Office of U.S. Trustee vs. Harmon

David C. Farmer, Successor-Trustee vs. Harmon

(Formerly Woo vs. Harmon & Nicholson vs. Harmon)

CV05-00030 DAE KSC

U.S. District Court For the District of Hawaii

Judges: David A. Ezra; Kevin S. Chang

—

DEFENDANT’S WITNESS

TED STEVENS

Former Republican Senator from Alaska.

Address to be determined.

~ ~ ~

April 7, 2009

Sen. Ted Stevens' conviction set aside

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A federal judge on Tuesday set aside the conviction of Republican former Sen. Ted Stevens while excoriating the case's prosecutors.

District Judge Emmet Sullivan also appointed an independent, nongovernment attorney, Henry Schuelke III, to investigate possible misconduct by the government lawyers who prosecuted the 85-year-old former senator from Alaska.

"In nearly 25 years on the bench, I've never seen anything approaching the mishandling and misconduct that I've seen in this case," Sullivan said.

In October, Stevens was found guilty of seven counts of lying on Senate ethics forms. He lost his bid for re-election in November to Democratic challenger Mark Begich, then mayor of Anchorage.

In December, an unnamed FBI whistle-blower accused prosecutors of withholding evidence from the defense. The whistle-blower reported that someone with the government had an inappropriate relationship with Bill Allen, an oil industry executive who was the government's key witness.

In a dismissal motion filed Wednesday, the Justice Department acknowledged that Stevens was not given access to the notes taken by prosecutors during an April 2008 interview with Allen.

The notes show that responses by Allen were inconsistent with testimony he gave against Stevens and that information from the interview could have benefited Stevens at trial, according to the motion.

"When we were finally given [the notes], you might have thought my reaction would be to celebrate, do high-fives, that we were right," Brendan Sullivan, an attorney for Stevens, said Tuesday. "It was not like that at all. I was sick to my stomach. How could they do that? Then my revulsion turned to rage, silent rage for a number of days."

The revelation also helped prompt Attorney General Eric Holder to drop the case.

"In light of this conclusion, and in consideration of the totality of the circumstances of this particular case, I have determined that it is in the interest of justice to dismiss the indictment and not proceed with a new trial," Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement last week.

"If I were Sen. [Robert] Byrd, I'd say 'hallelujah,' " a triumphant Stevens said after leaving the courthouse Tuesday.

Stevens maintained his innocence throughout a government investigation that led to an indictment and conviction for failing to disclose hundreds of thousands of dollars of "freebies" from an oilfield services company on Senate ethics forms.

In a statement read to the court Tuesday, Stevens said that his faith in the justice system had been restored.

"Until recently, my faith in the criminal justice system was unwavering. But what some members of this prosecution team did nearly destroyed my faith. Their conduct has consequences they must know can never be reversed," he said.

"But [I now have] new hope that others may be spared from similar miscarriages of justice."

Stevens added that he would "encourage the enactment of legislation to reform laws relating to the responsibilities and duties of those entrusted with the solemn task of enforcing federal criminal laws."

Paul O'Brien, one of the new government attorneys assigned to the case, made no attempt to the justify the conduct of the previous prosecution team. "We deeply regret this occurred," he said. "We apologize to the court."

In issuing his ruling, Sullivan noted the Justice Department's investigation into potential misconduct by government prosecutors had gone on for six months with no result.

"The silence is deafening," Sullivan said.

The judge previously had excoriated prosecutors during the trial and held the prosecution in contempt at one point.

One of Stevens' longtime friends, Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, said last weekend that Stevens was "screwed by our own Justice Department."

Hatch praised Holder for "standing up and fixing this foul situation."

"I think he's more than shown integrity and decency in this matter, and it's not an easy thing for him to do that," Hatch said. "He has, in looking at it, realized now what people like myself have been saying is 100 percent right."

In the days that followed the Justice Department's dismissal motion, Alaska state Republican leaders, including Gov. Sarah Palin, called on Begich to step down and allow a rematch without what has been called the "taint" of a criminal case against Stevens.

"There's no way [Stevens] can just 'put this behind him' as some have suggested he should," Palin said in a statement released Tuesday.

Begich, while indicating his support for a special prosecutor to investigate the botched prosecution, stated that he intends to serve his six-year term.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/04/07/ted.stevens/

~ ~ ~

NEW DISCOVERY (10-27-08):

EDITORIAL, ANCHORAGE DAILY NEWS

Ted Stevens, convicted

At some point the Alaskan of the Century
lost his ethical compass

A jury of ordinary citizens has rendered its verdict: No one, not even Ted Stevens, the Alaskan of the Century, is above the law. If a powerful politician is going to collect a steady stream of gifts and home improvements from a powerful lobbyist, he must report them as the law requires.

The public had a right to know about the intimate financial relationship Sen. Stevens had with the state's most notorious power broker. Sen. Stevens let Bill Allen rebuild his house and stock it with furnishings -- and then hid the cozy arrangement from public sight.

It's a shame to see Sen. Stevens' once-great career end in scandal. No single person has done more to transform life in Alaska than Stevens, the longest-serving Republican U.S. senator in history.

GOOD WORKS ARE NO EXCUSE

A full list of his accomplishments is too long to recount here. He ensured that Alaska still hosts a robust military presence, despite constant downsizing pressure. Thousands of federal workers here collect a tax-free cost-of-living boost on their paychecks. Scores of rural communities have health clinics, water and sewer projects, airports or docks, thanks to Ted Stevens.

Ted Stevens was there in the Senate when the federal government passed the landmark Native land claims settlement in 1971. He helped push Congress to break a legal logjam holding up the Alaska oil pipeline. He fought to reduce the size of federal parks, refuges and wilderness areas that Congress set aside in 1980 and to create more flexible rules for Alaskans using those areas.

The law that governs the nation's offshore fisheries bears Ted Stevens' name. Stevens passed special tax breaks and bidding preferences for Alaska Native corporations, some of which have turned into economic powerhouses. Alaska's larger communities enjoy roads, ports, airports and other public facilities built in large part with federal money that Ted Stevens steered our way.

Sense of righteousness

The man who has done so much good for Alaska did himself in. The same sense of righteousness that made him such an effective advocate for Alaska also led him to take what he could from his corrupt lobbyist-friend and hide it.

Somewhere along the line, the former federal prosecutor lost his ethical compass. Ted Stevens has been in power so long, he developed a sense of entitlement. He thought he should be able to take favors and sweetheart deals from friends like Bill Allen because he was Ted Stevens, Alaskan of the Century, Senator for Life -- and if Ted Stevens does it, it must be OK.

Sen. Stevens didn't have to testify in his own defense, but he did. Give him credit for that -- he gave at least that public accounting to voters who will decide his electoral fate on Nov. 4.

His story, however, didn't persuade the jury -- and it shouldn't persuade voters, either.

BLAMING OTHERS

The "Lion of the Senate" blamed others for his woes. He blamed his wife, because she was supposed to pay the bills. He blamed Bill Allen, because he kept giving him things and building improvements to the Girdwood home. He blamed prosecutors for being unfair to him.

Sen. Stevens resorted to legal hairsplitting, saying that the "unwanted" gifts were really just "loans," which, conveniently, did not have to be disclosed on his Senate forms.

BAD JUDGMENT, REGARDLESS

Ted Stevens never took an ounce of responsibility for any of the behavior that got him indicted and convicted. He rejects the jury's verdict, saying he's a victim of prosecutorial abuse. He will, of course, appeal.

Even if the jury hadn't convicted him, even if his appeal succeeds, Stevens demonstrated to Alaskans that he was guilty of astonishingly bad judgment.

Bill Allen was a well-known bad actor in Alaska politics long before Ted Stevens collected his first unreported gift from him.

ALLEN'S PREVIOUS RECORD

Allen's company, Veco, paid a record-breaking $28,000 fine for illegally funneling money to favored state Senate candidates in 1984. Veco paid another big fine for illegally helping a candidate for governor in 1990.

Even so, Veco, Allen and his top executives continued to be Alaska's single largest source of campaign cash. Between 1989 and 2006, Ted Stevens had no qualms about taking $156,000 of campaign funds from the Veco pipeline controlled by Bill Allen. We now know, thanks to Allen's conviction on bribery charges, that when Veco executives made "personal" campaign donations, they used laundered money from Allen and Veco.

