Author Topic: Corruption, Sleaze, Skullduggery, the Swamp, and Treason  (Read 208329 times)

Crafty_Dog

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Re: Corruption, Sleaze, Skullduggery, the Swamp, and Treason
« Reply #600 on: June 29, 2021, 06:32:08 PM »
Tucker went into this in depth tonight.  He had on a very strong and well informed woman, well worth tracking down.

G M

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Re: Corruption, Sleaze, Skullduggery, the Swamp, and Treason
« Reply #601 on: June 29, 2021, 08:59:41 PM »
Tucker went into this in depth tonight.  He had on a very strong and well informed woman, well worth tracking down.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/nsa-claims-no-spying-tucker-carlson-laughable-denial




G M

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Defund the FBI
« Reply #605 on: July 02, 2021, 11:01:49 AM »






G M

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Re: NRO on the murder of Seth Rich
« Reply #611 on: July 09, 2021, 09:37:47 AM »
I'm so old, I remember when this was a conspiracy theory!

"For the theory to be true, its believers have to demonstrate that Rich leaked to WikiLeaks, that someone in the DNC (or the Clinton camp) in turn had Rich murdered, that the D.C. police are intentionally slow-walking the investigation, that the major intelligence agencies (namely the CIA, FBI, and NSA) are together either deliberately concocting a story about Russian interference or too stupid to recognize an inside job, and finally, that the remainder of official Washington is either oblivious to or colluding with conspirators who’ve damaged relations with Russia in hopes of bringing down a president."


The Facts of the Seth Rich Murder That Don’t Support Conspiracy Theories

Our David French with what needs to be known and said about the murder of Seth Rich:

The conspiracy is based on a true event — the terrible and unsolved murder of Seth Rich, a young Democratic National Committee staffer. Early the morning on July 10, an unidentified assailant shot Rich in the back. The police haven’t solved the crime, and their current best theory is that the attack occurred as part of a botched or interrupted robbery. Rich’s valuables, however, were still on his body, and the police (so far as we know) have no leads…

For the theory to be true, its believers have to demonstrate that Rich leaked to WikiLeaks, that someone in the DNC (or the Clinton camp) in turn had Rich murdered, that the D.C. police are intentionally slow-walking the investigation, that the major intelligence agencies (namely the CIA, FBI, and NSA) are together either deliberately concocting a story about Russian interference or too stupid to recognize an inside job, and finally, that the remainder of official Washington is either oblivious to or colluding with conspirators who’ve damaged relations with Russia in hopes of bringing down a president. Oh, and did I mention that the family of the slain young man is also either in on the conspiracy or unaware of its existence?

Rich’s parents write in the Washington Post today:

The circumstances of what happened next are still unclear. We know that Seth was abruptly confronted on the street, that he had been on the phone and quickly ended the call. We also know that there were signs of a struggle, including a watchband torn when the assailants attempted to rip it off his wrist. Law-enforcement officials told us that Seth’s murder looked like a botched robbery attempt in which the assailants — after shooting our son — panicked, immediately ran and abandoned Seth’s personal belongings. We have seen no evidence, by any person at any time, that Seth’s murder had any connection to his job at the Democratic National Committee or his life in politics. Anyone who claims to have such evidence is either concealing it from us or lying.

… We know that Seth’s personal email and his personal computer were both inspected by detectives early in the investigation and that the inspection revealed no evidence of any communications with anyone at WikiLeaks or anyone associated with WikiLeaks. Nor did that inspection reveal any evidence that Seth had leaked DNC emails to WikiLeaks or to anyone else. Indeed, those who have suggested that Seth’s role as a data analyst at the DNC gave him access to a wide trove of emails are simply incorrect — Seth’s job was to develop analytical models to encourage voters to turn out to vote. He didn’t have access to DNC emails, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee emails, John Podesta’s emails or Hillary Clinton’s emails. That simply wasn’t his job.

The fact that Rich’s valuables weren’t taken was indeed odd, but it’s hardly unthinkable that his assailant panicked and ran after the shooting. The Washington, D.C., police failing to generate leads is not the least bit surprising. In 2015, the D.C. police solved only 62 percent of the city’s homicides. The closure rate has been as high as 96 percent in 2011 and as low as 60.5 percent in 2003.

