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-> In the News
Mevater
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 Thu, Aug 04 2016, 1:55 pm
http://dailycaller.com/2015/11.....blem/
President Barack Obama’s longest-running Syrian problem may not but refugees, but Chicago’s powerful Syrian-American “godfather” Antoin “Tony” Rezko who was released from a federal penitentiary in July.
Rezko was born and raised in Aleppo, Syria, and came to the United States in the 1970s. Before his arrest and imprisonment, he became Chicago’s most influential Syrian-American. He also was Obama’s political adviser, personal friend and biggest Arab-American fundraiser.
Importantly, Rezko introduced Obama to the city’s Arab-American activist groups, including the Arab American Action Network whose leader’s home was once raided by the FBI. Rezko has not given interviews since his release.
He was convicted in 2010 of 16 federal counts involving fraud, money laundering and kickbacks for government contracts that included securing state jobs for Arab-Americans, many of whom had no qualifications for the posts. He spent seven years in prison.
A Rezko-Clinton Connection?
By CHRISTOPHER DREW JANUARY 25, 2008 1:28 PM January 25, 2008 1:28 pm
The Rezko-Clinton ConnectionScreengrab from “Today.”
A photograph of Antoin Rezko, an indicted Chicago businessman, standing between Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton, which surfaced on NBC’s “Today” show on Friday, might have been taken at a 1997 fund-raiser in Chicago for former United States Senator Carol Moseley-Braun, political insiders say.
Mr. Rezko, who was once a major fund-raiser for Senator Barack Obama, Mrs. Clinton’s top rival for the Democratic presidential nomination, has never donated money to either President Clinton or Mrs. Clinton, records show.
“Today’s” co-host, Matt Lauer, showed the photo to Mrs. Clinton on the air this morning, and Mrs. Clinton responded that she had no relationship with Mr. Rezko and had no idea where the picture was taken.
During the debate among Democratic presidential candidates earlier this week, Mrs. Clinton had called Mr. Rezko a “slumlord” and questioned Mr. Obama’s long-time ties to him. It is not clear how the “Today” show got the old photo. But its surfacing seems likely to extend the political sparring over the businessman, who is scheduled to go on trial next month on federal fraud charges.
“I don’t know the man,” Mrs. Clinton told Mr. Lauer. “I wouldn’t know him if he walked in the door. I don’t have a 17-year relationship with him.”
She added: “There’s a big difference between standing somewhere taking a picture with someone you don’t know and haven’t seen since, and having a relationship that the newspapers in Chicago have been exploring.”
According to the 1997 story in the Chicago Tribune, both Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton attended the fund-raiser for Senator Moseley-Braun on June 25, 1997. And the next day, records show, one of Mr. Rezko’s companies donated $10,000 to a state Democratic party organization that was supporting Ms. Moseley-Braun, records show.
There was no immediate way to know for sure if that is when the picture was taken. But it is the best bet right now among political insiders familiar with Mr. Rezko. Mrs. Clinton attended another fundraiser for Ms. Moseley-Braun in October 1998, but President Clinton was not there.
Mr. Rezko raised at least $150,000 for Mr. Obama’s political campaigns from 1997 to 2004, and his wife later sold a strip of land to the Obamas to enable them to expand their yard. Mr. Rezko has pleaded not guilty to the federal fraud charges, and Mr. Obama has never been implicated in any possible wrongdoing.
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Rezko's SHMUTZ can fill up volumes, and he gets 10 1/2 years? and gets moved to a halfway house so he can be closer to his family? And this makes sense?
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Fox
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 2:19 pm
| marina wrote: | Is there anything suggesting that Rubashkin's attorneys filed for clemency? Here's the denials list- he's not on it. https://www.justice.gov/pardon.....nials
That website will also offer more information on the process. Because Rubashkin is not on the list, I'd guess that he's either being processed or they haven't filed for it yet. |
I'm with Marina on this. I presume his attorneys are on top of it.
As for R' Rubashkin's trial and sentencing, he has one of the longest lists of prominent jurists I've ever seen who have reviewed his case and have found multiple examples of gross mishandling and egregious behavior on the part of prosecutors and Judge Linda Reade.
