Is The Secretive Carlyle Group in Charge of Spying for America?

You have to wonder what Edward Snowden saw that was so horrific and egregious it would make him give up everything for nothing in return.  He was making around $200,000 a year working in paradise, now he will be on the run for the rest of his life.  It really makes me wonder about a lot of things that are going on. 

"You can't come forward against the world's most powerful intelligence agencies and be completely free from risk because they're such powerful adversaries. No one can meaningfully oppose them. If they want to get you, they'll get you in time. 

But at the same time you have to make a determination about what it is that's important to you. And if living unfreely but comfortably is something you're willing to accept, and I think it many of us are it's the human nature; you can get up everyday, go to work, you can collect your large paycheck for relatively little work against the public interest, and go to sleep at night after watching your shows."

Edward Snowden

  

I started thinking, how is it that jobs that you thought only your government legally could do are being outsourced on a massive scale to private contractors.  Edward Snowden worked for Booz Allen Hamilton, so I started wondering, who is that contractor and how did they get this government contract?  

The Obama Administration claims they had no idea the spying program existed nor did they know world leaders were having their private communications spied on.

According to an article in the Washington Post by Neil Irwin, “Seven Facts About Booz Allen Hamilton”

Booz has 24,500 employees, $5.8 billion in revenue for its 2013 fiscal year, $219 million in profits and a stock market value of $2.5 billion.

It's majority-owned by the Carlyle Group.  Carlyle, who owns 67.3 percent of Booz Allen's stock, is a global private equity giant having $176 billion in assets managed in 114 different funds.

The article goes on to say that 99% of Booz Allen Hamilton's revenues come from services they provide to the U.S. government.  They reported operating income of less than $200 million on revenue of $5.1 billion.  That’s pretty staggering and what’s even more crazy is that their bottom line was 9 times higher in 2013 than it was in 2010.  That year, 2010 was the same year that the “tea party” came into existence and Republicans took over the House of Representatives.

So the U.S. government is the source of basically ALL of their $5.1 billion in revenue.  And, they are almost exclusively owned by the Carlyle Group.

Sometimes called the Ex-Presidents Club, Carlyle has a glittering array of ex-politicians and big league bankers on its board. Former secretary of state James Baker is managing director while ex-secretary of defence Frank Carlucci is chairman. George Bush senior is an adviser. John Major heads up its European operations. 

In the wake of 11 September came a fear of anthrax attack. One company that benefited was Pittsburgh- based IT Group, which won a number of contracts to clean up anthrax-infected buildings, including the Hart Senate Office Building. Carlyle owned 25 per cent of the firm, which it subsequently sold on. Likewise its investment in US Investigation Services, a company that specialises in checking the background of employees, saw business improve dramatically.

Well, talk about taking lemons and making lemonade.  Not only did they make a shitload cleaning up after the anthrax attack, but they were able to use that as an excuse to go to war and war is where the Carlyle Group really makes a killing.

The Carlyle Group was the subject of a documentary called “Iron Triangle The Carlyle Group” the Bush family, the Saudi Royal family, Osama Bin Laden’s family and Donald Rumsfeld’s inner circle are just some of the high profile figures who have played a direct role in the rise of one of the most powerful and influential and secretive firms in Washington.

So the Carlyle Group has been conducting all the spying and surveillance in the U.S. that encompasses every country and government in the world.    Under the Obama Administration more whistleblowers and journalist have been threatened and prosecuted than under all other presidents combined.  

According to an article in Mother Jones titled “Obama’s War on Whistleblowers”, this White House has leaked information favorable to Obama without regard for National Security while crushing whistleblowers who release information that is not favorable. 

So if these private contractors conduct surveillance on everyone in the United States and the World including World Leaders, what is to keep them from cherry picking information that will further enrich or empower themselves even if it means spying on world leaders or to an extreme, having them eliminated?

The secret information is used by Obama to determine who will be killed in extrajudicial drone attacks.  What’s to keep these private contractors from passing on the names of their adversaries for elimination by the Obama Administration?

In an article written in The Nation by Lee Fang titled “How Spy Agency Contractors Have Already Abused Their Powers”, the dangers of these agencies contracted by the U.S. Government to Spy are enumerated.