Then again, what makes someone believe in a conspiracy theory is not facts, but a need to believe.

Crafty_Dog

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Re: Corruption, Sleaze, Skullduggery, the Swamp, and Treason
« Reply #612 on: July 10, 2021, 05:31:52 AM »
Nice piece of work fishing that up from the Memory Hole.

ccp

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from china thread
« Reply #613 on: July 10, 2021, 02:44:30 PM »
https://nypost.com/2021/07/09/psaki-claims-biden-didnt-discuss-business-with-hunter-despite-docs-that-show-otherwise/

Just like nancy did not tell paul anything

so he could INSIDE trade

( " I have nothing to do with his stock trades )

not mentioned is she only comes home and just happens to mention legislation that would affect certain stocks

he goes out calls his broker and she can make the absurd claim she
 had nothing to do with it.

no shame
because NO punishment .

NOT even the media who covers for all the Dems

G M

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Dem Stasi
« Reply #614 on: July 11, 2021, 10:16:28 AM »


ccp

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David Weiss appointed by Trump
« Reply #616 on: July 17, 2021, 10:41:50 AM »
was investigating Hunter.

then was asked by "officials" to lay off Hunter leading up to the election

and the asked to stay on by the "big " guy:

https://www.westernjournal.com/election-interference-hunter-biden-prosecutor-suppressed-devastating-truth-helped-joe-biden-win-report/

so suddenly Trump appointee investigating the son of Biden gets asked to stay on .

funny, in the Ukraine prosecutors investigating Hunter  get fired  because of the big guy.



Crafty_Dog

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Re: Corruption, Sleaze, Skullduggery, the Swamp, and Treason
« Reply #617 on: July 17, 2021, 01:05:02 PM »
Not sure about the slant here.

My understanding is that pre-Comey & Hillary the SOP was not to announce investigations.  My understanding is that the fact that Comey did announce the Hillary investigation was at variance with this.

If I am right about this, then what is happening now may be an effort to return to SOP and this article is being a bit disingenuous.




Crafty_Dog

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Treason with the Taliban: Lara Logan
« Reply #621 on: September 11, 2021, 09:43:03 AM »


G M

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FBI-immune to oversight
« Reply #623 on: September 17, 2021, 05:16:56 AM »

Crafty_Dog

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Re: Corruption, Sleaze, Skullduggery, the Swamp, and Treason
« Reply #624 on: September 17, 2021, 05:59:15 PM »
Fk.

ccp

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G M

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G M

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G M

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Happening right now
« Reply #628 on: September 23, 2021, 10:50:40 AM »

ccp

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Barrister Sussmann is friends with the judge
« Reply #629 on: September 23, 2021, 01:48:46 PM »
https://populist.press/durham-indictment-judge-presiding-over-case-may-be-compromised/

no surprise
have you seen the list of liars for hire at Perkins Coie

They must have people who know EVERYONE in the legal system in DC Maryland and Virginia

Do I have faith the prosecution will get square deal

of course not.


ccp

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John Bolton : on Milley last night on Newsmax
« Reply #630 on: September 24, 2021, 01:06:25 PM »
must be looking for a swamp job:

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/bolton-milley-china-call-b1921476.html

his book must not have made much
so he is back again


ccp

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navy engineer and wife arrested for attempting to sell nuc sub secrets
« Reply #632 on: October 10, 2021, 11:35:58 AM »
https://www.yahoo.com/news/navy-nuclear-engineer-charged-trying-165250892.html

anyone here against execution?

let's see what happens - probably 5 to 10 yrs behind bars

 :x



ccp

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Re: Corruption, Sleaze, Skullduggery, the Swamp, and Treason
« Reply #634 on: October 10, 2021, 07:18:29 PM »
wow

her portfolio is over 300 mill now?

last time I looked it was about 60 to 70 million

if she were a can instead of a crat
can we imagine the constant bad press she would get?

