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Justice Department steers money to favored groups
Washington Examiner ^ | 8/4/10 | Byron York

Posted on 08/04/2010 4:06:09 PM PDT by Nachum

The Justice Department has found a new way to pursue civil rights lawsuits, using the powers of the Civil Rights Division not just to win compensation for victims of alleged discrimination but also to direct large sums of money to activist groups that are not discrimination victims and not connected to a particular suit.

In the past, when the Civil Rights Division filed suit against, say, a bank or a landlord, alleging discrimination in lending or rentals, the cases were often settled by the defendant paying a fine to the U.S. Treasury and agreeing to put aside a sum of money to compensate the alleged discrimination victims. There was then a search for those victims -- people who were actually denied a loan or an apartment -- who stood to be compensated. After everyone who could be found was paid, there was often money left over. That money was returned to the defendant.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonexaminer.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Front Page News; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: department; justice; money; steers

1 posted on 08/04/2010 4:06:11 PM PDT by Nachum
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To: Jet Jaguar; NorwegianViking; ExTexasRedhead; HollyB; FromLori; EricTheRed_VocalMinority; ...

The list, ping


2 posted on 08/04/2010 4:06:49 PM PDT by Nachum (The complete Obama list at www.nachumlist.com)
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To: Nachum

Gee! What a surprise!

/sarc


3 posted on 08/04/2010 4:06:50 PM PDT by Howie66 (I can see November from my house.)
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To: Nachum

I am just getting seriously overloaded on this cr@p! I may have to go underground for a while, and stop reading all this stuff. It’s too outrageous!


4 posted on 08/04/2010 4:08:52 PM PDT by Dr. Bogus Pachysandra ( Ya can't pick up a turd by the clean end!)
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To: Nachum

Obama and his departments could commit murder on LIVE TV and the media would cover for them and no one would dare say a word or they would be called a racist.


5 posted on 08/04/2010 4:21:08 PM PDT by Dubya-M-DeesWent2SyriaStupid!
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To: Nachum

The first year of the next Congress should only be described in two words:

De-fund.

Investigate.


6 posted on 08/04/2010 4:22:53 PM PDT by lurk
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To: Dr. Bogus Pachysandra

Yes I know!

This is a freaking literal crime yet they get Waters and that other NY dipwad on small technicalities compared to the crimes Holder and Obama pull off...


7 posted on 08/04/2010 4:23:58 PM PDT by Dubya-M-DeesWent2SyriaStupid!
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To: Dr. Bogus Pachysandra

I was thinking the exact same thing the other day. Obama is just hitting us with too much too fast. I was listening to Howie Carr today and he summed it up perfectly. He compared it to the blitzkrieg of London. He said the first priority has to be stopping those bombs from falling. He doesn’t think it can be done before Nov. If he’s right, maybe I need to halve my online time and spend the balance engrossed in a few nice murder mysteries. :)


8 posted on 08/04/2010 4:25:22 PM PDT by Fantasywriter
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To: Nachum

The Justice Department has found a new way to pursue civil rights lawsuits, using the powers of the Civil Rights Division not just to win compensation for victims of alleged discrimination but also to direct large sums of money to activist groups that are not discrimination victims and not connected to a particular suit.

In the past, when the Civil Rights Division filed suit against, say, a bank or a landlord, alleging discrimination in lending or rentals, the cases were often settled by the defendant paying a fine to the U.S. Treasury and agreeing to put aside a sum of money to compensate the alleged discrimination victims. There was then a search for those victims — people who were actually denied a loan or an apartment — who stood to be compensated. After everyone who could be found was paid, there was often money left over. That money was returned to the defendant.

Now, Attorney General Eric Holder and Civil Rights Division chief Thomas Perez have a new plan. Any unspent money will not go back to the defendant but will instead go to a “qualified organization” approved by the Justice Department. And if there is not enough unspent money — that will be determined by the Department — then the defendant might be required to come up with more money to give to the “qualified organization.”

The arrangement was used in a recently-settled case, United States v. AIG Federal Savings Bank and Wilmington Finance. The Justice Department alleged that AIG violated the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act by allowing third-party wholesale mortgage brokers to “charge African-American borrowers higher direct broker fees for residential real estate-related loans than white borrowers.” The financial institution denied any wrongdoing, and there was no factual finding of wrongdoing. Nevertheless, under the terms of a March 19, 2010 consent decree, AIG agreed to pay $6.1 million to “aggrieved persons who may have suffered as a result of the alleged violations.”

