How Clinton Donor Got on Sensitive Intelligence Board

[inchhigh]

This discussion thread was locked as off-topic by LostOne4Ever (a host of the Latest Breaking News forum).

Source: ABC News

Newly released State Department emails help reveal how a major Clinton Foundation donor was placed on a sensitive government intelligence advisory board even though he had no obvious experience in the field, a decision that appeared to baffle the department’s professional staff.

The emails further reveal how, after inquiries from ABC News, the Clinton staff sought to “protect the name” of the Secretary, “stall” the ABC News reporter and ultimately accept the resignation of the donor just two days later.

Copies of dozens of internal emails were provided to ABC News by the conservative political group Citizens United, which obtained them under the Freedom of Information Act after more the two years of litigation with the government.

A prolific fundraiser for Democratic candidates and contributor to the Clinton Foundation, who later traveled with Bill Clinton on a trip to Africa, Rajiv K. Fernando’s only known qualification for a seat on the International Security Advisory Board (ISAB) was his technological know-how. The Chicago securities trader, who specialized in electronic investing, sat alongside an august collection of nuclear scientists, former cabinet secretaries and members of Congress to advise Hillary Clinton on the use of tactical nuclear weapons and on other crucial arms control issues.

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/clinton-donor-sensitive-intelligence-board/story?id=39710624

[onehandle]

1. THE END IS NIGH

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10136548

[lewebley3]

17. Hillary was cleared by the IG: they said no important info on emails

[40RatRod]

19. It can't come too soon!

[MattP]

2. Only known qualification was his technological know how?

Sounds like a good reason to me

[EdwardBernays]

53. Ummm

His technical know how was about using computers to trade stocks. He was on a board dealing issues around nuclear weapons.

In other words... Huh?

[Grassy Knoll]

3. This Was Just Locked

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=1483781

[AntiBank]

28. it was locked by an ultra Clinton partisan

[Mojorabbit]

59. I just saw a clip from ABC news on facebook

It is not going to go away no matter how many posts are locked. I hope there is a good explanation why he was placed on the panel.

[HeartoftheMidwest]

60. Seems pretty simple.

".. I hope there is a good explanation why he was placed on the panel. "


".... a major Clinton Foundation donor ."

[WhiteTara]

4. This is an LBN Dupe

please delete

[WhiteTara]

7. Saw that...it was seconds after my post.

[WhiteTara]

8. Don't be silly. The original post was all in caps

and has multiple replies. This was locked for being a dupe.

[rhett o rick]

32. The original was not locked for being a dupe. "Locking - not LBN, this is analysis. Please repost

in GD." Locked by George II I think this is hints of things to come.

[WhiteTara]

45. Oh, I've had a few locked for being analysis

rather than news too. The original went on for a long time.

[arcane1]

12. "Locking - not LBN, this is analysis. Please repost in GD."

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=1484019

The definitions of the words "Latest", "Breaking", and "News" will undergo several revisions over the next few months, I'm sure!

[rhett o rick]

33. The interpretation of what is analysis and what is not is very subjective and used

a lot to lock OP's that the Corp-Dems do not like.

[pottedplant]

10. Wonder why this wasn't released earlier

It's a fine example of rewarding those who pay cash money to the foundation. Released on the Friday after herself clinches the nom and the president gives her his seal of approval.

Oh, but wait...her appointee was uniquely qualified. And ABC is a right wing rag. And it's heresay because we did not see Cheryl mills typing the email and she's a woman and such.

The only bright spot is the video. The expression on Fernando's face as he's confronted is priceless. His access to high level strategic information likely for commercial purposes is ....beyond disturbing. Never.

[kracer20]

15. Fernando is also a Super Delegate...

[senz]

24. Good lord. The corruption does run deep.

[rhett o rick]

34. The corrupt culture we need to fight.

[senz]

21. + 100

Excellent points.

[liberal N proud]

11. Dupe

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=1483781

[senz]

22. Why would anyone want to hide such important news? Why?

[AntiBank]

29. it doesnt fit the overarching narative

[rhett o rick]

35. Because they can.

[GummyBearz]

13. Sure to be locked soon. Latest breaking news doesn't count as latest breaking news when...

Latest breaking news doesn't count as latest breaking news when... it has negative implications on HRC. Then it has to get fed into the memory hole (aka disappearance machine).

A memory hole is any mechanism for the alteration or disappearance of inconvenient or embarrassing documents, photographs, transcripts, or other records, such as from a website or other archive, particularly as part of an attempt to give the impression that something never happened.[1][2] The concept was first popularized by George Orwell's dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, where the Party's Ministry of Truth systematically re-created all potential historical documents, in effect, re-writing all of history to match the often-changing state propaganda. These changes were complete and undetectable.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memory_hole

[senz]

23. If so, it is pure censorship of the news.

Is that what this site will become?

[Kingofalldems]

14. Let's see--about 5 more days of this.

[rhett o rick]

36. And then your side can really push the progressives around. Alert, lock, hide and ban.

[senz]

38. This is bigger than "progressives." It affects the country and the world.

[Kingofalldems]

39. Please. I have nothing against Sanders supporters like yourself.

Fake ones who actually support Trump, that's another story.

