It is “unacceptable that HHS fails to maintain accurate financial records and fails to adhere to federal law designed to protect taxpayer dollars from mismanagement and waste,” Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., and Rep. Charles Boustany, R-La., wrote in a Monday letter to the department’s secretary, Kathleen Sebelius.

(HT:Federal Times)

The USG may not appear to have a very tight wrap on how and where it’s dollars (expropriated or borrowed) get dispersed. This is particularly true when the US Senate has gone over 1,000 days without the benefit of an actual budget resolution instead of a legislative gimmick that relieves them of that responsibility.

However, in the street-level reality inhabited by people who actually handle government funds, tight and exacting regulations do exist. One very important one is The Anti-Deficiancy Act which is described below.

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It is “unacceptable that HHS fails to maintain accurate financial records and fails to adhere to federal law designed to protect taxpayer dollars from mismanagement and waste,” Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., and Rep. Charles Boustany, R-La., wrote in a Monday letter to the department’s secretary, Kathleen Sebelius.

(HT:Federal Times)

The USG may not appear to have a very tight wrap on how and where it’s dollars (expropriated or borrowed) get dispersed. This is particularly true when the US Senate has gone over 1,000 days without the benefit of an actual budget resolution instead of a legislative gimmick that relieves them of that responsibility.

However, in the street-level reality inhabited by people who actually handle government funds, tight and exacting regulations do exist. One very important one is The Anti-Deficiancy Act which is described below.

Read More →

There’s an interesting scandal right now in New Mexico right now. You see, the New Mexico constitution tries to stop corruption, a real problem in the  state as the Economist recently noted, by requiring that state legislators cannot draw a salary from other sources during the legislative session. But Channel KRQE has reported that there is a set of legislators who do not abide by this constitutional requirement: teachers, and in particular teachers union members. One of the state legislators has come under particular scrutiny, Rep. Cheryl Williams Stapleton, a Democrat from Albuquerque:

The issue became salient after reports on KRQE-TV about APS paying House Majority Whip Sheryl Williams Stapleton, D-Albuquerque, her salary while she was in Santa Fe on legislative business. According to a Journal analysis, she was paid more than $63,000 in salary during the past three years while she was away from her administrative job as coordinator of vocational education.

Stapleton’s paid leave was approved by supervisors even though it wasn’t allowed under district policy. That policy said all nonteachers who served in the Legislature should take unpaid leave while in Santa Fe.

So recently, in discussions with her fellow member of the state House’s education committee, Nora Espinoza (R), Whip Stapleton decided to share her perspective on attempts to resolve and understand this complicated legal and constitutional issue. You see, she said that Espinoza was “carrying the Mexican’s water on the fourth floor.” This was a reference to Governor Susanna Martinez, whose office is on the fourth floor of the Capital building.  So the Democratic Whip in the most Latino state in the country is referring to the first Latina Governor in the country as “the Mexican.” I wonder if the Democrats will try to hold her accountable for this kind of speech? Probably not. After all, Harry Reid said that doesn’t know how any Hispanic could be a Republican.

Now, cleaning up the state is something that the teachers unions have long been opposed to. They funded a nasty attack ad against Martinez that backfired when it turned out that Martinez had convicted the husband of the woman the teachers union put in the ad to attack Martinez:

But maybe they are just trying to stop the person trying to take away their gravy train?

There’s an interesting scandal right now in New Mexico right now. You see, the New Mexico constitution tries to stop corruption, a real problem in the  state as the Economist recently noted, by requiring that state legislators cannot draw a salary from other sources during the legislative session. But Channel KRQE has reported that there is a set of legislators who do not abide by this constitutional requirement: teachers, and in particular teachers union members. One of the state legislators has come under particular scrutiny, Rep. Cheryl Williams Stapleton, a Democrat from Albuquerque:

The issue became salient after reports on KRQE-TV about APS paying House Majority Whip Sheryl Williams Stapleton, D-Albuquerque, her salary while she was in Santa Fe on legislative business. According to a Journal analysis, she was paid more than $63,000 in salary during the past three years while she was away from her administrative job as coordinator of vocational education.

Stapleton’s paid leave was approved by supervisors even though it wasn’t allowed under district policy. That policy said all nonteachers who served in the Legislature should take unpaid leave while in Santa Fe.

So recently, in discussions with her fellow member of the state House’s education committee, Nora Espinoza (R), Whip Stapleton decided to share her perspective on attempts to resolve and understand this complicated legal and constitutional issue. You see, she said that Espinoza was “carrying the Mexican’s water on the fourth floor.” This was a reference to Governor Susanna Martinez, whose office is on the fourth floor of the Capital building.  So the Democratic Whip in the most Latino state in the country is referring to the first Latina Governor in the country as “the Mexican.” I wonder if the Democrats will try to hold her accountable for this kind of speech? Probably not. After all, Harry Reid said that doesn’t know how any Hispanic could be a Republican.

