20 Ways America Has Begun to Reap What It Has Sown

By John Hawking

1) Our Congress passes bills that run into the thousands of pages; then we're surprised that the bills are full of loopholes, set asides for lobbyists and toxic clauses no one seemed to know about.

2) We've replaced telling the difference between right and wrong with legalisms; then we're surprised that people are always looking for loopholes and technicalities to get out of fulfilling their obligations.

3) Feminists denigrate men, tell them to behave more like women and are offended by chivalry; then they're surprised to find that our society has been inundated by passive, wimpy beta males.

4) Congress hasn't produced a budget in more than 3 years, most of the big bills don't go through the normal committee process, and parliamentary maneuvers are used to block debate and keep Republicans from offering amendments to bills; then we're surprised when we have gridlock, filibusters and massive fights over the debt limit.

5) We allow politicians to work as highly paid lobbyists after they leave Congress; then we're surprised when they give favorable treatment to companies they hope will make them wealthy after they leave Congress.

6) We demonize…

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Source: Town Hall

VIDEO: Gingrich – Selling Access

Gingrich in his own words, a Washington ‘insider’

 

LAKE JACKSON, Texas – The Ron Paul 2012 Presidential campaign announced today the release of its latest ad, ‘Selling Access’, another two-minute web video aimed at former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, calling him out as a corrupt Washington insider who got rich through influence-peddling.

 

The video, which the campaign plans to promote prominently on conservative web sites, includes a clip of Gingrich calling himself an ‘insider’ and another in which the former Speaker brags about getting paid $60,000-a-speech. The video comes after the viral success of Paul’s earlier web ad, ‘Serial Hypocrisy’, which criticizes Gingrich for many of the same issues.

 

"These are all legitimate and important issues to point out to the American people,” said Ron Paul 2012 National Campaign Chairman Jesse Benton. “If Americans are serious about changing the status quo in Washington, then they must take into account the record of someone who profited from the housing collapse with taxpayers’ money, advocated for Obamacare-style individual mandates, and who played the Washington game of getting rich due to influence as well as anyone.”

Virginia Man Pleads Guilty in Scheme to Conceal Pakistan Government Funding for His U.S. Lobbying Efforts

WASHINGTON – Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai, 62, a U.S. citizen and resident of Fairfax, Va., pleaded guilty today to conspiracy and tax violations in connection with a decades-long scheme to conceal the transfer of at least $3.5 million from the government of Pakistan to fund his lobbying efforts in America related to Kashmir.

 

 The guilty plea was announced by Lisa Monaco, Assistant Attorney General for National Security; Neil MacBride, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; John DiCiccio, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Tax Division; James McJunkin, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office; and Jeannine Hammett, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation’s Washington, D.C., Field Office.

 

 At a hearing before U.S. District Court Judge Liam O’Grady in the Eastern District of Virginia, Fai pleaded guilty to a two-count criminal information.   Count one of the information charges Fai with conspiracy to: 1) falsify, conceal and cover up material facts he had a duty to disclose in matters within the jurisdiction of executive branch agencies of the U.S. government; and to 2) defraud the Treasury Department by impeding the lawful functions of the IRS in the collection of revenue.  Count two of the information charges Fai with endeavoring to impede the administration of tax laws.

 

 Fai, who was arrested on July 19, 2011, faces a maximum potential sentence of five years in prison for the conspiracy count and a maximum three years in prison for the tax violation.   Judge O’Grady set sentencing for March 9, 2012. As part of his plea agreement, Fai has agreed to forfeit his interest in $142,851.32 seized by the government in July 2011.

 

 Fai served as the director of the Kashmiri American Council (KAC), a non-governmental organization in Washington, D.C., that held itself out to be run by Kashmiris, financed by Americans and dedicated to raising the level of knowledge in the United States about the struggle of the Kashmiri people for self-determination.   But according to court documents, the KAC was secretly funded by officials employed by the government of Pakistan, including the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate (ISI).

 

 “Syed Fai today admitted his role in a decades-long scheme to conceal the fact that the government of Pakistan was secretly funding his efforts to influence U.S. policy on Kashmir,” said Assistant Attorney General Monaco.

 

 “For the last 20 years, Mr. Fai secretly took millions of dollars from Pakistani intelligence and lied about it to the U.S. government,” said U.S. Attorney MacBride. “As a paid operative of ISI, he did the bidding of his handlers in Pakistan while he met with U.S. elected officials, funded high-profile conferences and promoted the Kashmiri cause to decision-makers in Washington.”

 

 “The Tax Division is committed to prosecuting any individual who illegally uses the tax-exempt status of charitable entities to promote or conceal federal crimes,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General DiCiccio.

