This video from 2009 involves members of Congress and the regime discussing the economic recovery plan (the stimulus) and how it should be spent. The video has comments inserted which are appropriate and worthy of discussion.

Notice how these folks are discussing how to spend our money and that the concern is that skilled white construction workers will get the jobs building bridges. The discussion is how to ensure people who might not have any skills get some of the recovery money. A video comment asks why don’t we hire the best people to build the bridge regardless of what color they are?

And excellent point except the stimulus money was not designed to stimulate the economy, it was designed to pay off political friends and to engage in social welfare. These people don’t care if bridges actually get built (have any been built) and they don’t care that bridges which might get built are built by people who are less skilled or unskilled so long as the money goes to minorities and other “disadvantaged” people.

Charlie Rangel starts discussing the flow of money and how the federal government is impeded by the pesky state legislatures. He says they need to come up with some method to bypass all that and force the states to take the money. This is how states get federal money with all kinds of strings attached. Robert Reich then says that it needs to be presented to governors and they can either sign or not but to hold them accountable.

In the end, Rangle assures everyone they will not have to worry about the middle class objecting because they will be too worried about putting food on the table and clothing their children.

In other words, don’t be concerned about the middle class. They will be too busy working to make ends meet to notice the social engineering taking place at the federal level with their hard earned money.

I guess Rangel was wrong. Looks like a lot of the middle class did pay attention and showed that in the 2010 election.

This is the goal of Democrats and particularly this regime. They want to redistribute wealth and they want to spend money on social programs under the guise of stimulating the economy.

Our families will have to drive over the bridges built by the least skilled workers.

Well, that sort of makes sense. This country (and by extension our families) is being led by the least skilled among us…

Cave Canem!
Never surrender, never submit.

Before I start, let me say that I admire Charlie Rangel’s military service to this country. On 30 November, 1950 he and his unit were attacked by the Chinese while he was serving in the Korean War. Rangel was wounded but managed, as a Private, to take control of about 30 soldiers and get them to safety in freezing temperatures. His actions saved them from capture and likely saved their lives. He received several medals for his heroism and for that, this nation should be grateful.

But that does not negate the fact that over the years that Rangel has served in Congress he has done things that would get the average citizen thrown in jail.

Yesterday, Rangel was censured by the Congress, a punishment just below expulsion. Rangel was found guilty of nearly a dozen ethics violations including not paying taxes for a rental property. This is particularly bad because Rangel was in charge of the group responsible for our tax laws. It is not likely that Rangel will be prosecuted for failure to pay his taxes. He has already paid what was reported that he owed and the matter will be considered settled. If he were the average guy on the street, he would be in jail.

Even the not so average guys go to jail. Wesley Snipes, the actor, was sentenced to three years in jail for failure to pay his taxes. Snipes was led to believe that there was no compelling law that required him to pay the taxes so he didn’t. The fact that he paid $5 million dollars (of the $15 million he owed) did not sway a judge and he will serve three years.

What is the difference between what Snipes did and what Rangel did? Rangel knew the tax laws and did not pay his taxes. He claimed that it was a mistake and poor bookkeeping. Snipes was told by his tax advisers that he did not have to pay the taxes and he didn’t.

Both men were guilty of not paying their taxes but one of them had to face Congress and have his censure read aloud while the other will spend three years behind bars.

To top it off, Snipes has not been accused of any other wrongdoing.

Snipes was made an example. His jail time is a direct message to those who think there is no law compelling them to pay taxes. This is an intimidation tactic to get people who think the same thing to stop and think before they decide not to pay taxes.

There are obviously two sets of rules. One set for the members of Congress (and other top government officials) and one set for the rest of us. How many people in the Obama Administration alone were outed as tax evaders only to pay what they owed and move into high paying positions?

Rangel made a big show of his censure proceedings and asked others to vote for a lesser punishment. People have talked about the embarrassment of standing in the well of the House floor while the censure is read by the Speaker.

I bet if one were to ask Wesley Snipes which punishment he preferred he would gladly stand in the well of the House and have a censure read.

And you can bet Rangel prefers this to three years in jail.

You can bet they would both prefer the Tim Geithner resolution where they could apologize for the oversight, pay the back taxes (no interest or penalties) and then move on with their lives.

