Well, it's about damn time - again. Yes, Rep. Conyers has finally been persuaded - again - to investigate ACORN. Oh, yes, all the recent brouhaha about ACORN, all of the exposure from the faux pimp and prostitute, have FINALLY gotten the House Judiciary Chairman to get off his duff, and investigate ACORN, as this article highlights (the US Census Bureau and the IRS have cut ties with ACORN), Conyers Seeks Answers On ACORN: House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers – a Detroit Democrat – is weighing into the controversy involving a much-maligned national community organization, asking congressional researchers whether any laws may have been broken by surreptitious recording of the group’s employees.
Just last week, the Democratic-led House followed up on a Senate vote that started cutting off federal funding for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, or ACORN, amid Republican-led calls for a widespread investigation into the group and its activities.
Even President Barack Obama has criticized the actions of ACORN employees in Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and elsewhere seen in sting videos. The employees appear to give tax advice to filmmakers pretending to be a hooker and her boyfriend. (Well, kinda - he said it wad "inappropriate. See video/transcript below.)
Conyers and House Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank of Massachusetts asked the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service on Tuesday to provide an analysis on several aspects of ACORN. Among them:
# Any current or previous criminal investigations into the group.
# A breakdown of any funding received by the group and any violations of the terms of that funding.
# A report on alleged improprieties in collecting voter-registration forms and “the extent ... that resulted in people being improperly placed on voting roles and actually attempting to vote.”
# The group’s programs to provide housing opportunities.
It also asked for a report on private sting activities “in which individuals have reportedly visited ACORN offices, misrepresented their identities and proposed activities, surreptitiously videotaped resulting conversations with ACORN workers, and widely distributed them.”
The letter went onto say, “Conflicting allegations have been made about the propriety of these activities. Please research and report on the federal and state laws that could apply to such videotaping and distribution of conversations without the consent of all parties.”
I'm sure they'll get right on that.
Why the disdain dropping from my laptop? Because this isn't the FIRST time Rep. Conyers was going to investigate ACORN. Previously, he had been pretty disturbed by the actions of ACORN, or so he claimed (this is a good article to see more of the underhanded workings of ACORN). Remember that they have been under investigation in over 14 states for voter fraud and voter registration fraud for some time now. The recent expose is just the icing on the cake. But the disdain comes for the REASON Conyers dropped it: The "Powers That Be" put an end to it. Yes, you read that right: THE POWERS THAT BE told the House Judiciary Chairman to knock it off.
Hmm. Let's think. Just who is high enough to tell this powerful chairman to drop his investigation? It's a pretty short list, I can tell you that much,
But, hey - better late than never, right? Yeah. Sure.
And I just KNOW once Obama has a spare moment, you know, when he's not on The David Letterman Show, or something, maybe he will finally have a chance to follow what's going on with ACORN, since he claimed to be out of the loop despite the millions ACORN has gotten, or the billions it stands to get. Yes, this is what he said in his recent interview with George Stephanopoulos:
STEPHANOPOULOS: How about the funding for ACORN?
OBAMA: You know, if -- frankly, it's not really something I've followed closely. I didn't even know that ACORN was getting a whole lot of federal money.
STEPHANOPOULOS: Both the Senate and the House have voted to cut it off.
OBAMA: You know, what I know is, is that what I saw on that video was certainly inappropriate and deserves to be investigated.
STEPHANOPOULOS: So you're not committing to -- to cut off the federal funding?
OBAMA: George, this is not the biggest issue facing the country. It's not something I'm paying a lot of attention to.
Or you can watch it here:
That Obama - he's just so busy doing the talk show circuit, he couldn't POSSIBLY know what is going on with ACORN. I mean, really, besides his having worked for them, and all of that, what possible connection could he have with them?
Oh, wait - he does. Right in the West Wing. Uh huh - his Rove, the Director of the Office of Political Affairs, is Patrick Gaspard. Mr. Gaspard, before moving into the West Wing, was the Executive Vice President of - Wait For It - SEIU. SEIU was founded by Dale Rathke, the brother who embezzled a million bucks from ACORN. Which they hid, by the way. Whatever. Just a million of your tax paying dollars, no biggie.
And Patrick has a brother, Michael, who works for the Advance Group. Which represents - like you need to wait for it - ACORN. Coincidentally (hahahahaha), the national spokesman for The Advance Group, and ACORN, is one in the same, Scott Levenson.
I gotta wonder, how long will it be before Conyers is called off of THIS investigation?
(Photo above bymusicFIRSTCoalition)
2 comments:
There's no doubt in my mind that this will be nothing more than the allusion of an investigation. It will be kinda like saying they are going to dig a hole for a new well, and then after three shovelfuls of dirt, they'll quit and say "no point in digging further...no water here."
Obama knows damn well what ACORN is all about and he can lie until the roosters come to roost...the only way to clean up ACORN is to totally disband it and all it's tentacles, including that of the SEIU. But that will never happen, not in my lifetime.
I just can't wait until the real "powers that be" ...the voters, kick their sorry asses out of Washington. I hope I'm still alive to see it.
I fear you are right, Mary Ellen - both in terms of what the Congress will actually do (hahahaha), Obama being held accountable for his lies, and people kicking their sorry butts out.
I was talking to Kathleen of Hand Count Paper Ballots Now (dot org) yesterday, and she was saying that until we have a reliable way to count our votes, the "powers that be" will continue to dictate who is in office.
That's a scary thought, too, right?
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