That is standard procedure in such cases. But then AIG also agreed, in the words of the consent decree, to “provide a minimum of $1,000,000 to qualified organization(s) to provide credit counseling, financial literacy, and other related educational programs targeted at African-American borrowers.” The money would come from unspent funds in the victim-compensation fund. But if it turned out that, after paying off the victims, there was less than $1 million left in the victim-compensation fund, AIG agreed to “replenish the settlement fund so that it contains $1,000,000 for distribution for those educational purposes.”

The consent decree directs AIG to consult with the Justice Department on which “qualified organizations” could receive money, and it gives the Department the right to approve where the money will go. In any event, the money will go to groups who have no direct connection to the lawsuit and its allegations of discrimination.

Xochitl Hinojosa, a Justice Department spokeswoman, says no money has yet been given to organizations under the AIG agreement. But she adds that the funds, and those from other cases, will “go to ‘qualified organizations’ that have a mission that addresses whatever the harm is that was the subject of the litigation.”

The Department followed a similar procedure in another case, United States v. Sterling. In that suit, which was first filed in 2006, the Department accused a large California landlord of violating the Fair Housing Act and other laws by “refusing to rent to non-Korean prospective tenants, misrepresenting the availability of apartment units to non-Korean prospective tenants, and providing inferior treatment to non-Korean tenants in the Koreatown section of Los Angeles.”

The defendants did not admit any wrongdoing, and there was no factual finding of wrongdoing. Nevertheless, in a November 3, 2009 consent decree, the defendants agreed to pay $2.625 million to compensate alleged victims. On top of that, the consent decree stipulated that if there weren’t enough alleged victims on which to spend the $2.625 million, then what’s left “shall be distributed...to a qualified organization(s) mutually agreed upon by the United States and defendants...for the purpose of conducting fair housing enforcement or educational activities in Los Angeles County.”

Hinojosa says that in the Sterling case, $40,000 will be split between the victim fund administrator and a group called the Southern California Housing Rights Center. According to the Center’s website, its goal is to promote “freedom of residence” through the use of “education, advocacy and litigation.” Thus, money used to settle a lawsuit over alleged discrimination might well go to fund yet another lawsuit over alleged discrimination.

Sen. Charles Grassley, the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, recently learned about the new Justice Department practice and on July 8 sent a letter to Holder asking for an explanation. “While these settlements may appear reasonable on their face, I am concerned that this change in policy has the potential to divert compensation intended for victims to third party interest groups that were not wronged by the defendant,” Grassley wrote. “Absent proper safeguards and internal controls, this policy change could drastically alter the way victims are compensated and could set the Department down a path where third party interest groups are compensated to a greater level than victims. Moreover, as a staunch supporter of victims’ rights, I want to know what this change in policy means for individual victims and for advocacy groups that are both selected and not selected to serve as ‘qualified organizations.’”

Grassley asked Holder which suits have been settled or are being settled in this fashion, how much money is involved, and what guidelines apply to the settlements. “What, if any, qualifications are taken into consideration when determining whether an organization should be designated a ‘qualifying organization’?” Grassley asked. “What protections and safeguards are in place to oversee the use of funds by the ‘qualified organization’ to ensure that monies that could otherwise be used for victim compensation are used in a manner free of fraud, waste, and abuse?”

Grassley has not yet received an answer from Holder.

Republicans are particularly concerned that the “qualified organizations” money might end up with groups that are associated with the community organizing group formerly known as ACORN. Republican lawmakers want to avoid sending federal money to groups that Congress has deemed unsuitable to receive it.

But the concerns of Republicans, and perhaps some Democrats, go beyond ACORN and other activist groups. The new Civil Rights Division tactic represents a departure from a fundamental principle of such cases, which is the pursuit of justice on behalf of actual victims. “If the Department of Justice recovers funds for alleged civil rights violations, the money should go to compensate victims or to the Treasury,” says Bob Driscoll, who was a top official in the Civil Rights Division during the first two years of the George W. Bush administration. “The practice of the Civil Rights Division steering settlement funds to favored advocacy groups is at odds with both civil rights laws and common sense. If Congress wants to fund certain advocacy groups or set up grants for agencies to award in order to promote non-discrimination, it can. But allowing the Civil Rights Division to steer a defendant’s money to its ideological allies is offensive.”


9 posted on 08/04/2010 4:28:19 PM PDT by TomServo
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To: Nachum
holder and the justice department are practicing the age-old racket of extortion..... AIG, and others, would pay “whatever” in order to get off the fed hook....

this is racketeering in the building which used to be called the white house, but now is referred to as a sanctuary building for America's enemies.