At 80 years of age it is time for Rangel to consider retiring and enjoying the rest of his life.

And it is time for Congress to have real oversight where members are held as accountable as the poorest person in the country.

Cave Canem!
Never surrender, never submit.

I am constantly amazed at how dense some people can be. Take for instance, the people of Harlem in New York. Now that Charlie Rangel has been convicted of 11 ethics violations many of the Harlem folks say he should resign (though some, amazingly, still support him).

The news of Rangel’s corruption is not a recent thing. He has been under investigation for over two years and it was obvious to most everyone that he was guilty. How does one explain away using official stationary and postage to mail out fund raising material? That is against the law. Even if all the other allegations were on shaky ground, this one had hard evidence.

Evidently, so did the others as he was found guilty on 11 of 13. One was dismissed and the other was combined with one of the other allegations (so he was guilty on 12 of 13 original charges).

So the question is, why are all these folks from Harlem now calling for Charlie to step down? THEY JUST REELECTED HIM.

The people of Harlem had the chance to get rid of Rangel on their own and they chose to put him back in office.

And herein lies the issue. I am willing to bet that most of the people who voted for Rangel probably had no idea that he was under investigation. They probably just discovered the issue when the news broke that he had been convicted. The people of his district probably just vote for the Democrat they have elected in the past because he brings home the bacon and he must be a great guy.

It is people like these who keep putting career criminal politicians back in office.

So you folks have no real reason to ask him to resign. You just gave him the job again for two more years.

Maybe you can get better educated and start paying attention from now on.

Cave Canem!
Never surrender, never submit.

Charlie Rangel was found guilty of 11 ethics violations a day after he begged for more time because he did not have a lawyer and needed time to prepare. Rangel had two years to prepare and he had lawyers until a month ago. He claims they stopped representing him because he could no longer afford to pay them and he did not have time to set up a legal defense fund (he could have sold his Dominican villa).

Once again, he had two years. He knew he would have legal bills so he should have taken care of this long ago.

Rangel is a huckster. He likes to skirt the rules and he thinks he can get away with things because he is important and the rules just don’t apply to him.

The people on the ethics panel have had about enough of Rangel and his request was denied so he stormed out of the hearing. He was found guilty and is acting like there was some miscarriage of justice because he was not present (he walked out) and he had no lawyer.

Rangel could be expelled from Congress, and he should be, but he won’t. He will likely get a slap on the wrist, some letter of reprimand and no leadership assignments. So he will be able to continue skirting the laws and doing as he pleases while drawing a huge salary from taxpayer money.

Imagine how Rangel or any other member of Congress would react to a business leader who pulled the same stunts as Rangel. They would be calling for the person’s head on a platter. Congress gets high and mighty when some business person, like say a Wall Street executive, does something wrong and works hard to make sure that person pays for his sins.

If only Congress had the same intensity and moral compass when its own members commit the sins…

Sources:
New York Post
The Hill

Cave Canem!
Never surrender, never submit.

Is there nothing that Democrats will blame on George Bush? Obama inherited a bad economy (after Democrats were in charge of Congress) and it was Bush’s fault. Obama stubs his toe, Bush’s fault. Michelle Obama skips a period, Bush’s fault. Every time one turns around some Democrat (usually the cry baby Obama) is blaming George Bush for one problem or another.

Therefore, it should come as no surprise that Maxine Waters is blaming her ethical lapses on, wait for it…. George Bush.

Embattled Rep. Maxine Waters on Friday blamed the Bush administration for her ethics problems — saying she had to intervene with the Treasury Department on behalf of minority-owned banks seeking federal bailout funds — including one tied to her husband — because the Treasury Department wouldn’t schedule its own appointments. FOX News

There is no doubt that this Socialist broke the rules and did things she was not supposed to do. There is no doubt that she did something in her official capacity that benefited her and her husband financially. She probably did nothing different than many other politicians who have been entrenched in Congress for way too long but she got caught. As an aside, she and Charlie Rangel have been brought up on charges and face a public trial and both of them backed Hillary Clinton. I wonder if that played into this…

In any event the manipulation of facts in both cases is stunning. Rangel blames problems on Republicans who are out to get him and refuse to let him make a deal (as if he is discussing with Monty Hall) and he blames some lapses on his memory. He is an 80 year old man who might have forgotten. Here is a clue, then he does not belong in Congress.

