[Vision2020] Stevens guilty on all seven counts

[Tom Hansen]

Sue Hovey stated:

"Anyone want to wager that this conviction comes with a Bush pardon????"

Seems like a done deal, Sue.

Especially when you take into consideration the link between Sarah Palin 
and Senator Stevens . . .

>From the September 1, 2008 edition of the Washington Post at:

http://tinyurl.com/62juv6

As reported on Sean Hannity's website at:

http://forums.hannity.com/showthread.php?t=821321

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Palin Was a Director of Embattled Sen. Stevens's 527 Group

ST. PAUL -- Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin began building clout in her state's 
political circles in part by serving as a director of an independent 
political group organized by the now embattled Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens. 

Palin's name is listed on 2003 incorporation papers of the "Ted Stevens 
Excellence in Public Service, Inc.," a 527 group that could raise 
unlimited funds from corporate donors. The group was designed to serve as 
a political boot camp for Republican women in the state. She served as one 
of three directors until June 2005, when her name was replaced on state 
filings. 

Palin's relationship with Alaska's senior senator may be one of the more 
complicated aspects of her new position as Sen. John McCain's running 
mate; Stevens was indicted in July 2008 on seven counts of corruption. 

Palin, an anti-corruption crusader in Alaska, had called on Stevens to be 
open about the issues behind the investigation. But she also held a joint 
news conference with him in July, before he was indicted, to make clear 
she had not abandoned him politically. 

Stevens had been helpful to Palin during her run for governor, swooping in 
with a last moment endorsement. And the two filmed a campaign commercial 
together to highlight Stevens's endorsement of Palin during the 2006 race. 

Shortly after Palin was announced as McCain's vice presidential pick, the 
ad was removed from her gubernatorial campaign web site. It remains 
available on YouTube.

A federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., has accused Stevens of 
concealing on financial disclosure statements lucrative gifts from the now-
defunct oil company Veco and its top executives. At one point, Veco 
employees and contractors jacked up the senator's mountainside house on 
stilts and added a new first floor, with two bedrooms and a bathroom, the 
indictment says. 

Stevens became the first sitting U.S. senator to face criminal charges in 
15 years. He has adamantly denied the allegations.

At the time Stevens revealed the existence of the 527 group -- a type of 
independent political corporation named for its the section of the tax 
code -- ethics experts questioned whether it was appropriate. 

The Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call reported that several experts called 
the group an example of the fine legal line between a legal effort to 
conduct political activity and then-new prohibitions against raising 
unlimited soft-money. 

Board members of Ted Stevens Excellence in Public Service were legally 
allowed to raise as much money as they wanted from corporations or unions 
or unlimited donations from individuals -- all of which would have been 
illegal for Stevens to do himself. 

At the time of the 2004 Roll Call report, Stevens's involvement was 
limited to some conversations with the group's board. 

"He has just agreed that we can use his name," Gloria Shriver, the founder 
of the group and wife of Alaska Republican Party Chairman Randy Ruedrich, 
told the newspaper. "He did say that we could use [his name] and wished us 
the very best." 

During her interview, Shriver left open the option that Stevens might help 
with some fundraising, the newspaper reported. 

There is no record in IRS filings as to how much the group eventually 
raised.

A Palin spokeswoman did not provide a response to questions about the 527 
this morning. 

---------------------------------------

And then there is . . .

>From the New York Times at

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/03/opinion/03wed1.html
 
"Mayor Palin gathered up $27 million in subsidies from Washington, $15 
million of it for a railroad from her town to the ski resort hometown of 
Senator Ted Stevens, now under indictment for failing to report gifts."

---------------------------------------

So, you see, Sue.  It's just a matter of time (maybe a couple months) 
before George Bush pardons yet another criminal.

Sidebar:  Scuttlebutt has it that Wall Street may be pursuing additional 
bailouts.  This last one barely covered Christmas bonuses.

Seeya round town, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho


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