Could the sprawling surveillance state enable government or its legion of private contractors to abuse their technology and spy upon domestic political targets or judges?

Two years ago, a batch of stolen e-mails revealed a plot by a set of three defense contractors (Palantir Technologies, Berico Technologies and HBGary Federal) to target activists, reporters, labor unions and political organizations.

The plans— one concocted in concert with lawyers for the US Chamber of Commerce to sabotage left-leaning critics, like the Center for American Progress and the SEIU, and a separate proposal to “combat” WikiLeaks and its supporters, including Glenn Greenwald, on behalf of Bank of America— fell apart after reports of their existence were published online.

The episode also shows that Greenwald, who helped Snowden expose massive spying efforts in the United States, had been targeted by spy agency contractors in the past for supporting whistleblowers and WikiLeaks.

While Palantir boasts that its government-backed technology is geared towards helping the military track terrorists, stolen e-mails from HBGary Federal show the firm and its senior executives were eager to use its platform on behalf of the Chamber, one of the largest corporate lobbying associations.

In the fall of 2010, the Chamber had received unflattering attention, first from a New York Times piece about allegedly laundered money from AIG, and then from my reporting at the Center for American Progress’ Think Progress blog about foreign funds flowing to the Chamber’s 501(c)(6) entity used to run campaign advertisements. 

So according to Lee Fang’s Nation Magazine article, in the fall of 2010 (the year the tea party took over the house) the Chamber of Commerce allegedly laundered funds from AIG and facilitated the flowing of foreign funds to the Chamber’s 501(c)(6) entity to run campaign advertisements.   Are the secret spy agencies funded by the U.S. Government using information to affect the outcomes of elections to ensure an uninterrupted flow of governmental money into their coffers?  I think the answer is yes.

An article in the Oregonian entitled “Wyden, Blumenauer say private contractors play too powerful a role in spy agencies”,

Sen. Ron Wyden and Rep. Earl Blumenauer told a Portland audience Friday that the U.S. intelligence network relies too heavily on hundreds of thousands of private contractors who have gained top security clearances.

In addition, Wyden, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said after their appearance that the panel is close to releasing a report showing that contractors played a major role in the "interrogations and torture" of terrorism suspects.

Blumenauer, who has also been critical of government surveillance activities, said some 500,000 contractors are among the one million Americans who have top-security classifications.

Sheesh, who doesn’t have top-security classification.  Is it any wonder that Edward Snowden feared for his life?  Is it any wonder the Glenn Greenwald fears for his freedom as an investigative reporter protected by the First Amendment?  Why was Michael Savage banned in Britain?  It doesn’t make any sense. 

Why were warnings from Russia about Tamerlan Tsarnaev ignored by the FBI?  Would a terrorist attack on Boston suit the purposes of these private spying contractors?

I think there’s a lot to be learned in knowing more about these “private, secret societies” like the Carlyle Group that are conducting our spying.  We need to know how much these agencies have gained financially since 9/11/01. 

By Patricia Baeten

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Edward Snowden the International Gift That Keeps on Giving

Well, well it seems the Bush Doctrine of belligerent foreign policy has not only been continued but “enhanced” by the Obama Administration.  Now there are some in the international playground with their undies in a bundle.  Angela Merkel is not happy that her personal, private phone calls have been intercepted and monitored, nor are the presidents of Mexico or Brazil. 

This is the biggest foreign policy disaster since George Bush’s spy plane was shot down over China on April Fool’s Day 2001. 

Bush’s in your face foreign policy started with China, by announcing his decision to sell advanced anti-missile air defense systems to Taiwan.  The announcement served no military purpose because the destroyers wouldn’t be ready until 2006, but Bush was appeasing the extreme right of the Republican Party who were still fighting communism.

The systems didn’t even work; they failed every test that Bush tried, even the one where they put a sensor on the nose of the dummy missile to attract the anti-missile interceptor.  But that didn’t matter they were going to show how tough they were to China and enrich the defense contractors to boot.

Well, during a saber rattling demonstration of their power, Bush and Cheney decided to fly a spy plane over China.  During this maneuver our spy plane flew into one of two Chinese spy planes that were spying on our spy plane.  A Chinese pilot was killed and our spy plane was forced to land in Hainan, China.