 

 “Mr. Fai purposefully hid financial transactions from the U.S. government, with intentions that his scheme to fund lobbying efforts by a foreign government would go unnoticed,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge McJunkin.  “The FBI will detect and defeat those who attempt to surreptitiously exert foreign influence on our government by using agents who conceal their foreign affiliation.”

 

 “The illegal activity in this case, including tax charges and abuse of charitable organizations, harms all Americans, as we all have to pay our fair share for the government services and protections that we enjoy,” said IRS Special Agent in Charge Hammett.

 

The Scheme

Today, Fai admitted that, from 1990 until about July 18, 2011, he conspired with others to obtain money from officials employed by the government of Pakistan, including the ISI, for the operation of the KAC in the United States, and that he did so outside the knowledge of the U.S. government and without attracting the attention of law enforcement and regulatory authorities.

 

 To prevent the Justice Department, FBI, Department of Treasury and the IRS from learning the source of the money he received from officials employed by the government of Pakistan and the ISI, Fai made a series of false statements and representations, according to court documents.   For example, Fai told FBI agents in March 2007 that he had never met anyone who identified himself as being affiliated with the ISI and, in May 2009, he falsely denied to the IRS on a tax return for the KAC that the KAC had received any money from foreign sources in 2008.   

 

 In addition, according to court documents, Fai sent a letter in April 2010 to the Justice Department falsely asserting that the KAC was not funded by the government of Pakistan.  Later that year, Fai falsely denied to the IRS that the KAC had received any money from foreign sources in 2009.   In July 2011, Fai falsely denied to FBI agents that he or the KAC received money from the ISI or government of Pakistan.

 

 In fact, Fai repeatedly submitted annual KAC strategy reports and budgetary requirements to Pakistani government officials for approval.   For instance, in 2009, Fai sent the ISI a document entitled “Plan of Action of KAC / Kashmir Centre, Washington, D.C., for the Fiscal Year 2010,” which itemized KAC’s 2010 budget request of $658,000 and listed Fai’s plans to secure U.S. congressional support for U.S. action in support of Kashmiri self-determination.

 

 Fai also admitted that, from 1990 until about July 18, 2011, he corruptly endeavored to obstruct and impede the due administration of the internal revenue laws by arranging for the transfer of at least $3.5 million to the KAC from employees of the government of Pakistan and the ISI.  

 

 According to court documents, Fai accepted the transfer of such money to the KAC from the ISI and the government of Pakistan through his co-defendant Zaheer Ahmad and middlemen (straw donors), who received reimbursement from Ahmad for their purported “donations” to the KAC.  Fai provided letters from the KAC to the straw donors documenting that their purported “donations” to the KAC were tax deductible and encouraged these donors to deduct the transfers as “charitable” deductions on their personal tax returns.   Fai concealed from the IRS that the straw donors’ purported KAC “donations” were reimbursed by Ahmad, using funds received from officials employed by the ISI and the government of Pakistan.

 

 This investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the IRS Criminal Investigation’s Washington Field Office.  

 

 The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gordon Kromberg and Daniel Grooms of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia; Trial Attorney John Gibbs of the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division; and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Allison Ickovic from the Justice Department’s Tax Division.

Lobbyists too powerful because government is too powerful

WASHINGTON - Libertarian Party Chair Mark Hinkle released the following statement today:

 

"President Obama is currently caught in a bit of a scandal over his pledge not to take campaign money from lobbyists.

 

"According to the New York Times, 'Despite a pledge not to take money from lobbyists, President Obama has relied on prominent supporters who are active in the lobbying industry to raise millions of dollars for his re-election bid.'

 

"It's unfortunate that the president has added one more to his pile of broken promises. But it's not at all surprising.

 

"Our government has far too much power and money at its disposal. The inevitable consequence is that businesses, organizations, and individuals will work very hard to guide that power and money in their own favor.

 

"In fact, it often seems like politicians intentionally create incentives for people to try to bribe them.

 

"Businesses especially will fight for more corporate welfare, and also for regulations that stifle potential competitors. What choice do they have? If they don't fight for those special government favors, then someone else will, which will put them at an increasing disadvantage, and might drive them out of business.

 

"A recent Economist article pointed out that over the last ten years, companies that lobbied heavily had a much bigger increase in stock value than those that didn't. Executives might conclude that if you're not lobbying, you're ripping off your shareholders!

 

"And of course, these entities that stand to benefit from government favors will work hard (and spend hard) to get friendly politicians elected.

 

"Some people feel that massive campaign finance regulations will stop this unholy bargaining. It won't. When the dust settles, campaign finance restrictions usually just make life easier for incumbents and harder for challengers. We Libertarians know that only too well.