10 posted on 08/04/2010 4:28:36 PM PDT by bareford101 (Be loud! We have nothing – NOTHING - to apologize for in fighting for our Country!!)
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To: TomServo

Yup....

OBAMA MONEY....FROM HIS STASH !

11 posted on 08/04/2010 4:33:45 PM PDT by traditional1 ("Don't gotsta worry 'bout no mo'gage, don't gotsta worry 'bout no gas; Obama gonna take care o' me!)
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To: traditional1

Xochitl Hinojosa, a Justice Department spokeswoman

The Western US r belong to us...Aztec Americans...anyway


12 posted on 08/04/2010 4:36:17 PM PDT by colonialhk (Elect Veterans not Lawyers)
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To: Nachum

These people are completely out of control! It’s time to start impeaching the marxist &^@$%$$ and demanding resignations!!

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!


13 posted on 08/04/2010 4:43:42 PM PDT by penelopesire (FOX NEWS TRIBAL PRINCESS)
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To: lurk

Sounds like an excellent idea.


14 posted on 08/04/2010 5:05:04 PM PDT by bigredkitty1 (March 5,2010. Rest in peace, sweet boy. I will miss you, Big Red.)
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To: lurk

Let me add a few words PROSECUTE and TERM LIMITS!


15 posted on 08/04/2010 5:50:33 PM PDT by ronnie raygun (We are our founding fathers keepers)
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To: Nachum

More over steps in Obamaland.


16 posted on 08/04/2010 6:57:21 PM PDT by Tzimisce (No thanks. We have enough government already. - The Tick)
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To: Dubya-M-DeesWent2SyriaStupid!

Obama and his departments could commit murder on LIVE TV and the media would cover for them and no one would dare say a word or they would be called a racist.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Thats the whole point. America is beginning to get it.We have a fascist movement and Obama is going to deliver the country to it.How strong is our resolve to defeat them? That is the next question. They will not go quietly, even if de-elected.

Its all here, a terrific read:

http://www.americanthinker.com/2009/05/barack_obama_the_quintessentia_1.html


17 posted on 08/04/2010 6:59:12 PM PDT by Candor7 (Obama .......yes......is fascist... ..He meets every diagnostic of history.)
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To: AdmSmith; Arthur Wildfire! March; Berosus; bigheadfred; blueyon; Convert from ECUSA; dervish; ...

Wow, I never saw that coming.


18 posted on 08/04/2010 7:16:48 PM PDT by SunkenCiv ("Fools learn from experience. I prefer to learn from the experience of others." -- Otto von Bismarck)
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To: bamahead

Libertarian ping


19 posted on 08/04/2010 7:54:19 PM PDT by Clintonfatigued (Obama's more worried about Israelis building houses than he is about Islamists building atomic bombs)
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To: Nachum

lol they are profiling..


20 posted on 08/04/2010 8:11:21 PM PDT by dalebert
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To: Fantasywriter

YES!


21 posted on 08/04/2010 8:25:08 PM PDT by Dr. Bogus Pachysandra ( Ya can't pick up a turd by the clean end!)
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To: ronnie raygun; lurk

Allow me to add one more: IMPEACH!


22 posted on 08/04/2010 8:58:19 PM PDT by Marathoner (Depression=I lost my job, Recession=My neighbor lost his job. Recovery=Obama loses his.)
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To: Nachum

bump


23 posted on 08/05/2010 4:09:25 AM PDT by lowbridge (Rep. Dingell: "Its taken a long time.....to control the people.")
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To: Candor7

Thanks I will go read this.

I could not believe my ears last night hearing that Waters and Rengel are saying they’re being in trouble is ‘racially motivated.’


24 posted on 08/05/2010 4:13:14 AM PDT by Dubya-M-DeesWent2SyriaStupid!
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To: Marathoner

I like your sig quote it is perfect.


25 posted on 08/05/2010 4:16:47 AM PDT by Dubya-M-DeesWent2SyriaStupid!
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To: lurk

Seems the feds are the only ones with the power to de-fund. Unless we withhold our taxes the behavior of the DC empire is only going to get worse. If a million taxpayers refused to file a return we might send a message, but, I don’t see it happening.


