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Baltimore Mayor landed sweet deal selling her self-published books
Hot Air.com ^ | March 16, 2019 | JAZZ SHAW

Posted on 03/16/2019 9:53:39 AM PDT by Kaslin

Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh has a lengthy resume, having worked in public relations, as an editor for the Baltimore Sun, co-owner of a television station and member of both the City Council and state assembly before taking her current position. But did you know she was also a published author? Well… “published” is technically correct, but perhaps a bit misleading since her series of children’s books were actually self-published.

Going that route doesn’t always work out for people because it’s hard to run up sales without the PR muscle of an established publishing house. Recent revelations indicate that Pugh found a way around that obstacle, however. She managed to arrange for the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) to purchase tens of thousands of copies of her books over a period of eight years, netting her at least half a million dollars. Also of note is the fact that she’s been a board member of UMMS for most of that time. And you’ll never guess which facts failed to be reported in her financial disclosure forms and ethics disclosure documents. (Baltimore Sun)

Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh has not reported on disclosure forms filed with the city’s ethics office that she sits on the board of directors for the University of Maryland Medical System, according to The Baltimore Sun’s review of records.

Instructions on the form tell public officials to report any “office, directorship, salaried employment, or similar position with any business entity that was doing business with the city.”

Also, the University of Maryland Medical System did not disclose on its federal tax form for the year ending June 30, 2017, that it had entered into a contract with Pugh to buy 20,000 copies of her book, “Healthy Holly: Exercising is Fun,” the form shows. A section on the form is reserved for reporting “business transactions involving interested persons” and the system has in the past listed dealings with other board members.

That first article I linked above was published early in the news cycle and only mentioned approximately $100K in book sales. Further investigation pushed the start of this lucrative arrangement back to 2011 and the profits swelled to $500K.

I’m struggling to remember a time when there wasn’t some high-ranking public official in Baltimore being involved in some sort of scam or dodgy arrangement or another. But this was a really sweet deal for Pugh by any measure. You go through the steps of writing a children’s book, publish it yourself, and then get a major entity like UMMS (that accepts taxpayer funding) to buy massive stockpiles of your book.

After the story broke, Pugh quickly moved to “amend her financial disclosure forms” because there were apparently “errors” on them.

Baltimore Mayor Catherine E. Pugh did not fully disclose the $500,000 business relationship she started in 2011 with the University of Maryland Medical System during the time she was a state senator, a period during which she sat on the hospital network’s board of directors and oversaw issues involving UMMS in the legislature, according to The Baltimore Sun’s review of financial disclosure forms.

After The Sun asked questions Friday about the disclosure forms she filed while in the Senate, Pugh submitted an amendment for seven years of reports filed with the state ethics commission. The new documents disclose that she established her company, Healthy Holly LLC, which sold children’s books she wrote to the medical system.

You know, I’m not sure that a failure to disclose these profits on your ethics and financial disclosure forms is the real issue here, though it should probably be disqualifying for high office as things stand. The real question here is how she was allowed to implement all of those book sales with an entity she sat on the board for and previously had legislative oversight of. Is there any other way to describe this arrangement than as a purposeful abuse of government power to fleece the taxpayers for huge sums of money?

Somebody must have known this was going on for all these years. How is it that they didn’t say anything? Or was that just considered the price of doing business in Charm City? Under nearly any other circumstances this would probably be a career killer and yet another Democratic Baltimore mayor would be out the door under a cloud of corruption. But that’s not how things always roll in that town. Don’t be shocked if Pugh rides this out and hangs onto her job.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial; US: Maryland
KEYWORDS: baltimore; books; catherinepugh; corruption; localnews; maryland; mayor; sales

1 posted on 03/16/2019 9:53:39 AM PDT by Kaslin
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To: Kaslin

Since she’s a good Democrat, there’s nothing to see here.


2 posted on 03/16/2019 9:56:40 AM PDT by Dilbert San Diego
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To: Kaslin

Or was that just considered the price of doing business in Charm City?

****************

Hear no evil, see no evil. Should be Baltimore’s motto.


3 posted on 03/16/2019 9:57:30 AM PDT by Starboard
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To: Kaslin

Huh... isn’t this the sort of thing they’re trying to impeach Trump on and imprison Manafort and others on with perp walks?

Oh wait - I forgot that she’s a democrat so it’s OK.


4 posted on 03/16/2019 10:00:00 AM PDT by Skywise
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To: Kaslin

she probably didn’t have to buy her way into and thru college but I’ll bet she “bribed” her way in and thru.....


5 posted on 03/16/2019 10:00:32 AM PDT by cherry
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To: Kaslin

Ride this out?? She’ll probably get an increase in book sales.


6 posted on 03/16/2019 10:05:21 AM PDT by Truth29
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To: Kaslin

She’ll get the same PC/victim treatment as Snipes did in Fla.

