Political Randomness

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Tue Apr 05, 2016 1:57 pm

The goal of working with a lawyer is to keep you legal. The news coverage on this has jumped to wild conclusions.

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Tue Apr 05, 2016 3:13 pm

Zarathud wrote:The goal of working with a lawyer is to keep you legal. The news coverage on this has jumped to wild conclusions.

There are no lawyers in their home countries?

At a minimum, the documents are going to show how they are getting around the laws of their home countries. Whether that is legal or not depends on those laws, and what's in the documents.

We all might be jumping to conclusions, but they certainly aren't wild. The squirming (that Max mentions) going on at a minimum illustrates that the documents are going to be embarrassing and/or politically damaging. Do I think some people are going to go to jail? Hard to tell. Do I think there are going to be other negative consequences? Almost certainly. There will be some high profile cases, a few lower profile that the media doesn't care about, and the rest will just be business as usual. Maybe with a different law firm now. Shrug.

Max Peck · Post by **Max Peck** » Tue Apr 05, 2016 5:37 pm

Zarathud wrote:The goal of working with a lawyer is to keep you legal. The news coverage on this has jumped to wild conclusions.

So, it's really about ethics in investigative journalism?

#HavensGate

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Tue Apr 05, 2016 9:31 pm

Political randomness? PC gaming? I think I'll try here instead.

Maybe this will be the first real test of the refund policy?

The Federal Election Commission is questioning Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Alpine, for his use of campaign funds to pay for video games on 68 separate occasions — something the congressman is attributing to a mistake by his son, followed by several unauthorized charges.

Hunter listed the $1,302 of Steam Games expenses on his campaign finance disclosure for 2015 year-end, with the notation “personal expense — to be paid back.”

The expenses run from Oct. 13 through Dec. 16, and no payback is listed during the time period of the report.

Hunter’s spokesman, Joe Kasper, said the congressman’s teenage son used his father’s credit card for one game, and then several unauthorized charges resulted after the father tried to close access to the website. Kasper said that Hunter is trying to have the unauthorized charges reversed before repaying his campaign account.

“There won’t be any paying anything back there, pending the outcome of the fraud investigation, depending on how long that takes,” Kasper said.

One game. Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Tue Apr 05, 2016 10:30 pm

Smoove_B wrote:Political randomness? PC gaming? I think I'll try here instead.

Maybe this will be the first real test of the refund policy?

The Federal Election Commission is questioning Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Alpine, for his use of campaign funds to pay for video games on 68 separate occasions — something the congressman is attributing to a mistake by his son, followed by several unauthorized charges.

Hunter listed the $1,302 of Steam Games expenses on his campaign finance disclosure for 2015 year-end, with the notation “personal expense — to be paid back.”

The expenses run from Oct. 13 through Dec. 16, and no payback is listed during the time period of the report.

Hunter’s spokesman, Joe Kasper, said the congressman’s teenage son used his father’s credit card for one game, and then several unauthorized charges resulted after the father tried to close access to the website. Kasper said that Hunter is trying to have the unauthorized charges reversed before repaying his campaign account.

“There won’t be any paying anything back there, pending the outcome of the fraud investigation, depending on how long that takes,” Kasper said.
One game. Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.

Hold a sec. Does that mean JetFred could be Duncan Hunter's son?

Quick, everybody hide!

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Tue Apr 05, 2016 10:39 pm

All he did was buy Train Simulator 2016 and 20% of the DLC!

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Wed Apr 06, 2016 12:30 am

GreenGoo wrote:
Zarathud wrote:The goal of working with a lawyer is to keep you legal. The news coverage on this has jumped to wild conclusions.
There are no lawyers in their home countries?

At a minimum, the documents are going to show how they are getting around the laws of their home countries. Whether that is legal or not depends on those laws, and what's in the documents.

Reconciling the tax effects on the same structures by two different countries gets tricky. I don't and won't opine on the law in foreign countries where I am not licensed to practice and have no expertise.

With globalization, there are many legitimate business opportunities to pursue around the world. Other times, part of the family travels to work in another country. Some countries don't allow you to disinherit a spouse or child who is estranged or unsuited to handle money, but you can lock up stock and business assets in other countries that don't follow those rules. There are plenty of reasons to seek legal advice other than tax planning (or evasion, if you have intent to abuse the law).

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Wed Apr 06, 2016 9:34 am

Isgrimnur wrote:All he did was buy Train Simulator 2016 and 20% of the DLC!

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Wed Apr 06, 2016 9:40 am

Zarathud wrote:
GreenGoo wrote:
Zarathud wrote:The goal of working with a lawyer is to keep you legal. The news coverage on this has jumped to wild conclusions.
There are no lawyers in their home countries?