i wondered for decades why no one has looked into the "family business"




ccp

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Re: Corruption, Sleaze, Skullduggery, the Swamp, and Treason
« Reply #637 on: October 11, 2021, 09:01:01 AM »
"Investigations by several nonpartisan watchdog groups, however, have confirmed that Berges’ $350,000 loan was by far the largest one received by any art gallery in New York City."

nothing to see here folks

https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/georges-berg%C3%A9s-gallery-new-york?select=Oz2-lbjAYJmTeUd4l_i9Zg

funny I don't see the Berges Gallery
even listed under NYC art galleries:

https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/georges-berg%C3%A9s-gallery-new-york?select=Oz2-lbjAYJmTeUd4l_i9Zg


ccp

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Re: Corruption, Sleaze, Skullduggery, the Swamp, and Treason
« Reply #639 on: October 13, 2021, 10:17:46 AM »
"Whatever happened to seeking the death penalty for traitors?"

my thoughts exactly!  let's see how much time they get.


"Regardless, maybe our nation would be better off if Joe Biden, Lloyd Austin, and Mark Milley spent a little less time searching for those 17 elusive white supremacists and instead paid a bit more attention to rooting out the America-hating leftist traitors in our midst."

yes



G M

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Take the time to listen to this well done interview DEA S/A Kiki Camerena
« Reply #641 on: November 12, 2021, 08:29:59 AM »
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vb8vzztBISE

Passed on to me by a retired border cop.


ccp

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Foreigner pleads guilty in trying to bribe Clintons thru Foundation
« Reply #643 on: January 20, 2022, 07:42:02 AM »
https://conservativebrief.com/liberal-3-58201/?utm_source=CB&utm_medium=PP

***The DOJ added that they “did so to gain direct access to unsuspecting high-level political figures to further their professional endeavors: in the defendant’s case, out of a desire to lobby on behalf and advance the interests of his client, the government of the United Arab Emirates; in Khawaja’s case, in the hopes of securing a political appointment in the future.”***

a 24/7 function with the Clintons their entire careers

"It’s not clear if Clinton was aware of Nader’s actions at the time or whether she knew he had pleaded guilty to the scheme prior to the Washington Examiner’s reporting.

Well gee, lets go ask them or their mob lawyers.   :roll:

G M

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ccp

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DougMacG

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Re: first time AOC makes sense
« Reply #646 on: February 03, 2022, 11:45:16 AM »
https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/aoc-congress-stock-trading-153940351.html

That would be a nice line item for the 2022 Republican contract with America.  These people can participate in the stock market and in these companies just fine through index funds and mutual funds at the likes of T Rose Price et al without directly touching any publicly held, individual stocks while they are in power.

ccp

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biden uses tax payer money to pay off unions
« Reply #647 on: February 05, 2022, 08:00:12 AM »
Biden executive order to pay off unions

I cannot think of any better way to increase construction costs to taxpayers:

https://news.yahoo.com/exclusive-biden-sign-executive-order-232936261.html

sleazy for sure

Biden proves again he is a total scumbucket


Crafty_Dog

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The Saudis invest bigly in Jared
« Reply #649 on: April 11, 2022, 01:50:59 AM »
What say we?
=========================

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/10/us/jared-kushner-saudi-investment-fund.html?fbclid=IwAR0oEuGcfjLNGlCZfp1bkRGxji9_1BvpjkSP9R5h-Y3oYwZnDJBqLnjV1UE

Before Giving Billions to Jared Kushner, Saudi Investment Fund Had Big Doubts
Before committing $2 billion to Mr. Kushner’s fledgling firm, officials at a fund led by the Saudi crown prince questioned taking such a big risk.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia with Jared Kushner, a close ally during the Trump administration, and Ivanka Trump.Credit...Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

Give this article


David D. KirkpatrickKate Kelly
By David D. Kirkpatrick and Kate Kelly
April 10, 2022
Six months after leaving the White House, Jared Kushner secured a $2 billion investment from a fund led by the Saudi crown prince, a close ally during the Trump administration, despite objections from the fund’s advisers about the merits of the deal.

A panel that screens investments for the main Saudi sovereign wealth fund cited concerns about the proposed deal with Mr. Kushner’s newly formed private equity firm, Affinity Partners, previously undisclosed documents show.