[OnyxCollie]

48. The Countdown to the Establishment Echo Chamber.

Then I can spend my time doing productive stuff, without worrying that I might be missing something important.

[stupidicus]

16. well, the HC supporters rebuttals are simply too thorough and devastating to warrant

attempting to undermine them in any meaningful way.

They can completely refute just about anything without even addressing it, no?

[Lazy Daisy]

18. The next 5 years

are going to be very expensive.

[senz]

20. This is how corruption works. Do we want it in the White House?

Take it seriously, folks.

[MisterFred]

26. Well in all honesty,

If I was in a swing state, I'd be looking on ebay for one of those "Vote for the crook, it's important" bumper stickers.

Thankfully, I'm not in a swing state and will vote my conscience.

[shenmue]

43. You lost

[MisterFred]

54. That is correct.

You think rubbing it in is going to help "unity" or "the party"? The Democrats can go ahead and win without liberals.

[WhiteTara]

46. Bet you voted Nadir too.

[MisterFred]

55. Why would you care?

I didn't vote for Nader, but even if I did, should non-Gore voters be shunned and ostracized? The eternal enemies of the pure? That would make for an interesting canvass (my turn: bet you don't actually volunteer or work for your politics), ask someone for their voting history before trying to get them to vote for your candidate.

[WhiteTara]

57. I have been on central committees in 2 states

an officer in democratic clubs and a candidate for office. I volunteer for candidates and am an ardent GOTV voter register volunteer. One year I personally registered 300 people to vote, many first time voters and my favorite is ex-felons. The look of happiness on their faces really is uplifting.

So I guess you lose that bet.

[MisterFred]

58. Looks like I would.

I'd suggest you try less hard to piss people off if you want to be less harmful to your cause. Especially those saying others should vote for your candidate.

[askeptic]

25. Seems sleazy but is it illegal?

I mean, it's not like she started a war under false pretenses or something. I know the Republicans are making some hay out of this, and if it ends up leading to some kind of indictment, then it might turn out to be a big deal. Otherwise, it just looks like more Benghazi. I think the Clinton's bring a lot of baggage but - assuming she's the nominee - I still think that as election day draws closer, Trump will continue to prove what a vacuous con man he is, and Hillary will have a landslide.

[MisterFred]

27. That shouldn't really matter.

Whether or not something is legal does not have bearing on whether or not it is moral - or good for the country.

The difference between Benghazi and this is that Clinton did nothing morally wrong vis a vis Benghazi. Clinton's team did something morally wrong here.

No, not a war under false pretenses wrong. That doesn't make it clean and good.

[pnwmom]

37. We don't know they did anything wrong based on a single news story

that fails to distinguish between a "Clinton donor" and a "Clinton foundation donor."

The Clintons themselves are donors to the foundation. They don't personally benefit from the foundation funds.

[MisterFred]

56. They don't financially benefit from the foundation funds.

If you don't think heading up that foundation gives anyone involved in running it a lot of power, that's amazing. ANYONE who helps run a $100 million-a-year organization has power.

Unless you're willing to argue that Hillary Clinton doesn't give a shit about the efforts of the Clinton foundation, I don't see your point.

[senz]

31. I think we shouldn't have to choose between those two.

The Clinton Foundation has tentacles everywhere -- top corporations, foreign countries, wealthy entrepreneurs who want political cover -- everywhere. It is not a single incident like Benghazi. It is a huge financial-political power base. To place it in the position of POTUS is, imo, unsafe for this country.

If you're interested, we do have an ongoing thread about it (thread won't last longer under the new rules):

http://www.democraticunderground.com/12511961180

And a couple of articles:

http://www.nybooks.com/daily/2016/01/30/clinton-system-donor-machine-2016-election/

http://www.ibtimes.com/clinton-foundation-donors-got-weapons-deals-hillary-clintons-state-department-1934187

[Darb]

47. What an enormous pantload.

Jussayin.

[senz]

50. All of it is simple fact. It's what your masters, the Clintons, have been doing.

When it hits the fan, then you'll know.

[OnyxCollie]

51. For your edification:

Perhaps the most important modern institution in the field of group power-and it contrasts dramatically with Maitland's picture of clubs, religious associations, and charities preferring the hedge of the trust and the anonymity of unincorporated status- is the "foundation" which flourishes in contemporary America.

