http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/blum/ en-us Tue, 22 Sep 2009 14:11:18 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2345488/posts From: Blum, Joanne S. Sent: Friday, September 11, 2009 5:00 PM Subject: HELP NEEDED - To Protect State Revenues A Threat to Our Communities A small group of individuals are threatening to jeopardize Massachusetts working families by seeking to qualify a number of initiative petitions. One these would reduce the sales tax which would cut state revenues by approximately $2.5 billion. This would result in cuts in our communities to education, health care, public safety and other programs that we all depend on every day. If you see or have seen any petitioners carrying this or other petitions in your... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2345488/posts#comment Tue, 22 Sep 2009 14:11:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2301053/posts Blum is currently a founder and co-chair of Health Care for America Now, which is leading the fight for quality, affordable health care for all. He served on the steering committee of Americans United to Protect Social Security, which led the successful campaign to stop Social Security privatization, and co-founded two coalitions to safely and responsibly end the war in Iraq. In 2006, USAction helped elect seven new Members of Congress who are members of USAction’s state affilates. In 2004, USAction Education Fund registered 570,000 new voters and conducted GOTV among 1.3 million voters in 2316 precincts. Blum’s experience in... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2301053/posts#comment Sat, 25 Jul 2009 22:00:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2237572/posts While Nazi Pelosi and the DNC are outraged at terrorists getting warm lemonade, corporate jet trips by CEO’s or excessive greed by Bankers, they are stealing 10s of $Millions right under our noses. While they throw the ol Bush is Hitler bone to their kook lefties, they are robbing us blind. When President Bush entered the WH w/clinton’s Impeachment/Monica fresh on everyone’s mind, W never brought him up or went after him even though many wanted him to. He knew that there were more important things than satisfying a fringe group who wanted blood since he needed to get this... self http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2237572/posts#comment Sat, 25 Apr 2009 13:41:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2236699/posts Sen. Dianne Feinstein may have violated Senate ethics rules by introducing legislation in January that indirectly benefited her husband. The legislation authorized that $25 billion of taxpayer money be given to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to help finance an FDIC proposal to avoid home foreclosures by promoting loan workouts and increasing federal loan guarantees, The Washington Times reports. The Democratic California senator’s husband, Richard Blum, is chairman of the board of commercial real estate colossus CB Richard Ellis (CBRE). When Feinstein introduced her bill, the FDIC had just signed a contract with the firm to unload foreclosed properties for... Newsmax http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2236699/posts#comment Fri, 24 Apr 2009 09:27:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2234149/posts On the day the new Congress convened this year, Sen. Dianne Feinstein introduced legislation to route $25 billion in taxpayer money to a government agency that had just awarded her husband's real estate firm a lucrative contract to sell foreclosed properties at compensation rates higher than the industry norms. Mrs. Feinstein’s intervention on behalf of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was unusual: the California Democrat isn’t a member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs with jurisdiction over FDIC; and the agency is supposed to operate from money it raises from bank-paid insurance payments - not direct... Washington Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2234149/posts#comment Tue, 21 Apr 2009 11:47:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2234153/posts Feinstein sought $25 billion for agency that awarded contract to spouse On the day the new Congress convened this year, Sen. Dianne Feinstein introduced legislation to route $25 billion in taxpayer money to a government agency that had just awarded her husband's real estate firm a lucrative contract to sell foreclosed properties at compensation rates higher than the industry norms. Mrs. Feinstein's intervention on behalf of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was unusual: the California Democrat isn't a member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs with jurisdiction over FDIC; and the agency is supposed to operate... Washington Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2234153/posts#comment Tue, 21 Apr 2009 11:51:49 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2234553/posts California senator sought $25 billion for a government agency that had awarded her husband's real estate firm a lucrative contract to sell foreclosed properties. On