Amicus briefs were signed by 27 federal judges, 2 Attorneys General, 1 Inspector General, 2 FBI Directors, 4 Deputy Attorneys General and 1 Solicitor General, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the Washington Legal Foundation, 40 legal ethics professors, 75 law professors, the Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers, and the Justice Fellowship.
This is not a case of "do the crime, do the time."
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ValleyMom
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 2:19 pm
Why didn't Obama shorten Rubashkin's prison term- it seems fairly obvious.
He is NOT particularly fond of Jewish people.
He has hinted at his true colors over and over again during his term as president.
Why should he change his colors at the end of his term?
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Clarissa
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 2:21 pm
Oh yes, it has to be about anti-Semitism. Isn't everything?
note: why on earth would someone say he's not "fond of Jewish people"?
Last edited by Clarissa on Thu, Aug 04 2016, 2:22 pm; edited 1 time in total
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m in Israel
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 2:22 pm
| MrsDash wrote: | FYI -
"Based in part on a $27 million loss figure, see U.S.S.C. § 2B1.1(b)(1)(L), the district court calculated Rubashkin's guideline range as 324 to 405 months. It then sentenced Rubashkin to serve 324 months."
His charges according to FACTUAL court records, NOT an opinion piece:
"Rubashkin was arrested in November 2008 and ultimately indicted in 163 counts. He was charged with fourteen counts each of bank and wire fraud, 18 U.S.C. §§ 1343, 1344; nine counts of mail fraud, id. § 1341; ten counts of money laundering and aiding and abetting the same, id. §§ 2, 1956(a)(1 )(A)(I), (B)(I); twenty four counts of false statements to a bank, id. § 1014; and twenty counts of willful violations of orders of the Secretary of Agriculture under the Packers Act and aiding and abetting the same, 7 U.S.C. § 195, 18 U.S.C. § 2 (collectively the financial counts). He was also charged with sixty nine counts of harboring undocumented aliens for profit, 8 U.S.C. §§ 1324(a)(1 )(A)(iii), (A)(iv), (A)(v)(II), (B)(I); one count of conspiracy to do the same, id. §§ 1324(a)(1 )(A)(v)(I), (B)(I); one count of conspiracy to commit document fraud, 18 U.S.C. § 371; and one count of aiding and abetting document fraud, id. §§ 2, 1546(a) (collectively the immigration counts)." |
This quote is about the charges/indictments -- not the convictions.
I don't really know how you found the court records, but I assume you can do the same search to find the actual convictions. I'm pretty sure he was convicted of 80 something counts of the bank fraud and related charges. I'm 100% sure the immigration counts were dropped.
Yes, the "calculation" of the sentence was based on one year for each of the $27 million loss. However the loss was not a direct result of the fraud -- it was a direct result of the government interfering in the sale of the company after the raid (which BTW was questionable as well). Let's put it this way: had the government not conducted the raid (which led to NO convictions for Shalom Rubashkin), he never would have even been charged with the bank fraud AND the bank would not have lost a penny. Up to that point Rubashkin had been making all his payments on the loan in a timely fashion. Additionally, had the government not prevented Aaron Rubashkin (Sholom's father who was never even accused of any criminal activity) from remaining involved in the business after the sale, the amount brought in likely would have covered the entire debt.
But ultimately none of that is really the point -- as I understand it, this is NOT the typical way sentencing works for this type of crime. If anyone has any examples of other similar criminals who ended up with similar sentencing, I'd be interested to hear.
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marina
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 2:39 pm
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I still - even after all these years - don't see anything to do with antisemitism. The federal sentencing guidelines are often too strict for these kinds of crimes and judges impose them at their will. Linda Reade is pretty consistent. Here's an article where she sentenced a guy to 50 years for financial crimes. http://nypost.com/2013/01/31/p.....ment/
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gold21
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 2:41 pm
| Clarissa wrote: | Oh yes, it has to be about anti-Semitism. Isn't everything?
note: why on earth would someone say he's not "fond of Jewish people"? |
If I may- imagine this response in a thread about the Black Lives Matter movement- "Oh yes, it has to be about racism. Isnt everything?".... What would you reply to a sarcastic comment like that?
