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Saturday, September 17, 2016
Thursday, September 15, 2016
Spineless Cowards
House Republicans reach deal to avoid vote on impeaching IRS commissioner
FILE - In this Feb. 10, 2016 file photo, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner John Koskinen testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington. The IRS says the agency's commissioner won't appear at a House Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday, May 24, 2106, examining whether he deserves to be impeached. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File) (Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Impeached? Republicans can't even accomplish that! The truth of the matter is Koskinen and his partner in crime Lois Lerner should both be behind bars.
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House Republicans reached an agreement late Wednesday to avoid a potentially divisive floor vote on impeaching IRS Commissioner John Koskinen.
The deal scraps the vote on the so-called "privileged" impeachment resolution that had been expected to take place Thursday. Instead, the House Judiciary Committee will consider Koskinen's impeachment, with the IRS boss expected to testify sometime next week.
The agreement makes it unlikely that any vote by the full House to impeach Koskinen will happen until after the November election, if at all. House Republican leadership had balked on moving forward on impeachment proceedings during an election season, arguing that an impeachment vote risked irritating voters. Others said Koskinen deserved a full House Judiciary Committee probe before embarking on the seldom-used impeachment process.
Wonder if these fucks thought about "irritating voters" by not moving forward on impeachment proceedings?
The effort by conservative Republicans flows from the IRS' 2013 admission that for several years, it had targeted Tea Party groups seeking tax exemptions for rigorous examinations.
Conservatives say Koskinen obstructed the House GOP's investigation of the treatment of tea party groups seeking tax exemptions. Koskinen and his Democratic allies say he did nothing wrong and provided Congress with all the information he had and knew about.
The conservative House Freedom Caucus, which used a procedural maneuver to force a floor vote earlier this week, celebrated the development as a victory.
"This hearing will give every American the opportunity to hear John Koskinen answer under oath why he misled Congress, allowed evidence pertinent to an investigation to be destroyed, and defied Congressional subpoenas and preservation orders," the caucus said in a statement. "It will also remove any lingering excuses for those who have been hesitant to proceed with this course of action."
But the deal came only after conservatives predicted that their impeachment resolution was going to get sidelined by Democratic and Republican opposition Thursday. Even if the House was able to send the resolution to the Senate, Democrats there have enough votes to prevent Republicans from removing Koskinen from office.
The House needs only a simple majority vote to impeach a federal official, the equivalent of an indictment. The Senate then holds a trial and needs a two-thirds majority to find the official guilty and remove him or her from office.
Wednesday, September 14, 2016
New York attorney general investigating Trump Foundation
You got to be kidding me. I didn't know Trump even had a foundation! Schneiderman a dirt bag who happens to be a member of the Democratic party thinks it's high time someone investigated the Trump Foundation. Meanwhile, the Clinton Foundation which has more shit on it than the toilet seat at Salmonella Sam's all night dinner gets a free pass.
Wonder why?
Ask yourself this. What foundation wreaked with corruption so bad that Charity Navigator couldn't put a label on it?
"We had previously evaluated this organization, but have since determined that this charity's atypical business model can not be accurately captured in our current rating methodology. Our removal of The Clinton Foundation from our site is neither a condemnation nor an endorsement of this charity. We reserve the right to reinstate a rating for The Clinton Foundation as soon as we identify a rating methodology that appropriately captures its business model."
It's so atypical they can't even figure it out! It's business model? It's a fucking a slush fund. Maybe they should call Bernie Madoff to see how it works. How do you define atypical? Let me check the thesaurus. Let's see... here are a few synonyms---unusual, unorthodox, abnormal, aberrant, deviant. Charity Navigator states they can't condemn nor endorse the Clinton Foundation. So if you're in a giving mood would you feel comfortable donating to the Clinton Foundation based upon what Charity Navigator had to say?
PS: Once Charity Navigator found out Killary was running and they received their $timulus the rating changed to 94.74 out of a 100 and gave it a 4-star rating!
What did Trump say about the system being rigged?
Oh...one more for the MSM. Killary passes out on 911. Want does the MSM demand?
They want to see Trump's health records!