Who’s kidding who here?

I’ve had a belly full of the double standards.


7 posted on 03/16/2019 10:05:28 AM PDT by MichaelCorleone (Jesus Christ is not a religion. He's the Truth.)
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To: Dilbert San Diego

She managed to arrange for the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) to purchase tens of thousands of copies of her books...

That sounds like something the mafia would do.

John Gotti writes a book and then wants to know if those under him will buy it.

Who’s gonna say no!! :)


8 posted on 03/16/2019 10:11:31 AM PDT by dp0622 (The Left should know if.. Trump is kicked out of office, it is WAR!)
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To: Kaslin

What is the above picture and why do they all seem like powerful people in baltimore and how come they’re all black? Where the crackers at?


9 posted on 03/16/2019 10:13:57 AM PDT by LouAvul (Socialism is the logical conclusion of liberalism. Anarchy is the logical conclusion of socialism.)
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To: Kaslin

This is jail-time level graft.


10 posted on 03/16/2019 10:19:01 AM PDT by ifinnegan (Democrats kill babies and harvest their organs to sell)
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To: Kaslin

I wonder how many copies Mayor Clueless sold altogether. $10 says the total was 20,000


11 posted on 03/16/2019 10:44:58 AM PDT by cyclotic ( Democrats must be politically eviscerated, disemboweled and demolished.)
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To: cyclotic

This bestseller has one review on Amazon, 1 star and it was written this week. They have none in stock. Looks like Y’all owe me $10. Make a donation to FR


12 posted on 03/16/2019 10:48:51 AM PDT by cyclotic ( Democrats must be politically eviscerated, disemboweled and demolished.)
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To: Kaslin
A number of laws had to be broken for this to occur.

No worry, she's Black AND a Democrat.

SOP!

13 posted on 03/16/2019 10:49:26 AM PDT by blam
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To: Kaslin

Ethics investigation and resignation (of Jim Wright)

Their report in early 1989 implied that he had used bulk purchases of his book, Reflections of a Public Man, to earn speaking fees in excess of the allowed maximum, and that his wife, Betty, was given a job and perks to avoid the limit on gifts

Wright tendered his resignation as Speaker on May 31, 1989

The original charges were filed by Newt Gingrich
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Wright


14 posted on 03/16/2019 10:55:23 AM PDT by DUMBGRUNT ("The enemy has overrun us. We are blowing up everything. Vive la France!")
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To: Kaslin

So the Balt city Mayor, who also sits on the board at U MD hospital

Has the hospital purchase books to give to the Baltimore City schools. Sure, no improper influence there.

“Pugh then states that the “University of Maryland Medical System purchased books to be given out to the Baltimore City School System,” distributing them in 2012, 2013 and 2015.

City and medical system officials told The Sun that the hospital network spent $500,000 to purchase 100,000 copies of Pugh’s books in the years 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2018.” The school never asked for the books.

She also did not disclose to the city that she sat on the board at the hospital.

“The Sun also reported that since Pugh became mayor, she has not disclosed her medical system board position on the city disclosure reports covering 2016 and and 2017. The annual forms submitted to Baltimore’s Board of Ethics require public officials to report relationships they have with entities that do business with the city.”

“The city’s ethics board also requires public officials to report ownership in businesses and “other sources of earned income.””

That’s not all.

“rs reported to the state having a financial interest in companies doing business with the hospital system for services ranging from consulting to pest control.”

One guy made 4.2 million in services.

This really pisses me off. It’s my hospital and these board members are bleeding it dry.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/bs-md-pugh-books-disclosure-20190315-story,amp.html


15 posted on 03/16/2019 9:24:36 PM PDT by HollyB
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The quote was cut off. So far a total of 7 board members have used their position to sell goods or services to the hospital.


16 posted on 03/16/2019 9:29:12 PM PDT by HollyB
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To: Starboard

Pugh wasn’t elected Mayor until 2016. Her first elected position was in 1999 (Baltimore City Council). She held that seat through 2004. She went on to serve in Maryland state House (she was appointed to fill a vacancy by Gov. Ehrlich, who was a Republican by the way), and then was elected to state Senate, where she served from 2007-2016. She became the Maryland state Senate Majority Leader. The corruption matters discussed in this story go well beyond the city of Baltimore. Her 1-year term as elected president of the National Black Caucus of State Legislators (NBCSL) included the 2015 action by SC Gov. Nikki Haley in removing the Confederate flag from statehouse ground. NBCSL issued press release at that time praising the removal of the flag.


17 posted on 03/17/2019 12:23:13 PM PDT by Steve Schulin (Cheap electricity gives your average Joe a life better than kings used to enjoy)
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To: Kaslin

That’s a ‘Coz to jail. Go directly to jail. Do not pass go.” If anybody in law enforcement pays attention.


18 posted on 03/22/2019 10:53:46 AM PDT by sphinx
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