A year and a half into the Obama administration, we finally have a bit of good news on the job front: employment among investigators looking into misconduct among Democratic members of Congress is on the rise. First we had reports of Charles Rangel’s questionable dealings, now allegations that Maxine Waters misused her official clout have come to light. What’s bad news for Democrats is good news for America. The more time that Congress spends investigating corruption in its ranks, the less time it will have to develop more neo-socialist programs.
In 2006, Nancy Pelosi famously vowed to “drain the swamp” when it came to corruption in Congress. As committed to environmental protection as the Speaker is, perhaps she realized that actually doing so would constitute a violation of federal wetland protection policies, so the swamp has grown in size under her leadership and corrupt congressmen and women aren’t any closer to being placed on the endangered species list. Maxine Waters stands accused of using her influence to help out a troubled bank in which her husband had a significant financial interest. According to the report filed by the bipartisan Office of Congressional Ethics: “There is substantial reason to believe that Rep. Waters may have violated House Rule 23, Clause 3 and House precedent regarding conflict of interest.”
The charges stem from a call that Waters made in late 2008 to then Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson after the housing bubble collapsed. The California congresswoman admits that she made the call, setting up a meeting between Paulson and officials representing OneUnited Bank. The minority-owned, Massachusetts-based financial institution had invested heavily in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and, like many other banks, took a painful hit when those two corporations went bust. OneUnited would later receive $12 million in TARP funds and the bank remained solvent thereafter.
The conflict of interest charges arise from the fact that Waters’ husband owned $250,000 worth of stock in OneUnited at the time that the congresswoman made the call to Paulson, after officials from OneUnited turned to her for help. Waters husband, Sidney Williams, also had been a member of OneUnited’s board of directors, although he did not hold that position when the call was placed. While Waters and Williams’ $250,000 investment represented less than ten per cent of the couple’s net worth at the time according to financial disclosure documents that Waters filed, it’s reasonable to assume that even an enlightened liberal elitist would be a little worried about protecting a six figure investment during an economic meltdown. So Maxine Waters did what any concerned citizen might do when worried about an investment gone wrong: she put in a call to the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States of America.
Waters, the ranking African-American on the House Financial Services Committee, sees nothing unreasonable or unethical in her actions. “[T]he suggestion that I could gain personally from one phone call made to assist the National Bankers Association in getting a meeting with the Treasury Department is not credible,” Waters said. “Even the OCE acknowledges that the meeting resulted in no action. Although it leveled the accusation, the OCE also failed to show that I received any benefit or engaged in any ‘improper exercise of official influence.’”
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$250,000 = One tenth of their worth? That means they have a worth of $2.5 million. If nothing else, she should be drummed out for hypocrisy: practicing capitalism for herself instead of socialism she preaches for everyone else.
Good Luck trying to get that race-baiting,race card-throwing devil on even one charge,let alone getting it kicked out.
WhooooooAhhhhhhhhh! And the chickens come home to roost!
What is really amazing is the woman had the unmitigated gall to say she sees nothing wrong with her actions or behaviors. Therein lies the problem in Washington in general and in this administration specifically. Black/ White/ Yellow/Red/Brown/Green with Purple Stripes, whatever—not a race thing at all–its a character or rather, lack of it, issue.
After reading this article, my opinion is that Rep. Waters made the call not to further her financial interest but rather to 'represent' an African-American owned business.
This bank likely makes many minority and inner-city loans and it was this business that Rep. Waters was trying to protect and not her investment.
Of course, its still wrong.
when you're an alligator why would you want to drain your nice comfy swamp? pelosi et. al. are right at home there.
The congressional black caucus is a corrupt racist element made up of black tribalist thugs and should never have been allowed in Congress, but was out of invalid white guilt. The congressional black caucus is nothing more than a "hating whitey" group of thugs that think it is okay to lie and steal from whitey.
Whitey stole humans from Africa and used them to build his country.
It's always an option to return to Africa if you want.
What African nation is going to pay you to sit around and constantly criticise the goodness of others? What black run third world country is going to tolerate your constant never ending "woe is me" attitude? Is it ever possible to penetrate that "victim" mentality that your wrong-headed parents and black community instilled in you? Hello – hello in there – Is anybody listening?
Not only did humans sell humans to whitey, but many humans still keep human slaves in Africa. While I'm sure hating whitey is lots of fun and makes you feel better about yourself, do you ever blame him for the exceptionally rare act of giving freedom and equal rights to all humans? Those same 'evil' Brits that ran some of my ancestors out of Ireland and Scotland and to America (Thank God), did more to end slavery than anybody in the history of the world. Aren't they whitey too?
