Dems Rebuild

[TGHusker]

This won't help the Dem's rebuilding - rebranding effort. Corruption isn't just a republican specialty it appears.

http://www.cnn.com/2017/07/26/politics/imran-awan-house-democrats/index.html

http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/debbie-wasserman-schultz-aide-arrested-trying-flee-country-n786651

 

An aide for Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., has been arrested for attempting to flee the country and charged with bank fraud, officials said.

Imran Awan, 37, was arrested on Monday by FBI agents and U.S. Capitol Police at Dulles International Airport trying to fly to Lahore, Pakistan.

Awan was arraigned in U.S. District Court on Tuesday with one count of bank fraud, a federal offense, and he pleaded not guilty.

Officials said Awan and his wife, Hina Alvi, defrauded the Congressional Federal Credit Union for $165,000 by lying on a home equity loan application, according to federal court documents.

Awan worked as an information technology staffer for Wasserman Schultz, a former chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee. David Damron, a spokesman for her office, said he was fired Tuesday.

 

Awan’s lawyer, Christopher Gowen, said the charges are politically-motivated and "began as part of a frenzy of anti-Muslim bigotry in the literal heart of our democracy, the House of Representatives."

 

 

And who is Christopher Gowen the lawyer?

 

Professor Gowen worked for Former President William Jefferson Clinton for five years as a traveling aide and a fact checker for President Clinton’s memoir, My Life. He worked on several different initiatives with former President Clinton including: The Clinton Global Initiative, The Clinton Health Access Initiative, The Clinton Foundation, The Clinton Library and the Presidential Campaign to elect then-Senator Hillary Clinton. He directed the operations for then-Senator Clinton's campaign in Iowa for the 2008 Democratic caucus and served as a traveling aide throughout the primary campaign.

 

https://www.wcl.american.edu/faculty/gowen/

[zoogs]

Imran Awan, 37, IT staffer for a House rep., possibly did a crime.

 

What's the story exactly?

[TGHusker]

He supposedly obtained a mortgage loan under fraudulent means.

[zoogs]

I got that part. What's the relevance of some IT staffer's allegedly fraudulent home equity loan application?

[TGHusker]

he was a member of Dem Chairman Wasserman's staff at the time.

[NM11046]

A took a quick read yesterday and it was related to money laundering, from either senators specifically or the DNC (could be totally wrong - I was speed reading)

[TGHusker]

I heard on a news cast this morning that the guy had access to important info via Wasserman's computers. He is one of 3 brothers - I believe 2 got out of the country. His wife was trying to leave wt $12k in cash. All going back to Pakistan and supposedly associated wt the Muslim Brotherhood. I haven't been able (haven't had the time actually) to verify the blurb I heard on the news this morning. So take it wt that disclaimer. Maybe someone else can find more details if they desire.

[Kiyoat Husker]

I think that the surprising support Bernie got in the primaries shows the populist/ anti-corruption direction Democrats need to focus on. Both Trump's and Bernie's success shows that there is working-class disenfranchisement on both sides of the isle.

 

If Bernie had been a younger, good-looking midwestern non-jew that didn't call himself a socialist, I think he would have had more universal appeal to populists and moderates of both parties. His message was on-point. IMHO

[zoogs]

That sounds awfully trumped up, TG.

[BigRedBuster]

[knapplc]

I don't understand why that tweet specifically calls out Democrats when the article cites think tanks and organizations from both the Democrats and Republicans getting cozy with the UAE.

[BigRedBuster]

It doesn't and I didn't say it did. However, even in your post, you included Democrats.

 

I put it here mostly because I really didn't know where else to put it.....AND.....if the Democrats are wanting to come out of this mess as a coherent major power and have a good foreign policy......this appears to me to be a situation they need to separate themselves from. If the Republicans choose to keep up this path with the UAE.......then so be it.

[Moiraine]

It doesn't and I didn't say it did. However, even in your post, you included Democrats.

 

I put it here mostly because I really didn't know where else to put it.....AND.....if the Democrats are wanting to come out of this mess as a coherent major power and have a good foreign policy......this appears to me to be a situation they need to separate themselves from. If the Republicans choose to keep up this path with the UAE.......then so be it.

 

He's talking about the tweet:

 

"the entire Democratic Party foreign policy apparatus needs to be dismantled "

[Kiyoat Husker]

This is definately a worthy topic, and a major problem. I agree with Knapp, though, that singling out the Democrats is a little misleading. Here's an article from 2014 that talks about how all the Gulf Coast Countries (GCC) are getting into the game of funding US think tanks, because they get a lot more for their dollar than hiring lobbyists:

 

http://www.quorumcentre.com/gcc-spending-millions-on-think-tanks/

 

And a graphic:

 

I think this would go better under the "Think Tanks are bad" umbrella.

[BigRedBuster]

I always thought the idea of "think tanks" was pretty much BS.

 

The term makes it sound like they are groups of people who get together and think about ways to make the world better.

 

In reality, it's a group of people who get together to push a certain agenda.