Now, cleaning up the state is something that the teachers unions have long been opposed to. They funded a nasty attack ad against Martinez that backfired when it turned out that Martinez had convicted the husband of the woman the teachers union put in the ad to attack Martinez:

But maybe they are just trying to stop the person trying to take away their gravy train?

We have been promised by Democrats like Minnesota’s U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar that if we just passed a bunch of well-intentioned laws, we would never be robbed by those greedy Wall Street overlords.  It was the mean, vile bankers and investment gurus that were putting our democracy and economy at risk.  If only we passed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, all our worries would be fixed.  The wise and benevolent federal government would safeguard our money and make all our troubles go away.  In fact, from her website, Klobuchar said this:

“The reckless gambling on Wall Street cost millions of Americans their jobs, homes, and nest eggs,” Klobuchar said. “Trillions of dollars in wealth were gambled away because of a financial system that lacked the necessary safeguards to protect Main Street. This bill establishes safeguards to protect our economy and will help bring accountability back to our financial system.”

Accountability?  Protect Main Street?  Is that what is happening with Jon Corzine and MF Global and over a billion dollars AWOL?

From a story at the Startribune, October 2, 2011, ‘MF Global woes ripple into heartland,’ Jim Spencer reports, “When MF Global declared bankruptcy, farmers like Magnuson and Dean Tofteland, who raises pigs and grows corn and soybeans in Luverne, Minn., thought they were safe. They had been told their money was held in “segregated” accounts to be invested only in their best interest.”  What actually happened was a Democratic Party former senator and New Jersey governor, Jon Corzine ran a company that moved their money from these discrete accounts into shady European investments to shore up his interests.  While we still don’t know how much money is missing, estimates are now in the 1.2 billion dollar range.

So what is Klobuchar’s reaction to this?  “[Regulators] are still investigating if what [MF Global] did was illegal,” Klobuchar said in an interview after the hearing. “And it may well have been illegal. We don’t know that yet. But what we know is that the law is inadequate when it comes to disclosing transactions like they made … it is possible that they were able under existing law to hide those risky transactions.”

Inadequate?  How can that be?  We passed the massively intrusive Dodd-Frank financial reform bill over a year ago.  According to Klobuchar’s own words, this law was supposed to provide accountability should something nefarious occur with Main Street money.  One would be hard-pressed to find a more Main Street group of people than farmers.  So why isn’t Jon Corzine, who managed to lead the state of New Jersey and MF Global into financial ruin, in jail?  What happened?

“The Senate hearing Thursday showed how difficult it would be to answer such questions. MF Global was allowed to invest in bonds of foreign countries and lend money from one part of the company to another. Federal regulations did not require the risky loans to be recorded on MF Global’s balance sheet. Klobuchar called the rules, put in place in 2000 and 2005, ‘part of this Wall Street expansion where basically Wall Street gets to go down the street in their Ferraris and the government’s falling behind in a Model-T Ford.”

Let’s take Klobuchar’s statement apart.  First, Klobuchar calls this theft a skirting of the ‘rules.’  Are we playing Candyland?  Did Corzine jump a square and go up a level in Chutes and Ladders?  We are talking about theft and misappropriation of funds.  The money didn’t just get tired and wander over into a European investment.  The fact it didn’t get reported on a balance sheet in the right column isn’t the issue.  The money was taken from an account that was supposed to be guarded and used as Monopoly money in foreign investments.  Who cares if it was or wasn’t reported?  The most vital part is the money was used by Corzine and his lackeys to shore up their other accounts.

Second, even if rules were put in place in 2000 and 2005 (which I don’t believe) Dodd-Frank was supposed to stop any of this.  Klobuchar proudly proclaimed she “fought for comprehensive reform in the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. This bill contains a number of provisions designed to protect consumers and restore transparency. Those measures include efforts to monitor and address systemic risk, increase accountability at financial firms, and reform the complex derivatives markets.”  Once again, this is from her website in the Issues/Legislation tab as of December 3, 2011.  The idiotic rules put in place previously should have been washed away with her bright shiny new law.  Yet, here we are with Main Street robbed and Jon Corzine free as a bird.

If the federal government is “falling behind in a Model-T Ford,” it’s because Klobuchar put that in place.  But, she didn’t give us a Model-T Ford.  She gave us a Chevy Volt that is now bursting into flames because someone set a cup of coffee on the hood.  Klobuchar was one of the senators making Dodd-Frank’s financial strangulation possible.  She owns this law and its failure.  It is because of stupid laws like this that provide lanes and paths and reports and byzantine rules and committees of oversight that give plausible deniability to people like the corrupt Corzine.  Corzine will throw his accountants and clerks under that bus because they put the wrong number in the wrong column and he will stroll off scot free.

