robosmith Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 Corruption Unbound Quote During Trump’s first months as president, it wasn’t yet clear how much concentrated corruption the nation, or his own party, would tolerate, which is why Trump was compelled to dispose of the occasional Cabinet secretary. Yet nearly everything about Trump’s history in real estate, where he greased palms and bullied officials, suggested that he regarded the government as a lucrative instrument for his own gain. A week and a half before taking office, he held a press conference in front of towering piles of file folders, theatrically positioned to suggest rigorous legal analysis, and announced that he would not divest himself of his commercial interests. Instead, he became the first modern commander in chief to profit from a global network of businesses, branded in gilded letters blaring his own name. It didn’t happen all at once. Trump spent the early days of his presidency testing boundaries. He used his bully pulpit to unabashedly promote his real-estate portfolio. His properties charged the Secret Service “exorbitant rates”—as much as $1,185 a night, per a House Oversight Committee report—for housing agents when Trump or his family members visited. By the time Trump and his cronies left the White House, they had slowly erased any compunction, both within the Republican Party and outside it, about their corruption. They left power having compiled a playbook for exploiting public office for private gain. American voters used to abhor pols profiting off their public office, but NOT the MAGA CULT. They've been duped into believing they're profiting, too. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnFox Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 1 hour ago, robosmith said: Corruption Unbound American voters used to abhor pols profiting off their public office, but NOT the MAGA CULT. They've been duped into believing they're profiting, too. When was that? The clintons made billions from profiting from public office as an example, and there were plenty of others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aristides Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 38 minutes ago, CdnFox said: When was that? The clintons made billions from profiting from public office as an example, and there were plenty of others. While they were still in office? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnFox Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 5 minutes ago, Aristides said: While they were still in office? For sure - hillary anyway. There were a number of cases - such as when the saudis were looking for approval to buy weapons and hillary happened to be in charge of that and just by chance at that very moment they decided to donate several hundred thousand to their charity which pays Bill tens of millions of dollars every year and then they happened to suddenly get approval. All coincidental of course And hunter is no different. Even if you accept that he's not funnelling money to his dad he's very clearly trading on his influence and while that's not illegal it's the same thing. Canada has more laws against this kind of thing. For example Paul Martin had to put his shipping company into a trust. But even we're light on it. Trudeau's charity got major donations from the chinese as you'll recall. I get the problem. People won't run for office if you force them to shut down their businesses to do it - after all they won't be in office forever. At the same time there's too many loop holes that allow abuses and profiting from the positions. But it's certainly not new. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robosmith Posted December 9, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 9 minutes ago, Aristides said: While they were still in office? The Clintons are not worth "billions." $280M estimated. Almost ALL since holding office. CDNLIar living up to his name. Bill Clinton Net Worth 2023 (FORBES) Richest President CAclubindia https://www.caclubindia.com › wealth › bill-clinton-ne... Nov 3, 2023 — Bill Clinton's net worth is estimated to be $160 million as of 2023, making him one of the wealthiest former presidents in American history. He ... Monica Lewinsky's Settlement · Maui Lands & Properties · Bill Clinton's Biography Hillary Clinton Net Worth Celebrity Net Worth https://www.celebritynetworth.com › ... › Democrats Jul 28, 2023 — Hillary Clinton is an American politician, author and media personality who has a net worth of $120 million. That is a combined net worth ... Chelsea Clinton · John Kerry · Tim Kaine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herbie Posted December 10, 2023 Report Share Posted December 10, 2023 2 hours ago, robosmith said: CDNLIar living up to his name. definitely brain locked with whataboutism as usual. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnFox Posted December 10, 2023 Report Share Posted December 10, 2023 2 hours ago, robosmith said: The Clintons are not worth "billions." $280M estimated. Almost ALL since holding office. CDNLIar living up to his name. Bill Clinton Net Worth 2023 (FORBES) Richest President CAclubindia https://www.caclubindia.com › wealth › bill-clinton-ne... Nov 3, 2023 — Bill Clinton's net worth is estimated to be $160 million as of 2023, making him one of the wealthiest former presidents in American history. He ... Monica Lewinsky's Settlement · Maui Lands & Properties · Bill Clinton's Biography Hillary Clinton Net Worth Celebrity Net Worth https://www.celebritynetworth.com › ... › Democrats Jul 28, 2023 — Hillary Clinton is an American politician, author and media personality who has a net worth of $120 million. That is a combined net worth ... Chelsea Clinton · John Kerry · Tim Kaine LOL - what's the matter Robodope? Have i intimidated you so badly that you're afraid to speak to me directly? Awwww - poor little guy It's not MY fault you always wind up making yourself look stupid For example - i never said the clintons are worth billions. But hey - if you find my smarts and pointing out facts to be so scary you have to stick your head in the ground and pretend to talk to me through others - you go ahead. I woudln't want to traumatize you any more At any rate @Aristides While Robosmith correctly points out that the clintons are worth hundreds of millions, that in and of itself isn't an indication the money was made due to their political office. However that was the case. And they're hardly alone. Its one of the 'perks' i guess. 