Posted on 04/09/2005 6:55:20 AM PDT by MikeEdwards
BNP Paribas, the bank associated with the Oil-for-Food scandal, is doing brisk business in Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s golden state.
According to its website, "BNP Paribas acts as the sole agent for the State of California’s economic recovery bonds, the largest municipal bond sale in the United States."
Active in the municipal bond market for over 10 years, BNP is providing credit enhancement and liquidity support for the State of California’s sale of $2.97 billion of variable-rate Economic Recovery Bonds ("ERB’s").
The bank also boasts that it will be a proud partner of San Francisco in financing the rebuilding of the city’s famous bridge.
San Francisco’s Presidio is also home to former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and his Green Cross International.
Word has it that Gorbachev covets and has the backing of Governor Schwarzenegger to establish a $50 billion (U.S.) solar energy fund in California.
While the Golden State seems to have capitulated to PNB Paribas, the bank is being shown the gate in other states.
Impervious to the charm and means of the financial giant is the "Show Me" State of Missouri. The Missouri legislature confirmed it had pink-slipped Paribas Capital as an approved broker-dealer for its $2.9 billion pension fund because of its French parent’s role in the Iraq oil-for-food scandal.
Missouri’s state treasurer investment committee voted 5-0 on Feb. 4 to remove Paribas capital as one of nine primary dealers through which the state placed short-term investments. BNP’s unit was the state’s largest broker-dealer for short-term investments with $185 million in open accounts in December.
BNP, described by detractors as "Saddam’s favourite bank" is still under investigation in Washington and New York. . . . .
(Excerpt) Read more at canadafreepress.com ...
Awesome find. This certainly goes deeper than just appearances.
Well hey! The similarities between FRANCE and CA's governments continues, in fact is amplified by a power of ten in CA by a "Repub" Grininator!!!
Even Dick Gephardt's Missouri has enough sense NOT to get tangled up with the Broker-Dealer that's about to make CA Broker!!! Even the Bay Bridge boondoggle has attracted these international scum bags to our troubled quagmire in CA!!!
As if "Oil For Food," the most massive fraud perpetrated on the institutions of Earth in it's long history was bad enough for "Old Europe" and the UN... The Angelides/Demonicrat machine with Schwarzenegger's blessing is leading us into darkness for generations to come!
I sure hope the so-called FR "Posse" has finally seen enough and will now "Join Us" (CA FReepers) in rejecting this super fraud that will take us to a much worse place than FRANCE already is!!! (fiscally and economically)
Bump
Um, you do realize that this sort of corporate corruption is spreading nationwide? The Republican Party is not immune to it either, although it is worse on the left.
That stands to benefit British Petroleum directly (at the expense of American competition).
BNP, described by detractors as "Saddam’s favourite bank" is still under investigation in Washington and New York. Since the oil-for-food scandal hit headlines, much has been written about BNP Paribas being under the control of the Montreal-based Power Corporation.But while Power Corp. headquarters may be in Montreal, the company is, in fact, run from Brussels, home of the crystal palace of the European Union.
Thus, Arnie’s California is now a Pacific coast version of the Congo.
How did the power end up in Brussels?
Meet Baron Alfred Frere of Belgium.
"The reclusive capitalist. The Belgium billionaire, Albert Frere, considers himself a pioneer of Europe’s cross-border deals," write David Owen and Neil Buckley." (Careers from the Financial Times, 12 July, 1999).
…"Just months after Mr. Frere merged PetroFina, the Belgian oil company he controlled, with France’s Total, the new group TotalFina–of which he is the biggest shareholder–is bidding $43bn for Elf Aquitane.
"Mr. Frere is already the biggest shareholder in another large French corporation, the utilities group Suez Lyonnaise des Eaux, and his sprawling empire owns half of CLT-Ufa, Europe’s biggest commercial broadcaster.
"He has owned half the Belgian steel industry and a stake in Drexel Burnham Lambert, the ill-fated Wall Street investment bank. He has held, and sold, large chunks of half a dozen Belgian flagships–PetroFina, Banque Bruxelles Lambert, the number three bank, Royale Belge, the number two insurer, Tractebel, the energy group. And he is the only Belgian in Forbes magazine’s list of billionaires–estimated wealth: $1.6 billion.
