Saturday, April 15, 2017
Tax March turns into demand for Trump's IRS filings; 13 reported arrests
That the events were held on the deadline for hundreds of millions of Americans to file their federal returns was largely coincidental. Their intent was to pressure Trump to release his tax documents and to help Trump opponents stake out their position ahead of the president’s pending tax reform plan.
“Today, across American we are taking the gloves off to say it’s time to knock off the tax rip-off,” Oregon Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden told a crowd of several hundred people gathered at the base of Capitol Hill.
“No more Cayman Islands tax breaks … no more Wall Street tax breaks,” he roared before the crowd marched several miles to the National Mall. “It’s time to knock off the secrecy Mr. President and release your own tax returns.”
Thirteen people were reportedly arrested when Trump protesters clashed with supporters in...
Maxine Waters’ Latest Scandal to the Tune of Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars
She was paid nearly $70,000 during the 2016 election cycle alone.
She has done it before. CREW lists Maxine as the most corrupt member of congress n 2005, 2006, and 2009. Waters is one of the few members of Congress with a record of unethicaldealings that can compare with Hillary Clinton’s, CREW writes.
This isn’t the first time that Waters has gotten herself into ethical hot water, in fact, it’s happened several different times over the nearly three decades she’s been in Congress.
In 2010, Waters was brought up on three separate charges by her colleagues in the House, even after Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) warned her against getting involved in advocating for a bank in which she had financial interest.
In the midst of a national financial crisis, Waters used her position as a senior member of Congress and member of the House Financial Services Committee to prevail upon Treasury officials to meet with OneUnited Bank. She never disclosed that her husband...
Friday, April 14, 2017
When “incidental” intel collection—isn’t incidental
I’ve spoken to a small group of reliable, formerly high-placed intelligence officials who have dropped a few interesting tidbits on me of late. Here’s my understanding, based on the discussions:
- It’s not true that wiretaps and/or electronic surveillance of U.S. citizens can “only” be done with a FISA (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act) court order.
- Besides the FISA court, “wiretapping” or electronic surveillance can also be done under Title III authority. The government used this authority, for example, in the Justice Department’s secret Fast and Furious “gunwalking” case.
- Additionally, U.S. Presidents have the power to issue secret presidential directives that can authorize otherwise illegal acts (theoretically in the country’s best interests). These directives may come with pre-planned cover stories to be used in the event the operation is exposed, and they come with indemnity for those involved, giving them permission to lie about the operation or their involvement without fear of prosecution.
- The public will rarely know about such presidential directives since most who see them must sign agreements that promise nondisclosure and consent to polygraphs.
- Computer surveillance is a grey area in the intelligence community where many insiders argue the traditional privacy restrictions and surveillance rules don’t necessarily apply.
- The term “wiretapping” is used in a general sense to refer to electronic eavesdropping, even though the actual “tapping” of “wires” is not routinely necessary with today’s technology and tradecraft.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)