Free Republic

Two men suspected of withdrawing over $164,000 with fraudulently-obtained unemployment benefit debit cards were arrested this month in Thousand Oaks, officials said Monday. A resident called 911 on the afternoon of Aug. 6 when she saw two people “acting suspiciously” at a Bank of America ATM on 1440 N. Moorpark Rd., the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release. Deputies responded and stopped a car just as it was leaving the area, finding two grocery bags full of cash and a large amount of Visa debit cards in different people’s names, according to the Sheriff’s Office. Investigators found...

Warren Buffett has given up his long-held conviction against buying gold — and he’s meanwhile getting out of Goldman Sachs. The totemic tycoon revealed in filings late last week that he has scooped up more than 20 million shares of mining giant Barrick Gold Corp. even as he unloaded nearly all of his nearly 2 million shares in Goldman Sachs. The 89-year-old investing icon’s sudden embrace of the precious yellow metal — which has has previously derided as “useless,” saying that “anyone watching from Mars would be scratching their head” at the idea of investing in it — took many...

New York (CNN Business)Bank of America is donating $1 billion over the next four years to community programs and small businesses to help address economic and racial inequality that has been exacerbated by Covid-19. CEO Brian Moynihan said in press release Tuesday that "underlying economic and social disparities" were made worse by the pandemic and mentioned the nationwide protests sparked by the death of George Floyd in police custody has "created a sense of true urgency."

No, the Des Moines Register Poll did not kill itself. – The leaders in the Democrat Party are now in full-blown panic as The Commie closes in on a win in Iowa. So panicked, in fact, that they almost certainly spiked the final Des Moines Register poll – a tradition for 76 years running – that was to be released on Sunday. The narrative being pushed by the corrupt news media is that the Register, and its co-sponsor, CNN (because of course it’s CNN) decided to scrap the poll because one of the people conducting the poll consistently mispronounced the...

Chris Heinz and Hunter Biden were friends in business together, each cashing-in on the influence held by their fathers’ John Kerry and Joe Biden. Considering the likelihood Joe Biden was only running for President in order to: (1) shield himself from scrutiny, and (2) establish the cornerstone of the impeachment effort; it makes complete sense for John Kerry to be the participating campaign handler. With Biden’s impeachment usefulness now exhausted by DC engineers, there’s no reason to prop-up his candidacy. He’s dropping like a proverbial rock. However the risk to Biden and Kerry still exists (see Lindsey Graham interview today),...

Former Secretary of State John Kerry — one of Joe Biden's highest-profile endorsers — was overheard Sunday on the phone at a Des Moines hotel explaining what he would have to do to enter the presidential race amid "the possibility of Bernie Sanders taking down the Democratic Party — down whole." Sitting in the lobby restaurant of the Renaissance Savery hotel, Kerry was overheard by an NBC News analyst saying "maybe I'm f---ing deluding myself here" and explaining that in order to run, he'd have to step down from the board of Bank of America and give up his ability...

DES MOINES, Iowa — Former Secretary of State John Kerry — one of Joe Biden's highest-profile endorsers — was overheard Sunday on the phone at a Des Moines hotel explaining what he would have to do to enter the presidential race amid "the possibility of Bernie Sanders taking down the Democratic Party — down whole." Sitting in the lobby restaurant of the Renaissance Savery hotel, Kerry was overheard by an NBC News analyst saying "maybe I'm f---ing deluding myself here" and explaining that in order to run, he'd have to step down from the board of Bank of America and...

he placing of a rainbow-colored sticker, with a badge and “Safe Place” lettering across it, officially designated Bank of America as the largest partner with Tucson Police Department’s Safe Place program to provide safe harbor for the LGBTQ community. Bank of America is implementing the program at 13 locations found as far east as Houghton Road, Ajo Way to the west and Cortaro and Valencia roads to the north and south. Each will provide a safe place for victims of crimes. Tucson is the fifth city where Bank of America has partnered with local law enforcement to promote similar...

Bank of America Corp.’s CEO Brian Moynihan says he doesn’t see a recession in the offing because the U.S. consumer remains healthy. . . . “Look, when the yield curve moved around the pundit-ocracy got going, saying, ‘Here, this means a recessions coming,’” Moynihan told CNBC. However, the bank boss said this time the recessionary gauge may be influenced by a global market swirling in some $15 trillion in negative interest rates.

Bank of America will end its association with companies that provide prisoner and immigrant detention services at both the state and federal levels. The move comes amid growing public concern about the nation's border policies. A spokesperson said Wednesday that Bank of America (BAC) has discussed the issue with its clients that provide those services. While the bank appreciates "steps they have taken to properly execute their contractual and humanitarian responsibilities," it ultimately decided to "exit the relationships." "Lacking further legal and policy clarity, and in recognition of the concerns of our employees and stakeholders in the communities we serve,...