Bush’s immediate reaction was strident, demanding the US pilots be released and the Chinese return our spy plane without boarding or looking at it.  (And he demanded the pilots have their bibles.)  The Chinese pretty much laughed at Bush and told him he had to apologize first.  They said he had to apologize and say pretty please to get the spy plane back.  Bush hesitated so the Chinese said he had to say I’m sorry, pretty please with a cherry on top can I have my spy plane?

After much squealing and bravado, Bush apologized and our most sophisticated spy plane was completely dismantled by Chinese aeronautic scientists, taking every bit of US technological advancements available.  The plane was then boxed up and shipped to Bush, C.O.D. 

God what some dopes, and to think this administration is even more stupid than that. 

Let’s take a walk down memory lane.  On May 20, 2013 Edward Snowden, a 29 year-old whistleblower who was employed by CIA contractor Booz Allen Hamilton, fled to Hong Kong.  Snowden had revealed classified information to Guardian journalist, Glenn Greenwald, about a massive international communication surveillance program being conducted in secret by the NSA in the U.S. 

When his story was revealed and that he was hiding in Hong Kong, Snowden garnered the sympathy of people of the world.  His act of civil disobedience in blowing the whistle on the United States government’s massive spying program made him a hero to citizens of the world. 

The Obama Administration immediately began demanding that Hong Kong extradite Snowden to the US to face espionage charges.  In response, hundreds of demonstrators took to Hong Kong’s streets voicing support for Snowden, calling for the arrest of Obama.  Pro-Snowden demonstrations broke out around the world.   

Then the Obama Justice Department tried to legally extradite Snowden but bungled their attempt.  The extradition request did not fully comply with Hong Kong law so Snowden was free to leave.  Hong Kong also requested the U.S. to clarify reports from Snowden that the NSA had hacked into computers in Hong Kong violating the rights of their citizens.

So, from Hong Kong Snowden fled to Moscow with the intention of flying to Cuba and on to Venezuela. But a pissed off Obama revoked Snowden’s Visa so he couldn’t travel and demanded Russia extradite Snowden.  Well, we don’t have an extradition treaty with Russia and Snowden didn’t have a Russian Visa, so Snowden was stuck there.  He began requesting asylum from any country.

While Snowden was stuck in Russia, Obama was all over the map, with “I don’t care about Snowden” to threats to any country’s leader that would allow asylum.  At one point, Putin said “It is Like Shearing a Pig There’s Lots of Squealing and Little Fleece”.  In the end Putin allowed Snowden to remain in Russia.

Now we find out Merkel’s phone has been tapped by the NSA since 2002, under George W. Bush.  Makes you wonder what private information Bush was thinking about while meeting all those world leaders.  You wonder when looking at his facial expressions and body language as he’s meeting foreign leaders “what personal information did he have on them?”    

 So Edward Snowden is just the “Gift that Keeps on Giving”.  Makes you excited to see the next chapter of this saga.

By Patricia Baeten

GOP Eats Their Tea Party Young

Ah, yes.  It was just a matter of time before the GOP would recoil from its begotten.  The GOP sold its soul long ago.  They were patient in building their Frankenstein’s monster.  It took over 30 years, but it’s here and now it’s turning on them.

The GOP was once a somewhat noble party, or as noble as Republicans could ever get.  The party of Goldwater is gone.  It didn’t just disappear though; it was extinguished by the Reaganites. 

The eleventh commandment as it is called, “thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican” was originally coined by California Republican Party Chairman Gaylord Parkinson.  The commandment was used to solidify the Republican Party after the 1964 defeat of Barry Goldwater in the presidential election.  Goldwater was labeled an extremist for his conservative positions and declared unfit to hold office by fellow Republicans.

Reagan picked up the “commandment” during his first five primaries of the 1976 Republican primary race against incumbent Gerald Ford and lost all of them.  He abandoned this approach in the North Carolina Primary and defeated Ford 52-46.  Reagan’s attacks weakened Ford and cost him the general election.

The Republican party before and after George W. Bush, began threatening its members to vote in lock step or the party would not financially support their candidacies.  They purged the party of any member who did not toe the party line.  This was particularly evident in the Medicare Part D legislation under George W. Bush.