The foundation is largely an American creation. No doubt the accumulation of vast wealth was one reason for its rise; another-at least in the days when Carnegie, Rockefeller, and others perpetuated their names through their now world famous bequests-was unquestionably a desire of wealthy and successful men to purge their consciences before God and man and to justify the acquisitive society which had enabled them to accumulate enormous riches by leaving a vast proportion of their wealth for the benefit of mankind.6 But in recent years these reasons for the earlier foundations have become less important, and the incorporated foundation or trust has become predominantly a business device, a paramount instrument in the struggle between the demands of the modern Welfare State and the wish of the individual entrepreneur to perpetuate his fortune and his name. The greatest and most influential of the foundations (Ford, Rockefeller, Carnegie) are the creations of individuals or families, but the large foundations of the future will increasingly be the creations of corporations. The desires to give and to perpetuate the name of the individual or corporate donor are undoubtedly still important motivations, but the immense growth in the number and size of foundations in recent years7 suggests that business considerations play an increasing role. By either bequeathing or giving during his lifetime a proportion of his estate to a permanent institution established for officially recognized charitable purposes, the donor, usually the controller of an industrial or business empire,8 achieves a number of purposes.9 In the United States gifts to such organizations are exempt from gift taxes, and bequests to them are deductible for estate tax purposes. The organizations themselves are normally exempt from income tax, property tax, and other taxes. A charitable gift intervivos is an allowable deduction from the taxable income of the donor.10 The absence of the latter privilege in English law may be one reason why incorporated charities are not so widespread in Britain (apart, of course, from the vastly greater capital wealth of United States business). Otherwise, motivations for the establishment of charitable companies are very similar." The arithmetics of these benefits vary from year to year and are, of course, subject to legislative changes. Unless, however, there were to be a fundamental change in legislation in regard to charitable gifts,12 the advantages of transferring both capital and annual income away from the personal estate of a taxpayer in the high income brackets or away from a corporation are very considerable.13 But in the age of the managerial revolution and the Welfare State, a motive at least equal to that of providing a suitable mechanism for philanthropy and a tax free reservoir for an otherwise highly taxable income is the power which the foundation gives to the controller of a business or industry to perpetuate his control.14

Friedmann, W. G. (1957). Corporate power, government by private groups, and the law. Columbia Law Review, 57(2), 155-186.

The Clinton Foundation - About
http://www.clintonfoundation.org/main/our-work/by-initiative/clinton-foundation-in-haiti/about.html

The Clinton Foundation has been actively engaged in Haiti since 2009, focusing on economic diversification, private sector investment and job creation in order to create long-term, sustainable economic development. After the devastating earthquake in 2010, President Clinton formed the Clinton Foundation Haiti Fund and raised $16.4 million from individual donors for immediate earthquake relief efforts. Since 2010, the Clinton Foundation has raised a total of $34 million for Haiti, including relief funds as well as projects focused on restoring Haiti's communities, sustainable development, education and capacity building. In 2012, the Clinton Foundation concentrated on creating sustainable economic growth in the four priority sectors of energy, tourism, agriculture, and apparel/manufacturing, working to bring new investors, develop and support local organizations and businesses, and create access to new markets. The Clinton Foundation also continued working to support government efforts to improve Haiti’s business environment and supported programs in education and capacity building.

Earthquake Relief Where Haiti Wasn’t Broken
By DEBORAH SONTAG JULY 5, 2012
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/06/world/americas/earthquake-relief-where-haiti-wasnt-broken.html

CARACOL, Haiti — On the first anniversary of the Jan. 12, 2010, earthquake, in a sleepy corner of northeast Haiti far from the disaster zone, the Haitian government began the process of evicting 366 farmers from a large, fertile tract of land to clear the way for a new industrial park.

The farmers did not understand why the authorities wanted to replace productive agricultural land with factories in a rural country that had trouble feeding itself. But, promised compensation, they did not protest a strange twist of fate that left them displaced by an earthquake that had not affected them. “We watched, voiceless,” Jean-Louis Saint Thomas, an elderly farmer, said. “The government paid us to shut us up.”

In Port-au-Prince, meanwhile, with rubble still clogging the streets, former President Bill Clinton, co-chairman of Haiti’s recovery commission, had celebrated the Caracol Industrial Park as a glimmer of hope during a ceremony cementing an agreement with the anchor tenant — Sae-A Trading, a South Korean clothing manufacturer and major supplier to American retailers like Walmart and Gap Inc.

“I know a couple places in America that would commit mayhem to get 20,000 jobs today,” Mr. Clinton said, referring to the jobs that Sae-A pledged to generate over six years. In exchange, thanks to a deal that Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton helped broker, Sae-A looked forward to tax exemptions, duty-free access to the United States, abundant cheap labor, factory sheds, a power plant, a new port and an expatriate residence outfitted with special kimchi refrigerators.

Washington Backed Famous Brand-Name Contractors in Fight Against Haiti’s Minimum Wage Increase
http://www.haiti-liberte.com/archives/volume4-47/Washington%20Backed%20Famous.asp

The U.S. Embassy in Haiti worked closely with factory owners contracted by Levi’s, Hanes, and Fruit of the Loom to aggressively block a paltry minimum wage increase for Haitian assembly zone workers, the lowest paid in the hemisphere, according to secret State Department cables.

The factory owners refused to pay 62 cents an hour, or $5 per eight-hour day, as a measure unanimously passed by the Haitian parliament in June 2009 would have mandated. Behind the scenes, the factory owners had the vigorous backing of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the U.S. Embassy, show secret U.S. Embassy cables provided to Haïti Liberté by the transparency-advocacy group WikiLeaks.

The minimum daily wage had been 70 gourdes or $1.75 a day.

The factory owners told the Haitian parliament that they were willing to give workers a mere 9 cents an hour pay increase to 31 cents an hour – 100 gourdes daily – to make T-shirts, bras and underwear for U.S. clothing giants like Dockers and Nautica.

