Top Sanders adviser embezzled union funds in 2008

[lapucelle]

A senior adviser to Sen. Bernie Sanders and a member of the negotiating team that recently drafted his presidential campaign’s staff union contract was convicted in 2013 of embezzling funds from a steel workers union.

On Wednesday, the Sanders’ campaign announced it had reached an agreement on its historic union contract with United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 400.

Following the announcement, Charles Rocha, a senior adviser who helped orchestrate the agreement, announced on Twitter he was “proud to have been on the negotiating committee” that worked on the contract for Sanders’ campaign staff.

Rocha, who also worked for Sanders in 2016, was convicted six years ago for embezzling money from the United Steelworkers Union when he served as political director.

snip=========================================================================

Rocha’s criminal history received little media attention while he worked for Sanders’ ill-fated 2016 challenge to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

In reaction to a 2016 report in Politico, Weaver, who was Sanders’ campaign manager at the time, said he had no issue with Rocha’s behavior. “It’s not politically sensitive at all,” Weaver told Politico. “I’m not politically afraid of this story at all. Please, I’m asking you to print.”

Both the UFCW Local 400 and the United Steelworkers Union would not comment on Rocha’s role in the Sanders campaign or on the union contract negotiations.

Rocha, who rejoined the Sanders team in February, is also the president of Solidarity Strategies, a political consulting firm that has been paid $71,750 by the campaign for event planning this year, according to the most recent campaign finance filings.

https://vtdigger.org/2019/05/09/top-sanders-advisor-embezzled-union-funds-2008/

[Me.]

1. WoW

[sheshe2]

2. Lapucelle, link please.

I wish to read the rest.

Ouch. This is not good for Rocha.

[lapucelle]

4. Here you go...the story is appalling.

Jeff Weaver said that VT Digger even reporting the story was an example of institutional racism.

Jeff Weaver, a senior adviser for Sanders, told VTDigger that Rocha had paid the price for his misdeeds and that he is a valued part of the campaign.

“Chuck Rocha made a mistake earlier in life and served his probation and paid his fine. He has since established a successful business that has served as a pipeline for young people of color into the world of politics,” Weaver said.

Weaver went on to say that by reporting on Rocha, who is Latino, and his criminal conviction, VTDigger was helping to uphold systemic racism.

https://vtdigger.org/2019/05/09/top-sanders-advisor-embezzled-union-funds-2008/

[sheshe2]

5. Thanks...gonna read!

[George II]

9. Reporting on embezzlement is "institutional racism"? There are no words, good he bailed this time.

[saidsimplesimon]

3. Not a good optic, if true, a game changer. imo

[femmedem]

6. Sanders isn't my candidate, but I support second chances.

I was proud to work in a municipality that banned the box on municipal employment applications.
Of course, the city did background checks before employment offers, but it meant a prior conviction wasn't the first thing we learned about potential hires. A person could at least have a chance to interview and also explain in a later interview if something came up in the background check.

It sounds as if this hire could be rehabilitated now and is contributing to society. I have various reasons for not supporting Sanders this time around, but this isn't one of them.

[MH1]

20. I support second chances too, but not so soon in such an elevate, high profile position.

Maybe that's just me.

I think an ex-con should be able to make a living doing something they know how to do (that's legal). That doesn't mean they should get hired into a top position.

[sheshe2]

7. Convicted in 2013 of embezzlement of a union.

Serving on Sanders team. Holy SH*T.

I don't even want to think what would happen if this was Hillary,

[Cha]

8. So BS thought it would be a good idea to hire him?!

Last edited Fri May 10, 2019, 09:09 PM - Edit history (1)

[thesquanderer]

13. Please, not Infowars.

You shouldn't post links to Alex Jones' Infowars. That's about the last place you want to give clicks/views ($) or even just google-legitimacy to. (Google up-ranks sites that are referenced on other sites.)

Better sources for this story, which also better describe what happened:

https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdpa/pr/usw-political-director-sentenced-and-fined-embezzling-union-funds

https://archive.triblive.com/news/grand-jury-indicts-man-for-embezzling-from-united-steelworkers-international-union/

As for the topic at hand, though, I'm not against hiring those who have paid their debt to society.

[Cha]

17. Oh shite! Thanks for

the heads up!

Gotta watch those links!

[NurseJackie]

10. That "kid-gloves" thing we keep hearing about appears to be true.

Rocha’s criminal history received little media attention while he worked for Sanders’ ill-fated 2016 challenge to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

That "kid-gloves" thing we keep hearing about appears to be true. Everyone should have expected that this election cycle would be completely different.