Those objections included: “the inexperience of the Affinity Fund management”; the possibility that the kingdom would be responsible for “the bulk of the investment and risk”; due diligence on the fledgling firm’s operations that found them “unsatisfactory in all aspects”; a proposed asset management fee that “seems excessive”; and “public relations risks” from Mr. Kushner’s prior role as a senior adviser to his father-in-law, former President Donald J. Trump, according to minutes of the panel’s meeting last June 30.

But days later the full board of the $620 billion Public Investment Fund — led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler and a beneficiary of Mr. Kushner’s support when he worked as a White House adviser — overruled the panel.

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Ethics experts say that such a deal creates the appearance of potential payback for Mr. Kushner’s actions in the White House — or of a bid for future favor if Mr. Trump seeks and wins another presidential term in 2024.

Mr. Kushner played a leading role inside the Trump administration defending Crown Prince Mohammed after U.S. intelligence agencies concluded that he had approved the 2018 killing and dismemberment of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi columnist for The Washington Post and resident of Virginia who had criticized the kingdom’s rulers.


ImageMr. Kushner and Crown Prince Mohammed in 2020. Ethics experts say that the investment deal creates the appearance of potential payback.
Mr. Kushner and Crown Prince Mohammed in 2020. Ethics experts say that the investment deal creates the appearance of potential payback.Credit...Saudi Press Agency, via Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
The Saudi fund agreed to invest twice as much and on more generous terms with Mr. Kushner than it did at about the same time with former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin — who was also starting a new fund — even though Mr. Mnuchin had a record as a successful investor before entering government, the documents show. The amount of the investment in his firm, Liberty Strategic Capital — $1 billion — has not been previously disclosed.

A spokesman for Mr. Kushner’s firm said of its relationship with the Saudi Public Investment Fund, “Affinity, like many other top investment firms, is proud to have PIF and other leading organizations that have careful screening criteria, as investors.”

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A spokesman for the Saudi fund declined to comment on its investment process. If any additional discussions about the deal took place, they were not reflected in the documents and correspondence obtained by The New York Times.

The Times reported last fall that Mr. Kushner had been seeking a Saudi investment. Now, the internal fund records and correspondence obtained by The Times show the outcome, scale and timing of his firm’s deal as well as the debate it aroused. Those documents and other filings indicate that at this point Mr. Kushner’s venture depends primarily on the Saudi money.

Mr. Kushner planned to raise up to $7 billion in all, according to a document prepared last summer for the Saudi fund’s board. But so far he appears to have signed up few other major investors.

In its most recent public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, dated March 31, Mr. Kushner’s firm reported that its main fund had $2.5 billion under management, almost entirely from investors based overseas. Most of that appears to be the $2 billion from Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi documents obtained by The Times say  that in return for its investment, the Saudi fund would receive a stake of at least 28 percent in Mr. Kushner’s main investment vehicle.

No law or rules constrain the investment activities of former administration officials after leaving the White House; many from both parties have profited from connections and experiences gained in government.

But Robert Weissman, president of the nonprofit group Public Citizen, called Mr. Kushner’s relationship with the Saudis “extremely troubling,” arguing that his stance toward the kingdom’s leadership as a senior adviser “makes the business partnership appear even more to be both a reward to, and an investment in, Kushner.”

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Saudi officials say that the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund, which also holds stakes in the ride-sharing company Uber and the Newcastle United Football Club in Britain, operates autonomously, with an elaborate governance structure that includes the investment panel. But Prince Mohammed took control of the fund when he rose to power in 2015 and he is its paramount decision maker.

Mr. Kushner, whose fund has not publicly disclosed a theme or focus, has little experience or track record in private equity. Before working in the White House, he ran his family’s commercial real estate empire, sometimes with disappointing results. His best-known deal was the $1.8 billion purchase of the office tower at 666 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, in 2007; the building’s mortgage became a crippling liability when the recession hit the next year.

Diplomats, investors and ethics experts noted during the Trump administration that his anticipated return to the family business injected a potential conflict of interest into Mr. Kushner’s relationship with Prince Mohammed and other oil-wealthy Arab royals. Many are major long-term investors in American real estate, and the Kushner family had courted them before.