Representative Billy Tauzin R-LA was the architect of the Medicare Part D prescription drug legislation.  The law was a nightmare for seniors and pharmacists but brought huge profits to the drug manufacturers who paid Tauzin handsomely in return.  In order to pass the bill, the party leadership, including Rep. John Boehner R-OH walked the floor, delivering threats and twisting arms.  Boehner passed out checks from the tobacco industry to purchase their votes. 

One former Representative, Nick Smith R-MI was retiring and was against the bill.  His son, who was running for his seat, was offered a $100,000 contribution and national support if Smith would vote for the bill.  If he didn’t they would run a candidate against his son and cut off all money and GOP support.

Well, the rest is history.  So when the “Tea Party” was conjured up like Frankenstein in a GOP friendly laboratory funded by the Koch Brothers and their many conservative think tanks, all was happy in GOP land. 

As these crazy’s, many who appeared to be on Social Security and probably Social Security Disability due to low I.Q.’s and schizophrenia, were bused across the U.S. to show up in Democratic town hall meetings on Obamacare, it was great fun for the GOP to watch. 

These people were filmed dressed in Colonial Tea Party attire with teabags stapled to their hats, like one big Halloween party screaming for smaller government or better yet no government.  What they didn’t know was, with no government they wouldn’t receive their Social Security checks, Disability checks and the Post Office wouldn’t deliver their badly needed Psychotropic drugs.

Well, it’s always fun until someone loses an eye.  Pretty soon these nut jobs were getting out of hand and their puppet masters, the Koch Brothers started running candidates against any Republican with a modicum of sanity.  While their candidates were adored by the Tea Party and won contests on the state level, on the national level they were seen as what they were, nuts.

The Tea Party had a level of success in the U.S. House of Representatives.  The House holds elections every two years, after all how much harm could they do in two years. 

The House Tea Party was pretty well held in check until the Tea Party was able to get a couple U.S. Senators elected, Ted Cruz R-TX (naturally) and Mike Lee R-UT.  Good old Ted told the Tea Party in the House to ignore Boehner and demand the government be shut down if the demands to repeal Obamacare were not met.   

They were told they could blame it on Democrats for not caving to their demands and there was plenty of money and if the government defaulted on their debt, it wasn’t a big deal.

Now that the polls show national revulsion over shutting down an entire government for no reason, the Republicans are boxed in and losing ground fast, very fast.

For instance, we are seeing headlines like:

Texas Judge Carlo Key Flees the GOP: ‘These Are Not My Values’

Carlo Key, a judge in Bexar County, Texas, has left the Republican Party, and he blames the Tea Party. “Rational Republican beliefs have given way to ideological character assassination,” says Key in a video announcing his switch to the Democratic Party, ahead of his reelection campaign. “Make no mistake, I have not left the Republican Party. It left me.”

Fox News is heading for the fainting couches over an Alan Grayson campaign ad seen here:

Ha ha, they have demanded an apology from Representative Grayson, who said “fat chance, if the hood fits wear it”. 

Maybe Fox should be listening to Texas Judge Carlo Key mentioned above.  His reason for leaving the GOP was this:

Key’s big concern, like so many Americans who have voiced their disapproval of the GOP, is with values. His local party supported a San Antonio City Council member, Elisa Chan, who was caught making derisive comments about the local LGBT community, calling its members “disgusting” and “unfit to be parents.” As an elected official, Key was expected to attend a press conference where he—and others—would defend Chan. He couldn’t do it. “I got in my car,” said Key in an interview with The Daily Beast, “and I said, ‘I just can’t go. These are not my values.”

More headlines:

In Utah, tea party favorite Sen. Lee faces GOP backlash over government shutdown

Lee’s approval ratings in Utah have cratered, and prominent Republicans and local business executives are openly discussing the possibility of mounting a primary challenge against him. Top Republicans are also maneuvering to redesign the party’s nomination system in a way that would likely make it more difficult for Lee to win reelection in 2016.

Tea party tactics cause business groups to rethink GOP support

"If I was your political broker, my advice would be that you sell your Republican shares and buy the Democrats," Bill Graves, chief executive officer of the American Trucking Associations, said at the group's annual convention in Orlando, Fla.