.."Mr. Frere is gifted at buying and selling, and turning a profit--as he has ever since realizing the Korean War would create demand for steel. He is also exceptionally good at finding loyal, like-minded partners and backers. He ploughed the proceeds of his 1950s steel trading into a string of steelmakers--backed by French bank Paribas, still a partner. When the Belgian state nationalized them, Mr. Frere used his handsome profit, in 1982, to take control of Groupe Bruxelles Lambert, the holding company second only to the mighty Societe Generale de Belgique. With that came the corporate stakes he has traded in recent years for his Suez and Total interests.
"In his assault on Groupe Bruxelles Lambert, his partner was Paul Desmarais, the francophone Canadian head of Power Corporation, whom Mr. Frere had befriended on the board of Paribas. Mr. Desmarais remains his bosom ally and jointly controls much of his empire."
Frere was awarded the title Baron when knighted by King Albert in 1994.
So in essence, California is an estate of His Highness the King of Belgium and his royal retinue that worships what it seeks, total power.
Indeed, a Google search of Groupe Bruxelles Lambert finds a plethora of barons and counts, a veritable Who’s Who of Franco-Belgian nobility--the European wing of power.
Meanwhile, did The Terminator, a Hollywood good guy, let the bad guys into `Congo-fornia’?
Here's one. From Global Green USA, "the United States affiliate of Green Cross International":
Green Cross International (GCI) was founded by Mikhail Gorbachev in 1993, as prompted by the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro and Agenda 21. GCI is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland; the 21 GCI affiliates are located in Argentina, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, the Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, South Korea, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Venezuela.The mission of GCI is to create a sustainable future by cultivating harmonious relationships between humans and the environment. GCI concentrates its efforts on five main programs to promote a significant change in human values toward greater respect for Earth's community of life in all its diversity. The programs, stemming from the initiatives of 21 National Organizations, seek to combine global thinking and local action through the vehicle of international programs tailored to local needs.
The big construction companies just shoved a "contractor licensing" bill through the Idaho legislature. It was aimed to putting 38,000 small construction businesses out of business. It passed last week.
Dirk Kempthorne vetoed 8 bills sent from the legislature in a tantrum to force the legislature to pass $2 billion in "Garvey bonds" to finance highway construction on the west side of the state in the north/south corridor. Idaho has always worked on a "pay as you go" approach. We only have 3 million people here and only 1/3 of them actually have a job.
It's pretty clear to me that the construction industry owns the governor and the legislature. The teacher's union also has vise grips on the private parts of the state government too.
The scale of government corruption in Idaho isn't near as bad as California, but we aren't immune by any means. At least we don't have a new gun control law every other month.
Choice people.
Ha Ha Ha!!! While acting like a politician, I started to become so accustomed to acting shallow that "guilt by association" was good enough for me! So I don't care as much as I probably should about documentation, or support.
Just like when I was an athlete, I was a whole lot more concerned with athelete's foot, than an anthletic supporter!!!
Just like Letterman says about jury duty... "They better all know that I think they're all guilty as hell!"
Oh! I almost forgot!! Did any of you notice all the media attention this weekend about Maria not wanting Arnold to run for re-election, due to her comments on OPRAH on Friday??? Oh brother! Oh Sister! Look OUT!!! Arnold may dump on Republicans once again!!!
I got a sinking feeling about ReFoRm in California..
Maybe better the ship had sunk to get all the 'Rats off of it.
The wheels have been successfully yanked off CA's most historic Recall and now, since A.S. has diddled with debt and ranted about reform... he'll probably pull out since nobody's gonna love him anymore and he craves celebrity adulation more than Maria's favors that she periodically witholds as we learned from his own lips after his CONvention speech!!!
Now we'll really find out what "Hasta La Vista, baby!" reall means!!!
If you were, I was gonna ask you if you remembered that old ditty that went "Bingo Bango Bongo, I'm so happy in the Congo, I don't wanna go..."
That's what this artickle is all about!!! Hee hee... that International GANG-GREEN cross is almost enough to give a DU'er another Gorbasm!!! (with due respect for Rush, who invented the term)
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