When it comes to everyone else, its ok for them to mention discrimination as probable cause for their mistreatment. But jewish people, nope, we cant ever complain. Lol.
PS Jewish Lives Matter
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gold21
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 2:44 pm
| MrsDash wrote: | FYI -
"Based in part on a $27 million loss figure, see U.S.S.C. § 2B1.1(b)(1)(L), the district court calculated Rubashkin's guideline range as 324 to 405 months. It then sentenced Rubashkin to serve 324 months."
His charges according to FACTUAL court records, NOT an opinion piece:
"Rubashkin was arrested in November 2008 and ultimately indicted in 163 counts. He was charged with fourteen counts each of bank and wire fraud, 18 U.S.C. §§ 1343, 1344; nine counts of mail fraud, id. § 1341; ten counts of money laundering and aiding and abetting the same, id. §§ 2, 1956(a)(1 )(A)(I), (B)(I); twenty four counts of false statements to a bank, id. § 1014; and twenty counts of willful violations of orders of the Secretary of Agriculture under the Packers Act and aiding and abetting the same, 7 U.S.C. § 195, 18 U.S.C. § 2 (collectively the financial counts). He was also charged with sixty nine counts of harboring undocumented aliens for profit, 8 U.S.C. §§ 1324(a)(1 )(A)(iii), (A)(iv), (A)(v)(II), (B)(I); one count of conspiracy to do the same, id. §§ 1324(a)(1 )(A)(v)(I), (B)(I); one count of conspiracy to commit document fraud, 18 U.S.C. § 371; and one count of aiding and abetting document fraud, id. §§ 2, 1546(a) (collectively the immigration counts)." |
And your point?
Im sure multiple charges were filed against many of the people who have had their sentences commuted by Pres Obama.
And therefore?
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marina
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 2:46 pm
| m in Israel wrote: | He was never convicted with regard to the undocumented immigrants, so that really should have nothing to do with his sentence (IIRC the case was dropped "without prejudice" and the accusations about child labor were actually "expunged" which is basically the prosecutor admitting it was a mistake) Not sure what working conditions has to do with anything either.
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I don't really have time for this but dismissal w out prejudice means the gov didn't want to spend time on the immigration if they were going to win on the financial case. If the gov had lost, they could have refiled on immigration.
As for the child labor laws, although Rubashkin himself was acquitted, Agri- as a corporation - entered a guilty plea, as did its human resource manager.
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gold21
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 2:49 pm
| Amarante wrote: | He hired a massive amount of undocumented immigrants - didn't even go through the motions of getting them to provide documents. The working conditions were terrible as well.
Bank fraud and manipulation.
The point of the commutation is that many people in the justice field think the law imposing long sentences is unduly harsh and doesn't serve any purpose. And of course, it is also applied in a discriminatory manner in that white offenders do not serve as long a sentence as AA offenders.
If you check sentences for people committing financial fraud on the scale of Rubashkin, there are equally long sentences imposed. Acts as a deterrent against fraudsters whereas as I stated above, there is no rational justification for jailing someone for a lengthy term for non violent drug possession. |
Your rationale (regarding prison time for fraud vs prison time for drug possession) is so very deeply flawed, but I doubt ill be able to change your mind. Oh well.
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m in Israel
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 2:54 pm
| marina wrote: | | I still - even after all these years - don't see anything to do with antisemitism. The federal sentencing guidelines are often too strict for these kinds of crimes and judges impose them at their will. Linda Reade is pretty consistent. Here's an article where she sentenced a guy to 50 years for financial crimes. http://nypost.com/2013/01/31/p.....ment/ |
Are you seriously comparing the perpetrator of the BIGGEST fraud in Iowa history, who actually STOLE $215 MILLION from investors over a 20 year scam to someone who filled in inaccurate information on a request for a $35 million bank loan that he intended to pay back (and of which he had already paid back some)? Rubashkin's crime was the corporate version of "fudging" income on a mortgage application in order to be approved for a higher mortgage. Not right, to be sure, but definitely not the same thing as embezzlement. In Wasendorf's case Reade justified the extreme sentence due to the "staggering losses" caused to so many people because of his crimes. There is no similar justification in the Rubashkin case.