Yes, it was just a matter of time.  But Democrats shouldn’t be too excited because their rank and file are not much better.  Democrats would be well advised to take to heart what is happening in the Republican Party and have a real shakeup in their own party.  Hapless Harry Reid and Lousy Nancy Pelosi have to go; they are holding the party back.  We need new leadership, fast. 

Elizabeth Warren needs to be the new Democratic Senate Leader and Alan Grayson needs to be the leader in the House.  It is time for real Democrats to take over and hold the Obama Administration responsible for the train wreck that is Obamacare.  It needs to be completely revamped from an insurance company executive retirement plan to a real healthcare plan for the American people.

We need a new Attorney General, Eric Holder has to go.  There are too many in the Obama Administration that are way too cozy with the criminals on Wall Street. 

Our 100 year commitment to the Federal Reserve expires in December.  It is time to take a long, hard look at the Private Banking Companies that comprise the Federal Reserve. 

What better time to break our ties with the Privately Owned Federal Reserve Bank, than when they have bought up all those worthless mortgage backed securities they have been sticking the American treasury with.

Happy Halloween GOP, your monsters have arrived.

By Patricia Baeten

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Makers Takers and Rakers - JP Morgan's $13 Billion Dollar Sweetheart Deal

If you listen to Fox News or Billionaire Koch Brothers sponsored talk radio, you may have heard Frank Luntz’ focus group tested latest Republican catch phrase “makers and takers”.  Yes, that’s right in America there are makers and takers with billionaires and corporations being the “makers” and the American people being the “takers”.

Frank Luntz, the Fox News wordsmith who puts together focus groups and tests phrases to see what conjures up the most vitriolic response from his Republican audience, came up with the phrase “makers and takers”. 

Recently while I was watching C-Span’s Washington Journal, a caller said he was a 100% disabled American Veteran and relied on food stamps to survive.  Many, many callers spoke of how they worked full-time and could not afford to feed their families, even with two minimum wage incomes. Next came a call from a Republican caller who brought up the “makers and takers” talking point.  This is the point Republicans use to justify cutting supplemental nutritional assistance for the American people as well as social security and medicare.

“Right now about 60% of Americans get more benefits in dollar value than they pay back in taxes”

Paul Ryan Republican Vice-Presidential Candidate 2012

So according to Ryan and Republicans the “takers” are the American people and the “makers” are billionaires and corporations.  When Ryan said that “60% of Americans get more benefits in dollar value than they pay back in taxes” it reminded me of an article I read some time ago.

Apple announced $9.5bn in profits in the first quarter of 2013. According to corporate filings, Apple allocates more than 70 percent of its profits overseas to countries with lower tax rates.

These profits are held in subsidiaries in countries like the Netherlands and Ireland before being moved again to offshore tax havens in the Caribbean - in a move Apple is said to have pioneered known as the 'Double Irish with a Dutch Sandwich'.

According to an investigation by the NYT last year the company thus avoids a standard US tax rate of 35 percent.

Many other big corporations, such as Google or General Electric, also avoid paying billions in tax, largely by channeling income offshore to countries like Bermuda.

           

In 2010, General Electric raked in $4.2bn in profits - paid no taxes and in fact received a $3bn refund.

That’s right, in 2010 General Electric raked in $4.2 billion in profits, paid no taxes and got a $3 billion dollar refund.  Yet, according to Paul Ryan, “60% of Americans get more benefits in dollar value than they pay back in taxes”.  So GE is a “maker” and the disabled American Veteran on food stamps is a “taker”. 

Yesterday I saw a headline on Google News that stated:

JPMorgan in tentative $13 billion deal with U.S. Justice Department: source (Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase & Co has reached a tentative $13 billion agreement with the U.S. Justice Department to settle government agency investigations into bad mortgage loans the bank sold to investors before the financial crisis, a source said on Saturday.

So $13 billion, sounds like a lot doesn’t it?  Wrong, it’s chicken feed. 

