Posted on 08/05/2005 3:11:13 PM PDT by Libloather
Air America and the race hustlers
By Michelle Malkin
COLUMNIST
Where are they? Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton are the supermen of the civil rights establishment -- able to leap tall buildings in a single bound to get in front of a picket line. When victim politics calls, the demagogic duo leap into patented action: March. Boycott. Shakedown. Repeat.
But the raging reverends are nowhere to be found as a scandal involving the liberal radio network Air America and a Bronx, N.Y.-based inner city charity for poor children brews. Why the silence?
It's all about the Benjamins, as they say.
First, a summary of the financial fiasco that the liberal media won't touch: The New York City Department of Investigation has been probing allegations that officials of the nonprofit Gloria Wise Boys & Girls Club and one of its affiliates, Pathways for Youth, approved "significant inappropriate transactions and falsified documents that were submitted to various city agencies." The charities receive large portions of their budgets from local, state and federal government grants. At the center of the controversy is Evan Montvel Cohen, the disgraced former chairman of Air America, who was in charge of the liberal radio network at the same time he was serving as Gloria Wise's director of development.
The New York Sun's David Lombino reported this week that Cohen received more than $800,000 in loans for himself and Air America during his tenure, according to Gloria Wise executive committee President Jeannette Graves. Graves alleges that Cohen funneled $613,000 to himself and Air America without her authorization or knowledge. Other loans were approved by the Gloria Wise executive committee when Cohen claimed he needed money to cover medical expenses for himself and his father. As a result of an ongoing investigation, the city canceled its contracts with both Gloria Wise and Pathways in June -- causing a near-shutdown of services to poor minority kids, Alzheimer's patients, and other underprivileged clients until other nonprofit agencies were brought in to take over the old management.
Air America's ever-evolving statements about the controversy have raised more questions than they've answered. After radio industry blogger Brian Maloney (radioequalizer.blogspot.com) called attention to the probe last week, the liberal radio network initially shrugged off corporate responsibility by asserting that its current management, Piquant LLC, "had no involvement whatsoever" with the funds and was "not being investigated." A follow-up statement then revealed that Air America "agreed months ago to fully compensate" Gloria Wise for the loan (despite having "no involvement" with it). This week, Air America host Al Franken acknowledged that Piquant had conducted an internal probe of the matter before the city got involved -- and, according to the city, failed to tell authorities about it.
If a conservative radio network had been entangled in a scam to steal from black children to line the pockets of wealthy white con artists, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton would already be staging hunger strikes in protest. But both have hefty political and financial stakes in Air America's success -- and the big mouths aren't about to badmouth their friends.
Air America's flagship New York City station is housed on Park Avenue at WLIB-AM, owned by Inner City Broadcasting. The company shunted aside its black-themed talk format at WLIB to accommodate Air America. In return, Air America made room for a few minority radio hosts and also entered into lucrative lease management agreements with Inner City Broadcasting, which owns and operates 17 radio stations in five markets.
The co-founder of Inner City Broadcasting is New York media mogul Percy Sutton, best known as Malcolm X's lawyer and former Manhattan borough council president. Sutton helped bail Sharpton out after Sharpton was ordered to pay former Dutchess County prosecutor Steven Pagones over the Tawana Brawley race hoax. Sutton also raised and donated money for Sharpton's 2004 presidential bid. Sharpton still broadcasts a Sunday radio show on WLIB. Sutton and Jackson are longtime friends and partners. Sutton served as Jackson's 1988 presidential campaign finance chairman. Jackson has lobbied on Sutton's behalf. Sutton sits on Jackson's Citizenship Education Fund. As original investors, Jackson and his wife reportedly hold more than 23,000 shares in Inner City Broadcasting.
Now you know why there will be no boycotts at Air America headquarters over the possible bilking of poor Bronx children. Race hustlers care about only one color: green.
Michelle Malkin is a nationally syndicated columnist. Her e-mail address is malkin@comcast.net.
Where are Jesse and Al? Wishing they'd gotten their hands on a piece of this $800,000, no doubt.
Not exactly 'breaking news' over at RATS underground...
Thanks for posting, a read later marker
Fortunately, I understand Air America will soon "assume room temperature".
Since federal funds were involved, shouldn't high ranking government officials jump all over this obvious crime and corruption? Does anyone know the names of the two New York Senators?
yeah, its notlistnin (d-ny) and nothearin(d-ny).
***8If a conservative radio network had been entangled in a scam to steal from black children to line the pockets of wealthy white con artists, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton would already be staging hunger strikes in protest. ****
Dont worry about Jesse and Al they have both stolen more than their share of cash from poor blacks. Neither of them ever worked a day in their lives. Al was a preacher at 11 and Jesse hasnt worked since he wiped the blood of MLK on his shirt and marched around with it.
U.S. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton (R) and designer Diane von Furstenberg stand on the High Line site above 14th street in New York August 4, 2005. It was announced on Thursday that the High Line site, which was built as an elevated railroad in the 1930's and was last used for freight in 1980, will receive $18 million in federal funding with a proposed groundbreaking for a public park to start in the end of 2005. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton
what is this, two dykes in some bush?
Seriously, I browsed about the latest 500 thread titles, and not one mention - not even to blame this on the VRWC!
Maybe I'll sneak on there and post it myself tonight. Excuse me, I have to go shower.
Never mind that yet ... where is the New York AG Eliott Spitzer on this ??? AWOL, as expected.
Jesse and Al aren't about to spite the hand that feeds their Anti-American propaganda money machine. They're all part of the same egotistical MOB!
Thanks for the ping, missed you. Don't know what happened to you. Just a wild guess but, the chicken soup recipe you sent me awhile back didn't help.
Hope your are doing OK!!
The 2 idiots in Memphis who are upset with Nathan Bedford Forrest Park, and the other Civil War parks names are having rev sharpton come to town to stir up more racial division....and line his pockets.
Oh great, they're turning that old hunk of junk near the West Side docks into a strolling park. Welcome to the world's biggest $18 million gay cruising orgy.
Michelle has knocked this one out of the park!
Michelle Malkin is a goddess.
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