[Change You Can Believe In] Obama staffer's former District colleague arrested

Obama appointee Vivek Kundra on leave pending more details: reports

By John Letzing, MarketWatch

Last update: 8:54 p.m. EDT March 12, 2009

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Obama appointee Vivek Kundra is on leave from his White House post following the arrest Thursday of one of his former colleagues on suspicion of bribery and money laundering.

Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs called the FBI investigation of Yusuf Acar, Kundra's former staffer at the District of Columbia technology office, "a serious matter," according to published reports.

Kundra does not appear to be a target of the investigation.

Obama last week named Kundra as the White House's first chief information officer, placing him in charge of strategic planning for federal technology spending. Kundra had previously served as chief technology officer for the District, overseeing its technology purchases and policies.

Kundra will be on leave until further details of the FBI investigation become known, according to a White House official.

According to documents released by the U.S. Attorney's office for the District of Columbia, the FBI obtained permission on Thursday to arrest Acar on charges of conspiracy to commit bribery, wire fraud and money laundering.

Kundra's name does not appear anywhere in the documents.

The documents describe a scheme whereby Acar allegedly stole money from the district by inflating the size of orders from technology vendors, falsely recording that the full order was received, and then pocketing part of the remainder after a smaller quantity of goods were actually purchased.

A second scheme described in the documents featured the district office under Acar's supervision billing vendors for so-called "ghost employees" who didn't actually perform any work.

Acar, the office's chief security officer, allegedly stated that he was prepared "to go to Turkey and disappear" if caught, according to a recorded conversation cited in the documents.

Sushil Bansal, chief executive at D.C. technology company AITC, is also named in the documents as allegedly conspiring with Acar.

One scheme described in the documents describes alleged over-billing for security software from McAfee Inc.  provided through AITC.

According to the documents, AITC submitted a quote to the D.C. technology office for the purchase of 2,000 licenses to the McAfee software, though McAfee only provided 500 licenses.

The District's Web site for the chief technology officer now advises employees at its 441 4th St. NW office to "not report to work until further notice."

Powered by ScribeFire.

Quoted: America! Give Up Your Freedom!!

From CNN Transcripts; [ source; http:///library2.akadhmia.org/dearth/CNN-TheCallForGlobalSocialism.pdf

"BROWN: (British PM) 20 years later in the 1980's, America, led by President (Reagan), refused to accept the fate of millions trapped behind the (Iron curtain) and insisted instead that the peoples of Eastern Europe be allowed to join the ranks of nations which live safe, strong, and free. --- People said it would never happen in our lifetime, but it did. And the Berlin Wall (aka "The Iron Curtain") was torn down brick by brick. (1990 - under Reagan/Bush I) "

"BROWN: (British PM) Now, I want to thank you on behalf of the British people because throughout a whole century, the America people stood liberty's ground not just in one world war but in two. (Particularly in wwII after the ignored pleas of Winston Churchill, were finally heded.) --- And I want you to know that we will never forget the sacrifice and the service of the American soldiers who gave their lives for people whose names they never knew and whose faces they never saw, yet people who have lived in freedom thanks to the bravery and valor of the Americans who gave that last full measure of devotion. --- And there is no battlefield of liberty on which there is not a piece of land that is marked out as American, and there is no day of remembrance within Britain that is not also a commemoration of American courage and sacrifice far from home. In the hardest days of the last century, faith in the future (American Freedom) kept America alive. And I tell you that America kept faith in the future (American Freedom) alive for all the world."

"BROWN: (British PM) I come now to talk of new and different battles we must also fight together to speak of a global economy in crisis and a planet in peril. --- And when banks have failed and markets have faltered, we, the representatives of the people (the government) have to be the people's last line of defense. --- And that's why, for me, there is no financial orthodoxy so entrenched, there's no conventional thinking so ingrained, there's no special interest so strong that it should ever stand in the way of the change that hardworking families now need. --- And if, perhaps, someone thought it beyond our power to shape global markets (via government control) to meet the needs of the people, we now know that that is our duty. We cannot and must not stand aside. And I have learned again what I was taught by him that wealth should help more than the wealthy, that good fortune should serve more than the fortunate; and that riches must enrich not just some of our communities but all of our communities. (Give up your American freedom!)"