Bill Allen gave the senator's son lucrative "consulting" contracts, but Sen. Stevens never suspected anything was amiss. Allen has since admitted those do-nothing contracts were bribes to Ben Stevens, who as state Senate president did Allen's bidding in a controversial fight against a state oil tax increase.

Bill Allen asked for and got Ted Stevens' help in getting federal contracts. Ted Stevens was scratching Bill Allen's back while Bill Allen was scratching his.

FINALLY BREAKING WITH BILL ALLEN

Ted Stevens didn't recognize Bill Allen as bad news until Bill Allen pleaded guilty to his crimes and testified against him in court. Only then did Ted Stevens recognize the flaws in his buddy, the fellow who joined him on yearly retreats, the man who had the keys to his Alaska house.

It's no coincidence that Ted Stevens and Bill Allen were partners in owning a race horse. Horse racing is the sport of kings, and Ted Stevens expected to enjoy the kind of power and privilege usually associated with kings.

Ted Stevens may be Alaskan of the Century but he is not our king. His lifetime of good works for Alaska does not entitle him to ignore the law. If Alaskans have any pride, any integrity, any standards of conduct for their public servants, voters will not reward his arrogance on Election Day.

BOTTOM LINE: The man who has done so much good for Alaska did himself in with his bad judgment.

http://www.adn.com/opinion/view/story/569718.html

~ ~ ~

NEW DISCOVERIES (10-08-08):

October 8, 2008

Sen. Inouye may be called to testify in
trial of Alaska Sen. Stevens

Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hawaii Sen. Daniel K. Inouye would be among the first witnesses called in defense of Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens.

Inouye, a longtime friend of Stevens, could take the stand Thursday in Stevens’ corruption trial.

Prosecutors have already presented their side of the case, with witnesses testifying on accusations that Stevens tried to conceal more than $250,000 in renovations to his cabin and other gives from an oil pipeline executive.

U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan was considering declaring a mistrial today after prosecutors admitted withholding some information from defense attorneys.

Honolulu Advertiser

~ ~ ~

September 21, 2008

Ted Stevens, Alaska's embattled Republican, enlists the aid of a Democratic senator

Hawaii's Daniel K. Inouye is putting friendship ahead of party loyalty -- an unusual act in a Senate that is now bitterly partisan -- by helping the indicted senator facing reelection.

By Richard Simon, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

WASHINGTON -- During an election year in which Democrats and Republicans are in a bare-knuckled fight to gain seats in Congress, Hawaii Democrat Daniel K. Inouye is traveling far and wide to work for a fellow senator's reelection.

But the colleague Inouye is trying to help is a Republican, Ted Stevens of Alaska.

Stevens, who has been indicted on corruption charges, has become a top Democratic target in a race that could be crucial to the party's hopes of securing a filibuster-proof majority.

But that hasn't stopped Inouye from putting his decades-long friendship with Stevens ahead of party loyalty, an unusual act in a Senate that has become bitterly partisan.

Inouye has traveled to Alaska to campaign for Stevens. He has contributed $10,000 from his political action committee to Stevens' campaign. And he has appeared as a "special guest" at a Washington fundraiser for Stevens.

"I want my partner to go back to Washington," Inouye said during a recent campaign appearance for Stevens in Alaska. "Our parties don't understand . . . but there are things that are more important than political considerations. And that's friendship."

So far, Inouye's support for Stevens has not elicited the Democratic ire that greeted Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), the Democrats' 2000 vice presidential candidate, when he began campaigning for Republican presidential candidate John McCain.

Not that it would deter Inouye.

"We call each other brothers," Inouye said during a Senate tribute to Stevens last year, when he became the longest-serving Republican senator.

The two have much in common. Both are 84. Both represent the newest states, and the only noncontiguous ones. They have sat next to each other for years on the Defense Appropriations Committee, rotating as chairman and ranking member, depending on whose party holds the majority.

Inouye lost his right arm during World War II while fighting with the Japanese American 442nd Regiment in Italy. Stevens is also a decorated veteran of that war, having flown missions for the Flying Tigers in China.

Another bond they share, Inouye said jokingly but with pride: "He and I have received the crown of being 'pork men of the year.' " Alaska and Hawaii are No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in per capita pork-barrel spending for 2008, according to the watchdog group Citizens Against Government Waste.

Inouye is low-key while Stevens is often cranky and hot-tempered, but both are old bulls whose Senate service together dates to a different, more collegial era. Inouye was elected in 1962; Stevens was appointed to his seat in 1968.

Both men have lamented the heightened partisan tension in the Senate.

"The aisle between the two sides is now a canyon," Stevens said last year. "And people on either side accuse me and Dan Inouye of being freaks because we're friends."

Democrats hold high hopes of expanding their majority in the Senate, which is split 49-49 but has two independents who usually side with the Democrats. Sixty seats are needed to overcome a filibuster -- the delaying tactic that one party uses to stymie the other. Some Democrats think that threshold is within reach in November.

Stevens is facing the toughest race of his career, after his indictment in July on charges of concealing $250,000 in home renovations and gifts from an oil services firm. His trial opens Monday.

But Inouye is standing by his friend. "In our legal system, a man is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law," he said in a statement after the indictment.

Inouye's Democratic colleagues shrug off his support of Stevens, but some party activists are less understanding.

"There is a difference between bipartisanship and throwing your team under the bus," Democracy for America, a Vermont-based group, said in an e-mail to members assailing Inouye. "Evidently, building a filibuster-proof majority is not a priority."

Los Angeles Times

~ ~ ~

NEW DISCOVERY (08-15-08): Undisclosed conflicts of interests between Senator Dan Inouye, Senator Ted Stevens, VECO Corporation, George W. Bush, John McCain, Dick Cheney, Halliburton, Shell Oil, Barack Obama, Mark Bennett, Linda Lingle, Tesoro Petroleum, Faye Kurren, Judge Barry Kurren, Enron, etc.:

December 6, 1996

ENRON and Shell Win Bid in
Capitalization of YPFB's
Transportation Segment

LA PAZ, BOLIVIA – Enron Development Corp. and Shell International Gas Ltd. announced today that the government of Bolivia has named the companies the successful capitalizing company for the transportation segment of the state oil and gas company, Yacimientos Petroliferos...

Business Wire

~ ~ ~

March 30, 1998

The following is an excerpt from a 10-K SEC Filing, filed by TESORO PETROLEUM CORP /NEW/ on 3/30/1998:

ACCESS TO NEW MARKETS

A lack of market access has constrained natural gas production in Bolivia. With little internal gas demand, all of the Company's Bolivian natural gas production is sold under contract to the Bolivian government for export to Argentina.

Major developments in South America indicate that new markets will open for the Company's production. Construction of a new 1,900-mile pipeline that will link Bolivia's extensive gas reserves with markets in Brazil commenced in 1997 and is expected to be operational in early 1999.

The owners of the new pipeline include Petrobras (the Brazilian state oil company), other Brazilian investors, Enron Corp., Shell International Gas Ltd., British Gas PLC, El Paso Energy Corp., BHP, and Bolivian pension funds. When completed, the new pipeline will have a capacity of approximately 1 billion cubic feet ("Bcf") per day.

For more, see...

Googling the Ghost of Ken Lay

Aloha, Harken Energy

Citigroup: Vampires in the City

The Story of Enron

Vultures Up to their Necks in Tesoro Petroleum

~ ~ ~

NEW DISCOVERY (08-01-08): Undisclosed conflicts of interests between Senator Dan Inouye, Senator Ted Stevens, VECO Corporation, George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Halliburton, Tesoro Petroleum, Faye Kurren, Judge Barry Kurren, etc.:

July 30, 2008

Alaska Sen. Stevens indicted;
'I am innocent'

By LISA DEMER, RICHARD MAUER and ERIKA BOLSTAD
Anchorage Daily News

A federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., indicted long-term U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens Tuesday on seven counts of filing false financial disclosures, each a felony charge that carries a penalty of five years in prison and an unspecified fine.

With the indictment, Stevens, an icon in Alaska politics, becomes by far the most powerful politician charged in the broad, four-year federal investigation into public corruption in the state. To date, three state legislators, a high-level official in Gov. Frank Murkowski's administration, two businessmen and a lobbyist have been convicted, while two legislators are awaiting trial.

Stevens said he will fight to save himself and his long career.

"I am innocent of these charges and intend to prove that," he said in a prepared statement. "I have proudly served this nation and Alaska for over 50 years."

