What if, instead of DSM, it's Coingate that brings Bush down?

[quaoar]

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050610/NEWS24/506100354

Bush stops in Ohio, sidesteps coin case

By CHRISTOPHER D. KIRKPATRICK
BLADE STAFF WRITER

COLUMBUS - President Bush yesterday traveled to Ohio to talk about terrorism, but he arrived in the midst of the biggest statewide scandal in years and to a crowd of angry "Coingate" protesters.

Mr. Bush's motorcade sped by as dozens of protesters held signs proclaiming their frustration over the unfolding scandal at the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation.

Some examples of the signs: "Mr. President, Give back all of my money," "What ethics?" "$50 million for how many favors?'' and "Noe raised over $100,000 and you're only returning $4,000? Sounds like fuzzy math to me."

Gregory Donelson, a 48-year-old Columbus resident, wore two large plastic dimes around his neck - a reference to the $10 million to $12 million that is missing from a state-financed rare-coin fund created by Toledo-area coin dealer and Republican fund-raiser Tom Noe.

[LiberalEsto]

1. One way, or another

we're gonna getcha getcha getcha getcha...

:hi:

[BattyDem]

2. I don't care what brings him down ...

just as long as he falls ... HARD!

[Rainscents]

3. I went this baster to fall very hard! God will bring him down!

[Gabi Hayes]

8. baster? as in turkey?

jst curious

[Nikki Stone 1]

4. Pardon me for being a little confused, but who exactly stole the coins?

Not that I am picky about my scandals, but it would be nice to know what this one is.

[babylonsister]

9. Here's an article, and there's lots of info in the archives.

TOM Noe finally has to face one very unpleasant reality: the protective circle of wagons that has surrounded him since "Coingate" first broke in early April is gone. The wagons have scattered. His friends in high places, starting with Gov. Bob Taft, have at last decided that maybe it's a good idea to distance themselves from the man who has been so generous to them over the years.

. . .

For that matter, the resignation on Friday of James Conrad, director of the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation, is grossly inadequate penance. His total lack of oversight aggravated this crisis, and he simply gets to walk away? No matter what, he must be held accountable. But the buck didn't stop at Mr. Conrad's desk. Governor Taft belatedly accepted full responsibility for the scandal at a press conference Friday. Maybe he should follow Mr. Conrad's lead and get out.

He also should apologize - first to every citizen in this state for his utterly inept stewardship of public funds and his abuse of public trust, and second, to this newspaper for his verbal assaults on our reporting.

In fact, it is impossible to comment on all of this without noting that The Blade, which first broke this story in early April, was sharply criticized by Mr. Taft, Director Conrad, many Republicans, and some of our readers for our persistence in pursuing it. The term "witch hunt" was tossed about freely.

. . .

Attorney General James Petro and Auditor Betty Montgomery kept their heads down for weeks, which provides an ironic twist to a quote by Ms. Montgomery in one of our Friday stories: "I hope my record will reflect after all these years that I am guilty of doing nothing."

http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050...

[quaoar]

13. The money was lost due to "bad investments"

The state plunked down its money in what is called a hedge fund managed by this guy Noe. A hedge fund is basically a mutual fund without the protection of regulations that mutual funds have. So hedge funds often invest in riskier stuff. In this case it was rare coins.

The state lost $215 million of its investment in this fund in just a few months last year.

Which goes to show how volatile the rare coin market is. Even those knowledgeable in coins can get badly burned.

Basically, the state had no business investing its money in something that risky. They might as well have bet it all at the craps table at Vegas.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

16. You remember how much the Florida retirement system

had dumped into Enron stock... let me refresh.... What a diversion from all of this 911 was.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_01/01.19C.Enron.Florida.htm

Published Thursday, January 17, 2002
Florida's Last-Minute Enron Stock Buys Probed
BY JOHN DORSCHNER | Miami Herald

In the tangled web of suspicions resulting from the collapse of Enron, Florida officials are trying to determine whether an investment firm with links to Enron acted improperly when it made ill-timed purchases in the energy company's stock that resulted in a $306 million loss for the state pension fund.

The concerns focus on Alliance Capital Management, a major New York financial firm. One of its executives was Frank Savage, who was also a board member of Enron and a major contributor to political campaigns. Altogether, Alliance bought 7.6 million Enron shares for the Florida fund, including 2.7 million shares after Oct. 22, when it was announced that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was investigating the Houston company. Alliance paid from $82 to $9 for the shares. It sold all 7.6 million for 28 cents a share on Nov. 30, two days before Enron declared bankruptcy.

"We?ve been investigating,?? said Coleman Stipanovich, deputy executive director of the Florida State Board of Administration, which oversees the $96 billion pension fund.

[AlCzervik]

5. At this point I'm not real finicky as to the how just so as it happens.

[quaoar]

6. However, some people in Ohio don't seem to mind

that their money has gone poof:

Toni Brandon, 33, said she hadn't read or heard any news about Mr. Noe or the Bureau of Workers' Compensation scandal. She and her eight-year-old son waited on a small hill near I-70 to try to catch a glimpse of the President as he headed toward the event.

"We love the President. He's a Christian and these people are evil,'' said Ms. Brandon, referring to the protesters. "I have plenty of military background in my family and all of us love the President. I wish we had a flag to wave."

[Gabi Hayes]

7. So far, the ONLY place I've heard about that is here, and on AAR

Sam Seder has been giving it big play, and is going to do a show on it next week, I guess

I thought it was tonight, but he's not on at all

[babylonsister]

10. I saw a story about it on CNN this afternoon. They

talked about how the internet(s)and bloggers are buzzing with coingate.

[Pacifist Patriot]

11. I want to get a subscription to the Toledo Blade because

of their coverage of this.

[burythehatchet]

14. Coingate is bigger than most people realize

it is going to reach into many republican lives.

[Pacifist Patriot]

12. As much as I hate to say it...

I don't care which scandal brings down the neo-cons. I just want to make sure it's something that takes as many with him as possible.

[bunny planet]

15. How about both. Can we have both.

Please.

[Pepperbelly]

17. why would this get Bush?

What does he have to do with it?

[quaoar]

21. Noe was a major contributor to Bush

Raised $100,000 for him.

Unlikely this would be tied to Bush in a criminal sense (at least as far as we know) -- it's more hanging a major scandal around his neck and the rest of the Republican Party.

This is a lot more pungent than that Buddhist temple crap the GOP flogged for years.

[DemocracyInaction]

18. I would think you would know something by now

Nothing is going to "bring Bush down" or "bring the Repubs down". If they are going down it will have to be by the Democrats pointing out what the Repukes have done to this nation and it's economy and by putting forth ideas and visions of their own and then pounding that day in and day out for the next 3 years. Remember, even if you strip Bush bare naked in front of the 'red state' folks and they see he is a lying bum, it doesn't mean they will go out and vote Dem (particularly since they believe we are satan).

[Nikki Stone 1]

19. So they played reckelessly with public funds and lost money

That happened in Orange County in the late 90s. Caused a bankruptcy.

Was the investiment guy, Noe, a crook? Incompetent? Saw an easy mark?

[damntexdem]

20. Well, as long as he comes down.

But coingate has greater potential for getting Ohio GOPs. Of course, if one or more turn state's evidence and throw in what they know about rigging the 2004 vote .....

Still, it's enough if Coingate helps in the 2006 elections.