The Politics of Personal Enrichment – A Proposed Free Republic Team Project

During the last election cycle, the Democrats and the MSM made considerable political hay from the Abramoff scandal, where lobbyist Jack Abramoff directed campaign contributions and perks to Republicans and Democrats alike (somehow, the MSM seldom got around to mentioning the Democrats involved in the scandal, such as Harry Reid). The non-stop MSM harping on the Abramoff scandal was a key factor in the GOP Congressional defeats of 2006 (along with GOP overspending).

At the end of the day, any Pubbie caught up in the scandal deserved to lose his seat (too bad none of the Dems implicated in the scandal were impacted, but we’ve gotten used to that). Abramoff was a two-sided sword swung only in one direction.

But Abramoff’s impact was mostly about filling campaign coffers, not the bank accounts of politicians and their relatives. Over the last few years, multiple reports of direct enrichment of Democratic elected officials and well-connected insiders have come to light – but these stories have received nowhere near the media coverage as the Abramoff scandal, despite the fact that the corruption and its impacts are far more drastic:

- The Fannie and Freddie Salad Bar
- Chris Dodd – Countrywide’s Sweetheart
- Harry Reid’s Dirty Real Estate Deals and Dirtier Offspring
- Joe Biden – MBNA Sugar Daddy
- The Speaker and the Windbag (Pelosi Blocks Drilling while Investing in T Boone’s Scheme)
- Charlie Rangel and the Rent-Controlled Office Space
- Obama’s Thank-You For My Wife's Raise Earmark

Some of these payments and payments in kind had minor public financial impacts, and are more a reflection of the poor moral character and lack of fitness to lead of the politicians in question. But at least two of these – Fannie Mae and Chris Dodd – have had major ramifications for taxpayers, to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars in bailouts, along with direct consequences to the financial turmoil now affecting the globe.

Yet the media, other than the WSJ, have largely declined to connect the dots and demonstrate to the American people how these scandals are much worse than Abramoff. And for obvious reasons - if voters were as aware of Dem corruption this election the way the media made them aware of GOP corruption last election, the end result would be the same – the party in power, the party implicated in the scandals, would go down in electoral defeat. So the MSM runs interference to prevent that from happening, even though ferreting out this pervasive corruption is the only real long-term solution to the problems facing how we are governed.

Bill Clinton coined the term Politics of Personal Destruction years ago (fair enough, since he perfected the art). We need to make it clear that that Dem leaders swept into power in the last election cycle by comparatively minor GOP corruption are conversely up to their eyeballs in the Politics of Personal Enrichment, otherwise known as rank corruption from direct payments of dirty money. This goes beyond bringing home the bacon for constituents, grubbing for campaign contributions and doing favors for influential donors. This is graft, as base as it gets, and at a level that would have made Boss Tweed blush. And for a relative pittance, they sell out Americans, sometimes at great cost.

Since the media won’t cover this in detail, it’s up to us. And we should put to work the best aspects of FR – research, biting commentary, black humor and brilliant analysis – along with what truly differentiates FR from the liberal egomaniacal lunatics that infest the blogsphere – teamwork that transcends any one of us.

So I’m calling out to my fellow FReepers – hopefully, this is the introductory thread of many threads to come. I ask for other FReepers to please add to this thread and also feel free to start Politics of Personal Enrichment threads with the topics mentioned above, or other topics as you see fit. I’m going to start with Chris Dodd myself. But please emphasize situations where politicians and/or their relatives have gotten direct monetary financial benefit from their dirty dealings, as opposed to just campaign contributions or a junket to a golf resort. We have to clearly demonstrate that Dem corruption has gone well beyond the Abramoff variety decried by Dem media sycophants two years ago. And nail the collective lot of them with their hypocrisy and corruption in a manner that non-political junkies can understand, be outraged about, and act upon come November.

Let’s fan out and bring in a comprehensive reference library of links to articles about these corrupt hacks. Document the dirty deals and their impacts. Deconstruct the rationalizations their toadies in the media have spun to defend the largess. And craft and critique and perfect a range of essays, from sound bites to extended analysis, that others can take and use elsewhere, in all forms of communication, to drive the point home – it is time for the real culture of corruption to be revealed, and to be removed.

We need to add Penny Pritzker(Ponzi Penny) to this list. She is Obama’s finance chairman and she is up to her neck in the Mortgage meltdown.

A few of us are following her connections and might be able to help.