At a news conference in Washington to announce the indictment, Matthew Friedrich, acting assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's criminal division, said Stevens would be allowed to turn himself in. Stevens' attorney, Brendan Sullivan of Washington, was notified of the indictment Tuesday morning shortly before it became public, Friedrich said.

'THINGS OF VALUE'

The seven-count indictment charges Stevens with making false statements by failing to disclose "things of value" he received from Veco Corp., the now-defunct Alaska-based oil services and construction company, and from its chairman, Bill Allen, in a scheme that stretched over eight years.

At the same time, according to the indictment, Allen and other Veco employees asked Stevens to intervene on their behalf with the government, and Stevens sometimes obliged.

Stevens received substantial benefits from his relationship with Veco that he never disclosed, the indictment charged: improvements to his home in Girdwood; an automobile exchange in which he received a new Land Rover worth far more than his 35-year-old Mustang; and household appliances.

The federal Ethics in Government Act requires all senators to file financial disclosure statements detailing their transactions during the previous calendar year, including the disclosure of gifts above a specified value and all liabilities greater than $10,000.

At the news conference, Friedrich said the case involved false disclosures, not bribery, and no specific actions by Stevens in return for gifts were charged, even though the indictment mentioned some Veco requests and the favorable responses by Stevens and his staff.

Some of the solicitations were made directly to Stevens and included requests for help by Veco on its international projects in Pakistan and Russia; requests for federal grants and contracts, including National Science Foundation contracts worth nearly $200 million; and assistance with efforts to construct a natural gas pipeline from Alaska's North Slope.

The indictment comes just as Stevens is in the political fight of his life to win a seventh term. The fallout was immediate: Under Republican rules governing indicted senators, he had to step aside from two key committee positions he earned through longevity -- his co-chairmanship of the Commerce Committee, which oversees fishing and telecommunications, and his ranking position on the defense appropriations subcommittee, from which he has sent millions in earmarks to Alaska.

Even with his famed clout in Washington at least temporarily diminished, Stevens vowed to continue his campaign. His presumptive Democratic opponent, Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich, wouldn't answer questions about Stevens' indictment.

YEAR AFTER GIRDWOOD RAID

Friedrich said the Justice Department followed its own rules in seeking an indictment when the evidence was complete and sufficient to bring charges. The political calendar wasn't considered, he said.

Allen, Veco's former chief executive, and Rick Smith, the company's former vice president of community affairs and government relations, pleaded guilty May 7, 2007, to providing more than $400,000 in corrupt payments to public officials from Alaska. Allen and Smith are cooperating and have been key witnesses in two trials so far.

Back then, there were no direct references in the Allen and Smith charges to gifts they provided to Stevens, though they admitted making corrupt payments of $243,250 over five years to Stevens' son Ben, once president of the Alaska Senate. Ben Stevens has not been charged and has denied wrongdoing.

The charges against Ted Stevens come almost exactly a year after an FBI and IRS raid on Stevens' home in Girdwood, the first time those agencies had ever raided the home of a sitting U.S. senator. At the time the agents documented the renovations made in 2000 that were overseen by Allen and managed by his employees and contractors. The renovations doubled the size of the home.

Stevens has refused to discuss the investigation, except to say he paid every bill he received connected to the renovation. He has refused to elaborate about whether that answer implied he knew of work on the house for which he wasn't billed.

The indictment said Stevens made "multiple false representations" to reporters, his friends and his staff about what he received from Veco and Allen. While it's no crime for an official to lie to the media, prosecutors charged that those statements were part of his long-term effort to conceal Veco's gifts and benefits.

MORE THAN $200,000 ON RENOVATIONS

From the summer of 2000 to about December 2001, Veco spent more than $200,000 on the Girdwood renovations, including materials, labor and architectural design, the indictment says. Much of that effort has already been the subject of extensive media coverage based on interviews with contractors, ex-Veco employees and Girdwood residents who witnessed the work.

For instance, Veco and Stevens hired a construction firm, identified only as "Construction Firm A" in the indictment, for the renovation project. The company matches the description of Christensen Builders of Anchorage, whose president, Augie Paone, told the Daily News in May 2007 that he was hired by Veco but sent invoices to Stevens and that Stevens paid by personal check from a new account.

The charges say Stevens never paid Veco anything for the materials or labor provided by Veco, its employees and contractors but clearly knew that Veco did a lot of the work.

Paone said he fully cooperated with the government. The indictment echoes his assertions in the interview, adding that Construction Firm A focused on carpentry and finish work, and Veco employees did much more.

PRAISE FOR VECO WORKERS

In an e-mail to Allen Sept. 24, 2000, Stevens was full of praise for Veco and its employees, according to the indictment. "We've never worked with a man so easy to get along with as (unnamed Veco employee). Plus, everyone who's seen the place wants to know who has done the things he's done. ... You and (Person A) have been the spark plugs, and we are really pleased with all you have done. hope to see you and the chalet soon. best teds." The indictment goes much further than what was previously known and reveals that maintenance on the house extended into 2006. When something went awry, the charges say, Stevens asked Veco for help much as someone else might call a plumber.

By 2006, the concealed "things of value" topped $250,000.

The indictment has no reference to whether the government intercepted calls made to Stevens from any of Allen's or Smith's phones that were wiretapped under court order starting in 2005. Once Allen agreed to plead guilty, on Aug. 30, 2006, he placed several calls to public officials, including Stevens, in a sting effort. The content of those calls has not been disclosed.

The 1999 vehicle exchange cited in the indictment concerned a new car for Stevens' "dependent child," not naming the person. At the time, his only dependent child was daughter Lily.

Allen transferred a new 1999 Land Rover Discovery, which he had bought for $44,000, to Stevens. In exchange, Stevens gave Allen, a car collector with a love of Fords, a 1964 Mustang and $5,000. But the Mustang was worth less than $20,000, according to the indictment.

Lily Stevens, now 27, is the sole child of Stevens' marriage to his second wife, Catherine. Lily, a law clerk in Washington, is engaged to be married in late August. A call to her Washington office was not returned.

Stevens' first wife, Ann, was killed in the crash of a private jet in Anchorage in 1978 that injured Stevens. Ted and Ann Stevens had five children together, including Ben.

ALASKAN OF THE CENTURY

Stevens, 84, is the longest-serving Republican in the U.S. Senate. From 2003 to 2007, he was Senate president pro tem and third in line to the presidency. With political power that increased with his longevity, Stevens came to represent Alaska's clout in Congress. In January 2000, Stevens was named "Alaskan of the Century," and the Anchorage airport was renamed in his honor that July.

That was also the year of the bulk of the Girdwood home renovations.

Alaska's other senator, Lisa Murkowski, expressed shock at the indictment in a prepared statement today.

"I know Ted Stevens to be an honorable, hard-working Alaskan who has served our state well for as long as we have been a state," she said. "As to the charges, we are at the beginning of the criminal process and there is a judicial procedure in place that will be followed."

Murkowski, a Republican, probably owes her election in 2004 to Stevens. She was trailing former Gov. Tony Knowles in the polls until the final weeks, when Stevens began blitzing the state with commercials saying he needed her beside him in Washington.

Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, Stevens' best friend in the Senate, said in a brief statement: "In our legal system, a man is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. ... As far as I am concerned, Ted Stevens remains my friend. I believe in him."

Stevens and Inouye are both World War II veterans and call each other "brother." When Stevens became chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee in 2005, he named Inouye vice chairman rather than the usual term "ranking member" afforded the senior member of the opposite party.

Inouye returned the favor last year when Democrats took over the Senate and he became chairman.

http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/478349.html

~ ~ ~

Q&A: Inside The Indictment Of Ted Stevens

by Linton Weeks and Pam Fessler

Senator Indicted

NPR.org, July 29, 2008 · Ted Stevens, 84, has represented Alaska in the U.S. Senate since 1968 — making him the longest-serving Republican in Senate history. On Tuesday he was indicted by the Justice Department. Here's a look at the charges against him:

Why is Stevens in trouble?

Stevens allegedly failed to disclose gifts and services that he received from a private company — VECO Corp., an Alaska oil services company. He and other people in Alaska have been under investigation by the Justice Department since 2004. Stevens was indicted on seven counts of not listing the gifts on financial disclosure forms.

What did Stevens allegedly receive?