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While advising Mr. Trump, Mr. Kushner developed a friendship and informal alliance with the Saudi crown prince. Prince Mohammed signaled  that he favored closer relations between Israel and the Arab monarchs of the Persian Gulf, which was also one of Mr. Kushner’s priorities while in the Trump administration. He helped negotiate a series of agreements, called the Abraham Accords, opening diplomatic relations between Israel and other Arab monarchies. After leaving government, he set up a nonprofit to promote economic and other ties between the countries.

In Washington, Mr. Kushner had also helped broker $110 billion in weapons sales to Saudi Arabia over 10 years. He helped protect those and other weapons deals from congressional outrage over the murder of Mr. Khashoggi and the humanitarian catastrophe created by the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen.

The debate within the Saudi fund over investing with Mr. Kushner was a stark contrast to the easy approval of the proposal by Mr. Mnuchin, a former Goldman Sachs partner who invested in numerous Hollywood films, including “The Lego Movie,” and helped resurrect a failing California bank before entering government.

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Mr. Mnuchin’s fund is focused on cybersecurity, financial technology and entertainment — all sectors that fit Saudi priorities, according to an executive summary prepared by the fund’s staff. The summary noted that Mr. Mnuchin’s work at the Treasury gave him “significant access toward understanding the future of the U.S. financial system,” and the firm’s founders had “deep experience at some of the highest levels of the U.S. regulatory system” overseeing and monitoring its industries.


Image
Former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin also got an investment from the Saudi fund for his new venture — though not as large, or on terms as favorable, as Mr. Kushner’s.
Former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin also got an investment from the Saudi fund for his new venture — though not as large, or on terms as favorable, as Mr. Kushner’s.Credit...Iman Al-Dabbagh for The New York Times
As Treasury secretary, Mr. Mnuchin had also chaired a committee responsible for vetting certain merger deals with foreign companies; the summary said he had “shaped” the new fund to accommodate investment from foreign governments like the kingdom.

In its most recent filing, dated March 31, Mr. Mnuchin’s firm reported raising $2.7 billion from a total of 33 investors. Most of the money came from abroad, and the Saudi documents say that other Persian Gulf states also invested.

A spokesman for Liberty Strategic Capital said the firm “has a diverse investor base including U.S. insurance companies, family offices, sovereign wealth funds, and other institutional investors.”

Both Mr. Kushner’s and Mr. Mnuchin’s funds treated the Saudi fund as a “cornerstone” investor, the Public Investment Fund documents say, offering the Saudis a discount on the standard 2 percent asset management fee for private equity firms as well as a cut of the firm’s 20 percent share of any fund profits, known as carried interest.

But the Saudis agreed to pay Mr. Mnuchin’s firm only a 1 percent asset management fee, compared to 1.25 percent for Mr. Kushner’s, the documents indicate. On a $2 billion investment, that would pay his firm $25 million a year, not including a share of any profits earned by the Affinity fund.

Both firms agreed to open regional offices in Riyadh, which the Saudi government says it will soon require of any international company doing business with the kingdom.

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The five-member board investment committee evaluating Mr. Kushner’s proposal referred to it with the code name Project Astro. The panel was led by Yasir al-Rumayyan, a Harvard Business School graduate who is also chairman of Saudi Aramco, the state-owned oil giant. The panel also included Andrew Liveris, the Australian-born former chief executive of the Dow Chemical Company, and Ayman al-Sayari, the vice chairman of the Saudi Central Bank.


Image
Yasir al-Rumayyan, chairman of Saudi Aramco, led the panel screening the Kushner investment.
Yasir al-Rumayyan, chairman of Saudi Aramco, led the panel screening the Kushner investment.Credit...Ahmed Yosri/Reuters
A panel member identified in the minutes as Dr. al-Mojel — possibly Ibrahim al-Mojel, the chairman of the Saudi Industrial Development Fund, who holds a Ph.D. from Stanford — asked before the June 30, 2021, meeting about the justification for investing in Mr. Kushner’s fund. “Why is the strategic benefit worth the risk?” he asked, according to printed responses.