As for Waters, she is blaming George Bush as if he called her up and told her to go ahead and help out the bank her husband was invested in. No, the person who actually helped her was Barney Frank who added wording to legislation to help out the bank.

That does not negate the fact that Waters did things she was not supposed to.

She broke the rules and she must pay. She is now forced to eat the very words she used against then Speaker Newt Gingrich and I love watching it happen. I hope she goes down in flames.

And if she does, well then I guess I am OK with Bush getting the credit for that part of it.

Maxine, you Socialist pig, no one twisted your arms and made you do bad things. You did them yourself so woman up and accept responsibility for what you did and quit blaming others.

And then do us all a favor and quit.

Cave Canem!
Never surrender, never submit.

Charlie Rangel and Maxine Waters (this Congresswoman is about Socialism – her words, not mine) are in some hot water. Rangel has had 13 charges brought against him after a two year investigation and he faces the possibility of a public trial on his many ethical violations. Waters is under investigation and might have a public trial as well. Both trials would come just prior to the November elections and would hurt the already battered Democrats.

It is important to note that Rangel and Waters wanted the trials. Before we get into it any further, it is important to recognize this. They wanted the trials, they will get them, and now a bunch of people are crying.

You see, Waters and Rangel are black so this must be targeted against them because of their color. The evidence is that several other members have been or are under investigation and they are black. Yep, there is a concerted effort to go after black members of Congress. Never mind the illegal things they have done, they are being targeted not because of their illegal acts but because of their color.

Of course this ignores the fact that plenty of white members of Congress are under investigation or have been investigated. The major difference between them and Rangel and Waters is that they did not want a public trial so they settled the matters against them long before it got to that point. Remember, Rangel and Waters are at this stage in the game because they wanted to have the trials. The most recent white members who have been in trouble resigned from Congress. Rangel and Waters did not reach a settlement and they did not resign. They wanted a public trial.

I guess they figured it would never get that far and by screaming for a public trial they figured people would assume they must be innocent. Now that they are getting their wishes many Democrats are distancing themselves from them and some are asking for Rangel to resign with dignity (this would assume he actually had any).

Rangel is a pimp. He rides around in a big car paid for by taxpayers and he acts like a pimp in the hood. He is a slick mac daddy who thinks that the rules do not apply to him so I doubt he will resign (but the right deal might make it happen).

While he is getting pressure to resign many are looking at things and making claims that blacks in Congress are being treated differently.

There’s a “dual standard, one for most members and one for African-Americans,” said one member of the Congressional Black Caucus, speaking on condition of anonymity. Politico

Oh really? Those poor blacks have a different standard. What a crock of BS. The reality of the situation is that Rangel has been given every benefit of the doubt for the past two years. There is no doubt to sensible people that Rangel broke the law on a number of occasions. He can claim ignorance but he broke the law (what was that about ignorance of the law being no excuse) and he should pay for it regardless of his color. Rangel benefited from his skin color and his party affiliation. Representative Massa resigned quickly after allegations that he sexually harassed male staffers. He was probably worried about what would be made public if they investigated him. He resigned to avoid embarrassment.

Massa is a white Democrat. Is there any doubt that if a Republican (regardless of color) had the baggage that Rangel has or committed the acts that Waters allegedly has that Republican would be investigated quickly, would not get the benefit of the doubt and would be guilty in the court of media opinion? Rangel has had a two year ride while they tried every which way to find a way out. Rangel wanted a trial so they had no choice but to give him one.

Now they are talking a deal. I believe that it would take a Republican on the committee to agree. No Republican should (neither should the Democrats). Rangel wanted this public trial and they should make sure he gets it. Nancy Pelosi promised to drain the swamp so let us have this trial so we can see what is at the bottom of it when it is drained.

I am tired of hearing about some racist motive every time a black person gets caught with his hand in the cookie jar. If they committed a crime then it matters not what color they are and it should not matter what party they are from, they should be held accountable for what they did.

The funny thing about this is the quoted item above. There is a standard for Congress and a different one for blacks in Congress. How about there is a different standard for Congress than there is for every other person in this country?