Report: State Department-Backed Garment Complex in Haiti Stealing Workers’ Wages
http://www.democracynow.org/2013/10/17/headlines#10179

A new report by the Worker Rights Consortium has found the majority of workers in Haiti’s garment industry are being denied nearly a third of the wages they are legally owed due to widespread wage theft. The new evidence builds on an earlier report that found every single one of Haiti’s export garment factories was illegally shortchanging workers. Workers in Haiti make clothes for U.S. retailers including Gap, Target, Kohl’s, Levi’s and Wal-Mart. The report highlighted abuses at the Caracol Industrial Park, a new factory complex heavily subsidized by the U.S. State Department, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Clinton Foundation and touted as a key part of Haiti’s post-earthquake recovery. The report found that, on average, workers at the complex are paid 34 percent less than the law requires. Haiti’s minimum wage for garment workers is between 60 and 90 cents an hour. More than three-quarters of workers interviewed for the report said they could not afford three meals a day.

Clintons' Pet Project for Privatized 'Aid' to Haiti Stealing Workers' Wages: Report
https://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/10/16-4

Haiti's Caracol Industrial Park—the U.S. State Department and Clinton Foundation pet project to deliver aid and reconstruction to earthquake-ravaged Haiti in the form of private investment—is systematically stealing its garment workers' wages, paying them 34 percent less than minimum wage set by federal law, a breaking report from the Worker Rights Consortium reveals.

Critics charge that poverty wages illustrate the deep flaws with corporate models of so-called aid. "The failure of the Caracol Industrial Park to comply with minimum wage laws is a stain on the U.S.'s post-earthquake investments in Haiti and calls into question the sustainability and effectiveness of relying on the garment industry to lead Haiti's reconstruction," said Jake Johnston of the Center for Economic and Policy Research in an interview with Common Dreams.

Caracol is just one of five garment factories profiled in this damning report, released publicly on Wednesday, which finds that "the majority of Haitian garment workers are being denied nearly a third of the wages they are legally due as a result of the factories’ theft of their income." This is due to systematic employer cheating on piece-work and overtime, as well as failure to pay employees for hours worked.
...
Financers included the Inter-American Development Bank, the U.S. State Department, and the Clinton Foundation, who invested a total of $224 million with promises to uphold high labor standards. Its anchor tenant is the Korean S&H Global factory, which sells garments to Walmart, Target, Kohl's, and Old Navy, according to the report.

Group Says Haitian Garment Workers Are Shortchanged on Pay
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/16/world/americas/group-says-haitian-garment-workers-are-shortchanged-on-pay.html?_r=1&

MEXICO CITY — Garment factories in Haiti, the backbone of an effort to revive the country’s earthquake-shattered economy, have seriously shortchanged workers of their wages to keep costs of their T-shirts and other export goods low, according to a report to be issued Wednesday by a labor rights group.
World Twitter Logo.

The report, prepared by the Worker Rights Consortium, focused on 5 of Haiti’s 24 garment factories and found that “the majority of Haitian garment workers are being denied nearly a third of the wages they are legally due as a result of the factories’ theft of their income.”

The group said that the factories deprive workers of higher wages they are entitled to under law by setting difficult-to-meet production quotas and neglecting to pay overtime.

It said that offenders included the Caracol Industrial Park in northern Haiti, which the United States helped build and has cited as a centerpiece of reconstruction efforts, and factories that make products for prominent retailers like Gap, Target and Walmart.

The Clinton-Bush Fund has closed up shop in Haiti: Here are the fruits of neoliberal "charity"
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022415607

In a country where the citizens are living in tents, the Clinton Foundation will give you a sweet deal on a home loan. (Low introductory APR, guaranteed not to skyrocket too soon!)

Tens of thousands still living in tents 5 years after Haiti earthquake
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/haiti/article6005817.html

“The needs are so immense,” said Odnell David, a Haitian government housing division chief with the Unit for Housing Construction and Public Buildings. “For you to address the housing problem in Haiti, you also have to address all of the other problems in Haiti — employment, investments, education. All have to run parallel.”

Rather than build houses, David said, the government has decided it’s better to create the environment to motivate people to construct their own homes. It’s a philosophy that the government is also pushing with foreign donors, who like the government, have struggled to make good on promises to build tens of thousands of new homes to get Haitians out of the tents.

“A lot of minor interventions are still being done in Port-au-Prince, where you will see that they are still building houses to give to people,” said David, noting that while such ventures are appreciated, they would not build Haiti’s struggling economy.

“What we are saying is you need the government to invest, the people to invest and the private sector to invest to be certain you will have durable development,” he said. “If you don’t have this combination, we will always remain in the same situation.”

New Program Launched to Make Home Mortgages Available to Haitians
http://philanthropynewsdigest.org/news/new-program-launched-to-make-home-mortgages-available-to-haitians

MARCH 24, 2011

The Clinton Bush Haiti Fund has announced the launch of a $47 million program to make home mortgages more widely available in Haiti.

Jointly sponsored by the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, and the Haiti Reconstruction Fund, the program will provide home mortgages and home-repair loans to low-income Haitians and small businesses affected by last year's earthquake. The Development Innovations Group will manage the program, pending approval by OPIC's board of directors in June after implementation details are finalized.

The program was approved last week by the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission, a group formed in the wake of the January 2010 earthquake to review and approve projects funded by bilateral and multilateral donors, nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector. Funded by Haiti Reconstruction Fund ($10 million), the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund ($3 million), and OPIC ($34 million in debt funding), the program is modeled after similar efforts that have proved successful in other parts of the developing world.