If it makes you feel any better whitey was who they put in the hole whenever building this country got too dangerous to risk losing a $700 human. As one overseer put it, "Replacing (whitey) only costs me a ride to town."
$700.00 is quite a bit of money, but it was a fortune in those times. Slaves were expensive to acquire, and even more expensive to keep. That is why the average guy didn't own them, even where/when legal. Slaves also only existed as long as there was money to be made from using them. You have to have certain kinds of industries. My ancestors didn't bother with buying them, we had all the indigenous Indians we need. Convert to the Roman Catholic Church, or you die. If you convert, we will give you the priviledge of being worked to death in our silver mines. Didn't pay anything for them, so when one died, we just pressed ganged some more. Complaint? We'd wipe the whole village, or even the whole people, and move on to the next tribe. Yeah, we were real charmers. You Anglos were humanitarians in comparison.
"Whitey" – British and Dutch slavers – bought human being from "Blackie" – victorious African tribes – in the habit of taking and selling the tribes they had defeated in battle. Not moral on either side but to place the blame exclusively on whites is disingenuous.
Bumper sticker – "If I'da known it was gonna lead to this, I'da picked my own damn cotton".
Please don't forget my ancestors, the Spanish. Big time slave traders. Right up there with the Dutch. Didn't own too many in the new world, however. Not because we were against it, but we had plenty of Indians to work to death in the silver mines. So, we didn't really have to import anyone for our own use. I would be hurt if I was left out of the "blame whitey" histeria
Be warned, 17 Republicans are currently under investigation and will probably be brought up on charges soon, so don't get too attached to this narrative my darling conservatives. It may just backfire on you, like pretty much everything else you do/say .
Fine, let 'er rip. Good, honest, decent, hard-working Americans want all the corruptocrats out of office. We don't care if they are Republicans or Democrats or Independents, conservative or liberal. We especially need to get rid of race-baiting hate mongers like Maxine Waters. We want rule of law, not special interests. We want leaders of integrity. And while we're at it we want term limits. Are you with us or not?
Amen.
The look on her face shows contempt for "Crackers" to the nth degree. . Waters , Rangel , Adam Clayton Powell , they all worked the D.C. system for all it was worth. Blacks claim to want to be assimliated yet as soon as they are accepted they separate into Black only colleges , political parties ,and subversive groups such as the NAACP and New Black Panthers. The Mexicans are following in their footsteps using the same blueprint.. D.C. is now the racist capital of the Nation.
America Christian Infidel
Michael Canzano
I once shared an elevator with Sheila Jackson Lee in Houston. I was in the U.S. Army and in uniform, and she looked at me as if I had committed a crime. We never spoke. Guess my color.
Leftists–democrats, that is–operate according to the belief that they can get away with absolutely ANYTHING!! They own, or rather ARE the media, so they know that stories of the kind which would doom even innocent republicans will not be reported. And experience has shown that republicans are incessantly so cowardly, so limp-wristed and spineless when it comes to exposing the criminality of liberals–especially BLACK or HOMOSEXUAL liberals, that virtually NO offense will be serious enough to warrant even criticism, let alone hearings or public disgrace. So Waters was simply doing what comes NATURALLY to political thugs and hacks–stealing tax dollars for personal gain–figuring that NOTHING whatever would come of it. Why in the world would she think otherwise??!!
The mistake by the editior that made its way into the last paragraph "The OCE spent months investing Rangel and Waters before making their recommendations" is an oversight.
The dishonorable Maxine's phone call to Hank Paulson is a crime.
There is an order of magnitude in difference that even a democrat can comprehend.
If there's no problem, why did she try to hide it?
Congress ethics: Don't get caught! If you get caught, we can't help you!
What a photo? Has this woman been sucking on lemons or what?
Her face does kinda look like it has been used as a juicer doesn't it? And if that isn't the face of an angry racist I don't know what is. I'll bet that juice is really bitter too.
Waters must really be worried about the charges against her. In over 20 years that is the first time I ever saw a photo of her with her mouth shut.
Barney Frank took care of her husband and Bank One United so he should be charged too.
Waters should have been charged several years ago when she intervened in a DEA Houston case against a local cocaine dealer who happened to be a childhhod friend of her husband. As a result of her involvement, DEA panicked and closed the case.
How do I know?
Gary Fouse
DEA retired.
Regarding the picture…Oh sh*t it's Aunt Esther and she's p*ssed! Forgive me Aunt Esther.
The CBC will just have to get over me holding them to the same standards as everyone else. They aren't inferior, they can.
Hot Waters
"Waters sees nothing unreasonable or unethical in her actions". Of course not, she has her nose so high in the air, she thinks she is above and better than the rest of us – vanity…gotcha!
try for early october.