At a minimum, the documents are going to show how they are getting around the laws of their home countries. Whether that is legal or not depends on those laws, and what's in the documents.
Reconciling the tax effects on the same structures by two different countries gets tricky. I don't and won't opine on the law in foreign countries where I am not licensed to practice and have no expertise.

With globalization, there are many legitimate business opportunities to pursue around the world. Other times, part of the family travels to work in another country. Some countries don't allow you to disinherit a spouse or child who is estranged or unsuited to handle money, but you can lock up stock and business assets in other countries that don't follow those rules. There are plenty of reasons to seek legal advice other than tax planning (or evasion, if you have intent to abuse the law).

While I certainly don't know personally, as I don't run in those circles

, but I've always assumed there were plenty of legit ways to make and protect money "offshore". For example, it never dawned on me to judge what you do for a living as anything other than completely legit.

That said, I've also always assumed that many rich people (not middle classs rich, world dominating rich) do things that the rest of us don't know the details to and couldn't afford it if we did. Some of those things are certainly going to be gray areas at best, or outright illegal at worst. I know these things because news articles tell us these things. I also feel like it's common sense that people will try to get away with whatever they can, especially if they have an elevated sense of self worth and importance. i.e. the rules are for other people. When a dictator raids his country's coffers and then absconds with them, I'm guessing he isn't too concerned with the legalities of what he does with them.

As for these documents, I guess we'll see. 1.1 million legal documents can't be a lot of fun to go through, and requires specialized knowledge to even understand the legal ramifications. It'll take time. I'm patient and willing to wait and see.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Wed Apr 06, 2016 2:31 pm

A new era dawns in Wisconsin

Justice Rebecca Bradley was elected Tuesday to a 10-year seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, defeating state Appeals Judge JoAnne Kloppenburg in a bitter, highly charged race.
...
The race, officially nonpartisan but typically -- like the court itself -- split along ideological lines, has been marked by millions of dollars in television ad spending, most of it from the conservative group Wisconsin Alliance for Reform in seeking to help Bradley’s candidacy.

It has also featured:

Pitched debate over Walker’s role in appointing Bradley to the court -- the third time in three years the governor placed Bradley in a judicial role.

Questions about Kloppenburg’s ties to liberals -- presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders both advocated a vote for her.

And criticism over Bradley’s 1992 college-era writings in which she called AIDS patients and homosexuals degenerates, compared abortion to the Holocaust and slavery, and wrote that an author legitimately suggested women play a role in date rape. Bradley has repeatedly apologized for what she wrote about AIDS patients and homosexuals as a Marquette University student.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Wed Apr 06, 2016 5:01 pm

We don't think much of our neighbors to the north (along the lines of "hey cheesehead, you must have cow shit for brains!")

A poll cited on CNN yesterday said 43% consider themselves moderately liberal and 25% extremely liberal. So 68% liberal, trending towards moderate. So they elect this non-liberal judge to go along with their jackhole governor and throw in for ultra-liberal Bernie. Cow shit indeed.

Defiant · Post by **Defiant** » Wed Apr 06, 2016 5:10 pm

which might explain

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Fri Apr 08, 2016 6:59 pm

Florida Man makes TV commercial personally attacking private citizen.

Republican Florida Gov. Rick Scott's campaign slammed a woman who shouted him down in a Starbucks this week as an "anarchist" who refused to say the Pledge of Allegiance in a video released Friday.

"You may have seen this video of a terribly rude woman at a coffee shop cursing and screaming at Gov. Scott," a voiceover begins the video, which is dubbed "Latte Liberal Gets An Earful."

The woman, identified by local media as former Palm Beach County Commissioner Cara Jennings, shouted, "you're an asshole!" when Scott walked into a Gainesville, Florida Starbucks.

After cutting to Jennings questioning Scott's oft-repeated promise to create one million jobs, the voiceover continues: "Well, that woman clearly has a problem. And it turns out she’s a former government official who refused to say the Pledge of Allegiance and calls herself an anarchist."

Captain Caveman · Post by **Captain Caveman** » Fri Apr 08, 2016 7:15 pm

Holman wrote:Florida Man makes TV commercial personally attacking private citizen.

Republican Florida Gov. Rick Scott's campaign slammed a woman who shouted him down in a Starbucks this week as an "anarchist" who refused to say the Pledge of Allegiance in a video released Friday.

"You may have seen this video of a terribly rude woman at a coffee shop cursing and screaming at Gov. Scott," a voiceover begins the video, which is dubbed "Latte Liberal Gets An Earful."