 

Yes, that arrogant smirking prick wearing his "Presidential Seal" cufflinks took over $500 billion or a half trillion in TARP (Toxic Asset Releif Program) Funds to get bailed out of the worthless mortgage backed securities they dumped into retirement funds and municipal bonds which was illegal, and they are going to pay a fine of $13 billion.  More from Reuters:

The tentative deal does not release the bank from criminal liability for some of the mortgages it packaged into bonds and sold to investors, a factor that had been a major sticking point in the discussions, the source said.

The record settlement could help resolve many of the legal troubles the New York bank is facing. Earlier this month JPMorgan disclosed it had stockpiled $23 billion in reserves for settlements and other legal expenses to help cover the myriad investigations into its conduct before and after the financial crisis.

So they stockpiled $23 billion in reserves for settlements and legal expenses.  I wonder how much money they have?  So I decided to do a little surfing to find out.

JPMorgan operates a Chief Investment Office (CIO) that is responsible for this bad bet. The CIO takes the portion of the bank’s $1.1 trillion in deposits that the rest of the bank does not know how to lend or invest and trades that money — with the idea of making a profit for JPMorgan. In 2009, CIO’s net income peaked at $3.7 billion — generating 147% more profit than it had earned in 2008. Back then, JPMorgan had made a lucky bet on U.S. government guaranteed mortgage-backed securities.

 So this is on the heels of another settlement from June of this year,

Bank of America $8.5 billion mortgage settlement case opens

(Reuters) - Bank of America Corp's (BAC.N) proposed $8.5 billion settlement with investors in mortgage securities that went bad during the financial crisis offers billions more than they are likely to get if they go to trial, a lawyer for the trustee who helped negotiate the deal argued Monday.

"You may hear a lot from the objectors about what the trustee should have done or could have done or might have done," Ingber told Justice Barbara Kapnick, who must decide whether to approve the deal. "But, your honor, all those coulda, woulda, shoulda are irrelevant if the pot of gold isn't going to be there."

Opening arguments are set to continue on Tuesday, with Texas attorney Kathy Patrick making the case for the institutional investors who support the settlement.

The opponents are expected to argue that losses to the trusts might exceed $100 billion. They claim BNY Mellon placed its interests and those of Bank of America above those of bond holders. And they point out BNY Mellon gets trust business from Bank of America.

Colorado attorney Dan Reilly, who represents AIG, said last week the proposed deal "offers pennies on the dollar" to the bond holders.

And who could forget, Outrageous HSBC Settlement Proves the Drug War is a Joke by Matt Taibbi

If you've ever been arrested on a drug charge, if you've ever spent even a day in jail for having a stem of marijuana in your pocket or "drug paraphernalia" in your gym bag, Assistant Attorney General and longtime Bill Clinton pal Lanny Breuer has a message for you: Bite me.

Breuer this week signed off on a settlement deal with the British banking giant HSBC that is the ultimate insult to every ordinary person who's ever had his life altered by a narcotics charge. Despite the fact that HSBC admitted to laundering billions of dollars for Colombian and Mexican drug cartels (among others) and violating a host of important banking laws (from the Bank Secrecy Act to the Trading With the Enemy Act), Breuer and his Justice Department elected not to pursue criminal prosecutions of the bank, opting instead for a "record" financial settlement of $1.9 billion, which as one analyst noted is about five weeks of income for the bank. 

The banks' laundering transactions were so brazen that the NSA probably could have spotted them from space. Breuer admitted that drug dealers would sometimes come to HSBC's Mexican branches and "deposit hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, in a single day, into a single account, using boxes designed to fit the precise dimensions of the teller windows."

We now know that United Kingdom's HSBC Bank's money laundering using wire transfers and cash transactions were in the $100's of trillions of dollars using their banking offices located in the United States.

So while Paul Ryan and the Republicans are busy stealing food out of the mouths of the poor in the United States, the "Makers" keep making out and the "Takers" continue to be beaten, starved, robbed, and incarcerated.

So there's the "makers", the "takers", and the "rakers".  Which one are you?

By Patricia Baeten

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Clash of the Titans Koch Brothers vs Federal Reserve

The Koch Brothers and the Federal Reserve are like two ticks on a dog's back fighting over who owns the dog.  Both are parasites that are draining the people of the United States of life blood.  A country that does not control its treasury is doomed to failure. 

