Funds Tie Obama to Richardson Probe Figure

Funds Tie Obama to Richardson Probe Figure Embattled Executive David Rubin Gave Thousands to Campaign By JUSTIN ROOD

President-elect Barack Obama took big money from a man at the center of a federal probe that has forced one of Obama's top Cabinet picks to withdraw.

Financial records show the Obama campaign got more than $30,000 from California financier David Rubin, the target of an investigation into donations and possible "pay-to-play" deals involving New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, Obama's pick for commerce secretary.

Richardson removed himself from consideration for the post Sunday, saying the ongoing grand jury investigation threatened to hold up his confirmation. Richardson and Rubin have both denied any wrongdoing in the matter, which involved contributions and state business in 2003 and 2004.

In late September, Rubin attended an exclusive Los Angeles fundraiser for Obama, held at the Beverly Hills' Greystone Mansion. Attendees gave tens of thousands of dollars which the campaign split between its own coffers, the Democratic National Committee and state-level campaign groups supporting Obama and Democratic candidates. The technique helps campaigns take in from individuals far more than the $2,300 maximum they are allowed to give to a single campaign fund.

Rubin's money went to a joint Obama-DNC fund ($28,500), the DNC itself ($26,200), and to the Obama campaign ($2,300), according to the database of campaign donations at OpenSecrets.Org. News of the federal investigation into Rubin's New Mexico dealings had broken less than three weeks earlier.

CDR, which has advised local governments on more than $17 billion of derivatives since 2003, is being investigated by the IRS for possibly profiting from deals at the expense of U.S. taxpayers. According to IRS letters obtained from the cities of Atlanta and Fargo, North Dakota, and an internal memo from the state of Wisconsin, CDR may have colluded with Bank of America Corp., Bear Stearns Cos. and other companies to make improper fees by selling municipalities unneeded contracts or mispricing investment deals.

CDR also ran into controversy in Philadelphia. In April 2001, the firm hired Ron White, a bond lawyer and chief fund-raiser for Mayor John Street, as a consultant, paying him a $5,000 retainer to help CDR win work with the city, according to court documents from a federal corruption trial.

Rubin donated $15,000 to Street’s election committee from December 2000 to June 2003, the records show. In addition, CDR gave White three tickets to the 2003 Super Bowl game in San Diego and also provided a limousine ride to the stadium. White brought Philadelphia Treasurer Corey Kemp to the event.

White also asked Rubin to donate money to the 2004 presidential campaign of Reverend Al Sharpton. Public disclosure of a contribution to Sharpton “would destroy me personally,” Rubin said, according to telephone transcripts from the Philadelphia trial. White suggested sending the money to White’s federal political action committee. On April 4, 2003, Rubin donated $5,000 to the PAC. The same day, the PAC wrote a $1,000 check to Sharpton.

Philadelphia paid CDR $150,000 for advice on derivatives, while banks paid CDR at least $515,000 from profits they earned on transactions with the city, documents show.

http://tinyurl.com/7lkuw2

In ‘black box’ bond scams, banks profit at expense of the poor

OCTOBER 5, 2006

snip

In the Florida deal, a little-known government body called the Capital Trust Agency turned the work over to its advisers: Anchor National Life Insurance, a subsidiary of AIG; CDR Financial Products, a financial advisory firm in Beverly Hills, California; and the underwriter J.P. Morgan.

These companies and other middlemen extracted $12 million in fees from the bond issue; the rest of the money went unused.

The AIG unit and CDR had an agreement that the agency said it did not know about. The agreement allowed CDR to increase its fees as long as the money was not spent for its intended purpose, according to a Nov. 18, 1999, letter from CDR’s president, David Rubin, to AIG’s Anchor National vice president, J. Franklin Grey.

The less money that was used to acquire and renovate apartments, the more money CDR stood to make, and the less risk AIG’s affiliate faced as an insurer since all of the money stayed in a safe account.

http://tinyurl.com/7p3pd7

How can there be a "joint Obama-DNC fund?"

Isn't that illegal?

You need to be schooled for such a ridiculous question. If there were a "joint McCain-RNC fund" or even a "joint Palin-RNC fund," there would be absolutely no question of the legality. That would obviously have been an eggregious violation of campaign laws. However, if there were any joint fund with the DNC, which is only alleged at this point, not proven, it would have been a bonehead mistake at the very worst. Now, go stand in the corner for twenty minutes.

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