The responses, apparently prepared by staff of the Saudi fund, argued that the promised Riyadh office of Mr. Kushner’s firm, Affinity, would help the Saudis “capitalize on the capabilities of Affinity’s founders’ deep understanding of different government policies and geopolitical systems.”

Why aren’t there any significant institutional investors from the US?

The Affinity principal would like to avoid media attention at this time. Accordingly, Affinity has approached international institutional investors on a very discreet basis (especially PIF as Affinity’s cornerstone LP) to anchor the launch of their inaugural fund.

Saudi staff wrote that Mr. Kushner was trying to avoid attention by initially courting only international institutions like the Saudi Public Investment Fund for his new venture.

Source: Minutes of the Board Investment Committee of the Saudi Public Investment Fund, June 30, 2021
The explanation for the absence of any American institutional investors in Mr. Kushner’s fund was that he “would like to avoid media attention,” the written responses said. “Accordingly, Affinity has approached international investors on a very discreet basis.”

Mr. Kushner’s lack of private equity experience and the “unsatisfactory” results of due diligence reviews conducted on behalf of the Saudi fund “are valid and important concerns,” the responses acknowledged, but they attributed the findings to the fact that he was still setting up the infrastructure for his company.

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What’s more, the responses added, the Saudi fund had “partially mitigated these risks”: The Saudis had stipulated that Mr. Kushner’s firm could draw down only $500 million of the $2 billion commitment before “having a qualified investment team in place, on-boarding core operational professionals and constructing the investment committee.”

The expertise of the [general partner] isn’t relevant to the objective of the fund. Even the case studies presented focused on real estate only. Also, the operational [due diligence] shows that they are unsatisfactory in all aspects.

These are valid and important concerns. These risks have been flagged and detailed in the investment memo, including the risk of the Principal having limited experience in private equity and the inability for Affinity to provide any quantifiable investment track-record for their founding team.

Responding to objections raised about the $2 billion investment in Mr. Kushner’s fund, staff of the Saudi sovereign wealth fund acknowledged that he lacked a track record in private equity.

Source: Minutes of the Board Investment Committee of the Saudi Public Investment Fund, June 30, 2021
(Late last year, Mr. Kushner hired two experienced private equity investors, Bret Pearlman and Asad Naqvi; the recent securities filing states that Affinity Partners now has a staff of 20, about half of whom are investment professionals.)

Even after reading the responses, Mr. Liveris, the former Dow Chemical chief executive, and Mr. al-Sayari, of the Saudi Central bank, added their own doubts along with Dr. al-Mojel’s. Mr. al-Rumayyan, the panel chairman and top executive of the Saudi fund, appeared to concur, according to the minutes. The panel members did not respond to requests for comment or could not be reached.

The minutes record that all four panel members attending the meeting “stated that they are not in favor of Project Astro.” The panel’s rules require the votes of a majority of those present to pass a resolution, the minutes note. Mr. al-Rumayyan, in this case, suggested raising the panel’s “views and decision” to the fund’s board, led by the crown prince.

But within days, the board had passed a resolution approving the deal, documents show.

In a letter dated last July 5, fund staff explained to a board member who had questioned the size of the investment why it could not be cut back.

“This investment aims to form a strategic relationship with the Affinity Partners Fund and its founder, Jared Kushner,” the letter said. A reduction of the size of its $2 billion stake “may negatively or fundamentally affect the framework of the agreed strategic and commercial relationship.”

David D. Kirkpatrick is an investigative reporter based in New York and the author of “Into the Hands of the Soldiers: Freedom and Chaos in Egypt and the Middle East.“ In 2020 he shared a Pulitzer Prize for reporting on covert Russian interference in other governments and as the Cairo bureau chief from 2011 to 2015 he led coverage of the Arab Spring uprisings. @ddknyt • Facebook

Kate Kelly covers money, influence, and policy as a correspondent in the Washington bureau of the Times. Before that, she spent twenty years covering Wall Street deals, key players and their intersection with politics. She is the author of three books, including "The Education of Brett Kavanaugh." @katekelly