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New York's attorney general has begun investigating Republican nominee Donald Trump's charity to determine whether it has abided by state laws governing nonprofits.
Eric Schneiderman told CNN Tuesday that his office had been investigating the Trump Foundation over concerns the foundation "may have engaged in some impropriety."
The investigation was first reported by Politico, which quoted a source as saying that the inquiry was "based on troubling transactions that have recently come to light." The report did not specify which transactions were under scrutiny.
Trump campaign spokesman Jason Miller said in a statement that Schneiderman, a Democrat who has endorsed Hillary Clinton for president, is a "partisan hack" and the investigation is "another left-wing hit job."
Schneiderman's comments came hours after House Democrats called for a federal criminal investigation of an improper $25,000 donation Trump's charity made in 2013 to a political group supporting Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi after Bondi's office said it was weighing legal action against Trump University.
The Associated Press first reported in JuneBondi personally solicited the money during a 2013 phone call that came after her office received complaints from former students claiming they were scammed by Trump's namesake get-rich-quick real estate seminars.
The Donald J. Trump Foundation check arrived just days after Bondi's office told a newspaper that it was reviewing a lawsuit against Trump University filed by Schneiderman. Bondi's office never sued Trump, though she denies his donation played any role in that decision.
The Republican presidential nominee later paid a $2,500 fine over the check from his foundation because it violated federal law barring charities from making political contributions.
In a letter that all 16 Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee sent Tuesday to U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, ranking member John Conyers of Michigan said federal investigators should determine whether the 2013 donation and Bondi's decision not to join the New York lawsuit violated federal bribery or tax laws.
Bondi has endorsed Trump's presidential bid and has appeared with him this year on the campaign trail.
She has said the timing of Trump's donation was coincidental and that she wasn't personally aware of the consumer complaints her office had received about Trump University and the Trump Institute, a separate Florida business that licensed the Trump name and curriculum.
Neither company was still offering seminars by the time Bondi took office in 2011, though dissatisfied former customers were still seeking promised refunds.
Trump's spokeswoman Hope Hicks confirmed to AP that Trump and Bondi spoke before his charity donated to a group supporting her candidacy, but says they didn't discuss any potential lawsuit. Neither Trump's or Bondi's spokespeople has responded to questions about what the two did discuss, or provided the exact date of the call.
Trump's campaign has said the improper foundation check to support Bondi's re-election was the result of a series of clerical errors, and that the billionaire businessman had intended to support Bondi with personal funds.
The Trump Foundation on its 2013 tax return then incorrectly reported that the $25,000 was paid not to the pro-Bondi political group, but to a similarly named charity in Kansas that got no Trump money.
The Washington Post first reported that Trump's charity paid an IRS penalty of $2,500 earlier this year, following media reports about the impermissible 2013 donation.
Trump's foundation, which for years has been funded by money the billionaire businessman raises from others rather than his own cash, has come under increasing scrutiny following reports by the Post, AP and others.
In May, the Post reported that most of the $6 million Trump said he raised for veterans groups at a highly publicized January event wasn't distributed until the newspaper began asking questions. After his campaign released a list of groups receiving about $5.6 million, about half of the 30 reached by AP said they'd received checks around the time of Trump's May 24 Post interview.
In an extensive review earlier this month, the Post found four charities that said they never received money even though the Trump Foundation reported making donations to them.
A New Yorker, Trump owns a Florida home as well as resorts and golf courses in the state. Records show he has made $253,500 in political donations there since 1999, most of it going to Republican candidates, the state party or GOP committees.
His daughter, Ivanka Trump, gave a $500 personal check to Bondi a week before her father's charity money came in, as well as another $25,000 to the Republican Party of Florida the following year.
Donald Trump also hosted a March 2014 fundraiser for Bondi on the lawn of his palatial Mar-a-Lago Club. Attendees were asked to give the $3,000 maximum individual donation allowed under state law.
Records show that Bondi's re-election campaign received 24 checks totaling $57,000 on the date of the Trump fundraiser. Justice for All, the political committee supporting Bondi, also took in $30,000 that day.