I'm not sure if Reade's motives in Rubashkin's case were anti-Semetic or not -- but I think it is pretty safe to say that she certainly didn't give a typical sentence. (There were also a lot of issues with her overall conduct which I don't have the time to go into now.)
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MrsDash
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 3:06 pm
| gold21 wrote: | And your point?
Im sure multiple charges were filed against many of the people who have had their sentences commuted by Pres Obama.
And therefore? |
I was pointing out the factual charges against him. It seemed there was a bit of confusion about that here.
Also, he got the lower end of the sentencing.
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marina
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 3:08 pm
| m in Israel wrote: | Are you seriously comparing the perpetrator of the BIGGEST fraud in Iowa history, who actually STOLE $215 MILLION from investors over a 20 year scam to someone who filled in inaccurate information on a request for a $35 million bank loan that he intended to pay back (and of which he had already paid back some)? Rubashkin's crime was the corporate version of "fudging" income on a mortgage application in order to be approved for a higher mortgage. Not right, to be sure, but definitely not the same thing as embezzlement. In Wasendorf's case Reade justified the extreme sentence due to the "staggering losses" caused to so many people because of his crimes. There is no similar justification in the Rubashkin case.
I'm not sure if Reade's motives in Rubashkin's case were anti-Semetic or not -- but I think it is pretty safe to say that she certainly didn't give a typical sentence. (There were also a lot of issues with her overall conduct which I don't have the time to go into now.) |
He committed fraud and it wasn't a victimless crime. I think his sentence was too long but not bc of anti semitism. Although I'm sure the morons who sent her death threats didn't help.
I do agree that she was not an inspiring judge and may have violated judicial ethics in how she handled this case.
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PinkFridge
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 4:13 pm
| FranticFrummie wrote: | | I agree with you that rehab should be integral to the prison system. I worry that the people who have been released don't have access to this kind of help. |
Yeah, in one of the recent Readers Digests there was an article, probably from a book of the same name, called Mr. Smith Goes to Jail, by a congressman who went to jail for campaign finance fraud and while he knew he had the skills to make it in some way after jail, so many people don't and need a hand.
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PinkFridge
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 4:15 pm
| gold21 wrote: | If I may- imagine this response in a thread about the Black Lives Matter movement- "Oh yes, it has to be about racism. Isnt everything?".... What would you reply to a sarcastic comment like that?
When it comes to everyone else, its ok for them to mention discrimination as probable cause for their mistreatment. But jewish people, nope, we cant ever complain. Lol.
PS Jewish Lives Matter |
May I suggest that if we want to bring up anti-Semitism, and I'm talking in general here, we not use the meme Jewish Lives Matter?
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bluebird
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 5:22 pm
There are two questions that have to be answered before the OP's question can be answered.
1. Did his attorneys petition for clemency?
2. If so, does his case meet the required criteria?
https://www.justice.gov/pardon.....tions
If the answer to either of these is "no", then you have your answer. The president doesn't go searching for convicted criminals to pardon, nor is just asking a path to clemency.
My guess is that the answer is "no" and people are just making up reasons they want to be true in this thread.
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Orchid
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 5:45 pm
Lots of confusion here.
You all really need to read the article I first posted which contains purely factual information.
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5*Mom
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 5:55 pm
| Orchid wrote: | Lots of confusion here.
You all really need to read the article I first posted which contains purely factual information. |
But it's not relevant to OP's question. Please read Bluebird's post above yours.
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Orchid
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Thu, Aug 04 2016, 9:46 pm
| 5*Mom wrote: | | But it's not relevant to OP's question. Please read Bluebird's post above yours. |
You're right. But the article will help answer the other claims mentioned in this thread, not directly tied to OPs question either (such as that he deserved the sentence due to child labor violations etc.).
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Mevater
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Fri, Aug 05 2016, 12:35 am
I realize that the sentences lessened by Obama here, were drug sentences.
BUT
Does anyone here think that President Obama hasnt heard of the Rubashkin case, and has never compared in his mind the seriousness of Rubashkin's offenses to those of his buddy Rezko and other "White Collar Criminals" ,cases both similar and more guilty than Rubashkin's, who got far less jail time than Rubashkin, and what might be behind that?
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