7 minutes ago, herbie said: definitely brain locked with whataboutism as usual. No, aboutism is something else. In this case the question was asked "do others do this'. The answer is yes. Sorry if that's not convenient for your personal echo chamber narrative, but it is true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hodad Posted December 10, 2023 Report Share Posted December 10, 2023 (edited) 3 hours ago, robosmith said: The Clintons are not worth "billions." $280M estimated. Almost ALL since holding office. CDNLIar living up to his name. Bill Clinton Net Worth 2023 (FORBES) Richest President CAclubindia https://www.caclubindia.com › wealth › bill-clinton-ne... Nov 3, 2023 — Bill Clinton's net worth is estimated to be $160 million as of 2023, making him one of the wealthiest former presidents in American history. He ... Monica Lewinsky's Settlement · Maui Lands & Properties · Bill Clinton's Biography Hillary Clinton Net Worth Celebrity Net Worth https://www.celebritynetworth.com › ... › Democrats Jul 28, 2023 — Hillary Clinton is an American politician, author and media personality who has a net worth of $120 million. That is a combined net worth ... Chelsea Clinton · John Kerry · Tim Kaine The Clintons also don't take a salary or other financial benefits from the foundation. They've put in tens of millions of their own money though. Haters gonna hate. And then make up lies. Edited December 10, 2023 by Hodad 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caswell Thomas Posted December 10, 2023 Report Share Posted December 10, 2023 5 hours ago, CdnFox said: When was that? The clintons made billions from profiting from public office as an example, and there were plenty of others. Yeah but Trump did it as a Lifestyle and taught it to his children , and a number of his followers thought they too could just ignore the country's laws and get away with it. Quite a large number of his more ardent followers have been sent to prisons, jails, fined high amounts, had their lives totally disrupted for decades, their ethics questioned, jobs lost, relationships broken up, children taken away, even made homeless and what has Trump done about any of them? NOTHING. He swept them under the bus along with multiple former attorneys as soon as they stopped sending him " donations" to his perpetual campaign . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnFox Posted December 10, 2023 Report Share Posted December 10, 2023 29 minutes ago, Hodad said: The Clintons also don't take a salary or other financial benefits from the foundation. They absolutely do. Bill clinton makes millions a year from it in pay and 'expenses'. AND many of those 'donors' also pay speaking fees , You'll always see their fundraising and their charity org mentioned hand in hand https://archive.ph/08TvV https://archive.ph/W8pF5#selection-355.0-355.175 The grand total raised for all of their political campaigns and their family’s charitable foundation reaches at least $3 billion, according to a Washington Post investigation. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2016/10/27/memo-shows-bill-clintons-wealth-tied-clinton-foundation/92842822/ Memo shows Bill Clinton's wealth was tied to Clinton Foundation Internal e-mails show Clinton aides clashed over the potential conflicts of interest. https://www.npr.org/2016/10/27/499601267/bill-clinton-inc-wikileaks-shows-links-between-foundation-personal-cash Wikileaks Reveals How Bill Clinton Profited From the Clinton Foundation Bottom line is that while hillary was in office a lot of people suddenly got very interested in donating large amounts to the charity that pays bill and there's lots of accusations of shenannigans and not just from the republicans https://www.cnn.com/2016/08/24/politics/clinton-foundation-explainer/index.html "Who the foundation was getting money from, basically. When Clinton took the State Department job in 2008, she promised President Barack Obama that the foundation would publish all its donors every year. And … that didn’t happen. State Department ordered to review 15,999 new Clinton emails Reuters discovered that from 2010 to 2013, the foundation’s health arm wasn’t disclosing all of its donors – leaving out countries like Switzerland and lumping together individuals as one big group. And the foundation didn’t tell the State Department that countries such as Australia and the UK doubled and tripled their donations between 2009 and 2012 while Clinton was secretary." Btw - having a charity and making money from it is not uncommon and certainly not only the clintons. Lets not forget the trudeau foundation was getting major cash from the chinese gov't till they got caught, Trump has his own charity with some 'questionable' dealings. So bill makes money directly and indirectly from the charity and donations to the charity especially by foreign gov'ts shot up like a rocket druing hillary's time in office and in the run up to her presidential run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnFox Posted December 10, 2023 Report Share Posted December 10, 2023 17 minutes ago, Caswell Thomas said: Yeah but Trump did it as a Lifestyle and taught it to his children , and a number of his followers thought they too could just ignore the country's laws and get away with it. Again - did you think that started with him? Have you met the kennedys? Hey, i think it's wrong, i think there should be very strict laws about it and i make no excuses for it - but going back to the initial claim that the us people didn't used to tolerate it, they very clearly did. Same as in canada - trudeau took money from the aga khan, people tolerated chretien's pocketing money for a long time, mulroney got in a bit of trouble for it but not that much while he was in office, how far back did you want to go? And we have actually got more rules that are supposed to prevent it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herbie Posted December 10, 2023 Report Share Posted