26 posted on 08/05/2010 6:28:29 AM PDT by Neoliberalnot ((Read "The Grey Book" for an alternative to corruption in DC))
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To: Nachum
The Justice Department alleged that AIG violated the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act by allowing third-party wholesale mortgage brokers to "charge African-American borrowers higher direct broker fees for residential real estate-related loans than white borrowers."

In fact, this was the whole purpose for creating the "minority urban housing project." After the left had bankrupted the Savings and Loan industry through deals like those put together by the Whitewater Development Company, they needed a new source of income.

27 posted on 08/05/2010 6:36:50 AM PDT by <1/1,000,000th%
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To: ronnie raygun

Voting out the obama gang is not enough. They should be prosecuted to the fullest, publicly executed if treason is the conviction, and at the least, serve a decade or two in prison. Crapping in the face of the Constitution, the People, and future generations deserves a just punishment.


28 posted on 08/05/2010 6:43:52 AM PDT by Neoliberalnot ((Read "The Grey Book" for an alternative to corruption in DC))
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To: stephenjohnbanker; NFHale; Travis McGee; AuntB; mkjessup; NormsRevenge; Grampa Dave; maggief; ...
Attorney General Eric Holder and Civil Rights Division chief Thomas Perez have a new plan. Xochitl Hinojosa, a Justice Department spokeswoman, says the new policy will have (federal) funds going to "‘qualified organizations’ that have a mission that addresses whatever the harm is that was the subject of the litigation.”

Gee, I wonder what ‘qualified organizations w/ a mission' are favored by Civil Rights Division chief Thomas Perez and Xochitl Hinojosa, the Justice Dept spokeswoman?

Duh.

The numerous ripoffs they got going will make these people lose bigtime by getting little ol' amnesty.

29 posted on 08/05/2010 6:48:22 AM PDT by Liz
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To: Liz

Her name isn’t even Spanish, it is Nahuatl, an indigenous Mexican language. It means “flower.” Wonder what her parent were trying to say when they gave her a name no one can pronounce. I bet everybody at the agency calls her “Flor.”


30 posted on 08/05/2010 6:56:36 AM PDT by La Lydia
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To: colonialhk

Yes. Next: build pyramids, take hostages, rip their hearts out.


31 posted on 08/05/2010 6:58:40 AM PDT by La Lydia
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To: Liz; All

” Gee, I wonder what ‘qualified organizations w/ a mission’ are favored by Civil Rights Division chief Thomas Perez and Xochitl Hinojosa, the Justice Dept spokeswoman? “


Network
written by Paddy Chayefsky

Diana: Look, we’ve got a bunch of hobgoblin radicals called the Ecumenical Liberation Army who go around taking home movies of themselves robbing banks. Maybe they’ll take movies of themselves kidnapping heiresses, hijacking 747’s, bombing bridges, assassinating ambassadors. We’d open each week’s segment with that authentic footage, hire a couple of writers to write some story behind that footage, and we’ve got ourselves a series.
Bosch: A series about a bunch of bank- robbing guerillas?
Schlesinger: What’re we going to call it —the Mao Tse Tung Hour?
Diana: Why not? They’ve got Strike Force, Task Force, SWAT — why not Che Guevara and his own little mod squad? Listen, I sent you all a concept analysis report yesterday. Did any of you read it? Well, in a nutshell, it said the American people are turning sullen. They’ve been clobbered on all sides by Vietnam, Watergate, the inflation, the depression. They’ve turned off, shot up, and they’ve fucked themselves limp. And nothing helps. Evil still triumphs over all, Christ is a dope-dealing pimp, even sin turned out to be impotent. The whole world seems to be going nuts and flipping off into spacelike an abandoned balloon. So— this concept analysis report concludes — the American people want somebody to articulate their rage for them.


32 posted on 08/05/2010 7:06:54 AM PDT by stephenjohnbanker (.)
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To: Dr. Bogus Pachysandra

Don’t do that, Doctor. It’s exactly what they want us all to do. Please stay strong.


33 posted on 08/05/2010 7:11:56 AM PDT by TheOldLady (Pablo is very wily.)
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To: Nachum; SunkenCiv

“We have elected the enemy.” — Jim Quinn

And they’re lawless thugs, thieves, murderers, oppressors, and dictators who will soon be gone.

We should thank them for waking us up, but I’d rather just get rid of them with extreme prejudice.


34 posted on 08/05/2010 7:14:55 AM PDT by TheOldLady (Pablo is very wily.)
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To: Nachum

Treason!


35 posted on 08/05/2010 10:10:57 AM PDT by pissant (THE Conservative party: www.falconparty.com)
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