the day the new Congress convened this year, Sen. Dianne Feinstein introduced legislation to route $25 billion in taxpayer money to a government agency that had just awarded her husband's real estate firm a lucrative contract to sell foreclosed properties at compensation rates higher than the industry norms, the Washington Times reported on Tuesday. Mrs. Feinstein's intervention on behalf of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was unusual: the California Democrat isn't a member of the... Fox http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2234553/posts#comment Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:37:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2234056/posts On the day the new Congress convened this year, Sen. Dianne Feinstein introduced legislation to route $25 billion in taxpayer money to a government agency that had just awarded her husband's real estate firm a lucrative contract to sell foreclosed properties at compensation rates higher than the industry norms. Mrs. Feinstein's intervention on behalf of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was unusual: the California Democrat isn't a member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs with jurisdiction over FDIC; and the agency is supposed to operate from money it raises from bank-paid insurance payments - not direct... Washington Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2234056/posts#comment Tue, 21 Apr 2009 06:28:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2233978/posts Senate husband's firm cashes in on crisis Feinstein sought $25 billion for agency that awarded contract to spouse By Chuck Neubauer THE WASHINGTON TIMES Tuesday, April 21, 2009 On the day the new Congress convened this year, Sen. Dianne Feinstein introduced legislation to route $25 billion in taxpayer money to a government agency that had just awarded her husband's real estate firm a lucrative contract to sell foreclosed properties at compensation rates higher than the industry norms. Mrs. Feinstein's intervention on behalf of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. was unusual: the California Democrat isn't a member of the Senate Committee... Washington Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2233978/posts#comment Tue, 21 Apr 2009 03:12:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1879078/posts Feinstein's FuryUp against the big media spin machine By Peter Byrne 29 weeks later: Following the fallout from Metro's investigation of Sen. Feinstein. I AM PLEASED to announce that my national exposé of Sen. Dianne Feinstein's conflict of interest has been selected as one of the 25 most underreported stories of 2007 by Project Censored, headquartered at Sonoma State University. I cherish this award because it means I am doing my job as an investigative reporter. Stories that the mainstream media ignore often reveal truths about our system of governance that editors at corporate daily newspapers work overtime to cover... Metro Active http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1879078/posts#comment Fri, 10 Aug 2007 03:18:30 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1876077/posts Auditor under fire reaps big profitsFirm has been criticized for rejecting many hospital Medicare claims in state. By David Whitney - Bee Washington Bureau Published 12:00 am PDT Friday, August 3, 2007 WASHINGTON -- PRG-Schultz International, the Atlanta auditing company under fire for its sweeping rejection of claims for California Medicare patients cared for by rehabilitation hospitals, announced soaring second-quarter profits Thursday. The announcement came a day after members of the California congressional delegation met with audit overseers in a heated meeting in which they complained that PRG-Schultz's wholesale rejection of claims is enriching its bottom line while jeopardizing health... Sacramento Bee http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1876077/posts#comment Fri, 3 Aug 2007 23:41:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1562523/posts WASHINGTON: An unexpected endorsement from Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden has resulted in a huge jump in sales for a book by a critic of US foreign policy. William Blum’s “Rogue State: A Guide to the World’s Only Superpower” was ranked 209,000 on Amazon.com’s sales list before bin Laden mentioned it in an audiotape released on Thursday. By Friday, the book was No. 30 on the Amazon.com list. Bin Laden said Al Qaeda group was preparing more attacks in the United States but also told Americans, “It is useful for you to read the book ‘The Rogue State.’