Between May 1999 and August 2007, according to the indictment, Stevens received goods and services that vastly improved his vacation home in Girdwood, Alaska, outside Anchorage. The VECO Corp. and its founder, Bill Allen, oversaw the expansion of the home that Stevens calls "the chalet." A whole story was added to the house, along with a garage and wraparound deck. According to the indictment, the company paid for new plumbing, wiring and gutter work. Prosecutors allege that Stevens was also given a Viking gas grill, some tools and furniture and the chance to swap a 1964 Ford Mustang for a brand new 1999 Land Rover Discovery. Stevens has denied any wrongdoing and says he paid every renovation bill he received. Prosecutors allege that he failed to reimburse VECO and others for the gifts.

So senators can't legally accept gifts?

They can, but only up to a point. If they receive too many gifts from one source in a year, they have to report it on financial disclosure forms. If you add up the allowed amounts for the years 1999-2006, the total is $850. Any aggregate amount over that from a single source of gifts had to be reported. According to the indictment, during those years, Stevens received more than $250,000 worth of undisclosed gifts from VECO and its chief executive, Allen.

What does VECO do exactly?

It's a privately held, Alaska-based company that provides oil pipelines and construction services to petroleum concerns and other firms.

What did VECO allegedly get out of the deal?

Let's quote from the indictment: "It was part of the scheme that Stevens during that same time period … received and accepted solicitations for multiple official actions from [CEO Bill] Allen and other VECO employees, and knowing that Stevens could and did use his official position and office on behalf of VECO…" A Justice Department spokesman said the indictment does not allege any quid pro quo activities.

What sort of official actions did Stevens allegedly take on VECO's behalf?

The indictment allege that Stevens put in funding requests for certain VECO international projects and partnerships, including ventures in Pakistan and Russia, and that he requested federal grants from the National Science Foundation for a VECO subsidiary.

What will happen next?

At a news conference, a Justice Department spokesman said prosecutors are going to allow Stevens to turn himself in, but there were no details about when or where that would take place.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=93045719

~ ~ ~

October 30, 2007

WWF Lauds Senators Inouye and Stevens for Leadership on Reauthorization of Coral Reef Conservation Act

World Wildlife Fund Press Release

Leslie Aun
leslie.aun@wwfus.org

WASHINGTON DC – Members of the world’s leading environmental organizations, including the World Wildlife Fund, today hailed the leaders of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation for approving S. 1580, the Coral Reef Conservation Reauthorization Act (CRCRA), and in particular including a new program with dedicated funding for international coral reef conservation.

In a joint letter sent today, WWF, Conservation International, The Nature Conservancy and Wildlife Conservation Society expressed their appreciation to Committee Chair Daniel Inouye (D-HI) and Ranking Member Ted Stevens (R-AL) for their leadership in gaining committee approval for the bill, which protects corals reefs in the U.S. and around the world.

The CRCA is a significant tool in conserving coral reefs, which are deteriorating at alarming rates around the world. Coral reefs are often referred to as the “rainforests of the sea” because they are vital to the health of oceans and critical to the continued existence of the world’s most important fisheries.

“With a new program on international coral reef conservation, this legislation will help establish the US as a clear leader globally, creating invaluable synergies with many efforts currently underway to improve coral reef conservation around the globe, including in the Coral Triangle Initiative recently endorsed by leaders at the summit for Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation,” said WWF Government Relations Vice President Jason Patlis.

“This is more than just a grants program. It requires the government to develop an overarching strategy to protect coral reefs overseas to ensure that funding is well spent. We applaud Chairman Inouye and Ranking Member Stevens for their support of this critically important legislation. ”

~ ~ ~

March 22, 2000

KELLOGG BROWN & ROOT'S ROSE™ AND FCC TECHNOLOGIES SELECTED BY TESORO NORTHWEST FOR ANACORTES REFINERY UPGRADE

Tesoro Northwest Company is a subsidiary of Tesoro Petroleum Corporation. Part of an $80 million project, the upgrade will improve the ability of the refinery to run heavier, less expensive crudes while maintaining an almost equal production profile.

In addition to providing ROSE and FCC technology licenses, KBR also will perform basic engineering services, will supply associated proprietary equipment and will be responsible for a portion of the detailed engineering, procurement and construction activities in conjunction with engineering contractors Anvil Corporation and VECO Pacific, Inc.

"This win has provided Kellogg Brown & Root with several great opportunities - the ability to work with a growing refining and marketing company like Tesoro, to link our world class FCC and ROSE technologies, and to expand our current presence in the northwest," said Kellogg Brown & Root President Jack Stanley....

Headquartered in Houston, Kellogg Brown & Root is an international, technology-based engineering and construction company providing a full spectrum of industry-leading services to the hydrocarbon, chemical, energy, forest products, manufacturing, and mining and minerals industries.

Founded in 1919, Halliburton Company is the world's leading diversified energy services, engineering, energy equipment, construction and maintenance company. In 1999, Halliburton's consolidated revenues were $14.9 billion and it conducted business with a workforce of approximately 100,000 in more than 120 countries. The company's World Wide Web site can be accessed at http://www.halliburton.com .

Tesoro Petroleum Corporation is an independent refiner and marketer of petroleum products and provider of marine logistics services. Tesoro operates three refineries in the western U.S. with a combined capacity of 275,000 barrels per day. Tesoro's branded retail network is currently comprised of approximately 240 stations, of which 61 are company owned and operated.

Contact
Wendy Hagan
Halliburton Company
Public Relations
wendy.hagan@halliburton.com

http://www.halliburton.com/news/archive/2000/kbrnws_032200.jsp

~ ~ ~

July 30, 2008

VECO Contributions

POSTED BY Paul Blumenthal

VECO has spent the last decade or so providing the slick for Alaska politics and it’s come come back to bite them in the behind. With yesterday’s indictment of Sen. Ted Stevens, the Alaska corruption investigation has brought convictions and indictments against two VECO executives, four Alaska state politicians, and the senior senator. VECO clearly had pull in Alaska and in Washington.

Yesterday, I used Ted Stevens’ Lawmaker Profile to show the campaign contributions that VECO provided. Today, the spotlight is on all the VECO contributions used to grease their way in Washington. Below is a chart of active politicians in Washington and campaign contribution totals to their campaign committees and political action committees:

VECO contributions to active Washington politicians (1992-Present).

Don Young (R-AK) $190,530

Ted Stevens (R-AK)$102,500

Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)$42,250

George W. Bush (R)$20,050

Daniel Inouye (D-HI)$13,000

Norm Coleman (R-MN) $7,000

Richard Burr (R-NC)$6,000

Tom Coburn (R-OK)$6,000

Jim DeMint (R-SC)$6,000

John Sununu (R-NH)$6,000

John Thune (R-SD)$6,000

David Vitter (R-LA)$6,000

Kit Bond (R-MO)$4,516

Arlen Specter (R-PA)$4,000

George Voinovich (R-OH)$3,750

John Ensign (R-NV)$2,000

Steve Pearce (R-NM)$1,000

Jon Porter (R-NV)$1,000

Dennis Rehberg (R-MT)$1,000

Barbara Cubin (R-WY)$500

Larry Craig (R-ID)$200

These totals were produced by using the OpenSecrets.org search function to identify all contributions from VECO Corp. and its many name variations. These variations include VECO Co., VECO Inc., VECO International, VECO Pacific, VECO Engineering, VECO Construction, and VECO, among others.

The Center for Responsive Politics lists Don Young as receiving $229,670 from VECO. So there must be other contributions out there that filtered out of my search. Let me know if you can find them.

www.blog.sunlightfoundation.com/2008/07/30/veco-contributions/

~ ~ ~

NEW DISCOVERY (07-29-08):

July 29, 2008

Ted Stevens indicted,
longest-serving GOP senator

By LARA JAKES JORDAN, Associated Press

Sen. Ted Stevens, the nation's longest-serving Republican senator and a major figure in Alaska politics since before statehood, was indicted Tuesday on seven counts of failing to disclose hundreds of thousands of dollars in services from an oil services company that helped renovate his home.

The first sitting U.S. senator to face federal indictment since 1993, Stevens has been dogged by an investigation into his home renovation project in Alaska and his dealings with wealthy oil contractors.

The probe has upended Alaska state politics and brought negative attention to Stevens — who is running for re-election this year — and to his congressional colleague, Rep. Don Young, who also is under investigation.

Stevens' indictment further damages Republican prospects in the November elections as Senate Democrats, who now enjoy a 51-49 majority, try to capture a filibuster-proof 60-vote majority.