"BROWN: (British PM) But how much safer would everybody's savings be if the whole world finally came together to outlaw shadow banking systems and outlaw offshore tax havens?" (Be a good nigger, pay your taxes, and mind your master! Freedom seeking niggers are bad!)

British PM Gordon Brown's Address to Congress! (You might compare Gordon Brown to the then PM Neville Chamberlain facing the NAZIS threat!!)

Powered by ScribeFire.

Comrade Obama & the new USSA

The new socialist USA, by popular demand;

[from AC360 CNN Transcripts]

"RYAN MACK, PRESIDENT, OPTIMUM CAPITAL MANAGEMENT: We have tried the trickle-down tax cut theory. All we got was a double-sized debt and stagnant growth. Now it's time to invest in the people. We will have a long-term economic recovery."

"COOPER: We're talking about President Obama's new plan to spend your money, his new budget, what you get for it, and how drastically different the priorities are this year, priorities the president laid out during the campaign.

But, you know, it's one thing to -- to vote for them, or vote for change, another thing to completely pay for change, especially during a recession."

"GERGEN: I think their concerns are very legitimate, and that -- but it's important to remember that President Obama campaigned on these reforms.

He did get the country's support. And he's now following through on the reforms. I don't think people quite understood, when they elected him, how much they would cost cumulatively."

"But what's he doing? He's trying to get health care reform done, massive health care reform. That's a huge change of direction for the United States. That's very expensive. He's trying to get energy reform done, clean energy, very important for the country, but also very expensive.

And he's doing it through a significant redistribution of wealth. Over the last 20 years or so, Democrats feel we have had a redistribution of wealth upward, to the upper 1 percent or 2 percent. President Obama is saying: I'm going to pay for this by redistributing wealth downwards."

""GERGEN: it's important to remember that President Obama campaigned on these reforms. "

Powered by ScribeFire.

Depression Watch Dec 2 2008

Dow Close (Tues)       8,419.09    270.00
Oil                     $47.91

Even the appearance of instability can push a market down, as seen in both Thailand and Canada. Barack, seemingly has learned this and gave the nod to what looks like a centered cabinet. However, the devil is always in the details.

Once again the "Big 3" are scheduled to return to the Hill - looking like beggars. The unions think that this will solve their problems. Little do they know that this has been done before - and not worked. Lee Iacocca got a hand out, that gave Chrysler a few years - before being taken over by Daimler. Michael Moore [7] thinks  things will be different - if the companies are nationalized [8]. However, he has not seen the hand-outs and deals given to the "Big 3" by his beloved Canada - and they still failed. He believes that the other socialist countries like Canada are actually friends. (Although, he contradicts this view in [8].) So, it may come as a shock to see the Canadian Coup, lead by the dictators Stephane Dion, Jack Layton and Gille (Jill) Duceppe - with yet another deal for the "Big 3" at the center.

[9] Stephane Dion, with Jack Layton and Gille Duceppe, plan to seize control of the Canadian government (without an election) by the end of the month. Reading the paper, like the Toronto Star, it's amazing to see how the socialist Canadians don't care that the ideals of democracy, which were fought for with the blood of Canadian soldiers, are now gone. [10] Just given away! Ironic that this is the model that the Democrats look to!