"What Haiti needs today are smart investments that will create economic opportunities and lay the groundwork for long-term, sustainable growth," said Clinton Bush Haiti Fund CEO Gary Edson. "By providing funding for programs such as this, we're making it possible for ordinary Haitians to own their own home as well as their own future success and prosperity."

Bill Clinton met with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe to get donations for his Foundation. (Republicans will likely ignore this bit of information, since Uribe's on the News Corporation Board of Directors.)

Uribe meets with Bill Clinton
http://colombiareports.com/uribe-meets-with-ex-us-president-bill-clinton/

Bill Clinton, ex-president of the United States and husband of the current U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, met with Colombian president Alvaro Uribe on Wednesday in search of resources for the reconstruction of Haiti.

~snip~

While his wife is on a diplomatic tour of various Latin American countries, ex-president Clinton is using the opportunity to raise money for Haiti’s reconstruction following the devastating earthquake that happened there in January of this year. The money is being raised through Clinton’s own charity, the Clinton Foundation.

Clinton will also be taking a look at various projects in Colombia that the Clinton Foundation has helped fund while visiting the country.

Some background on Uribe (What a nice guy!):

Uribe was ‘the head of Colombia’s paramilitaries’: former AUC ringleader
http://colombiareports.com/head-colombias-paramilitaries-former-auc-leader-ex-president-uribe/

Former President Alvaro Uribe was the “head of Colombia’s paramilitary groups,” according to a former paramilitary commander and witness in the case against a presidential candidate loyal to the former head of state.

The accusations were made by Pablo Hernan Sierra, alias “Alberto Guerrero”, former commander of the Cacique Pipinta bloc of the paramilitary group AUC, during an interview with Venezuelan network TeleSur.

“He was our commander,” claimed Sierra. “He never fired a gun; but he led, he contributed, he was our man at the top.”

“The massacres, the disappearances, the creation of an {AUC} group: he is responsible,” said Sierra.

The ex-paramilitary is a key witness in an investigation into Uribe’s alleged ties with paramilitary groups, especially his role in the formation of an AUC bloc while governor of Antioquia department from 1995-97, and his use of the AUC to win votes in the 2002 Presidential election.

Details of testimony that involves Uribe in a massacre
http://colombiasupport.net/2008/06/details-of-testimony-that-involves-uribe-in-a-massacre/

The ex-paramilitary Francisco Enrique Villalba Hernández declared to the Colombian Attorney General’s office this past February that President Alvaro Uribe and his brother Santiago participated in planning a massacre in the north of the department of Antioquia, according to a copy of the testimony obtained by the Nuevo Herald. Part of the confession of Villalba, whose credibility Uribe attacked this week, was utilized by the Interamerican Human Rights Court (CIDH) to condemn Colombia for that massacre, which occurred in the village of El Aro in 1997, according to an extensive decision of that tribunal two years ago. Villalba did not involve the ruler or his brother in his testimony before the CIDH, but his narrative was part of the proofs that served the tribunal to conclude that in the slaughter of El Aro agents of the public security forces collaborated with groups of the United Self-defenses of Colombia (Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia—AUC) to murder in cold blood at least fifteen campesinos “in a defenseless position, taking their goods away from others and generating terror and displacement,” according to the 160-page decision. This same decision cites a testimony to the effect that the government of the department of Antioquia, at that time led by the currently president, refused to extend protection to the inhabitants of El Aro, when they learned that the paramilitary attack was imminent. “In the face of this situation, about two months before the occupation, the Community Action Board (Junta de Acción Comunal) asked the government for protection, which was not offered,” says the decision of the CIDH.

Until now, some of aspects of the declaration of Villalba to the Colombian prosecutors were only known in an indirect and fragmentary way which where revealed surprisingly by Uribe during a radio interview this week in order to reject what the ex-paramilitary pointed out. But the Nuevo Herald obtained a complete copy of the declearation that, in fact, contains repeated testimonies of Villalba that Uribe, when he was Governor of the department of Antioquia, hobnobbed with the highest leaders of the AUC and gave them carte blanche to carry out the massacre. “{Alvaro Uribe told us} that what had to be done, that we would do it,” declared Villalba in describing a meting in which AUC leaders, military personnel and the brothers Alvaro and Santiago Uribe. Villalba’s 19-page declaration describes, using names and details a close relationship of complicity and camaraderie between military and police authorities with the heads of the death squads.

Wiretapping scandal increasingly reveals political persecution under Uribe
http://colombiareports.co/wiretapping-scandal-increasingly-reveals-political-persecution-under-uribe/

As Colombia’s Supreme Court investigates illegal spying by the country’s former intelligence agency, an increasing amount of details are revealed about the alleged political persecution of leftist opponents of former President Alvaro Uribe.

A former director of Colombian intelligence agency DAS, Jorge Noguera, is currently on trial for various charges surrounding the wiretapping scandal that has already seen multiple convictions of Uribe’s former chief of staff and a second intelligence chief.

Colombia’s now-defunct intelligence agency, the DAS, did not report to anyone but the president and had been spying on the Supreme Court, journalists, human rights defenders and politicians in a scandal that was uncovered in 2008.