We have been warned about this since the beginning of our Republic.

"If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the people of all property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their Fathers conquered."

Attribution:  Thomas Jefferson

The debt ceiling is nothing new; it was statutorily imposed and has been in effect since 1917. Before 1917 there was no debt ceiling in force. 

Isn’t that odd, that there would be a ceiling on the U.S. Treasury borrowing after the 1913 establishment of the Federal Reserve Bank?

The United States has held public debt since the U.S. Constitution legally went into effect on March 4, 1789.  From 1796 to 1811 there were 14 budget surpluses and 2 deficits.  There was a sharp increase in the debt as a result of the War of 1812.  In the 20 years following that war there were 18 surpluses. 

The federal government actually paid off its debt entirely in January 1835 only to begin accruing debt anew by 1836 when the debt was $37,000.  Another sharp increase in the debt occurred as a result of the Civil War. The debt was $65 million in 1860, but passed $1 billion in 1863 and reached $2.7 billion by the end of the war.  During the following 47 years prior to the Federal Reserve, there were 36 surpluses and 11 deficits. During this period 55% of the national debt was paid off.

Secret meetings to develop the Federal Reserve Bank began in November 1910.  A meeting of a handful of rich political bankers met at a private resort on Jekyll Island, Georgia and secretly drew up a framework for the nation’s new banking system owned by extremely wealthy European banking families.  While the Fed would handle government debt, it would be a private institution. The U.S. Treasury would have a seat on the board, but would exercise no further oversight.

 How nuts is that, a country that would allow private banks to print their currency, charge them interest for printing the currency and have no oversight??

According to WordPress.Com:

The Federal Reserve was chartered by an act of deceit, by an act of congress when most of congress had gone home for Christmas holiday on December 23rd 1913. The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 passed the house, but was having difficulty getting through the senate.

No recess had been called, most senators had gone home, yet three senators passed the act with a unanimous voice vote. There was no objection. If there had been one person present in the absence of a quorum, the bill would not have been passed.

In 1923, Representative Charles A. Lindbergh, a Republican from Minnesota, and father of the famous aviator Lucky Lindberg stated. “The financial system has been turned over to the Federal Reserve Board. That board administers the finance system by authority of a purely profiteering group. The system is private, conducted for the sole purpose of obtaining the greatest possible profits from the use of other people’s money.

Former chairman of the House Banking and Currency Committee, during the great depression era, Louis T. McFadden in 1932 stated, “We have in this country one of the most corrupt institutions the world has ever known. I refer to the Federal Reserve Board. This evil institution has impoverished the people of the United States and has practically bankrupted our Government. It has done this through the corrupt practices of the moneyed vultures who control it.”

On June 4, 1963, a little known attempt was made to strip the Federal Reserve Bank of its power to loan money to the government at interest. On that day President John F. Kennedy signed Executive Order No. 11110 that returned to the U.S. government the power to issue currency, without going through the Federal Reserve.

Mr. Kennedy's order gave the Treasury the power "to issue silver certificates against any silver bullion, silver, or standard silver dollars in the Treasury." This meant that for every ounce of silver in the U.S. Treasury's vault, the government could introduce new money into circulation. In all, Kennedy brought nearly $4.3 billion in U.S. notes into circulation. The ramifications of this bill are enormous.

With the stroke of a pen, Mr. Kennedy was on his way to putting the Federal Reserve Bank of New York out of business. If enough of these silver certificates were to come into circulation they would have eliminated the demand for Federal Reserve notes. This is because the silver certificates are backed by silver and the Federal Reserve notes are not backed by anything.

After Mr. Kennedy was assassinated just five months later, no more silver certificates were issued. The Executive Order was never repealed by any U.S. President through an Executive Order and is still valid. 

In 1992 after 12 years of Republican rule, 10 million Americans were unemployed, the country faced record deficits, and poverty and welfare rolls were growing. Family incomes were losing ground to inflation and jobs were being created at the slowest rate since the Great Depression.

In 1993, President Clinton and Vice President Gore launched their economic strategy: (1) establishing fiscal discipline, eliminating the budget deficit, keeping interest rates low, and spurring private-sector investment; (2) investing in people through education, training, science, and research; and (3) opening foreign markets so American workers can compete abroad.

