Today on The BradCast, on the last full day of the Obama Presidency, we continue to try and keep our eye on U.S. Senate confirmation hearings for Donald Trump cabinet nominees and the extraordinary conflicts of interest almost every one of them seem to have. [Audio link to show posted below.]
Contentious hearings continued today in the U.S. Senate with Treasury Secretary nominee and billionaire former Goldman Sachs partner Steven Mnuchin facing tough questions from Democrats (and even some Republicans) over allegations of fraud and “widespread misconduct” against him and his bank, OneWest, during the Great Foreclosure Crisis. Also today, during his own confirmation hearing, former Texas Governor Rick Perry, Trump’s pick to head the Department of Energy, conceded that he was wrong for calling for the agency to be shut down when he was a GOP Presidential candidate. And, while it’s being reported that he had no idea what the DoE actually did when he accepted the offer to head the federal agency that oversees the nation’s nuclear program (Perry is said to have previously understood them to be in charge of oil and gas production), he also appears to be changing his mind about the threat of climate change after speaking with some actual scientists as he studies up on his new job.
Then we’re joined by Craig Holman who, as Public Citizen’s Government Affairs watchdog, recently sent letters to the U.S. Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) as well as the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE), seeking an official probe into purchases of health care company stocks made by Rep. Tom Price (R-GA), Trump’s nominee to head Health and Human Services, at the same time the Congressman (and Rep. Chris Collins of NY, who also participated in the questionable investments) were working on legislation that may have been designed to help the very same companies.
Holman also shares a new, previously unreported observation about an ethics provision enacted by President Obama on his first day of office, requiring all Administration personnel to sign a pledge recusing themselves from taking any actions that might affect their former employers or clients. But that order, which Holman credits for keeping the Obama Administration so scandal free, is now apparently being ignored by the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) in their vetting processes for incoming Administration officials.
“I have run over all the OGE ethics reviews of all the new Trump nominees,” Holman tells me, “and it isn’t mentioned. It just vanished, as if it doesn’t exist. It’s still an ethics order with the authority of law. Trump hasn’t gone into the White House yet to repeal it, but somehow he’s convinced the Office of Government Ethics just to look the other way.”
More details from Holman today on that and on Price’s questionable — and perhaps even, criminal — investments, and which government agency, if any, might actually be able to bring some accountability for them.
Finally, Desi Doyen joins us for the latest Green News Report with more on the flood of Senate confirmation hearings for Trump’s team of climate science deniers — and one last gift President Obama left for the planet on his way out the door…
CLICK TO LISTEN OR DOWNLOAD SHOW!…
[audio:http://bradblog.com/audio/BradCast_BradFriedman_PerryMnuchinPriceHearings_CraigHolman_011917.mp3]
(Snail mail support to “Brad Friedman, 7095 Hollywood Blvd., #594 Los Angeles, CA 90028” always welcome too!)
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I anyone following this story (Sorry, OT, but election integrity is a major theme here at Brad Blog!):
Ohio RICO Case — Update
If anyone is not aware of this fight for justice, and no one is reporting on this anywhere in the media, there is a background story HERE.
The clusterfuck is about to hit the fan tomorrow at noon. These Republicans led by lead clown and MC in Chief, T-Rump, have absolutely no inclination to apply laws, precedents, norms of governing, or ethics to themselves. They care about power and their agenda. Period.
We the People Dane County:
Interesting. Hard to know who to trust these days. I donated some money to the effort. Hope it went to the right people. I would sure love to see Rove get what’s coming to him, and see America get the people they deserve in office in once.
The republicans are always talking about voter fraud. I would like to know what is the difference between voter fraud where a few people vote where they shouldn’t (Romney, Ann Coulter, S of S from Ohio and many other republicans) and suppressing the vote or throwing people off the voter rolls where tens of thousands are disenfranchised.
The republicans run on a platform (whatever it takes to win, it is the end result that counts. And the media is to afraid to hold them accountable. How many time have we heard “we will leave it there” after a republican had told a lie. Make America great again, would someone explain exactly what that means.
Larry Bergan
I understand what you are saying and why you are saying it. Trust CLIFF ARNEBECK and the people that have been supporting his work for years. DO NOT trust people that come to the table late and jump on the bandwagon.
Lori Grace has some very disturbing connections and it is not just her brother. Cliff has the $$ he needs to do this — that will not be an obstacle now.
Do not give money to anyone that is not directly doing the action you support. There are many scammers and spammers out there. Those that have integrity fighting election integrity have a track record to show their work or they can demonstrate why they are stepping up to the plate recently.
TrustVote fooled Cliff for a while, so if you were misled too, understandable. Please be careful when donating money as when it goes to interests that undermine the causes you support, it does more than deny them funding — it can destroy the ability of legitimate parties to stay in the fight. Thanks
Elections are not the place to be involved in, unless you want to run into strange people. I got involved a few years back when they were trying to roll out the Diebold’s and it was nuts.
I’m totally suspicious of anybody who thinks we should be using computers with no possible oversight, because it’s just obvious we shouldn’t be. Sadly, it’s almost impossible to find anybody who sees the danger. It’s been like living in a damn Twilight Zone episode.
I don’t think there’s any possibility at all, we’d be looking at a Trump presidency without decades of voting on these machines. That includes the punch cards.
Larry Bergan said @6:
There is nobody I’d rather more be living with in that really really long episode, Larry.
Second the caution with regards to Lori Grace. Personal knowledge. That’s all I am willing or able to state. I’m a very longtime BradBlog reader/poster.
Be well all. I despair that the folks fighting the good fight have so little support. Gave up voting in 2010 because I saw the utter lack of interest in fixing the voting system.
Bernie got my attention for a minute and then he folded. Tragic.