US told Uribe to clean up DAS: Wikileaks.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=405x48766
US told Uribe to clean up DAS: Wikileaks.
Tuesday, 22 February 2011 11:30 Hannah Aronowitz .

WikiLeaks cables reveal that the U.S. pressured the government of then-President Alvaro Uribe to clean up the scandal-hit intelligence agency DAS in 2009, El Pais reported Tuesday.

The cables show that then-U.S. Ambassador William Brownfield told then-Vice President Fransisco Santos to toughen his government's relationship with the DAS, and ordered him to carry out a "thorough, transparent and public," investigation of the secret service agency for its part in the illegal wiretapping of government critics.

Santos acknowledged the demands, and even contemplated dissolving the DAS altogether, according to a cable sent form Bogota to Washington the day after the September 15, 2009, meeting.

While the attitude of the U.S. Embassy prior to this demand seemed limited to observing, recording and reporting back to Washington on the wiretap scandal, their stance changed when it emerged that one of the illegal recordings made was of a phone call between a U.S. Embassy official and a Colombian judge.

US embassy urged Clinton to hold back on praising Uribe during 2010 visit
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10141200957
Source: Colombia Reports

US embassy urged Clinton to hold back on praising Uribe during 2010 visit
Posted by Grace Brown on Sep 7, 2015

The United States’ embassy in Bogota warned former State Secretary Hillary Clinton ahead of a 2010 visit to Colombia to “avoid effusive praise for President Alvaro Uribe” because of the latter’s implication in mayor human rights abuses.

The email, dated June 3 2010 and originating from the office of Representative Jim McGovern (D-MA), was forwarded by Ambassador William Brownfield, now Assistant Secretary of State for Narcotics Affairs and Law Enforcement, and sent to Clinton’s then-chief of staff, Cheryl Mills, prior to flying to Colombia on a state visit.

. . .

However, the email advised, this recognition should avoid “repeating the tone of Defense Secretary Gates’ April visit, in which he called Uribe a ‘great hero’ and failed even to mention any concerns.” Among those concerns were mounting accusations of mass human rights violations that happened under Uribe’s watch.

The email highlighted the possible scale of the “false positives” scandal, in which Colombia’s US-backed military murdered thousands of innocent civilians and dressed them in guerrilla clothing in order to inflate body counts and receive bonuses.

Read more: http://colombiareports.com/us-embassy-urged-clinton-to-hold-back-on-praising-uribe-during-2010-visit/

This is what Hillary Clinton had to say about Uribe (hat tip to karynnj).

SECRETARY CLINTON: President Uribe, let me begin by telling you how pleased I am to be here in Colombia for the first time. You have been so gracious in entertaining my husband and my daughter in the past. And now, I finally have completed the family visits to your beautiful country.

This is a trip I have looked forward to making for quite some time, and it is a real pleasure to see how far Colombia has come and how much Colombia is contributing not only to its own people but to those who face similar struggles beyond your borders. So thank you for your hospitality, thank you for the very comprehensive discussion that we have had together today, and for the opportunity to reaffirm the friendship and strong partnership between the United States and Colombia.

In the last decade, Colombia has confronted immense challenges. And by any fair measure, Colombia has made great progress. That is thanks to the leadership of your government and to the resilience and dedication of the Colombian people. And even with continuing challenges in your own struggle, Colombia is playing a positive and increasingly important regional role, whether it be on promoting clean energy or on relief and recovery efforts in Haiti. The United States has been proud to stand with Colombia, and we will continue to stand with you in the future.

President Uribe and I discussed Colombia’s continuing efforts in the fight against drug trafficking and organized crime. And I expressed the commitment of the Obama Administration to continuing to partner with Colombia as it works to consolidate the security gains of recent years.

We also discussed Colombia’s efforts to enhance human rights, the strides made, the challenges that remain, the ongoing need for vigilance and commitment. And I also want to publicly express our admiration for President Uribe providing a remarkable example of strong democratic leadership in respecting the constitutional court’s decision regarding another term.

Colombia is such a valued partner and a leader that we look forward to expanding and deepening our partnership. Colombia has helped to lead the way as an active member of the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas. Just a few examples that we look to and encourage others to do so as well: developing cutting-edge mass transit systems, exploiting the potential of biofuels, becoming a leader in the use of ethanol, spearheading an initiative to help build the infrastructure for long-distance electrical transmissions from Panama, through the Andean states, to Chile.

Colombia has also worked hard to address the historic lack of opportunity for many of its people, and in doing so has provided important models for other countries in our hemisphere. Recently, the United States and Colombia concluded the first steering committee meeting for our action plan on racial and ethnic equality, which will work to improve access to education, employment, and other opportunities for Afro-Colombian and indigenous communities.

We signed a new science and technology agreement today that will facilitate the exchange of ideas and technology to help both our countries compete in the global economy. All these and many other efforts speak to the enduring bonds of friendship and the stronger partnership for the future that we have, not just between our governments but between our peoples.

Mr. President, I speak for President Obama and myself when I say that you, personally, have been an essential partner to the United States. And because of your commitment to building strong democratic institutions here in Colombia and to nurturing the bonds of friendship between our two countries, you leave a legacy of great progress that will be viewed in historic terms. I know, though, as you said yourself in your remarks here today, you realize how much more is yet to be done.