Prosecutors said Stevens received more than $250,000 in gifts and services from VECO Corp., a powerful oil services contractor, and its executives. From May 1999 to August 2007, prosecutors said, the 84-year-old senator concealed "his continuing receipt of hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of things of value from a private corporation."

The indictment unsealed Tuesday says the items included home improvements to his vacation home in Alaska, including a new first floor, garage, wraparound deck, plumbing and electrical wiring, as well as a Viking gas grill, furniture and tools. He also was accused of failing to report swapping an old Ford for a new Land Rover to be driven by one of his children.

The Justice Department said Stevens would not be arrested and would be allowed to turn himself in.

Stevens has adamantly denied any wrongdoing but has said little else publicly about the investigation. Messages left at both his Senate office in Washington and his campaign office in Anchorage were not immediately returned on Tuesday. His attorney also did not return calls.

Stevens has coasted to re-election six times in Alaska, but he is in what has been viewed as the toughest race of his career this year against Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich.

The indictment tarnishes one of the most powerful and savvy of the GOP lions in the Senate a year after another Republican senator, Larry Craig of Idaho, pleaded guilty to charges arising out of a Minneapolis airport men's room sex sting.

Stevens wielded power from his position as chairman of the Appropriations Committee from 1997 to 2005, except for 18 months when Democrats controlled the Senate. His longevity also means that if Republicans took over the Senate, he would be president pro tempore, a mostly symbolic title but one that would make him third in line for the presidency after the vice president and speaker of the House.

Under Senate rules, Tuesday's indictment will require Stevens to give up his post as senior Republican on the Appropriations Committee.

Young, who is under scrutiny for his fundraising practices involving VECO, said Tuesday, "I hope people will not rush to judgment and will let the judicial process work. The process is based on being innocent until proven guilty."

He called Stevens "one of the most effective and honest legislators I have ever worked with."

Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada said, "I have served with Sen. Stevens my entire congressional career. It's a sad day for him, us, but you know I believe in the American system of justice and he's presumed innocent."

Among other colleagues, John Warner, R-Va., called Stevens a hero, adding, however, he didn't know details about the indictment. "All of us have times that we have to deal with that are tough," Warner said. "I wish him the best."

Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., said, "I've known Ted Stevens for 28 years, and have always known him to be impeccably honest."

Prosecutors, however, said Stevens "took multiple steps to continue" receiving things from oil services company VECO Corp. and its founder, Bill Allen. At the time, the indictment says, Allen and other VECO employees were soliciting Stevens for "multiple official actions ... knowing that Stevens could and did use his official position and his office on behalf of VECO during that same time period."

VECO's requests included funding and other aid for the oil services company's projects and partnerships in Pakistan and Russia. They also included federal grants from several agencies as well as help in building a national gas pipeline in Alaska's North Slope Region, according to the indictment filed in U.S. District Court in Washington.

A moderate Republican, Stevens has served almost 40 years in the Senate, where he unabashedly steered money to his remote and sparsely populated home state. He often drew criticism from outside Alaska for going around the traditional appropriations process to fund projects.

The Justice Department has closely followed that money, looking for where it intersects with the senator's son, Ben.

A lobbyist and former state senator, Ben Stevens was paid as a consultant for many in the fishing industry who benefited from legislation his father drafted. When Ted Stevens created a $30 million marketing fund for Alaska seafood, Ben Stevens helped decide which companies got the money. Some were his clients.

Ben Stevens also had financial ties to a company that stood to make millions off a piece of federal legislation his father wrote. But he repeatedly has said he never lobbied his father.

Politics had nothing to do with the indictment of Stevens, himself a former federal prosecutor in Alaska, said Matthew Friedrich, chief of the Justice Department's criminal division.

"We bring cases based on our evaluation of the facts and the law," Friedrich said at a news conference announcing the indictments. "We bring cases when they are ready to be charged, and that's what happened here."

In other cases involving indictments of senators:

• On April 2, 1993, Republican Sen. David Durenburger of Minnesota was indicted by a federal grand jury in Washington on charges of conspiring to file fraudulent claims for Senate reimbursement of $3,825 in lodging expenses during 1987 and 1988. The indictment was later dismissed. After new charges were filed, Durenberger pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of converting public funds to his personal use. He was sentenced to one year of probation and a $1,000 fine.

• Republican Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas was indicted by a state grand jury on Sept. 27, 1993, in Austin, Texas. She was charged with official misconduct and tampering with evidence to impede an investigation. On Feb. 11, 1994, a judge ordered her acquittal after the district attorney refused to present his case.

www.news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080729/ap_on_go_co/stevens_indictment

~ ~ ~

NEW DISCOVERY (07-29-08): Undisclosed financial relationships between Senator Ted Stevens, Senator Dan Inouye, Judge Barry Kurren, Faye Kurren, Tesoro, Halliburton, VECO Pacific, others...

March 22, 2000

KELLOGG BROWN & ROOT'S ROSE™ AND FCC TECHNOLOGIES SELECTED BY TESORO NORTHWEST FOR ANACORTES REFINERY UPGRADE

DALLAS, Texas - Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR), a business unit of Halliburton Company (NYSE: HAL), was recently selected to provide its state-of-the-art Residuum Oil Supercritical Extraction (ROSE™) and Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC) Technologies for a major upgrade at Tesoro Northwest Company's refinery in Anacortes, Washington. Tesoro Northwest Company is a subsidiary of Tesoro Petroleum Corporation. Part of an $80 million project, the upgrade will improve the ability of the refinery to run heavier, less expensive crudes while maintaining an almost equal production profile.

KBR's involvement in the multi-million dollar project includes a variety of undertakings. The company will add a grassroots 21,000 barrel-per-day ROSE unit to the refinery while incorporating KBR's advanced FCC technologies to the existing 42,000 barrel-per-day FCC. In addition to providing ROSE and FCC technology licenses, KBR also will perform basic engineering services, will supply associated proprietary equipment and will be responsible for a portion of the detailed engineering, procurement and construction activities in conjunction with engineering contractors Anvil Corporation and VECO Pacific, Inc.

Contact
Wendy Hagan
Halliburton Company
Public Relations
wendy.hagan@halliburton.com

http://www.halliburton.com/news/archive/2000/kbrnws_032200.jsp

See also:

www.kycbs.net/Tesoro.htm

www.kycbs.net/CV05-00030-Witness-Kurren-Faye.htm

www.kycbs.net/CV05-00030-Witness-Kurren-Barry.htm

www.kycbs.net/CV05-00030-Witness-Inouye-Dan.htm

~ ~ ~

NEW DISCOVERY (07-08-08): E-mail regarding witness Judge Susan Oki Mollway:

Check out James B. Nicholson, Trustee vs. Harmon - Witness Judge Susan Oki Mollway

Tuesday, July 8, 2008 4:43 PM

From: Mutant Ninja Cats

Re:

James B. Nicholson, Trustee vs. Harmon - Witness Judge Susan Oki Mollway

FYI: Susan Oki, Echi Oki, Dan Mollway, Airline Industry, SEC, and the Broken Trust Asian Pacific Bamboo Legacy in collusion with AIPAC Political influence in the powerful influential Defense Appropriation Committee members {Ted Stevens and Duke Cunnigham} under Hawaii U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye's leadership...... and the stealth Political, Economic, and Socialized intents for the pending AKAKA BILL in Congress, documented, again, under "A Confederacy of Dunces" {Forbes}.

Hey CB....this one is the ultimate "insiders" in Hawaii regulatory Government for the Broken Trust cabals linked to the Hawaii Legislature members including their own Federal Reps in Washington protecting their Hawaiian Hui "inside" investors from Southeast Asia to Wall Street:

I talked with the State Ethic's Commissioner / Director, Dan Mollway....Ms. Susan Oki's husband... about the BIG conflicts of interests involving our case against the State DLNR, The Ombudsman Office Director, The DCCA Rico "Investigations" with huge Political cover-ups involving the ANZAI's and the Hawaii Judicial system protecting their own regulatory local hui investors linked to the Bishop Estate Trustees.

Dan Mollway was involved with the "separate" Investigations involving the DLNR Bureau of Conveyance Public land records being ILLEGALLY manipulated and tampered for "Controlled Business" practices by the private sector {Title Guarantee Company employees with Realtors linked to Hoiku Consultant private computers being placed strategically in Public Office Government Buildings linked to the Hawaii Legislature members and the KSBE investments under Headmaster Colbert Matsumoto}.