Bank of America Opens a New Window. CEO Brian Moynihan spoke this week about embracing digital payment transactions while moving toward a cashless society. Moynihan made the comments Wednesday during Fortune’s Opens a New Window. Brainstorm Finance conference in New York. The CEO spoke about Zelle, Google Pay and Apple Pay and its increasing popularity. He said Bank of America “will continue to move” toward digital banking transactions. “We want a cashless society,” Moynihan told Fortune’s Shawn Tully. “We have more to gain than anybody from a pure operating costs (perspective).”

Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry and the state’s Bond Commission denied $600 million to Citibank and Bank of America over the gun control stance adopted by both companies. Citibank and Bank of America were both to be part of a road financing plan in the state, but were omitted from the financial plan after arbitrarily placing new gun controls on banking customers. Louisiana Executive Division press secretary Ruth Wisher told Breitbart News that Landry and State Treasurer John Schroder have been working on the state’s response to corporate gun control “for some time.” Omitting them from the $600 million is...

Hollywood stars Morgan Freeman, Ashley Judd, and others associated with the No Rifle Association initiative (#NoRA) have signed a letter demanding Bank of America revoke a loan made to Remington Arms. Alyssa Milano tweeted the list of signatories, which included Alec Baldwin, Michael Ian Black, Mia Farrow, Chelsea Handler, Debra Messing, Julianne Moore, Michael Moore, and Rosie O’Donnell, and a page full of others. Signatories also included Parkland gun control activist David Hogg.

Bank of America Corp is preparing to provide critical financing to Remington Outdoor Co, which makes assault-type rifles, just weeks after the U.S. bank said it would stop financing “military-style” firearms for civilians. The bank is contributing $43.2 million to a $193 million lending package funded by seven banks, according to court documents, which will help put Remington back on stable footing as it emerges from bankruptcy later this month into an uncertain environment for gun makers. The package replaces a similar credit facility the banks committed to providing Remington. Both were agreed in late March, before Bank of America,...

WASHINGTON -- The Securities and Exchange Commission tapped Goldman Sachs Group Inc. executive Adam Storch on Friday to serve as the agency's first-ever chief operating officer of the enforcement division. The new hire represents the latest personnel change at the SEC in its effort to improve its operations following its failure to detect Bernard Madoff's massive Ponzi scheme. Enforcement Division Director Robert Khuzami created Mr. Storch's position of managing executive as part of the major re-structuring effort he announced earlier this year. Mr. Storch will oversee division operations that include budget, information technology and administrative services. He will also supervise...

Bank of America officially took sides in America’s gun debate Tuesday, announcing it would no longer make loans to companies that make “military-style” weapons. The second-biggest U.S. bank announced Tuesday that it would drop current loan-customers Vista Outdoors, Remington and Sturm Ruger, and blackball any other manufacturer of assault weapons. Bank of America Vice Chairman Anne Finucanetold Bloomberg TV on Tuesday her bank has told those companies “it’s not our intent to underwrite or finance military-style firearms.” “We have had intense conversations over the last few months,” Ms. Finucane told Bloomberg, a network founded by tycoon and gun-control-financier Michael R....

Bank of America further solidified its corporate position in favor of gun control after sponsoring an anti-gun discussion hosted by Axios on Friday. Axios co-founder Mike Allen facilitated the talk between activist and Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School student David Hogg and Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut. The event, held in Washington, D.C., occurred at 8 a.m. and had no outside sponsors beside BoA. Despite the fact that it was billed as a conversation “on gun safety in America,” there was virtually no disagreement between Hogg and Blumenthal on policy. Allen asked Hogg what “the biggest mistake the media...

Citigroup Inc. (C.N) added restrictions on firearms sales for new retail-sector clients, the Wall Street bank said on Thursday, the strongest move to date by a major U.S. lender following last month’s high school shooting in Florida. In an e-mailed statement, Citi said it will require those clients only sell firearms to customers who have passed a background check, restrict sales of firearms for people under 21 years of age, and not sell so-called “bump stocks” or high-capacity magazines. The bank’s new rules come weeks after a shooting at a Florida high school that killed 17 people, the second-deadliest shooting...

Bank of America has joined the parade of American companies celebrating tax cuts by giving its employees a special year-end bonus. Brian Moynihan, the bank’s chief executive, sent an email to employees citing the benefits to the company from the lower corporate tax rate. “In the spirit of shared success, we intend to pass some of those benefits along immediately. U.S. employees making up to $150,000 per year in total compensation–around 145,000 teammates–will receive a one-time bonus of $1,000 by year-end,” Moynihan wrote. The bank also said that it expected to invest more in technology and in cities around the...

The lawlessness of the Obama administration has been astounding. Entire books have been written about President Obama’s notion that he should be and is free to do whatever he wants (such as Lawless by Professor David Bernstein, which I wrote about here). No doubt more will be. One remarkably brazen instance I recently learned about is his administration’s funneling of money from lawsuit settlements into the pockets of left-wing activist groups. It makes you wonder if there is anything this administration won’t try to get away with. Following the collapse of the housing bubble, the federal government initiated several grandstanding,...