Klobuchar is already laying the groundwork for getting Corzine a pass.  It wasn’t Corzine’s criminally fraudulent theft of segregated funds that caused these people to lose their money.  It was the system, a system she helped put into place.  “I don’t have a scandal meter,” she said. “I just think it’s another example of why we just can’t let these financial firms run roughshod over people on Main Street or people who are doing nothing but growing crops or raising pigs. They should not have to know every in and out of the regulatory system to protect their money.”

No, Ms. Klobuchar.  It was your system that gave people like Corzine a path out of the swamp of idiotic regulations and red tape.  We don’t need someone like you passing random laws and promulgating committees and rules, we need actual accountability like sending Corzine to jail so other investment types think twice before robbing farmers to support their risky schemes.  But, Klobuchar won’t do that.  She will make sure all the heat is on someone else because Corzine is her buddy and her fellow Democrat.  And her campaign donor.

From Newjersey.com, May 7, 2011, ‘Corzine still a big political spender,’ Herb Jackson writes:

“Corzine, who shares his time between the New York apartment and his home in Hoboken, is no stranger to big money in politics. He had used his position as chairman of Wall Street powerhouse Goldman Sachs to become one of the nation’s biggest “soft money” contributors to Washington Democrats when his name first began circulating in 1999 as a possible Senate candidate.”

Corzine is a big bundler of campaign cash for Obama.  He also has given generously to Senate campaigns outside Washington and in his home state of New Jersey.  According to the side bar to this story, “Most of the recipients of $111,500 in contributions from former Gov. Jon Corzine and his relatives since he lost the 2009 election were national committees or U.S. Senate candidates in other states.”  This includes $1,000 to Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-MN.  He has also provided ample funds to the DNC and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee which also support Klobuchar’s reelection bid.

Given the amount of money Corzine has funneled to the movers and shakers in the Democratic Party, it will not be surprising to see Klobuchar and her Democratic colleagues in the Senate give Corzine the benefit of the doubt.  The emphasis going forward will be on the loopholes in the law and not Corzine’s accountability.  But, given Klobuchar’s participation in that law, it should be her on trial as well.

No doubt, this accidental journalism by the Startribune in the farmer story will be squelched in the future.  Klobuchar will be quoted as seriously questioning and carefully examining the problems with the law.  But, this is her baby.  She bought this ridiculous farce that Dodd-Frank “establishes safeguards to protect our economy and will help bring accountability back to our financial system.”  There are no safeguards for Main Street.  There will be no accountability as long as the Democratic Party donors are involved.  Jon Corzine will not see the inside of a jail if Klobuchar has her way.  He will be dismissed as an incompetent but innocent while others take his rightful place.  He’ll just write another check, and it will all go away, courtesy of Klobuchar and her comrades.

Crossposted at Looktruenorth.com

As you have hopefully heard by now, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) officially called for Anthony Weiner’s resignation today. Per CNN:

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and the chairmen of the Democratic National Committee and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee called for Weiner to step down in separate statements earlier Saturday.

Weiner’s decision to seek treatment and take a leave was not enough to satisfy Pelosi, who wants him to step down, a Pelosi aide told CNN.

“Congressman Weiner has the love of his family, the confidence of his constituents and the recognition that he needs help. I urge Congressman Weiner to seek that help without the pressures of being a member of Congress,” Pelosi said earlier.

Now, while we’re all thinking “FINALLY!” to ourselves, I want to point out something ABC’s Jake Tapper tweeted earlier yesterday that really caught my eye. However, I can’t say that it honestly surprised me:

BUT it is true that this is the first time @NancyPelosi has called for a House Democrat to resign.

Like I said, I can’t say this honestly surprised me. The Democratic Party does have a habit of circling the wagons around their own when one of them is involved, or appears to be involved in, (usually the former) a scandal. Still, though, that’s quite a lot of scandals, and most of them never got anywhere near the amount of media coverage they would have gotten had these members had an “R” next to their name. In fact, had Pelosi been a Republican, I’m certain there would be widespread calls across the media, her own party, and the American people for her to step down (for that matter, she probably would have been defeated for reelection), but no, she’s still there as the top ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives.

So, to refresh our memories, I have compiled a list of scandals that have occurred within her party under her leadership. Though it’s probably fairer to her than she deserves, I have limited this list to scandals occurring or continuing solely during her term as Democratic House Leader, meaning no Barney Frank prostitution ring or Dan Rostenkowski. Furthermore, this list is limited to House members only during that period, meaning no Chris Dodd. I’m also not including Anthony Weiner because his case is fresh in our memory. I cannot claim that this list is authoritative–these are Democrats we’re talking about after all, meaning there’s always more scandals waiting to be uncovered. However, I did the best I can, so let’s take a look:

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