He claimed that the State Ethics Department was still in the process of their own "separate" investigations {with vague public follow-ups since last year} while the State of Hawaii Attorney General's office conducted their own internal "investigations" in conjunction with a Third Investigations by the Hawaii Legislature members with their Union supported employees!

This again, is the same as a California PYRO MANIAC investigating his own blazing Wild Fire, while creating numerous distracted small fires around the BIG MAIN BON-FIRE, to attention away from his malicious and well calculated deeds!

The gas can {State of Hawaii DLNR Public Forgery Document Executive Order 3117 with a false Public misleading Official GAO Survey Map} with the match {The original suppressed DLNR Legal Access documents} and the remaining evidence with charred ruins {The Hawaiian Airline Pilot's family Bankruptcy proceedings implicating the KSBE and U.S. Trustees mishandling and suppressing the FRAUD} is all their for the "Investigators" conducted by the same Hawaii Buzzards and Vultures linked to the BROKEN TRUST Hawaii Legislature members, again, conducting their own Public Relation separate "investigations" for their Union memberships obtaining bribery gifts and favors {Oriental customs?}; The Hawaii State Ethics Director, linked to the Bamboo network Hawaii Judiciary system Huis with their own separate Public Relation damage control "investigations" to nowhere under the Hawaii AG's Office....promoting a Sovereign Hawaiian Bill, based on Illegal Political Constructive Fraud in Washington {1993 Simple Federal Apology Resolution to Hawaii by Senators Daniel Inouye and Akaka} while ignoring blatant Public Fraud and Political Corruption with OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE with HUGE CONFLICTS OF INTERESTS for: "SOCIAL EQUALITY AND POLITICAL JUSTICE FOR ALL" in Washington......

DOESN'T GET MUCH BETTER THAN THIS while Congress protects their own vested interests under the Political Department of Injustice cabals while helping spread American Democracy and American Values in the controversial Middle East and around the World!

Some interesting bit of side notes involving Ms. Susan Oki and her father....a former member of the famed 442 U.S. Military Regiment: My father, a former World War 11 Combat photographer in the South Pacific theatre, was married to a local Japanese during the War. He was a distant Political acquaintance and supporter for Jack Burns in Kailua, Oahu. They both belonged to the Kailua Lions Club and were both members of the private Lanikai Mid-Pacific Country Club....mostly all haole members after the War years.

My father was involved in a very fraudulent Hawaii land purchase and sale during the 1950s involving a corrupt Hawaii land surveyor and a fellow Irishman linked to the Hawaii Judges family members. After he relocated to San Francisco in the early 1960s, he retained a Hawaii attorney whom I believe was none other than Echi Oki.....from Honolulu, linked to the famed 442 Hawaii Military Brigade members whom he always supported due to the persecution of the local Hawaii Japanese community after Pearl Harbor.

Echi Oki, again, had close political links vis-a-vis their Military Service to Dan Inouye and their tight knit Hawaii 442 hui cabals.....prior and after the 1954 Hawaii Legislature Revolution. My father lost the Court case, despite the SELLER testifying in favor of my fathers allegations...... with huge conflicts of interests since the Judge was related to the Hawaii Judge {Taveras}.

Another side Note with the Airline Industry: I was personally involved with the earlier Bankruptcy proceedings with Frontier Airlines in Denver {1986} which later involved Drexel Burnham Wall Street investors linked to Frank Lorenzo and Carl Ichan in New York. Like Mr. Rodney Stich, the FAA investigator making allegations against United Airlines in Denver, I was singled out with several others for exposing blatant FAA rules and blatant Public Safety violations involving massive fraud and corruption benefiting short-cutting - Airline cost saving procedures...comprising massive Public Safety cover-ups and FAA regulatory with damage control omitted issues involving the new non-unionized, young and ignorant work force.

This all began with the across the board firings for the FAA Air Traffic Controllers soon after the Reagan - Bush Sr Tenure came into Office in 1981. The massive Airline De-regulations in Washington vis-a-vis Wall Stree profiteers, {i.e. - Michael Milken, Marc Rich, Ivan Boesky} during the roaring unregulated 1980s which became famous with the Movies: WALL STREET {Michael Douglas} and "BARBARIANS AT THE GATE".

AIPAC'S Norman Brownstein, based in Downtown Denver, vis-a-vis my former Brownstein political mole "girlfriend" , New York attorney Lisa Holstein, was responsible for helping Lorenzo with the Texas Continental Airline gang members to get out of their Prime gate and exclusive lounge commitments, including a faulty Automated Baggage system, involving more massive fraud and cover-ups at the new Denver International Airport were allowed to quietly relocate back to their Houston based "Texas Air Corp" headquarters.

In 1993, Clinton denied Frank Lorenzo, with his New York Attorney wife with Chase Manhattan Bank, as well as their Texas Air Corps - Colorado Resort land investors in Aspen & Vail {Phillip Winn Group}, to continue manipulating the SEC within the confines of the "insiders" under the lucrative "De-Regulated Airline Industry" mergers using Union Pension plans for lucrative leveraged acquisitions....compromising Public Safety and FAA violations with massive cover-ups in Washington.

Again, like former FAA investigator, Rodney Stich, doing his job, I became another Politcial liability, which is the former "inside" Dept of Justice / CIA lawyer, Norman Phillip Brownstein's expertise specialized job as Mr. Fix It at DIA; Protecting SEC Billionaire Fugitive's such as Marc Rich and HUD Director Phil Winn, while sheltering Drug Traffic cabals with Florida's Jack Devoe...for helping AIPAC's Political "cause" in Washington DC into vested SECURITY interests in the secular Middle East.....of course....always using OPM: The defrauded & obliviouos American Public Tax Payers left holding the bag on Wall Street to Main Street.

Brownstein's young, former single AIPAC New York mole attorney, Ms. Lisa Holstein, like others linked to AIPAC and David Steiner, as well as former CIA - U.S. federal prosecutor - Hawaii Public Safety Director, John Peyton, are reported deceased in New York and remote Africa?

The Rocky Mountain High - SILVERADO DNC Political Convention in Denver, Colorado, moving the Public cost over-run to a larger media exposure event with INVESCO Stadium {Bronco Pro Football Stadium...who are clients of NORM BROWNSTEIN, JACK HYATT, AND STEVE FARBER, now joined by former GOP Denver University CABALS - former Colorado RNC Chairman, Commercial Real Estate Investor and Resigned Department of Veterans Affair Director - James "De Oppressor Libre" Nicholson, linked to former Colorado RNC Chair, for convicted Swiss Ambassador - HUD Director - Phil Winn {DU Professor} with former DU Secretary of Interior Gale {CREA} Norton, as well as the latest new GOP University of Colorado connections to former U.S. Senator / UC President Hank Brown....involved in the "E Pluribus Unum" Wall Street article related to: THE 1993 Simple FEDERAL APOLOGY RESOLUTION TO HAWAII under Clinton with Political Constructive FRAUD and Public cover-up intents for the future Public subsidized AKAKA BILL in Congress....pending in Washington since 2000, after the U.S. Supreme Court decision over ruling the Hawaii Political Judicial system hidden under the Political Ninth District Circuit Court of Appeals, involving 'RICE V. CAYETANO' {Office of Hawaiian Affairs}.

Hope this "inside" information and insights can help you!

- little ninja cats with nonprofit coconut crab club

~ ~ ~

NEW DISCOVERY (05-10-08): David Farmer’s undisclosed connections with AIPAC and “Bush’s Brain”, Karl Rove:

From: little ninja cats

Date: Sat, 10 May 2008 01:26:40 EDT

Subject: Check out The Raw Story | Official probing Rove now under investigation himself

To: sf.nancy@mail.house.gov, senator@akaka.senate.gov, ustrustee.program@usdoj.gov, admin@ehawaii.gov, jurisnot@yahoo.com, bobby_n_harmon@yahoo.com, hwburgess@hawaii.rr.com, Ken_Conklin@yahoo.com, rroth@hawaii.edu}

The Raw Story | Official probing Rove now under investigation himself

"While Rove Fiddled; The Bush was Burning"? or........White men who can't dance?

ck out:

Dismissed U.S. Attorney's Carole Lam {California} and Frederick Black {South Pacific}.