This morning, I met with the two remaining presidential candidates. This is a choice for the Colombian people to make, but I have to say that the first round of voting was a testament to the vibrancy and strength of Colombia’s democracy. And the United States will work closely and constructively with whomever the Colombian people choose in this second round.

So thank you once again, Mr. President. And you’re right; we had a wonderful dinner last night here in Bogota among friends, some Colombian, some American. And we talked about how remarkable it was that such a common event could take place. And as I drove here to the presidential palace and had the chance to look out the window at this absolutely magnificent city, my heart was filled with the hope that I know fills the hearts of so many Colombians, that what has been accomplished will only go from strength to strength. We will stand with the people of Colombia to make that so.

Thank you so much, Mr. President. (Applause.)

Alvaro Uribe is now on the Board of Directors for Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation.

News Corp. Nominates Chao, Uribe to Board as Directors Step Down
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/print/2012-09-04/news-corp-nominates-chao-uribe-to-board-as-directors-step-down.html

News Corp. (NWSA), the media company run by billionaire Rupert Murdoch, nominated ex-Colombian President Alvaro Uribe and former U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao as directors, bolstering the board’s government experience.

Uribe and Chao will replace Andrew Knight and John Thornton, who plan to step down as directors following the annual meeting, News Corp. said today in a statement.

The changes presage a broader shakeup in News Corp.’s organization over the next year. Murdoch announced a plan in June to break up News Corp.’s publishing and entertainment divisions into separate companies. Murdoch will remain chairman of both businesses and CEO of the entertainment division.

Chao served as labor secretary under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2009. After that, she became a distinguished fellow of the Heritage Foundation in Washington. The Harvard-educated Uribe was president of Colombia from 2002 to 2010 and more recently served on an advisory council for JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), News Corp. said.

And then there's HSBC Bank:

Clinton Foundation Received Up To $81m From Clients Of Controversial HSBC Bank - Guardian
http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/feb/10/hillary-clinton-foundation-donors-hsbc-swiss-bank

~snip~

The charitable foundation run by Hillary Clinton and her family has received as much as $81m from wealthy international donors who were clients of HSBC’s controversial Swiss bank. Leaked files from HSBC’s Swiss banking division reveal the identities of seven donors to the Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Foundation with accounts in Geneva.

They include Frank Giustra, a Canadian mining magnate and one of the foundation’s biggest financial backers, and Richard Caring, the British retail magnate who, the bank’s internal records show, used his tax-free Geneva account to transfer $1m into the New York-based foundation.

~snip~

Caring was legitimately permitted to keep his assets offshore by a hereditary quirk of UK tax law, under which he is registered as “non-domiciled”, courtesy of his Italian-American father. The HSBC records suggest Caring’s $1m donation was paid in return for former president Bill Clinton’s attendance at a lavish costume charity ball organised by Caring in St Petersburg, Russia.

Another Clinton foundation donor who had a HSBC account in the tax haven is Jeffrey Epstein, the hedge fund manager and convicted sex offender who once flew the former president on his private jet for charity events in Africa. The identities of Clinton supporters who banked with HSBC in Geneva are contained in internal bank data leaked by a HSBC computer expert turned whistleblower, Hervé Falciani.

HSBC. How bad is it really?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10026263884

The HSBC scandal continues to grow. Proof of their criminal activities grows each time you turn over another rock. How bad is HSBC?
For those who haven’t been following, the ICIJ (International Consortium of Investigative Journalists) uncovered and reported on HSBC’s enabling of criminal behavior by arms dealers, smugglers, drug lords and the just plain cheap who don’t want to pay taxes.

HSBC, headquartered in London, when informed about the global investigation, first insisted that the ICIJ destroy its data.
It was only after the ICIJ refused and people found out what was going on that their chairman Stuart Gulliver issued the apology for HSBC’s culpability in tax avoidance.

What is HSBC hiding?
In 2006, the Swiss Branch managed tens of millions of dollars for Saudi Arabian businessmen suspected since 2001 of donating money to Muslim terrorist Osama Bin Laden,

The bank also opened accounts for a crystal meth gang in the US and a drug dealer who was sentenced to seven years in prison
HSBC was aiding clients involved in Drug and Human Trafficking, arms dealing and Arms dealing according to Tages Anzeiger.

"HSBC profited from doing business with arms dealers who channelled mortar bombs to child soldiers in Africa, bag men for Third World dictators, traffickers in blood diamonds…”

Names include Frantz Merceron, an associate of former Haitian president Jean Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier, Former Egyptian trade minister Rachid Mohamed Rachid, who fled Cairo during the 2011 uprising, and people officially sanctioned by the United States Government, like Turkish businessman Selim Alguadis.

Currently, there are 10 separate investigations on 4 continents against the bank in nine countries: Asia: India, Europe: Belgium, Switzerland, France and Denmark, North and South America: Mexico, US, Argentina and Brazil (2 separate)

Asia: India. According to the Times of India, the Tax Office is expected launch criminal proceedings against the bank shortly.
The Indian Express reports that 1,195 Indian names are on the list at the tune of over $4bn. The Supreme Court has created a Special Investigative Team.