This is absolutely true. If any other person in a private business did the things that these people have done and are doing then they would be in jail. Many people in the private sector are hauled before Congress to be grilled over things they have done that are no different than what members of Congress have done. Sweetheart deals, kickbacks, jobs for family members, affairs with staffers, and who knows how many other infractions Congress members commit only to be excused while they are pointing fingers at others.

To top it all off, Congress investigates itself and the investigation involves the rules for the House or the Senate. It does not matter if they committed a serious crime if it is not in that rule book or if the people in Congress investigating it deem it to be no offense.

You won’t find that kind of system in the real world.

No, none of this has to do with the color of the skin of the people involved. It has everything to do with entrenched politicians who feel they are above the law. It is about people who have been doing this so long they do not think they have to follow the rules.

It is about power corrupting and it is about the need for term limits.

But it damn sure is not about color.

Throw all the bums out in November and start fresh.

Cave Canem!
Never surrender, never submit.

Like Tim Geithner and Charlie Rangel, John Kerry is not fond of taxes if he has to pay them. He is perfectly OK with voting for tax increases which he has done his entire career but when it comes to paying taxes, well that’s another thing all together. We already know that Kerry does not check the box on his Massachusetts tax form asking that he be taxed at the higher rate but now he has avoided six figures in tax by berthing his new, 7 million dollar yacht, in Rhode Island where he can avoid nearly a half million dollars in taxes up front and about 70,000 dollars in taxes yearly.

Isabel – Kerry’s luxe, 76-foot New Zealand-built Friendship sloop with an Edwardian-style, glossy varnished teak interior, two VIP main cabins and a pilothouse fitted with a wet bar and cold wine storage – was designed by Rhode Island boat designer Ted Fontaine.

But instead of berthing the vessel in Nantucket, where the senator summers with the missus, Teresa Heinz, Isabel’s hailing port is listed as “Newport” on her stern.

Could the reason be that the Ocean State repealed its Boat Sales and Use Tax back in 1993, making the tiny state to the south a haven – like the Cayman Islands, Bermuda and Nassau – for tax-skirting luxury yacht owners? Boston Herald

A spokesperson says it is berthed there for maintenance (how often should a new 7 million dollar boat need maintenance).

There is no coincidence here and the maintenance story is a ruse. The man does not want to pay taxes and he has found a way to avoid them. This is typical for the ruling class because they consider themselves better than the rest of us. Taxes are for the serfs, not for the elites who vote to impose them.

This guy is a fraud and is a perfect example of the Democrats who think taxes are a wondeful thing unless they have to pay them.

Of course, they like tax cuts in election years. But then again, hypocrisy reigns supreme among the liberal elite.

Where are the liberals screaming that he can afford to pay the money? Hell, he bought a 7 million dollar boat so he should be able to pay the half million in sales taxes and 70,000 dollar annual tax. He is depriving Massachusetts of money it desperately needs to pay for the bloated health care system and other social programs that are in the hole.

It is, after all, for the children.

Has he no shame? Where is his compassion?

Is he not a patriot? Joe Biden said paying taxes was patriotic so what does that make Kerry?

Scratch that, we already know he is not a patriot by his past anti American activities. Where is sheriff Joe Biden to police this up and make this man a patriot?

Never surrender, never submit.

The Democrats voted to rebuke Joe Wilson after he shouted “you lie” during Obama’s address to a joint session of Congress. The Democrats did not like what Wilson did and they will not stand for that kind of behavior. People who do wrong must be punished.

Charlie Rangel was found to have violated ethics rules when he accepted travel from a corporation that routinely lobbies Congress. The ethics panel found that the financing of the trip was improper for all members of the Congressional Black Caucus who went on it but Rangel was the only one found in violation because the others did not know the corporation paid for the trip.

So what did the Ethics Panel do about this infraction (one of many involving Rangel)? The Panel decided not to issue formal charges:

The committee decided against issuing formal charges against Rangel that could lead to punishment such as a censure.

The Panel decided against formal charges that could lead to punishment. Charlie Rangel deserves to be punished.

How is it that Wilson gets rebuked for shouting “you lie” but Rangel escapes charges?

This kind of puts Nancy “most ethical Congress” Pelosi in a bad position. What will she do with Rangel during this election year? He is sure to be a lightning rod during the upcoming campaign season.

If we are lucky this jive talking Don will not be in office next year.