Clinton IT specialist ignores subpoena for House hearing; other witnesses plead 5th
This worm deletes everything on Killary's server while the case was under subpoena. I'm not a lawyer but that has to be against the law right there.
Then he doesn't bother to show up for the hearing!
Why do they even bother having these hearings? Over the years with the multitude of scandals fostered in this administration not one person has gone to jail. Clinton, Holder, Lerner, Koskinen, just to name a few, criminals all, and no one has paid the price. Seems to me these House committee hearings have no teeth, no bite. If you show up all you have to do is claim the 5th and all is forgiven. Of no help is the DOJ and the FBI. They reside in the back pocket of the Democrats. Tell me again how Bill and Lynch accidently ran into each other and never brought up Killary but discussed golf which she never played and grandchildren she never had.
One more thing. Clinton had a private server but most of the emails on that server were the property of the State Department. Who gave her the authority to delete them?
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The former State Department IT specialist who set up Hillary Clinton’s private server ignored a subpoena to appear Tuesday before a House committee hearing, while other tech experts who helped maintain the system asserted their Fifth Amendment right not to testify – frustrating Republican lawmakers trying to dig deeper into the former secretary of state’s email setup.
House oversight committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, said he’ll now consider a “full range of options” to address IT aide Bryan Pagliano’s “failure” to attend.
“He should be here. … It is not optional,” Chaffetz said. “His attendance is required here.”
Pagliano is considered a vital witness in the Clinton email case. He spoke previously to the FBI under immunity, telling the bureau there were no successful security breaches of the server. Pagliano also refused to answer questions last year before a House panel investigating the deadly 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya. His lawyers said at the time that Pagliano did not want to relinquish his rights under the U.S. Constitution's Fifth Amendment against self-incrimination.
Republicans on Tuesday questioned why Pagliano would avoid the latest hearing if he had immunity, though Democrats pushed back. According to Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., Pagliano’s lawyer said the request was an “abuse of process.”
Two other officials from Platte River Networks, Bill Thornton and Paul Combetta, did comply with subpoenas to appear. However, when it came time to answer questions, they pleaded the Fifth. The Denver-based technology company maintained Clinton’s server when it was moved from her Chappaqua, New York, home to a data center in northern New Jersey.
Combetta took the Fifth six times and Thornton took the Fifth four times, before both witnesses were excused.
After each question, they recited a variation of the line: “On the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer and assert my Fifth Amendment constitutional privilege.”
Cummings said he could “understand” why they were not addressing questions.
But Chaffetz voiced frustration when Thornton declined to even answer whether he’d been questioned by the FBI. GOP lawmakers have wanted to question tech officials on the deletion of email records and other alleged attempts to destroy devices.
Chaffetz also said there will be consequences for Pagliano's refusal to appear and for "thumbing his nose at Congress." He didn't specify what the penalties would be but said, "We're not letting go of this."
A letter from Pagliano's attorney released by the committee says Pagliano will continue to assert his constitutional right not to testify.
The only witness remaining after the unfruitful initial questioning was Bill Clinton aide Justin Cooper, who answered lawmakers’ questions.
During that process, he confirmed that he had access to the Clinton server but did not hold a security clearance.
The email issue has shadowed Clinton's candidacy, and Republicans have been steadfast in focusing on her use of a private server for government business, with several high-profile hearings leading up to the election. Democrats insist the sole purpose of the hearings is to undermine Clinton's bid for the presidency.
Chaffetz on Monday escalated the GOP's battle with the FBI after its decision in July not to recommend criminal charges against Clinton for her use of the private email system by serving a top FBI official with a subpoena for the full case file. Chaffetz and other Republicans on the panel said the bureau has withheld summaries of interviews with witnesses and unnecessarily blacked out material from documents sent last month.
“We are entitled to the full file," he said.
Dismissing the "emergency" hearing held late on a Monday, Cummings said: "As far as I can tell, the only `emergency' is that the election is less than two months away."
Chaffetz issued the subpoena to Jason Herring, the acting assistant FBI director for congressional affairs. Herring and six other Obama administration officials appeared before the committee to discuss the investigative files. The witnesses on several occasions said they could not answer the questions from lawmakers in an open forum.
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