Posted on 01/11/2002 8:37:48 AM PST by sixmil
Do you want an 60-second rendition of just what all this Enron stuff is all about?
OK .. here you go.
Enron was the nation’s seventh largest corporation in terms of revenue. Enron would buy natural gas and electrical energy from producers and re-sell those commodities to distributors and consumers. Enron was apparently cooking the book. Enron was heavily in debt, but the debt was hidden in various partnerships. Eventually the house of cards caved in and Enron tanked. Many Enron employees and investors literally lost most of their life savings.
Enron’s connection to President Bush? The corporation and it’s top official contributed heavily to Bush’s various political campaigns. Also – when the financial cave in began at Enron some Enron officials had meetings with Bush Administration officials seeking help.
That’s just about it. This is the synopsis for the “scandal” that many in our wonderful news media say could be “as big as Whitewater.”
So, you want to compare Bush/Enron with Clinton/Madison Guaranty and the Whitewater scandal? Fine! Let’s go for it. For starters:
Can you show me any evidence, anecdotal or otherwise, that George W. Bush or anyone working for George W. Bush did anything to help Enron hide its financial misdeeds?
Can you name one Bush family member who received money from Enron for professional services – as an attorney, for instance?
Can you show any loans to George W. Bush or any of his family members from Enron or from any of Enron’s principals?
Can you show that George W. Bush invested in Enron and that that investment was subsequently protected by Enron officials when the financial picture started to fall apart.
Can you provide me with any evidence that any administration official, from Bush’s years as Governor of Texas or since he became president, has taken any action whatsoever to prevent, stall or impede an investigation by any government regulatory agency, either state or federal, into the financial affairs of Enron?
Can you provide any evidence, anecdotal or otherwise, of any sexual relations between George W. Bush and any officer or the wife of any officer of Enron?
Can you produce evidence that either Enron or any Enron official ever made payments on any promissory obligation of George W. Bush or any member of his family?
Can you introduce any evidence that George W. Bush, or any member of his immediate family, ever participated in the preparation of any legal documents drawn for the sole purpose of defrauding the federal government?
Can you show that either George W. Bush or any member of his administration or his immediate family has lied, whether under oath or not, about any aspect of his relationship with Enron or any Enron officials?
Can you provide me the name of any Enron official who is presently serving time in jail for contempt of court for his or her refusal to answer questions under oath about the role of George W. Bush or any member of his family or administration in dealings with Enron?
Can you show me that any pertinent documents relating to Enron, which documents were once in the possession of George W. Bush, any member of his immediately family or any administration official has been destroyed, lost, shredded or otherwise disposed of?
Explain just why there is so much criticism of George W. Bush over the Enron debacle while Enron is being represented in Washington by Bill Clinton’s former attorney.
But, you say, Enron talked to Bush officials when they knew they were in trouble? So? Didn’t airline representatives talk to both Republican and Democratic officials in Washington when they found themselves in trouble? Didn’t Chrysler make a trip to Washington decades ago when it hit some rough roads? It’s pretty much standard practice for huge corporation to go to Washington when the going gets rough. Sometimes you see a bail-out as you did with the airlines and Chrysler. Sometimes the corporate officials learn that they are going to have to go it on their own.
Democrats and Clinton-lovers are just salivating on this one. They are trying to convince the myrmidons that Enron is Bush’s Whitewater. As you can see from the list above, this is a tough play to run. It doesn’t matter, though, because the vast majority of people in this country – including most Democratic voters – don’t have the intellectual curiosity to delve into the situation. They’ll believe what their favorite politician says – or what they hear from their favorite news anchors – and that will pretty much be it.
If there’s any fraud, criminal conduct or ethical violations here … show me the proof. I’ll be right there with you demanding appropriate action.
Aye, there's the rub.
More on that from the Drudge Report. Unlike Clinton, Bush did nothing to help Enron in exchange campaign contributions.
FLASHBACK: CLINTON OFFICIAL MET WITH ENRON CHAIRMAN; $100,000 CASH DONATION TO DEMOCRATS TIMED TO PLANT APPROVAL TIME MAGAZINE
SEPTEMBER 1, 1997
On Nov. 22, 1995 President Clinton scrawled an FYI note to chief of staff Mack McLarty, enclosing a newspaper article on Enron Corp. and the vicissitudes of its $3 billion power-plant project in India.
McLarty then reached out to Enron's chairman, Ken Lay, and over the next nine months closely monitored the project with the U.S. ambassador to New Delhi, keeping Lay informed of the Administration's efforts, according to White House documents reviewed by TIME magazine.
In June 1996, four days before India granted final approval to Enron's controversial $3 billion power-plant project, Enron's gave $100,000 to President Clinton's party.
Enron denies that its gift was repayment for Clinton's attention, and White House special counsel Lanny Davis says McLarty acted out of concern for a major U.S. investment overseas, TIME's Michael Weisskopf reported.
DRUDGE NOTE: McLarty was later hired by Enron. Lay also played golf with President Bill Clinton and slept in the Clinton White House. A master of political manipulation of both parties, Lay served as an adviser to the Clinton White House on energy issues. The Clinton administration, in turn, helped Enron get a contract for a gas pipeline in Mozambique and other projects, according to reports.
So, just point that out and ask why, if the 'Rats are suddenly interested in so campaign finance reform, don't they go about it honestly rather than try to play partisan politics with it?
So, just point that out and ask why, if the 'Rats are suddenly so interested in campaign finance reform, don't they go about it honestly rather than try to play partisan politics with it?
And Enron is bound to blow up in their little 'Rat faces. After eight years of being told that corrution probes were distractions from the economy, stupid - and that we should all concentrate on getting back to the "bizness of the 'merkin people", - now (all of a sudden) the Democrats want to talk about corruption in high places. Heh-heh. Let the scumbags bring it on. This "scandal" isn't a week old - and already we've found all kinds of payoffs and coincidental favors right after said payoffs - but by the Clinton Syndicate and Associated Sycophants. Yes, bring it on.
Cool!
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