“ “I... Daily Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1562523/posts#comment Sun, 22 Jan 2006 02:32:00 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1809777/posts SEN. Dianne Feinstein has resigned from the Military Construction Appropriations subcommittee. As previously and extensively reviewed in these pages, Feinstein was chairperson and ranking member of MILCON for six years, during which time she had a conflict of interest due to her husband Richard C. Blum's ownership of two major defense contractors, who were awarded billions of dollars for military construction projects approved by Feinstein. As MILCON leader, Feinstein relished the details of military construction, even micromanaging one project at the level of its sewer design. She regularly took junkets to military bases around the world to inspect construction projects,... metroactive.com/ http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1809777/posts#comment Sat, 31 Mar 2007 14:30:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1809771/posts Founded more than a century ago in Massachusetts as a civil infrastructure contractor, Perini is known today for its hospitality and gaming industry projects, and for its corrections, health care, sports, entertainment and educational expertise. It is the largest casino and hotel builder in the United States. It also builds hospitals, prisons and public buildings. In addition, Perini is a major player in civil infrastructure construction, working on everything from bridges and highways to subways and airports. Chairman and CEO Ronald Tutor and billionaire investor Richard Blum, who together own investment groups that hold 75 percent of Perini's voting stock,... Center for Public Integrity http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1809771/posts#comment Sat, 31 Mar 2007 14:21:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1804683/posts They are one of California's most influential political couples: four-term Democratic U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Richard Blum, a wealthy businessman, philanthropist and behind-the-scenes political advisor. For decades, first as San Francisco mayor and then as senator, Feinstein has had the public persona while Blum has operated in the background. Now, at 71, Blum has stepped into the limelight to take over as chairman of the University of California Board of Regents. --snip-- Blum was appointed to a 12-year term on the 26-member board in 2002 by then-Gov. Gray Davis, to whom Blum and his companies had given more than... LA Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1804683/posts#comment Thu, 22 Mar 2007 01:19:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1795041/posts NEW YORK, New York (1010 WINS) -- The Village Voice, which has had four editors in just over a year, has fired its most recent one after management concerns came to a head following a controversial staff meeting, a spokeswoman said Saturday. David Blum was fired Friday after just six months as editor in chief. His termination came after a Wednesday meeting in which staffers discussed a lack of racial diversity in the paper's hiring. Wayne Barrett, a Voice staff member, said Blum responded to concerns in a way some may have construed as offensive or dismissive. Barrett said, however,... 1010 WINS http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1795041/posts#comment Sun, 4 Mar 2007 17:46:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1665968/posts WASHINGTON, July 14, 2006 – The Army National Guard is experiencing its biggest and longest-running recruiting success since the end of the draft, the chief of the National Guard Bureau told Pentagon reporters today. The Army Guard has met or exceeded its recruiting goals for the past nine months, Army Lt. Gen. H Steven Blum said. The force also increased its end strength each month for the past nine months, to its current 350,000, he said. Defense officials announced earlier this week that the Army National Guard has recruited almost 51,500 soldiers since Oct. 1, about 1,500 above its year-to-date... American Forces Press Service http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1665968/posts#comment Fri, 14 Jul 2006 22:47:38 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1634070/posts WASHINGTON, May 17, 2006 – President Bush's proposal to temporarily boost the National Guard's contribution to U.S. border security stands as a testament to the Guard's flexibility but in no way signals a new, long-term Guard mission, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld told Congress today. Under Bush's plan, announced May 15, up to 6,000 National Guard members will provide mobile communications, transportation, logistics, training, and construction support to the U.S. Border Patrol, the secretary said in testimony before the Senate Appropriations Committee's defense subcommittee. Rumsfeld emphasized that the National Guard will not provide law enforcement support. "Military forces will not... American Forces Press Service http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1634070/posts#comment Thu, 18 May 2006 00:37:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1555969/posts To: Assignment Desk, Daybook Editor Contact: Connie Julian, 917-449-9064, Janet Yip 212-941-8086 or commission@nion.us News Advisory: From: International Commission of Inquiry on Crimes Against Humanity Committed by the Bush Administration WHEN: January 10, 2006 at 1:30 p.m. WHERE: The White House, Walk-in Gate, across from Lafayette Park WEBSITE: http://www.bushcommission.org An unprecedented series of indictments alleging war crimes and crimes against