HATCH ACT and the 1978 Hawaii Constitutional Convention:

a} Congressional Defense Appropriation Committee members, previous Bureau of Indian Affair Chairman, Veterans Affair Committees, Intelligence Committees, Special Counsels {Iran - Contra / Central America International Committees} Bishop, Baldwin, REWALD, Dillingham & Wong, for Hawaii U.S. Senator - Daniel Inouye - Defense Chairman linked to: hidden Public Pork Barrel proceeds for the lavish Hokulia Canoe for Hawaiians only programs / Women Abuse Shelters for Two Political Hawaii Legislature members involved in 1992 U.S. Senate race allegations for Sexual Harassment allegations / Private Defense Contractor Brent Wilkes - Hawaii ADSC Company fronts - Lavish Hawaiian Private Vacations - Luxury Private Accommodations - Hawaiian "Entertainment" linked to Asian Pacific Advisory Council Politicians {Prince Hotels} - AIPAC Lobbyist for Akaka Bill; {Dismissed U.S. Attorney - Frederick Black, Political Appointee under former CIA Director / Vice-President / President George H. Bush linked to former U.S. Federal Prosecutors John Peyton - Kenneth Starr in collusion with former Hawaii District Judges {deceased}: Martin Pence, Harold Fong, & California District Judge: Brian Tamahana}.

b} Alaska U.S. Senator - Ted Stevens linked to hidden Public Pork Barrel projects {Bridge To Nowhere} with family member to self serving Alaska Contractors - Home remodeling projects as well as lobbying ANWAR Bill under the Department of Interior {CREA} with members with the Defense Appropriation Committee Political links to members of Congressional Committees {I.E. - Veterans Committee Chairman - Daniel Akaka, sponsor for the stealth Akaka Bill with no Public voice or vote in Hawaii, Obstruction of Justice in the South Pacific {Jack Abramoff - Tom Delay} and the Broken Trust legacy in Hawaii, in political exchanges for continued political support for a Case of War in Iraq and the ANWAR Bill.

c} California Congressman - Duke "Dukestar" Cunningham: Defense Appropriation Committee member - Veterans Affair Committees linked to lavish Political briberies with Private Defense Contractors and CIA agents linked to Iraq War Appropriations in Washington DC, Southern California, and Hawaii lavish vacations - "Entertainment" with obstruction of justice linked to political Dismissed U.S. Attorney Carole Lam, linked to Political dismissed U.S. Attorney Frederick Black in the South Pacific involving Jack Abramoff {AIPAC} linked to Grover Norquist and Tom Delay {CNP - PNAC}.

Aloha Mai Mo. Aloha Aku: Do the Disavowed Facts matter for Special Counsel Scott Bloch with Karl Rove under Alberto Gonzales and the Broken Trust Legacy in Washington DC?

catbirds - south pac

~ ~ ~

July 30, 2007

FBI, IRS search home of Alaska senator

Justice Department investigating Stevens’ role in corruption case

MSNBC

WASHINGTON - The FBI and IRS have searched the home of Republican Sen. Ted Stevens in a ski resort in Alaska as part of an investigation into his links with an oil-services company, officials said Monday.

"The FBI and IRS are conducting a court-authorized search warrant in Girdwood, Alaska," an FBI spokesman said in Washington but gave no further details.

The Alaskan politician, the longest-serving Republican in the U.S Senate in history, issued a statement saying: "My attorneys were advised this morning that federal agents wished to search my home in Girdwood in connection with an ongoing investigation.

"I continue to believe this investigation should proceed to its conclusion without any appearance that I have attempted to influence the outcome," the statement said.

Girdwood is about 40 miles south of Anchorage, the state's largest city.

Stevens is the subject of a grand-jury investigation into his links with managers of VECO Corp., the state's largest oil-services company, as well as numerous unrelated fisheries matters.

In May, Bill Allen, then the chief executive of VECO, along with a vice president, Rick Smith, pleaded guilty to several federal corruption charges. The two admitted paying more than $400,000 to bribe Alaska lawmakers.

Allen had been a financial supporter of Stevens' campaigns and a partner with him on a race horse. He also oversaw a project to remodel Stevens' Girdwood home in 2000, vetting bills and construction work.

The Anchorage Daily News has reported that contractors who worked on the remodeling of Stevens' home had their records subpoenaed by the federal grand jury.

Stevens is the former chairman of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee. During his tenure as chairman of the committee, Stevens developed a reputation of delivering federal funds to public works projects in the state.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20042997/

~ ~ ~

Caught Red-Handed:
Stevens Blocked Creation of Federal
Spending Database

Last week, an “unidentified senator” placed a hold on legislation introduced by Sens. Barack Obama (D-IL) and Tom Coburn (R-OK) that would create a easily-accessible Google-like database of all federal spending, which totaled $2.5 trillion last year.

The bill appeared to be headed for passage after being approved unanimously in committee. However, the anonymous senator’s hold on the bill prevented it from coming to a vote.

In response, liberals and conservatives worked together to ask every Senate office whether they had placed a hold on the bill. Of all 100 senators, only Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) would not deny placing the hold. In addition, one of the bill’s leading sponsors, Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), said of Stevens, “he’s the only senator blocking it.” Stevens’s opposition to such a bill is not surprising; he is one of the most prolific earmarkers in the Senate:

– In 2005, Stevens helped slip in legislation to begin construction on the “Bridge to Nowhere,” earmarking over $200 million for a bridge to an island home to 50 people. When an amendment jeopardized funding for the project, Stevens threatened to resign.

– Later that year, Stevens tried to insert an amendment into the national defense bill allowing oil drilling in the Artic National Wildlife Refuge. When the Senate struck the provision, Stevens called it “the saddest day of my life” and has “written off” Senate friends who opposed drilling.

– This year, Stevens earmarked $450,000 to research baby food made from salmon and over $1 million for “alternative salmon product research.” This is the third year in a row he has appropriated money to research salmon products.

More at TPMmuckraker.

– Scott Keyes

thinkprogress.org

~ ~ ~

April 20, 2005

We did it for the natives

In voting to drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Hawaii’s senators found themselves out of step with their party and local Democrats, but very much in line with their political donors and big business

Sebastian Blanco, Midweek Magazine

April 20, 2005

The March 16 vote on a little resolution to the annual federal budget came down to the wire. Instead of having a full debate on the status of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Republicans, who have been pushing for years to open the 19-million-acre refuge to oil drilling, added language to the budget to do just that. And most Democrats and a few Republicans were furious.

Having a full debate would require 60 votes to change the refuge’s status. Approving the revamped budget would require a simple majority. Sen. John Kerry called the maneuver an “abuse of power” and “an abuse of common sense” by the Republicans. Sen. Russ Feingold said it was a “backdoor maneuver.”

To leave the decision to drill in the hands of the Senate, Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) sponsored the resolution to have the extra words struck from the budget.

With seven moderate Republicans opposed to drilling in the refuge, the majority needed some help from across the aisle. To their oily aid came Hawai‘i’s two Democratic senators and the Cantwell Amendment failed 49-51.

The environmental community was outraged, but the real surprise is that anyone was surprised.

Sens. Akaka and Inouye have long been supportive of drilling in the refuge. In an opinion piece in the Honolulu Advertiser this month, Inouye admitted that the refuge controversy has garnered more citizen input than any other issue in the past decade, and that most of the communications have been against his pro-drilling stance.

Who, then, is Inouye representing with his vote?

Inouye and Akaka have taken thousands of dollars from oil companies. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, in 2003–2004, Tesoro Petroleum, ChevronTexaco and Halliburton (yes, that Halliburton) gave money to Inouye in 2003–2004. Tesoro Hawaii Corporation donated $1,000 to Akaka in 1999–2000. Not all of these companies have said they will drill in the refuge. The senators’ official line is that the pro-drilling vote was a pro-indigenous rights vote.

“[Sen. Akaka’s] position on ANWR is a non-partisan position,” says Donalyn Dela Cruz, Akaka’s press secretary.

Completely unrelated to the refuge issue, the Hawaiian-recognition legislation Akaka has long been pushing is now known as the Akaka/Stevens Bill. “Stevens” is Ted Stevens, Alaska’s 37-year Republican senator (and longtime Inouye pal), who in early March threatened to not seek re-election if the refuge wasn’t opened for drilling.

Stevens and Inouye did not respond to interview requests for this article.

Akaka sits on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and, according to his Senate website, “is a leader in renewable energy research and development; park and wildlife issues…and environmental preservation.”