December 10, 2023 (edited) 20 hours ago, CdnFox said: No, aboutism is something else. No it is EXACTLY what you responded with. The post was about Trump and you did not respond with agreement or disagreement or any opinion related to the subject, you immediately replied with whatabout what Clintons did who were not being discussed. Deflection at ir's best. And arguing that because Billy shit on the carpet, Fred should be excused for shitting on the carpet too, at it's worst. Two wrongs do not make a right. EDIT: And as usual it worked, so no one is now discussing the corrupt conman before the courts, they're all arguing about the Clintons who don't matter for a flying f*ck at this moment. Edited December 10, 2023 by herbie 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caswell Thomas Posted December 11, 2023 Report Share Posted December 11, 2023 21 hours ago, CdnFox said: Again - did you think that started with him? Have you met the kennedys? Hey, i think it's wrong, i think there should be very strict laws about it and i make no excuses for it - but going back to the initial claim that the us people didn't used to tolerate it, they very clearly did. Same as in canada - trudeau took money from the aga khan, people tolerated chretien's pocketing money for a long time, mulroney got in a bit of trouble for it but not that much while he was in office, how far back did you want to go? And we have actually got more rules that are supposed to prevent it. Actually I have met some of the Kennedy's, my parents were big in political circles when I was young. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnFox Posted December 11, 2023 Report Share Posted December 11, 2023 5 hours ago, herbie said: No it is EXACTLY what you responded with. The post was about Trump No, it wasn't. Sorry but go back and read. He asked a specific quesiton - "Has this happened before" . I replied with "yes - here and here". Which is a fact. But because it's not a fact you like you're having a hissy fit. It's not whataboutism little guy - it's just answering a question. 13 minutes ago, Caswell Thomas said: Actually I have met some of the Kennedy's, my parents were big in political circles when I was young. Interesting side story - i didn't ACTUALLY mean 'have you REALLY met them' but that's kind of cool. Must have been memorable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caswell Thomas Posted December 12, 2023 Report Share Posted December 12, 2023 23 hours ago, CdnFox said: No, it wasn't. Sorry but go back and read. He asked a specific quesiton - "Has this happened before" . I replied with "yes - here and here". Which is a fact. But because it's not a fact you like you're having a hissy fit. It's not whataboutism little guy - it's just answering a question. Interesting side story - i didn't ACTUALLY mean 'have you REALLY met them' but that's kind of cool. Must have been memorable. I was still.pretty young actually , but I recall tons of people in our big house at Bonnet Shores, Rhode Island, A very toney place in the 50's to 70's, then again beginning about the early Millennium year and since. I recall meeting Mr. President and helping myself to some cheesecake and a pie and drink ing what I thought the grown ups were having, but it turned out we got soft drinks, we kids , most of us were in our pre-teen years, Robert Kennedy was nice to us, gave us a bunch of comic books. It was only after I watched his funeral profession on black and white tv that I realized who our house guest had been at that time, I was devastated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnFox Posted December 12, 2023 Report Share Posted December 12, 2023 Quite the experience and memory. It's always a blessing to live in interesting times, and sounds like as much as it's bittersweet it had a strong impact on you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rebound Posted December 12, 2023 Report Share Posted December 12, 2023 On 12/9/2023 at 5:58 PM, CdnFox said: When was that? The clintons made billions from profiting from public office as an example, and there were plenty of others. I do not know how much money the Clintons made, but if one dollar of it was unlawful, they should be prosecuted. All you said was they “profited from public office.” Definitely they profited as a result of holding public office, which is perfectly fine, but if they sold influence or otherwise acted illegally, for sure they should face prosecution. I have no objection to that. People who break the law should be prosecuted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdnFox Posted December 12, 2023 Report Share Posted December 12, 2023 3 hours ago, Rebound said: I do not know how much money the Clintons made, but if one dollar of it was unlawful, they should be prosecuted. I said the same thing about her emails Didn't work out that way The problem is proof - the bar for those two is higher than the average person. So - lets say saudi arabia is looking to buy weapons and the state department is holding the approval. Hillary is in charge of the state department. They talk to bill who says he MIGHT be wiilling to talk to her.. if his charity happened to get a sizable donation. They put in a few million dollars, which Bill will syphon a significant amount of money from. Hillary suddenly out of the blue decides to rubber stamp their approval the next week. We all know what happened. But how do you prove it? You can't compell either to testify against the other, there's no PROOF he spoke to her or convinced her, and no absolute proof she wouldn't have green lit the transfer eventually anyway. BTW - not hypothetical. Actually happened. https://theintercept.com/2016/08/25/why-did-the-saudi-regime-and-other-gulf-tyrannies-donate-millions-to-the-clinton-foundation/ There's tonnes of info out there on it. It was a major issue with her presidential run. Having said that i do agree that people who profit from influence peddling should be punished, but thats not how the system is set up nor is it what happens. Which doesn't make it right but we can't pretend that it would be something unique or new at this point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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