humanity, in five separate areas, on moral, political, and legal grounds, will be delivered by a citizens' tribunal to President Bush at the front gate of the White House this Tuesday, January 10th. Named in the indictments are: President of... US newswire http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1555969/posts#comment Wed, 11 Jan 2006 14:30:25 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1563885/posts William Blum, a Washington, D.C. writer, responded delightedly last Thursday on learning that Osama bin Laden had cited his book in an audiotape. Blum called the mention of Rogue State: A Guide to the World’s Only Superpower “almost as good as being an Oprah book,” a reference to the popular American television host whose endorsement routinely makes a book a bestseller. Asked if he was queasy about bin Laden’s urging listeners to read his book, Blum replied: “I’m not repulsed, and I’m not going to pretend I am.” Quite the contrary, he said: “I’m glad…It’s good publicity for my book.”... FrontPageMagazine http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1563885/posts#comment Tue, 24 Jan 2006 14:41:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1562269/posts WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An unexpected endorsement from al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has resulted in a huge jump in sales for a book by a critic of U.S. foreign policy. ADVERTISEMENT William Blum's "Rogue State: A Guide to the World's Only Superpower" was ranked 209,000 on Amazon.com's sales list before bin Laden mentioned it in an audiotape released on Thursday. By Friday, the book was No. 30 on the Amazon.com list. Bin Laden said al Qaeda group was preparing more attacks in the United States but also told Americans, "It is useful for you to read the book 'The... Reuters via Yahoooo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1562269/posts#comment Sat, 21 Jan 2006 17:32:33 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1384284/posts Two well-known public defenders asked Luzerne County Judge Joseph Augello to be removed from representing murder suspect Joseph Gacha Jr. Attorney William Ruzzo said he felt his reputation was damaged and Attorney Jonathan Blum said he is "disgusted" with Gacha's comments that they have been working with prosecutors to "fabricate a case against" him. Gacha, 27, is facing the death penalty for alleging killing Carrie Lynn Martin, 20, in her Howard Street, Larksville, apartment during a robbery on May 28, 2004. Prosecutors said Martin was stabbed 47 times. Gacha submitted a letter he wrote and dated March 28 requesting Ruzzo... Citizen's Voice http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1384284/posts#comment Fri, 15 Apr 2005 13:56:29 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1138832/posts Most of us old enough to have been reading newspapers and watching television in the mid-1980s remember when the Soviet-backed Marxist-Leninist junta “Sandinistas” were battling the anti-communist guerrilla army of “Contras” in Nicaragua. And who could forget the overblown Iran-Contra affair, the attempt to arm the Contras through a deal to swap arms for hostages with the mullahs in Iran. What might be hazy in the memory after 20 years, however, is the Keystone Kops, I-want-to-play-president role of the freshman senator from Massachusetts, John Forbes Kerry. Still humming his “Give peace a chance” mantra from Vietnam days, Kerry jumped into... NewsMax http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1138832/posts#comment Thu, 20 May 2004 00:23:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1024965/posts Authorities Eye Whether Rush Limbaugh Laundered Money Used to Pay for Drugs By Brian Ross ABCNEWS.com Nov. 18— Radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh may have violated state money-laundering laws in the way he handled the money he used to buy the prescription drugs to which he was addicted, law enforcement officials in Florida and New York told ABCNEWS. A conviction on such charges in Florida would be a first-degree felony, punishable by up to 30 years in prison. Limbaugh returned to the airwaves this week after five weeks of rehabilitation for his admitted addiction to prescription painkillers. His lawyer... ABC News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1024965/posts#comment Wed, 19 Nov 2003 17:22:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1004295/posts <p>Peace, in setting presidential reputations, far outranks its brother prosperity. I didn't realize how completely war and peace define our presidents until I was asked to think about their economic leadership.</p> <p>Our OpinionJournal.com1 and the Federalist Society sponsored a new rating of the presidents, and in June an expanded print version will be published in collaboration with Simon & Schuster. I was asked to join William Bennett, Richard Brookhiser, Robert Dallek and others in contributing. Asked about leadership on economic policy, I couldn't find much.</p> The Wall Street Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1004295/posts#comment Mon, 20 Oct 2003 13:01:19 GMT