“[Akaka] doesn’t see this as voting against the Democrats or for the Republicans, this is a vote for the rights of the indigenous peoples, in this case the Alaskan Natives. He’s convinced that with new technologies for horizontal drilling and the proper oversight, exploration will be compatible with the needs of Native Alaskans,” says Dela Cruz.

Not a wasteland

Don’t tell that to Robert Thompson, who lives in the tiny town of Kaktovik, situated within the refuge. Native Alaskans have long hunted and fished in the area. “This is a central part of our culture, and they’re going to take it away,” says Thompson, who makes a living off the natural beauty. As an ecotourism guide, he takes people on wilderness and river-rafting trips.

Long opposed to opening the refuge to drilling, Thompson led the makers of the recent film Oil on Ice and photographer Subhankar Banerjee through parts of the refuge. Banerjee’s book, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: Seasons of Life and Land documents the diversity of life in the refuge—a picture vastly different from the “wasteland” that Washington politicians refer to. (Oil on Ice contains a C-SPAN clip of a congressman comparing the refuge to a giant white board. It’s the kind of thing you can do when you call it ANWR and not a wilderness refuge.)

A lot of the discussion of the refuge can be boiled down to acronyms and distanced from the reality of the unique arctic environment. ANWR was originally set aside by Dwight Eisenhower in 1960, and the area was increased by Jimmy Carter 20 years later.

The region currently hotly debated is called the 1002 area, which was exempted from the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act in 1980 by section 1002 of that act. The 1002 area is one of the last swaths of Alaska’s north shore that is not yet open to oil drilling, and the locals want to keep it that way.
Thompson recently collected signatures from 57 Kaktovik residents opposing oil development in the 1002 area (98 people voted in the last election there, he says).

In February, the Alaskan village of Point Hope and the villages of the North Slope passed a resolution that firmly rejected “any attempts to diminish the preserved status of the 1002 area of ANWR” and strongly opposed oil and gas exploration in the refuge. These are the people who live in the area where drilling may take place within the next 10 years, and they’re opposed to it.

Troubled tribes

Dela Cruz admits the issue of drilling in the refuge is complicated, and points to the Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN), which supports drilling. A look at the group’s website reveals that one of its missions is to “Protect, retain and enhance all lands owned by Alaska Natives and their organizations.” The federation represents about 110,000 native groups in Alaska, as well as outside the state, through the 13th Region Corporation, according to Dela Cruz.

“Sen. Inouye has made mention of them, and Sen. Akaka has, and their expression of support [for drilling],” she says. Inouye also regularly mentions 229 tribes who approve of drilling in the refuge.

However, AFN has a secret or two. On the group’s website, the sole source of information on the refuge is a link to anwr.org. That site is run by Arctic Power, which is “a lobbying group funded by the state of Alaska and by industry to push for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge,” according to the Center for Responsible Politics.

Lance Holter, executive committee member of the Sierra Club, Maui Group, says AFN is not made up of elected tribal representatives.

“[Inouye] speaks about these 229 tribes, which are really corporate entities,” says Holter. “They are not tribal governments; they are not representative of the tribe.”

Arctic Power spent $120,000 on lobbyists in 2000. During the 2004 election cycle, the oil and gas industry contributed $23.8 million in individual and Political Action Committee (PAC) donations—80 percent of it to Republicans. Environmental interests contributed $1.9 million, 88 percent to Democrats, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Another pro-drilling member of AFN, the Arctic Slope Regional Corp, gave $1,000 to Alaska State Sen. Lyman Hoffman in 1998. In 1999, Hoffman signed a letter (along with 53 other state representatives and senators) encouraging Delaware Sen. William Roth to support drilling in the refuge. Roth was defeated in the 2000 elections.

Alaska State Rep. Albert Kookesh also signed the letter. Kookesh is co-chairperson of the AFN board of directors and represents Sealaska Corporation, the largest private landowner in Southeast Alaska. The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge sits on the northern edge of Alaska, where the continent meets the Arctic Ocean.

Musk ox and wolves

“That place is a paradise. I saw thousands and thousands of creatures. I saw caribou, musk ox, Dall’s sheep, wolves. I felt like I was Lewis and Clark,” says Holter, who visited the refuge last June. “It was never intended to change from a sanctuary, that it was going to require a debate in Congress specifically on the issue of the status of wilderness. It was never intended to be stuck in a little rider in a bill and debated for two hours.”

Holter met Thompson when the Alaska native and his wife, Jane, visited Hawai‘i last year. The Thompsons invited Holter to visit the refuge. Holter flew into the Brooks Range, then rafted from the northern tips of the Rocky Mountains all the way to the Arctic Ocean.

“When I came back, I got involved politically. I didn’t think I had a valid argument unless I was there to see for myself, and also part of me wanted to see it before it got destroyed,” says Holter.

Holter is also the Maui County 12th district Democratic Party chairman, and introduced a resolution at the state Democratic Party convention in Honolulu to preserve the area as a wilderness.

“The Hawai‘i Democratic Party adopted the resolution and we told [Inouye and Akaka]. Also, I know the energy and environmental committees of the Hawai‘i State House wrote a letter with 14 signatures to the senators to preserve the refuge. I know the Maui County Council passed a resolution and sent it to the senators asking them to preserve the area,” he says.

What does he think of the senators’ votes to drill in the refuge?

“I’d say they ignored the people of Hawai‘i. For some reason, they’re listening to [Alaska senators] Stevens and Murkowski instead of the people of Hawai‘i and the Democratic Party,” says Holter.

There’s still hope

Local Democratic Party member and State Rep. Brian Schatz opposes the senators’ votes, but he’s not willing to criticize them outright.

“I’m a strong environmentalist,” he says. “Some of my friends in the environmental community are surprised at how I respond to this, and I really think you have got to view this all in context. These are very progressive United States senators and I don’t want us to go beating up our best advocates in the Congress.”

With the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge possibly poised for a beating of its own, the “backdoor” process by which the Senate voted to allow drilling could be its downfall.

The House version of the budget does not include drilling language, and the two bills have to be the same before being sent to the president. The reconciliation process will stretch into late summer and early fall.

“In other words, it’s not a done deal,” says Schatz. “The session is not over. Anything can happen.”

* * *

Oil-related Contributions to Sen. Daniel Inouye in 2003–2004

Tesoro Petroleum: $8,000
ChevronTexaco: $1,000
Halliburton: $1,000

Refuge stats

Size: 19 million acres

Created: 1960 by President Dwight Eisenhower, expanded in 1980 by President Jimmy Carter.

Value to the world: The refuge supports the greatest variety of plant and animal life of any park or refuge in the circumpolar arctic, according to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

Value to birds: 130 species of waterfowl from the Nile River, India and the Antarctic nest in the refuge

Value to caribou: 130,000 porcupine caribou traverse the refuge

Value to oil companies: While estimates vary, 5.7 to 16 billion barrels of oil might be “economically recoverable.” BP, ChevronTexaco and ConocoPhillips have pulled out of drilling in the refuge.

Value to consumers: A six-month supply of oil, at current American consumption rates.

Sources: Almanac of Policy Issues, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, U.S. Senate

* * *

Senate Votes on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

S. 1220 (National Energy Security Act of 1991). Nov. 1, 1991.

“A bill to reduce the Nation’s dependence on imported oil, to provide for the energy security of the Nation, and for other purposes.” (Includes language allowing drilling in the wilderness refuge). Motion failed 50-44 (3/5 needed to pass). Inouye and Akaka both voted “Yea.”

S. Amdt 1150 to S. Con. Res. 13. May 24, 1995. Sponsored by Sen. William Roth Jr.

“To prohibit including revenues in the budget resolution based on oil and gas leasing within the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.” Motion passed 56-44. Inouye and Akaka both voted “Yea.”

S. Amdt. 2988 to S. 1357

(Balanced Budget Reconciliation Act of 1995). Oct. 27, 1995. Sponsored by Sen. Max Baucus.

“To strike the provision authorizing oil and gas development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge while preserving a balanced budget by 2002.” Motion passed 51-48 (one senator from Oregon did not vote). Inouye and Akaka both voted “Yea.”

S. Amdt. 2955 to S. Con. Res. 101. April 6, 2000. Sponsored by Sen. William Roth Jr.

“To strike the revenue assumption for Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) receipts in fiscal year 2005.” Motion passed 51-49. Inouye and Akaka both voted “Yea.”

S. Amdt. 168 to S. Con. Res. 18

(Appropriations resolution Fiscal Year 2006, Budget). March 16, 2005.