After eight years, the results of President Clinton’s economic leadership are clear. Record budget deficits have become record surpluses, 22 million new jobs have been created, unemployment and core inflation are at their lowest levels in more than 30 years, and America is in the midst of the longest economic expansion in our history.

Alan Greenspan at the Fed did everything possible to slow down the economy but the Clinton boom went on.  More Americans became stock holders, more Americans had 401K’s, retirement funds, more college graduates, more everything good and everything American.  The Federal Reserve became an insignificant background noise.  Clinton was impeached but the American people wouldn’t stand for his removal.

As President Clinton was about to leave office the Democrats and Republicans in the U.S. Senate repealed the Glass-Steagall Act that regulated banks and the insurance industry. There were only 8 Senators who voted against the repeal and it was veto proof.  

After the Supreme Court Decision in Bush vs Gore on December 12, 2000 that handed the Presidency to the guy that lost by a half million votes, the Senate passed the Gramm Leach Bliley bill on December 15th that completely repealed any regulations on derivatives trading.

The entire mortgage backed securities debacle was the result of the U.S. Senate deregulation.  The Federal Reserve printed up $43 trillion dollars to bail out the banks holding mortgage backed securities, $17 trillion of which was put on the books of the United States Treasury.  

After the first wave of foreclosures on primary mortgages, the secondary mortgage crises occurred.  Those were the mortgage backed securities that had no collateral and the Fed has been printing up $35 billion a month to bail those Wall Street banks out.

The Federal Reserve Board's hundred year charter ends in December 2013.  

Then there's the Koch Brothers.  Remember this scene from Ebenezer Scrooge? 

Yes beware of the boy, he is ignorance.  He is the Koch Brothers' Tea Party, born of ignorance and hate.  They are fettered to the Koch Brothers and fed and nourished on ignorance and hate.  They spew the ignorance that the rich should not have to pay taxes, the rich create jobs and need to be protected.  

The billionaire brothers David and Charles Koch have been financiers for conservative front groups and nonprofits for nearly three decades. Their money has been spent to lobby for tax cuts for the wealthy, to deregulate and defund the EPA and to re-segregate schools by diverting government funds from public schools to privately owned charter schools.

Their family’s association with fringe right-wing groups began with their father Fred Koch.  Fred not only founded Koch Industries he was also a founding member of the John Birth Society. 

Fred helped engineer a hysterical wave of attacks on labor, intellectuals, public education, liberal clergy members, and other pillars of society he viewed as a threat. The apples haven’t fallen far from the diseased tree.   

The present day Kochs have bought up politicians in State Houses around the nation. 

They now own approximately 30 members of U.S. House and two U. S. Senators, Ted Cruz and Mike Lee.  These members, although their numbers are small, have been able to shut down the government and threaten a default by the United States Treasury.

But the Koch Brothers, while having fun seeing how far their Tea Party candidates would go ended up like a couple of teenagers playing with an Ouija Board.  They appear to be frightened by the Tea Party monster they conjured up.

According to an article in the Los Angeles Times entitled “Koch Industries Deflects Blame on Government Shutdown” the following excerpt:

WASHINGTON - Koch Industries, the multibillion-dollar company led by David and Charles Koch, tried to distance itself Wednesday from any blame for the government shutdown and congressional quagmire.

But doing so requires some explaining given the long track record that the Koch brothers have of supporting conservative Republican causes.

In a letter sent to Senate offices Wednesday, the company’s president of government and public affairs, Philip Ellender, said claims that Koch Industries pushed for a shutdown are “erroneous or misleading.”

 So it sounds like this whole government shutdown fiasco has been just that, a fiasco.  There was massive damage done to the people of the United States and for what?  

Wall Street got a big scare when the Koch Brothers' monster broke loose.  For now, the Federal Reserve can keep buying up Wall Street's mortgage backed, worthless securities and keep sticking the American people with the bill.  

The Tea Party will continue to demand that the debt owed to the American people by the Treasury for Social Security and Medicare go unpaid and written off as the Kochs and Wall Street continue their massive "rape of the American people".  All's well that end's well for the Fed and the Kochs.

But for the American people all's not well.

By Patricia Baeten