I know a lot of people think that BS is being treated unfairly, but I must point out... this is NOTHING compared to what the GOP would do to him. If BS was nominated, Trump would win a second term easily.

[dsc]

14. this is nothing short of infuriating

A press corps that was dominated by charter members of the he man woman hater club would have roasted Hillary for this. People who ran against Hillary got kid gloves treatment. Whether it was Sanders or Trump it was the same thing.

[MH1]

19. Yup.

Hillary was not my first choice in 2016, for many reasons. But I agree 100% with your observation.

I think the misogyny is still there. Unfortunately, we have to figure out who will be able to win - and oust these f*ckers - in the misogynistic culture we live in. Any one of our candidates will be an improvement for women, over the current mob. Even the "old white men", even Sanders (though I doubt he will come close to winning).

[JI7]

25. while Debbie Wasserman Schultz was treated horribly . a democratic woman that survived breast cancer

had to step aside for the ego of male losers.

[Go Vols]

36. male ego?

PHILADELPHIA —Democrats arrived at their nominating convention on Sunday under a cloud of discord as Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, abruptly said she was resigning after a trove of leaked emails showed party officials conspiring to sabotage the campaign of Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont.

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/25/us/politics/debbie-wasserman-schultz-dnc-wikileaks-emails.html

[JI7]

40. yeah, it was a bunch of Wikileaks bs

which came from Russia rapist Assange etc

[lapucelle]

46. "Released Emails Suggest the D.N.C. Derided the Sanders Campaign"

Isn't that what the NYT news story reported?
https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/23/us/politics/dnc-emails-sanders-clinton.html?ref=politics&module=inline

Poor Jonathan Martin. He does try so hard, but it's difficult to take his brand of punditry seriously.

[thesquanderer]

16. Not kid gloves, strategy. If Hillary had gone after Sanders...

...for hiring someone with a record, Sanders would have come back with how people who have paid their debt to society should not be denied jobs, they deserve second chances. Who do you think wins that argument?

[JI7]

21. we aren't talking about Hillary but the Media

[crazytown]

11. The wheels are coming off.

The campaign’s unionisation has been the big story for weeks. Now the guy who masterminded the contacts Turns out to be a fraudster.

Did he draft Sirota’s contract too?

[NurseJackie]

12. I guess it makes sense that they'd want to try and spin the "we're unionized" story as a positive...

... but it really has taken a toll on the respectability of the BS campaign workings. They really shouldn't have been boasting about it.

I had read elsewhere that it made as much sense as a convicted DUI driver boasting that s/he had a breathalyzer locking device on their car and that everyone should get one. Well, uh... no... not everyone! It's not the big "honor" that they're making it out to be.

And neither is a campaign that has workers who feel like they NEED to be unionized. The whole thing was just messed up from the beginning.

[R B Garr]

41. +1, and they only wanted to unionize so they turn that around on other candidates

as some kind of purity test to preemptively point fingers at others. Instead of taking questions about their wrongdoings, accusing others of not unionizing was the goal. Very messed up.

[NurseJackie]

42. I'm not falling for it.

Do they think we're idiots?

[R B Garr]

44. Same here. Gimmicks are gimmicky.

It was very obvious.

[NurseJackie]

45. Maybe that helps to explain his cratering poll numbers.

People are seeing more than the campaign wants them to see or understand.

[R B Garr]

47. +1, he seems to be denial about his poll numbers, also. He was just on

Rev Al saying Biden's numbers are only good because of old people who were polled. Insulting people more just isn't going to cut it.

[betsuni]

15. K&R

[LibFarmer]

18. Oh man

This is so Trump-like

In reaction to a 2016 report in Politico, Weaver, who was Sanders’ campaign manager at the time, said he had no issue with Rocha’s behavior. “It’s not politically sensitive at all,” Weaver told Politico. “I’m not politically afraid of this story at all. Please, I’m asking you to print.”

Scary that they don't even care that poor union members' dues were embezzled. Such a guy won't even get a dog-grooming license in most states but now he is Sanders' top campaign advisor!

wow .... just wow

[WeekiWater]

22. We are now seeing how well vetted Sanders is...

Yet the info on him wasn’t used or promoted. His last major opponent was not looking to create enemies on the left and the election was never in doubt.

Each time we see Sanders attack the party or a candidate on a certain issue the back of the proverbial hand is raised almost immediately. He isn’t getting away with it this time. The responses are on topic an almost immediate.

Folks, coalition building really is a good thing if you are truly interested in accomplishing great things.

[RandySF]

23. Whoops

[NBachers]

24. Well, that locks in the Secretary of Labor slot.

[comradebillyboy]

26. Kudos to Bernie for giving a felon a second chance.

But it's not nearly enough to assuage my otherwise poor opinion of Sanders.