Charlie Rangel is the moron Congressman from Harlem New York who acts more like a street hustler than a member of Congress. Rangel has been caught avoiding income taxes on property he owns and when it was exposed he claimed ignorance of the tax laws, the laws he writes since he heads that committee. He must be too busy pimping around in his expensive leased Caddy that the taxpayers foot the bill for to pay attention to his finances.

Rangel has four rent controlled apartments in New York when the laws says he can only have one and he uses one of them as an office even though that too is against the law. Now it looks as if Rangel used a DC Homestead exemption to avoid paying property taxes in the District.

This is a real problem because Rangel is not a resident of DC. He has property there because he works at the Capitol but his place of residence is New York. He must live in his district in order to represent it in Congress so that means he cannot take the Homestead credit in DC.

There are a number of other problems with what he has done and they all point to even more violations of the law (in addition to the violation that involves avoiding taxes) which could land Rangel in trouble, if someone would actually investigate the issue.

If He Were A Republican He’d Be Investigated

Democrats have no ethical principles so they will not investigate it. If a Republican breaks the law or some rule the Democrats are like bleating sheep making all kinds of noise and pointing out the infraction. Then they use the issue to tell America how ethical they are and how they deserve to be elected so that these kinds of things will not happen.

Of course, they happen quite frequently but Democrats refuse to investigate or put on some dog and pony show so it looks like they are investigating and then they leave it alone. Why is William Jefferson still in Congress?

I think that a new approach is in order and it is one that does not involve Congress. The people of New York (it might have to be limited to his district) need to file whatever papers are needed to have him removed from office because he is not a resident of Harlem. He has filed for, and received for a number of years, the DC Homestead credit which is only available to residents so Rangel has made himself a resident of DC.

He could probably argue that he was a resident of New York since he votes there. In that case they should offer him a new residence in a federal penitentiary. If he claims residency in one state and votes in another, illegal. If he filed the Homestead credit and he is not a resident, illegal. If he filed it to avoid taxes, very illegal. He has violated a number of laws and they should make him pay dearly for it. The linked article has all the pertinent information.

The Democrats should treat Rangel as they would were he a Republican.

That should get rid of him.

Known tax evader Charlie Rangel has partly satisfied his obligation to pay his taxes in that he wrote checks for the amount of money owed for the taxes he neglected to pay. However, Rangel has not paid any of the fines and penalties that should accompany his remittance to the IRS. The average citizen would be hounded to death with enormous fines and penalties. Rangel is the head of the committee that writes the tax laws. One would think he would know the rules so either he is incompetent and should be removed or he used his position to avoid taxes and he should be removed.

Rangel, true to liberal form, wasted no time in playing the victim in this mess. Rangel wrote a letter to his constituents, those who keep putting this crook in office, explaining that he has done nothing dishonorable and that he has no intention of stepping down from his chairman position, explaining to New Yorkers that he has never “violated the public trust.” I don’t know about anyone else but this seems like things that are dishonorable and violate the public’s trust:

…he didn’t pay taxes on rental income for a beach house in the Dominican Republic; he used three rent-stabilized apartments in Harlem, including one for a campaign office; he used his congressional stationery to drum up private donations to a college center named after him.

Now Rangel’s victim hood comes from his assertion that the Republicans had declared guerrilla war against Democrats and have made every attempt to smear ole Charlie and his fellow Democrats. This is how these deranged idiots think. If they get caught with their hands in the cookie jar then they are victims of an attack and smears but when a Republican gets caught nothing short of a public hanging will satisfy the left.

Charlie Rangel is doing damage control and trying to convince people that he is a victim and deserves to keep his position when in reality he should be booted out the door. We should apply the same standard that was applied to Tom Delay and the other Republicans who have been caught doing something wrong.

Let us keep in mind that Rangel is not the victim of guerrilla warfare. He is the victim of his own criminal acts. He probably assumed that after decades of using public office to get rich he would be immune from scrutiny but it seems that this is not so. If Republicans were responsible for exposing this criminal, good. It is about time they decided to play hardball with the other side’s corruption regardless of how long the left desires to ignore it.

As for Rangel. He was recently very crass when referring to Sarah Palin when he said she was “disabled.” One thing is certain, Rangel might think Palin is disabled but he is just plain stupid.

Source:
Yahoo News