Here is a good overview:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2086352/posts?page=30#30

Here is another great link provided by Starwise:

http://amok.asianweek.com/2008/03/15/subprime-pritzker-pure-gold-for-obama/

Another one I just found:

http://loanworkout.org/2008/03/obama-penny-pritzker/

While the ABDNC is lynching a 17 yr old pregnant girl they continue to ignore corruption from their candidate for the 20th election in a row. In January 2005 the day that Obummer was sworn in as senator, angry Michelle was given a $200,000 raise as a new position was invented to hide this benefit. Turns out that the bribes from Tony Rezko were peanuts compared to the grease that was being spread by the University of Chicago Hospital. Eventually that salary was paid by us as Barak was able to get an earmark for the Hospital of $1,000,000. Guess some of us are just too cynical to be Commiecrats?

Seems that Saint Change is the same ol politician in the District of Corruption. While our ever vigilent press are being sexual voyeurs in the Palin family, it turns out that the Oblack family was up to their necks in Bribes. January of 2005 when Black Whiteguilt Oblack stole his senate seat in the usual Chicago style, Michelle was given a title and her salary suddenly nearly tripled. She went that month from hospital administrator making $121,000 to a brand new position called Vice President of Community Affairs making $317,000. Now that she has left the hospital the phony position has been dropped from the hospital. Apparently Change is very lucrative in the DC swamp.

There is no way to tell what exactly the hospital got for their $200,000/yr bribe since the hospital can’t say what she did, but we can guess that there was plenty of favors. There is one admitted earmark that Obummer had to divulge when he entered the Presidential race for $1,000,000 for a hospital pavillion. Such a Coincidence that it would pay for his wife’s salary for 3 years. Wonder if that pavillion was ever built. Some things never Change other than the amounts when it comes to corruption.

When the hospital was asked what the VP of Community Affairs was, nobody could explain it other than some Public Affairs position. This bogus position was invented to pay off the Obamas and is another example of their willingness to take bribes. We know the Italian shoed hired guns made sure there is no proof this is a bribe yet even for Chicago this is obvious. Being a dirty siniator for two years is the sum total of his qualifications and is all we need to know. He and Joe Boredom will be two of the most corrupt politicians to ever occupy the WH. This job will be worth at least a $Billion in bribes and graft for these two crooks.

Sure $200,000 per year is chump Change in DemocRat terms, but there is no such thing as just a little corrupt, that is like being a little pregnant. Either you are or you aren’t. Between this graft as well as the sweetheart deal with Rezko and his VP who are up to are their necks in bribes and nepotism you have an obvious choice in November. Speaking of old drunks, how big a headache did Obummer have Thursday morning realizing that McCain gets to campaign with a Babe, while he has Uncle Fester. Lets face it Biden looks like an older version of Jack Elum w/the voice of Gabby Hayes. He and Michelle must be dreading the next 60 days in a bus that smells like Grandpa farts.

From here on we have the two real Mavericks vs two entrenched politicians up to their ears in Corruption. One side will begin to destroy the District of Corruption and the other will Float in it hoping to fatten their wallets. One side put the Governor’s private jet on e-bay and the other has taken bribes from Hopitals, sleazy Slum Lords and Hedge Funds. The decision can’t be any more clear.

Now the two issues are: drilling for our own oil and cleaning up corruption. Those are the two winning issues that are clear to all Americans cutting across Republicans and Dems. This is what the Founding Fathers dreamed and now thanks be to God, he has given us a onetime chance. No matter what you think of John McCain, nobody can say he has taken a bribe or ever will. This is the the chance in a lifetime and with the McCuda we can finally start to Drain the DC Swamp.

Pray for W, MavCuda and Our Troops

>>>>Over the last few years, multiple reports of direct enrichment of Democratic elected officials and well-connected insiders have come to light

Here is a few:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2086494/posts

Joyce Foundation: Provided grant support to test the market in carbon credits. Barack Hussein Obama sat on their Board from 1998 until 2001.

Chicago Climate Exchange: The Exchange owes it existence in part to the Joyce Foundation, the Chicago-based liberal foundation philanthropy that provided $347,000 in grant support in 2000 for a preliminary study to test the viability of a market in carbon credits. On the CCX board of directors is the ubiquitous Maurice Strong, a Canadian industrialist and diplomat who since the 1970s has helped create an international policy agenda for the environmentalist movement.

Al Gore: Owns a carbon trading business, Generation Investment Management. They were banked with the Lehman Bros. The Generation Investment Management business has considerable influence over the major carbon credit trading firms that currently exist.

Jon Corzine: He is now the Governor of NJ. He retired from Goldman Sachs in 1999 after taking the firm public and receiving at least $320 million worth of its stock. He ran for the Senate in New Jersey in 2000, spending more than $60 million of his fortune to win the seat. The bubble of high-priced technology stocks began to burst in March 2000. In August 2000, the SEC issued a warning against aftermarket sales, also known as “laddering.” “I’ve never even heard the term ‘laddering’ before,” Corzine said.

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