[lapucelle]

29. I wonder if the workers negotiating with this management rep were aware of his record.

Why is Rocha on the BS pay roll collecting tens of thousands of dollars for arranging "events"? Is that where people's donations are going?

Rocha, who rejoined the Sanders team in February, is also the president of Solidarity Strategies, a political consulting firm that has been paid $71,750 by the campaign for event planning this year, according to the most recent campaign finance filings.

https://vtdigger.org/2019/05/09/top-sanders-advisor-embezzled-union-funds-2008/

[Scurrilous]

27. ...

[Gothmog]

28. Thank you for posting this

[DesertRat]

30. Not just accused but CONVICTED

Again - no female candidate would get away with this.

[LongtimeAZDem]

31. No Democrat would get away with this

[LibFarmer]

33. No wonder Sanders wants voting rights for convicted felons! nt

[NurseJackie]

35. Ouch!

[MineralMan]

32. Well, this is concerning, but not as concerning as the Jill Stein voters on his staff.

Maybe it's just me, but hiring campaign staffers who proudly proclaim that they voted third party in 2016 does not increase the likelihood that I will support a primary candidate who did that.

The current President of the United States should be Hillary Clinton. She won the popular vote, but lost in three states by fewer votes than were cast for Jill Stein. I'm not saying that those votes would have gone for Clinton, but I'm counting those votes all the same as if they were votes for Donald J. Trump.

I cannot support a candidate in this primary election who has hired Stein voters for top campaign positions. I simply cannot.

As for someone who embezzled funds from a labor union, well that's pretty bad, too. Indeed it is.

Both things call into question the judgment of the person who did the hiring, in my opinion.

[LibFarmer]

34. +1000 nt

[LongtimeAZDem]

37. "Surrounding himself with only the best people"

Had to be said

[MineralMan]

38. Assembling a campaign staff is a difficult job.

One can only hire those who are willing to be part of your campaign. Sometimes, that leads to having only some choices who might not be the best choices.

Being a candidate for the nomination as the party's choice for President is a huge challenge. Not everyone is up to that challenge. That's why it's always a good idea to see who a candidate selects to represent him in the campaign. Much can be learned by doing that, I think.

I have been concerned about some of Senator Sanders' choices from the very beginning, and not just in this year's campaign.

Who I support depends on many factors.

[LongtimeAZDem]

39. +1

[R B Garr]

43. Wow! This is a great find. Why isn't this shouted from the rooftops. Who gets away with this?!

"In 2013, Rocha was sentenced to two years probation and to pay a $2,000 fine for embezzling United Steelworkers Union funds. Before pleading guilty to the embezzlement charge and being sentenced, Rocha had already been ordered to pay $12,449 back to the union, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
Rocha illegally used union money to buy $400 in Stanley Cup finals tickets. He also paid thousands of dollars for golf trips in South Carolina and Florida between the end of 2008 and midway through 2009, according to court document...!"

Why isn't Sanders asked about this?! Instead I heard Rev Al today asking Sanders if he was going to attack Biden. Sanders should be answering his own vetting questions. Embezzeling from unions?? Wow...

[ehrnst]

50. The kid gloves conderning are off this time. He should face questions on his choice of

staffers.

Just like other candidates do.

[ehrnst]

48. Spent it on Golfing trips? Stanley Cup tix?

Rocha illegally used union money to buy $400 in Stanley Cup finals tickets. He also paid thousands of dollars for golf trips in South Carolina and Florida between the end of 2008 and midway through 2009, according to court documents.

Interesting pastimes.

Interesting that Jeff Weaver, and not Bernie's current press lead, is the one who spoke on behalf of the campaign. And that he's changed his reaction at the reporing of this from 2016.

2019:

“Sadly, like too many others in our society, the Vermont Digger wants to brand people like Chuck Rocha for life — an attitude that disproportionately impacts black and brown people and poor people,” Weaver said. “This is just another way systemic racism works. It’s disappointing that VTDigger is helping to uphold it.”

2016:

“It’s not politically sensitive at all,” Weaver said. “I’m not politically afraid of this story at all. Please, I’m asking you to print.”

[ehrnst]

49. So Weaver calls reporting on this "systemic racism" because Rocha is hispanic??

Or because this Vermont publication doesn't handle Bernie with kid gloves when it comes to investigative reporting?

Sanders refuses to grant them any interviews, but is fine with Weaver going on FoxNews as a regular guest.

[stonecutter357]

51. WOW !

[LakeArenal]

52. There are so many better choices than Bernie.

Personally, all of them.