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__________________________
It's like passing a tax law... Or contribution laws... or Ethics law... LOL... Only honest people abide...


$34,000: the
amount of federal taxes Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner
(D) failed to pay during his employment at the
International Monetary Fund despite
receiving extra compensation and explanatory brochures that
described his tax
liabilities.

$75,000: the
amount of money the head of the powerful tax-writing committee,
Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY), was forced to report on his taxes
after the discovery he had
not reported income from a Costa Rican rental
property. His excuses for the failure
started with blaming his wife, then his accountant and finally the
fact that he didn't speak Spanish.

$93,000: the
amount of petty cash each
Congressional representative voted to give
themselves in January 2009 during the
height of an economic meltdown.

$133,900: the
amount Fannie Mae "invested" in Chris
Dodd (D-CT), head of the powerful Senate
Banking Committee, presumably to repel oversight of the GSE prior
to its meltdown. Said meltdown helped touch off the current
economic crisis. In only a few years time, Fannie also "invested"
over $105,000 in then-Senator Barack
Obama.

$140,000: the
amount of back taxes and interest Cabinet nominee Tom Daschle (D) was forced
to cough up after the vetting process revealed significant,
unexplained tax
liabilities.

$356,000: the
approximate amount of income and deductions Daschle (D) was forced to report on his amended 2005
and 2007 tax returns after being caught cheating on his
taxes. This includes $255,256 for the use of
a car service, $83,333 in unreported income, and $14,963 in
charitable contributions for which he has no
receipts.

Today,
after his nomination was withdrawn, every Democrat on the
Committee stated they would have voted for him if it had come to a
vote..

$800,000: the
amount of "sweetheart" mortgages Senate Banking Chairman Chris Dodd
(D-CT) received from Countrywide Financial,
the details for which he has refused to release details despite
months of promises to do so. Countrywide was once the nation's
largest mortgage lender and linked to Government-Sponsored Entities
like Fannie Mae and Freddie
Mac. Their meltdown precipitated the current
financial crisis. Just days ago in Pennsylvania, Countrywide was
forced to pay $150,000,000 in mortgage assistance following "a state
investigation that concluded that Countrywide relaxed its
underwriting standards to sell risky loans to consumers who did not
understand them and could not afford
them."

$1,000,000: the
estimated amount of donations by Denise Rich, wife of fugitive
Marc Rich, to Democrat interests and the William J. Clinton
Foundation (his library) in an
apparent quid pro quo
deal that resulted in a pardon for Mr. Rich. The pardon was reviewed
and blessed by now Obama Attorney General and then Deputy AG Eric
Holder, despite numerous requests by government officials to turn it
down.

$12,000,000: the
amount of TARP money provided to
community bank OneUnited despite the fact it
did not qualify for funds, and was "under attack from its
regulators for allegations of poor lending practices and
executive-pay abuses." It turns out Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), a key contributor to the Fannie Mae
meltdown, just happens to be married to one of
the bank's ex-directors.

$23,500,000: The
upper range of net worth Rep. Allan Mollohan (D-WV) accumulated in
four years time according to The Washington
Post through earmarks of "tens of
millions of dollars to groups associated with his own business
partners."

$2,000,000,000: ($2
billion) the approximate amount of money House Appropriations
Chairman David Obey (D-WI) is earmarking related to his son's lobbying
efforts. Craig Obey is "a top lobbyist for the
nonprofit group" that would receive a roughly $2 billion component
of the "Stimulus" package.

$3,700,000,000: ($3.7
billion) not to be outdone, this is the estimated value of various defense contracts awarded to a
company controlled by the husband of Rep. Diane Feinstein
(D-CA). Despite an obvious
conflict-of-interest as "a
member of20the Military Construction Appropriations subcommittee,
Sen. Feinstein voted for appropriations worth billions to her
husband's firms
."

$4,190,000,000: ($4.19
billion) the amount of money in the so-called "Stimulus" package
devoted to fraudulent voter registration ACORN
group under the auspices of "Community
Stabilization Activities". ACORN is currently the subject of a RICO suit in
Ohio.

$1,646,000,000,000 ($1.646
trillion): the approximate amount of annual United States
exports endangered by the "Stimulus" package,
which provides a "Buy American" stricture. According to
international trade experts, a "US-EU trade war looms",
which could result in a worldwide economic depression reminiscent of
that touched off by the protectionist Smoot-Hawley
Act.