The woman, identified by local media as former Palm Beach County Commissioner Cara Jennings, shouted, "you're an asshole!" when Scott walked into a Gainesville, Florida Starbucks.

After cutting to Jennings questioning Scott's oft-repeated promise to create one million jobs, the voiceover continues: "Well, that woman clearly has a problem. And it turns out she’s a former government official who refused to say the Pledge of Allegiance and calls herself an anarchist."

Well that'll drive down her negatives.

I mean, really, WTF?

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Fri Apr 08, 2016 7:25 pm

Just because she is an idiot doesn't mean he is not an asshole.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Wed Apr 13, 2016 12:45 pm

Affluenza teen gets jail time:

Ethan Couch appeared in adult court for the first time Monday, when a judge announced he is ordering the 19-year-old to serve four 180 day terms consecutively, one term for each of the four people who died in a 2013 drunken driving wreck involving the teen.
...
The judge also set several conditions for Couch's probation when he does leave jail. Couch will not be allowed to drink, use drugs or drive, and he will be required to meet regularly with a community supervision officer.
...
The adult court judge could make prison a condition of any future probation violation. In such a case, Couch could face up to 40 years behind bars -- 10 years for each of the four people who died in the 2013 wreck.

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Fri Apr 15, 2016 1:12 pm

A conservative website is calling on former University of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow to run for a newly vacant U.S. House of Representatives seat in the state, describing the favorite son as "the perfect fit" for the spot.

In an editorial titled "Tim Tebow for Congress," the editors of Red Alert Politics endorse Tebow, who famously won two national championships and a Heisman award at the University of Florida, for Florida's 4th district.
The district, which encompasses the Jacksonville-area, is where Tebow grew up, and was represented by Congressman Ander Crenshaw, a Republican who is retiring.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/04/15/politics/ ... index.html

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Sat Apr 16, 2016 12:32 pm

Interesting that CNN fails to mention this anywhere but many others have picked up the story.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/16/world ... .html?_r=0

Saudi Arabia has told the Obama administration and members of Congress that it will sell off hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth of American assets held by the kingdom if Congress passes a bill that would allow the Saudi government to be held responsible in American courts for any role in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

The Obama administration has lobbied Congress to block the bill’s passage, according to administration officials and congressional aides from both parties, and the Saudi threats have been the subject of intense discussions in recent weeks between lawmakers and officials from the State Department and the Pentagon. The officials have warned senators of diplomatic and economic fallout from the legislation.

Adel al-Jubeir, the Saudi foreign minister, delivered the kingdom’s message personally last month during a trip to Washington, telling lawmakers that Saudi Arabia would be forced to sell up to $750 billion in treasury securities and other assets in the United States before they could be in danger of being frozen by American courts.

Several outside economists are skeptical that the Saudis will follow through, saying that such a sell-off would be difficult to execute and would end up crippling the kingdom’s economy. But the threat is another sign of the escalating tensions between Saudi Arabia and the United States.

Defiant · Post by **Defiant** » Sat Apr 16, 2016 12:38 pm

You mean like this?

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Sat Apr 16, 2016 4:50 pm

Defiant wrote:You mean like this?

Which was several hours later than everyone else making it top headlines. They seem really slow on a lot of news these days.

tjg_marantz · Post by **tjg_marantz** » Sat Apr 16, 2016 5:26 pm

CNN fails to mention this anywhere

several hours later

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Sat Apr 16, 2016 5:32 pm

tjg_marantz wrote:
CNN fails to mention this anywhere

several hours later

I didn't move the goalposts. When I posted they didn't have anything up about it. So I guess father time moved it.

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Sat Apr 16, 2016 6:15 pm

I don't understand, if CNN isn't a news source you respect, why you would care when they covered it?

I get that timely coverage is something we expect and want, and I could even understand idly wondering why a certain news outlet hadn't jumped on the bandwagon yet. Thinking it's interesting enough to comment on, well, I think your tolerance is lower than mine.

I guess breitbart was on it in a timely fashion? See, I wouldn't know, since I'm not worried about whether they are part of a conspiracy theory or not.

Defiant · Post by **Defiant** » Sat Apr 16, 2016 6:19 pm

Rip wrote: When I posted they didn't have anything up about it.

I posted 6 minutes after you did, and according to google search, it had been put up "7 hours ago", which would have been hours before either of us posted.

tjg_marantz · Post by **tjg_marantz** » Sat Apr 16, 2016 10:36 pm

Stop it you!

