I would like an explanation also. Tell us dmr1991 what sort of 'garbage' has our president been throwing that puts him on the same moral and ethical level as George Soros or John Kerry.
Peter Lewis is by far the largest donor.
See: http://www.publicintegrity.org/527/search.aspx?act=con&sec=indiv&sub=topindiv
Just the name Progressive is synonymous with
Communist. According to David Horowitz, progressive
Is what the communists called them selves in the 70’s.
For all the information on FreeRepublic.com when I
Search for posts on Peter Lewis I come up with nothing.
Now this man is in the shadows.....
he's also a real big fan of art. "Progressive" has spent tons of other peoples money (investor money) on crappy art they use to spruce up Progressive offices.
They are also real big on using other peoples money for public art and "enrichment". Whenever there is some ballot initiative to increase taxes to fund some kabooki theatre in Duluth, or Muskogee, the boys from Progressive are probably behind it. It was this sort of cr@p we were constantly cajoled and harassed to donate to.
"C'mon, donate to the all male dance revue initiative"
"But I don't wanna"
"Don't you wanna see gay dance interpretations of Speed the Plow?"
"Um, no, Not really"
"Well, the simple-minded people in Des Moines have no culture, so if we can raise enough to get this Dance Revue public funding measure on ballot, it would really help enlighten them. ....C'mon just five dollars."
"If I give you five dollars will you and the lisping brigade leave me alone?"
"Yesth"
"Ok.
Welcome, jump right in!
The woman dismissed my complaints and said the owner uses PRIVATE money. How ridiculous, his money comes from the profits from his business and I am so glad I convinced my daughter to change companies.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.