Michelle
Obama was hired at a Chicago Hospital right after her husband
was elected to the Illinois Senate for a bit above $100,000.
When Obama 20 was elected to the US Senate, her salary was tripled to
more than $300,000 after Senator Obama earmarked many millions of
dollars for the hospital in his short time in the Senate. During the
campaign for President by Obama, Michelle Obama continued to draw her
salary even though not there. When inauguration day came -- and went,
the hospital eliminated her job. The importance of a $300,000 job
can be overstated -- and eliminated.

It's not just a culture of
corruption. It's a culture of corruption and stupidity. And appear to be
above the law. All of the aforementioned clowns (except
Daschle) are still in office, ruling like the royalty they've
become.
_______________________

Sort of reminds me of the special that was on TV last week titled 'House of Cards'.

They went thru the explanation of the reason the stock market crashed because of 'loose' handling of mortage applications then packaging them as 'portfolios' to be sold worlwide.

I seem to remember the SEC charged Lord Black and then sentenced him to 78 month in Federal Prison for mismanaging his company's expenses for his advantage. I WONDER IF THE SEC WILL EVER PURSUE THESE MORTAGE LENDERS AND FUND PACKAGERS TO ANY PENALTY...
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Don't you hate it when facts get in the way of opinion? I doubt Obama has the guts to pursue anyone associated with the mortgage meltdown. Nazi Pelosi, Harry Reed, Barnie Frank, Chuckie Dodd should all be fired for gross incompetance. Pelosi and Reed are in charge of the worst Congress in history. How do these people get re-elected? Simple. They buy votes through all the money budgeted for their states/districts regardless of budgets. We complain about the corruption in other governments? What a laugh. Here, we just legalize the same activities. Their priorities are (in order): Themselves i.e. re-election to maintain their power/influence/ego/etc., their constituents, their state, the country, the Constitution.
As often as I disagree with him, Jack Cafferty had a great column on the CNN website about the Porkulus bill.
quote:
Originally posted by LF - TP 2511:
quote:
Their priorities are (in order): Themselves i.e. re-election to maintain their power/influence/ego/etc., their constituents, their state, the country, the Constitution.

If by 'their' you aren't limiting it to one side of the Congressional aisle, you and I have finally found common ground.

LOL. Yep FINALLY on common ground! Shows just how polluted our government has become. A far, far cry from the government the founders envisioned.

Larry
Ok... we the people find common ground!
We agree that there are Clowns, Crooks, and TAX Evaders that are running our Country in the ground! So what do we do about it? Hell, I can't even get a hold of anyone at the EDD office! I said it before, our government doesn't care about the little guy! IMHO

Hell, here in Mexifornia, our group can't come to terms of a budget, yet we keep paying them (for NOT doing there JOB)and they keep laying off more people! If you didn't do your job at work how long do you think you would have a job?
We need an old fashion tea party...ah hell we would just go to jail for pollluting the ocean! So what do we do???

My 2 cents
Curt
quote:
So what do we do???

This is a compelling piece written by Charley Reese when he was still a columnist at the Orlando Sentinel (he retired in 2001) and Tip O'Neill was Speaker of the House and Reagan was President. It couldn't be more true today.

THE 545 PEOPLE RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL OF AMERICA'S WOES
By Charley Reese

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered why, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, we have deficits? Have you ever wondered why, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don't propose a federal budget. The president does. You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does. You and I don't write the tax code. Congress does. You and I don't set fiscal policy. Congress does. You and I don't control monetary policy. The Federal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president and nine Supreme Court justices - 545 human beings out of the 235 million - are directly, legally, morally and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered but private central bank.

I excluded all but the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it.

No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislation's responsibility to determine how he votes.

A CONFIDENCE CONSPIRACY

Don't you see how the con game that is played on the people by the politicians? Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.

What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of Tip O'Neill, who stood up and criticized Ronald Reagan for creating deficits.

The president can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it. The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating appropriations and taxes.

O'Neill is the speaker of the House. He is the leader of the majority party. He and his fellow Democrats, not the president, can approve any budget they want. If the president vetos it, they can pass it over his veto.

REPLACE SCOUNDRELS

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 235 million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts - of incompetence and irresponsibility.

I can't think of a single domestic problem, from an unfair tax code to defense overruns, that is not traceable directly to those 545 people.

When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair. If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red. If the Marines are in Lebanon, it's because they want them in Lebanon.

There are no insoluble government problems. Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take it.

Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exist disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation" or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people and they alone are responsible. They and they alone have the power. They and they alone should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses - provided they have the gumption to manage their own employees.
(This article was taken from the Orlando Sentinel Star newspaper)
quote:
Originally posted by PLT-1:
Yeah, You would think a guy would be glad to just go up there and do a good job for the pay, it seems the "system" regularly corrupts people. I hope there are a few good guys under the radar.


If these few "good guys" know of the goings on of the corrupt people and do nothing how GOOD are these Good Guys???
quote:
Originally posted by Cuvee:
quote:
Originally posted by PLT-1:
Yeah, You would think a guy would be glad to just go up there and do a good job for the pay, it seems the "system" regularly corrupts people. I hope there are a few good guys under the radar.


If these few "good guys" know of the goings on of the corrupt people and do nothing how GOOD are these Good Guys???


Power. Unfortunately the Good Guys typically can do nothing. Example: A congressman is caught with $50,000 in cash in his freezer after being "stung" by federal officials. Was he removed from office or asked to step down? No, because the ethics committee didn't see any ethical problems. Who sits on ethics committees? Senior members of Congress who, unfortunately, got to the positions of power through the politics we have learned to look at in disdain. The Good Guys just don't have the voice necessary to be influential. Maybe the media will turn around and be the voice of good and right that they should be. This power base is one of the prime reasons for term limits in Congress.
quote:
Maybe the media will turn around and be the voice of good and right that they should be.


The media is no longer a base of people. The media is a base of corporations. Contrary to what the American Right would have us believe, the media is neither left nor right leaning. It is mainly corporation-leaning. Sure, there are little tidbits that are thrown to both sides to let us think THAT news outlet is on OUR side, but in truth they are just talking heads. The status quo of this nation's law's is geared to corporations and keeping them safe; NOT to help the average man. Corporate news is part of the problem and by its makeup, cannot really be the source for change. There ARE balanced news sources, left and right, out there. Somewhere between those left/right news views is the truth. But too few and too small to be effective.
quote:
This power base is one of the prime reasons for term limits in Congress.

Term limits is perhaps the best trick that has been played on American voters in all of history. The power is not in individuals who happen to get elected. Mandating that the name of the person in office changes every 4-6-12 years does nothing in changing the balance of the system. The power is in the system: lobbyists that have no term limits, gerrymandering (BOTH sides of the aisle) that effectively locks election districts into foregone results, and the good-ole-boy network of consultants and corporation boards, who are often/mostly comprised of formerly elected officials.

The American People's fight is NOT with each other, whether Left or Right, it is with the system.

But the system has done such a great job of polarizing us that they have made us think the enemy is the left/right. And that leaves THEM free to continue the pillage of this country's people, morals, natural resources, and future.

And yes, this is true worldwide, but we are discussing OUR system in this thread. Same problem everywhere, really.
Larry
"Maybe the media will turn around and be the voice of good and right that they should be"

The media is part of the problem. They're "groupies" of these powerful men. I guess they feel important rubbing shoulders with them. Let’s not forget that these friends of the media are now looking for ways around the first amendment. The "fairness Doctrine" would effectively silence their opposition (and their loyal groupies competition) and sensor what the public hears and sees. Leaving these basic principles of the founders of this country and interpreting the constitution like this, is what they call “a living document”. They are abusing their office to pick and choose (or make) what laws they like, to further their political careers and pad their own wallets.
Somehow when Bush, during his eight years in office let our national debt reach a trillion dollars it was irresponsible and bad for the country, but now when Obama gets it up to two trillion within his first month he is some kind of visionary and savior. What a bunch of hypocrites.
I also believe these current Democrats who are mostly responsible for this economy are happy with these problems. It gives them a chance to spend more money, make new laws, and turn our country into a socialist state that they control. Rom Immanuel said “this crisis is an opportunity for change that we cannot ignore”. That lets us know that they don’t really care whether these things they do work since it will only give them more opportunities for changes in the future. The ideology of the vast majority of the press agrees and is on board for these changes.
Rick
Obama isn't my guy. I wanted Romney. But I have decided to give him some time since he is intelligent, couldn't possibly want to make things worse, and wants to be remembered as the next Lincoln. He will need to actually fix things to be remembered in the exalted fashion he is shooting for.

But the House and Senate? The system seems broken. I am sure the system could be fixed if the rules weren't made up by the very people taking advantage of the system.

- Robert
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