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Wed Apr 20, 2016 1:28 pm

CNN

A bipartisan bill to let families victimized by the 9/11 terrorist attacks sue Saudi Arabia ran into sharp setbacks Monday, as the White House threatened a veto and a GOP senator privately sought to block the measure.
...
Speaking to reporters Monday, White House spokesman Josh Earnest fired back, warning that it would jeopardize international sovereignty and put the U.S. at "significant risk" if other countries adopted a similar law.

"It's difficult to imagine a scenario where the President would sign it," Earnest said.

The bill, which Schumer and Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas are pushing, would prevent Saudi Arabia and other countries alleged to have terrorist ties from invoking their sovereign immunity in federal court.
...
Cornyn said that while several senators originally had placed holds on the measure, they had all relented save one.

"I think part of the concern is that somehow this is a thumb in the eye to Saudi Arabia, a valuable ally," he said. He then defended the bill, saying, "It's not open-ended and it's not targeted at Saudi Arabia."
...
Paul Callan, a CNN legal analyst, warned that the bill could impact the U.S. if another country were to retaliate against Americans drone attacks, for instance.

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Wed Apr 20, 2016 7:38 pm

http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/04/ ... -1-percent

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Wed Apr 20, 2016 7:47 pm

Turns out that some rich people choose society over chaos. It's in their self interest.

Although the idea that the Democrats are selling out is ludicrous Bernie-ism. Clinton moderated the Democrat's anti-business stance in the 1990s. The Republicans have chased extremism, and have left a void. Any raft works in the Trump-Cruz maelstrom.

Defiant · Post by **Defiant** » Thu Apr 21, 2016 10:31 am

Turns out, Politicians Keep Most Of Their Promises

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Mon Apr 25, 2016 3:10 am

Do Cruz and Kasich possibly not see how openly colluding plays right into Trump's hand?

Amazing after having pitched this fit right after Michigan.

The Cruz campaign lost all of the available slots and accused the Trump and Kasich teams of forming an unholy alliance to block the Texas senator.

"The Trump and Kasich people stopped that and they kind of had a deal and they wanted their leadership to push through their votes," said Saul Anuzis, a former Michigan GOP chairman and Cruz delegate.

Anuzis said his team tried to ensure that convention attendees could cast a secret ballot for the RNC committee assignments. The proposal wasn't approved.

"John Kasich has decided to bypass any attempt to blur his rationale for staying in the race, and is now openly auditioning for Donald Trump's Vice President slot," Anuzis added in an email. "That's the only possible reason for him to instruct his campaign to join forces with Trump for votes on convention committee assignments."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/pos ... -michigan/

I voted for Cruz but I can't help but take note of his Clinton like tactics. Accuse someone of doing something and then doing yourself shortly after.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Mon Apr 25, 2016 11:11 am

Clinton always was an innovator.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Mon Apr 25, 2016 11:36 am

Rip wrote:Do Cruz and Kasich possibly not see how openly colluding plays right into Trump's hand?

I don't think it really matters. Even if they weren't, Trump would just say they were. He's shown that he has zero problem with making shit up.

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 2:13 am

Obama's wall just got 5 feet taller.

http://www.nbcwashington.com/investigat ... 29721.html

Fitzy · Post by **Fitzy** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 6:23 am

Rip wrote:Obama's wall just got 5 feet taller.

http://www.nbcwashington.com/investigat ... 29721.html

It's a wonderful metaphor and proof the Trump wall will fail.

They keep building the WH wall higher, it's patrolled, it has heavy surveillance and yet people still go over, around and throw things over.

The WH wall is a few hundred yards. Imagine this along thousands of miles. That's going to work real well.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 10:09 am

Fitzy wrote:
The WH wall is a few hundred yards. Imagine this along thousands of miles. That's going to work real well.

Hey, it worked for Hadrian and the Ming Dynasty. Kind of. And wall counter-measures can't have changed that much in a few thousand years, right? Millennia-old tech, don't fail us now!

Pyperkub · Post by **Pyperkub** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 12:37 pm

The Drumpf Wonder of the World!

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 2:36 pm

If Trump gets elected president, I would love for his first words to be "I'm not building a f**king wall! How dumb do you think I am? That's a guaranteed boondoggle of epic proportions".

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Thu Apr 28, 2016 2:41 pm

Until he sets up a public-private partnership to advertise the length of the wall. Prime rates for Baja and Nuevo Laredo.

Defiant · Post by **Defiant** » Fri Apr 29, 2016 2:48 pm

For any West Wing fans, CJ giving a real press briefing

Pyperkub · Post by **Pyperkub** » Fri Apr 29, 2016 3:32 pm

Defiant wrote:For any West Wing fans, CJ giving a real press briefing

That's great, thanks!