[1]
Thailand's stocks fall, as ruling party is dissolved --- Protesters say after court ruling that they will end occupation of airport --- Equities in Bangkok ended with losses Tuesday, as Thailand's constitutional court ordered the dissolution of the ruling party and banned the prime minister from politics for five years, marking the latest stage in the nation's long-running political turmoil.  - MarketWatch

[2] S&P/TSX      8406.21      8327.81      -78.40  - Toronto Star

[3] The Conservatives today released radio ads that accuse Liberal Leader Stephane Dion, soundly defeated in the Oct. 14 vote, of wanting to take power "through the back door." - The Toronto Star

[4] The Liberals and the NDP have signed a formal, unprecedented pact to replace the minority Conservatives, who were re-elected just seven weeks ago, with a (unelected/monarch appointed) coalition government. - The Toronto Star

[5] Governor General Michaelle Jean said she is cutting short a European tour and returning to Canada, where she could be called on to decide the fate of the embattled Conservative government. --- Jean was also asked if she had any message for Canadians about the current crisis and the way governance is going to be achieved. --- "I think this is part of our democratic system. This is happening and it certainly requires a lot of attention, and the role of the governor general is to ensure that our governance is on the right path, so as soon as I'm back I will fulfill my duties and in total sound judgment." - The Toronto Star

[6] Since Confederation there has only been one federal coalition government in Canada's history: the Union Government of World War I, which lasted from 1917-1920. This was a coalition between the Conservative Party, led by Robert Borden, and Liberals and independents. Faced with strong opposition to conscription and with other major difficulties during WWI, Borden sought to broaden his wartime political base by bringing several conscriptionist Liberals and other public figures into his government. In the December 1917 general election, this government won a decisive victory over Sir Wilfrid Laurier's Liberals. The Union coalition did not long survive its triumph: the end of the war brought many Liberals back to their old affiliation, while other Unionists supported the new Progressive party. - The Toronto Star

[7] MOORE: Well, because -- because we can't let all these people lose their jobs because of the bad decisions, the stupid decisions made by the management of these auto companies. So I think what has to happen here is that Congress needs to pass some legislation, and our president-elect needs to do what Roosevelt did. --- When Roosevelt came in and when World War II faced the country, Roosevelt said to General Motors and Ford, you're not going to build cars anymore. You're going to build airplanes and tanks and guns and the things that we need for this war because we have a national crisis. And so General Motors had to do what Roosevelt told them they had to do. - Larry King Live, CNN

[8] MOORE: Absolutely. Absolutely. I'll tell you, it was hilarious just watching these CEOs there yesterday and today testifying in Congress, saying that, you know, that the problem wasn't their -- you know, the cars they were building. It was the financial situation that we're in now. --- [The problem is the cars they've been building.] They've never listened to the consumers. They've just gone about it their own wrong way. And I'll tell you, you know, I'm of mixed mind about this bailout, Larry, because I don't think these companies, with these management people, should be given a dime, [because they're -- that's just going to be money going up in smoke or off to other countries. I mean, G.M. is currently building a $300 million factory in Russia right now to build SUVs, right outside of St. Petersburg.] - Larry King Live, CNN

[9]  An aid package to help Ontario's struggling automakers is still being discussed with Ottawa despite worries about turmoil in the country's capital. --- "I'm confident that I'll continue to work with the federal government on this," Economic Development Minister Michael Bryant said today. --- "Given the circumstances around the auto industry, it's particularly important for myself and our government to remain non-partisan when it comes to dealing with the federal government. I'll let Parliament resolve its issues itself." --- Bryant's comments came as the federal Liberals agreed today to support a tentative deal with the NDP – backed by the Bloc Quebecois – to form a coalition government with Stephane Dion as interim prime minister. - The Toronto Star

[10] THANK YOU -- I am so glad that you decided to post this Q&A. I can only hope that it will put a end to all those ridiculous words like "illegal, undemocratic, hijacked and coup" that have been bandied about by those who appear not to understand their own parliamentary system. Having said that, I find it incredibly sleazy of Harper and the Conservatives to launch a vociferous media campaign against his own constitution and parliamentary system - The Toronto Star, Comment

Powered by ScribeFire.