 

"I have to remind myself, lobbying isn't essentially a bad thing. It's an expression of our right to 'petition the government for a redress of grievances.' It provides information to politicians. But when politicians get in the habit of handing out favors, you can bet everyone is going to run up to the trough.

 

"The only way to reduce the power of lobbyists is to reduce the power of government. That choice rests with the voters. If voters keep electing Democrats and Republicans, then the power of government and lobbyists will continue to grow. If voters start electing Libertarians, things will change."

 

For more information, or to arrange an interview, call LP Executive Director Wes Benedict at 202-333-0008 ext. 222.

 

The LP is America's third-largest political party, founded in 1971.  The Libertarian Party stands for free markets, civil liberties, and peace. You can find more information on the Libertarian Party at our website.

 

P.S.  If you have not already done so, please join the Libertarian Party. We are the only political party dedicated to free markets, civil liberties, and peace. You can also renew your membership. Or, you can make a contribution separate from membership.

Former Abramoff Colleague Kevin Ring Sentenced to 20 Months in Prison for Conspiracy, Honest Services Fraud, and Payment of Gratuities Related to Illegal Lobbying Scheme

WASHINGTON—Kevin A. Ring, a former lobbyist who worked with Jack A. Abramoff, was sentenced today to 20 months in prison for his role in a scheme to corrupt public officials by providing an illegal stream of things of value, including vacations, employment for a congressman’s wife, meals, drinks, and high-priced tickets to exclusive concerts and sporting events, the Department of Justice announced.

 

Ring, 41, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ellen S. Huvelle in the District of Columbia. Judge Huvelle also sentenced Ring to 30 months of supervised release following his prison term.

 

On Nov. 15, 2010, a jury convicted former lobbyist Ring of corrupting public officials. The jury found Ring guilty on one count of conspiring to corrupt congressional and executive branch officials by providing things of value to them and their staff members in order to induce or reward those who took official actions benefitting Ring and his clients. In addition, Ring was convicted of one count of paying a gratuity to a public official and three counts of honest services wire fraud for engaging in a scheme to deprive U.S. citizens of their right to the honest services of certain public officials. The jury acquitted Ring on three counts of honest services fraud. A previous federal jury failed to reach a verdict in the case and the court declared a mistrial.

According to evidence presented at trial, as a lobbyist working in Washington, D.C., Ring solicited and obtained business throughout the United States, including with Native American tribal governments operating and interested in operating gambling casinos. Trial testimony established that Ring sought to further his clients’ interests by lobbying public officials in the legislative and executive branches of the federal government. Evidence at trial established Ring to be the “COO of Team Abramoff,” and at one of his sentencing hearings, the court also found that evidence at trial established that Ring was a supervisor of the conspiracy.

 

Ring and his co-conspirators identified public officials who would perform official actions that would assist Ring and his clients, and then groomed those public officials by providing things of value with the intent of making those public officials more receptive to requests on behalf of their clients in the future. These things of value included all-expenses-paid travel, meals, drinks, golf outings, tickets to professional sporting events, concerts and other events, and an employment opportunity for the wife of a congressman. According to evidence introduced at trial, these things of value were often billed to Ring’s and Abramoff’s clients. Evidence established that Ring and his co-conspirators engaged in this illegal conduct with current and former congressional staff members, including chiefs of staff, as well as officials at the Department of Justice and the White House.

 

Evidence at trial demonstrated the nature of Ring’s lobbying efforts and his attempts to corrupt and reward public officials. In one e-mail message, Ring instructed his co-conspirators to “thank your friends on the Hill and in the Administration. In fact, thank them over and over again this week—preferably for long periods of time and at expensive establishments.” On another occasion, Ring described to a co-conspirator lobbyist what he expected of a public official who had attended a sporting event: “Glad he got a chance to relax. Now he can pay us back.” Similarly, Ring e-mailed a co-conspirator public official and stated: “You are going to eat free off our clients. Need to get us some [appropriations] money.” Testimony at trial from Ring’s co-conspirators described Ring joking about corrupting public officials by saying, “Hello quid, where’s the pro quo.”

 

Evidence presented at trial demonstrated that Ring corruptly sought assistance from public officials on numerous client projects, such as appropriations and authorizations, congressional letters to executive branch entities, as well as meetings and other legislative and official actions. Evidence at trial showed that Ring corruptly sought, among other actions, $14 million in congressional transportation appropriations and an additional $7 million from the Department of Justice to build a jail.

 

Ring remains charged with an additional two counts of obstructing justice. Those charges stem from alleged efforts by Ring to thwart criminal and congressional investigations by preventing the reporting of his criminal conduct to federal authorities. The court severed those two counts and Ring is scheduled to stand trial at a later date. Ring is presumed innocent of these charges until proven guilty in a court of law.