Several top businessmen on the list include Mukesh Ambani, Anil Ambani, Anand Chand Burman, and Shravan Gupta.
Also on the list are diamond traders, some of whom have left India and moved to other countries.
Also included are prominent politicians including former UPA minister Preneet Kaur, former Congress MP Annu Tandon and family members of former Maharashtra chief minister Narayan Rane.
India is going to pay the whistleblower from HSBC for more information; possibly as much as 10% of whatever they collect

Europe:
France. France appears to be preparing to go to trial. But a separate investigation into HSBC's parent company is ongoing

Denmark. 300 Danes are on the list the amount $370mn in accounts. Benny Engelbrecht the Tax Minister wants to know why, with information available, did his predecessors not act.

Belgium. HSBC faces criminal charges. HSBC initially refused to cooperate until Magistrate Ine Van Wymersch, announced that the investigating judge was issuing arrest warrants for past and current directors. Then HSBC decided they would cooperate.
*** See throw 'em in jail. They roll
***The judge was not identified by name in any article I perused

North America
Mexico: The government is investigating 2,642 names linked to $2.2bn

U.S.: The Justice Department is considering criminal charges against the bank and its clients. 4,183 names 13bn+ dollars

In Brazil 11 accounts held over 110 million dollars and is tied to the state-owned Oil Company, Petrobras
The Brazilian government is also looking into 6600 other undeclared accounts with HSBC's Swiss private bank affiliated in Brazil

In Argentina, the states Tax Office wants 3bn dollars held by 4,000 people in HSBC banks linked to Argentinians and Argentine businesses returned to Argentina. This, after Argentine authorities raided HSBC offices in Buenos Aires and are preparing criminal prosecution.

As of June, 2007, except for the Vatican, there doesn’t appear to be any country without a client on the list, though 15 of the countries do not appear to have any client hiding money to avoid taxes. The list of the ‘nulls’ include Laos, Burkina Faso, Tonga, Swaziland, Trinidad, etc.

There are 23 countries with the number of derelicts in their country in the thousands (UK 8,844; US 4,183; Saudi Arabia 1,504; Lebanon 2,988, Israel 6,554, Canada 1,859, France 9,187...). Their hidings are over 139bn.

on note: Even though they had the information available, the Cameron government gave the former HSBC chair Stephen Green a Tory peerage and appointed him trade minister “several months after the government was given information from the French government in May 2010”.

sourced through:
http://www.newsobserver.com/2015/02/09/4542851_belgian-judge-threatens-hsbc-directors.html?rh=1
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/09/us-hsbc-belgium-moneylaundering-idUSKBN0LD1HO20150209
http://www.thelocal.dk/20150209/denmark-ignored-information-on-hidden-swiss-fortunes
http://indianexpress.com/article/world/world-others/hsbc-sheltered-murky-cash-linked-to-dictators-arms-dealers/
http://www.thelocal.ch/20150208/hsbc-swiss-bank-helped-terrorists-and-criminals
http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/feb/22/swiss-account-secret-of-hsbc-chief-stuart-gulliver-revealed
http://www.theguardian.com/news/2015/feb/18/hsbc-swiss-bank-searched-as-officials-launch-money-laundering-inquiry

[AntiBank]

30. if Clinton is going to be undone it will be the Foundation that turns dagger

[shenmue]

42. What?

[AntiBank]

44. far more peril for her in the activities of the Clinton Foundation vis-a-vis the emails

[valerief]

40. Glad to know our nuclear-bombed future is in the hands of security traders. I guess destroying the

economy for the 99% isn't cruel enough.

[notadmblnd]

52. How else are they going to make money off war?

They too want a piece of the action just like bankers and defense contractors. What better way to do some insider trading then to get yourself appointed to the board?

[valerief]

62. They probably think of war the way we think of Terminix--a way to get rid of pests.

We're just pests to them, since they've offshored all our industries, all but the Bullshit Industry.

[notadmblnd]

63. You know, I think you are right.

[shenmue]

41. You lost

[senz]

49. Actually, shenmue

if your candidate wins (and we don't have a nominee yet) average Americans, their children and grandchildren, will be big time losers.

I'm reasonably comfortable and also pretty old. A Clinton or Trump presidency is unlikely to affect me. But if either one could affect you and your loved ones, then you -- who are laughing so hard at someone you don't even know -- will be the loser.

[NWCorona]

61. This link from CNN has a good video embed. This is serious trouble for Clinton

https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2016/06/10/politics/hillary-clinton-donor-rajiv-fernando/index.html

And this

[Midnight Writer]

64. Goddamn right! Donald Trump would never sell a position on a board that no one has heard of.

He is a business man. He has far too much integrity to bow down to the mighty dollar.

We know we would be far better off with a board consisting entirely of former Cabinet Secretaries and Members of Congress rather than with a man with "technological know-how".

I AM OUTRAGED!!!

[LostOne4Ever]

65. LOCKING THREAD AS ANALYSIS/OPINION

[font style="font-family:'Georgia','Baskerville Old Face','Helvetica',fantasy;" size=4 color=crimson][center]I am going to LOCK this thread as OPINION/ANALYSIS.[/center][/font]

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