 

To date, 20 individuals, including lobbyists and public officials, have pleaded guilty or have been convicted at trial in connection with the investigation into the activities of Abramoff and his associates. Abramoff pleaded guilty in January 2006 to conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, honest services fraud, and tax evasion. He was sentenced in September 2008 to 48 months in prison.

 

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Chief Nathaniel B. Edmonds of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Deputy Chief Peter Koski of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section. The investigation of this case is being conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General.

Former Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Lobbyist Convicted on Corruption Charges

Salvatore Dimasi And Beacon Hill Lobbyist Convicted by Federal Jury Today in Corruption Case

BOSTON, MA—A federal jury today convicted SALVATORE F. DiMASI, former Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives and a Beacon Hill lobbyist and close friend, of a scheme to deprive the Massachusetts citizens of his honest services by accepting bribes. In its verdict the jury found that DiMasi improperly used his power and influence to enable a software company to obtain multi-million dollar procurements from agencies of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Following a six-week trial, and three days of jury deliberations, DiMASI, 65, of Boston and RICHARD W. McDONOUGH, 66, of Foxboro were convicted by a federal jury in Boston of one count of conspiracy, three counts of honest services mail fraud and three counts of honest services wire fraud and one count of extortion under color of official right (Hobbs Act). Co-conspirator, JOSEPH P. LALLY, 50, of North Reading, previously pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing. Chief Judge Mark L. Wolf scheduled sentencing for DiMASI and McDONOUGH on August 18, 2011.

RICHARD D. VITALE, 66, of Boston, who was charged as a co-conspirator, was acquitted of all charges. VITALE was DiMASI’s accountant and financial advisor, as well as a long-time close friend.

United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz said, “Public service and elected office is not a right or an entitlement—it is a privilege that comes with the public’s expectation of truthfulness and honesty. Today, justice has been served and the culture of corruption has been dealt another blow.”

Ortiz concluded, “The citizens of Massachusetts put extraordinary trust in Mr. DiMasi, and he betrayed that trust when he chose to conspire with his friends to use his office in order to line his pockets, and theirs. Today, Mr. DiMasi and Mr. McDonough paid the price for their decision to abuse their influence for their own personal gain.”

“In response to allegations of illegal activity by Mr. DiMasi, the FBI and the Massachusetts Office of the Inspector General initiated an investigation. Whenever honest and effective government administration is undermined by corrupt public officials, the FBI will turn its focus on those responsible,” said Richard DesLauriers, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation—Boston Field Division.

“Unfortunately, this is the third time over past year that Massachusetts elected public officials have been convicted of graft-related offenses. These elected officials used their public office to illegally tilt the playing field to their personal advantage and for self-enrichment,” added DesLauriers. “These crimes seriously erode and indeed undermine our democratic institutions and the public’s expectation of honest government—investigating them is a top criminal investigative priority of the Boston Division of the FBI.”

LALLY was an Area Vice-President of Sales for the State and Local Government Division of Cognos ULC (Cognos), a Canadian software company that sold business intelligence and performance management software and related services which targeted Massachusetts government agencies as potential customers. LALLY left Cognos and formed his own company, Montvale Solutions, LLC which was licensed to resell Cognos software to agencies in Massachusetts. McDONOUGH was a lobbyist hired by LALLY and a close friend of DiMASI. According to testimony during trial, when DiMASI became Speaker of the House in 2004, income from his outside law practice decreased significantly. In December 2004, McDONOUGH, DiMASI and LALLY arranged to have money funneled to DiMASI through a law associate of DiMASI’s, Steven Topazio, with whom DiMASI had a fee sharing arrangement. Over the next two years, although Topazio was given no work nor asked to perform any services, he was paid $5,000 per month by Cognos as arranged by the defendants.

Through this sham arrangement, DiMASI was paid $65,000 over the course of the two year period in exchange for taking official actions that would benefit Cognos, LALLY and McDONOUGH. Such actions included securing legislative funding for two Cognos software contracts with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts worth $17.5 million.

The evidence also showed that DiMASI lobbied Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, and members of his Administration, in an effort to get the Cognos contract executed. After the Boston Globe wrote a series of articles in 2008, questioning the Cognos contracts, DiMASI suggested that Topazio “loose his check register” that showed the Cognos payments. DiMASI also lied to his press secretary about his knowledge of the Topazio payments from Cognos and LALLY’s connection to Cognos.

DiMASI and McDONOUGH each face up to 20 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release and $250,000 fine on each of the six counts of mail and wire fraud; up to 20 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release and $250,000 fine on the extortion under color of official right count; and up to five years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine on the conspiracy count.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the Massachusetts Inspector General’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys S. Theodore Merritt and Anthony E. Fuller of Ortiz’s Public Corruption Unit and Kristina