What's up with the $18 million the Clintons received from InfoUSA and Ron Burkle?

[ProSense]

InfoUSA gets Nasdaq delisting notice

By JOSH FUNK, AP Business Writer Fri Apr 4, 5:04 PM ET

OMAHA, Neb. - Database provider InfoUSA Inc. said Friday it received a Nasdaq delisting notice earlier this week because it still hasn't filed its annual report.

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InfoUSA said last month its annual report would be delayed because of an ongoing Securities and Exchange Commission investigation and a shareholder lawsuit that questions the company's spending.

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InfoUSA formed a special board committee of five directors in December to respond to the SEC investigation and shareholder lawsuit, which alleges that the company misspent millions, some of it on former President Bill Clinton and U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y.

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The shareholder lawsuit questions why InfoUSA founder Vin Gupta used private corporate jets to fly the Clintons on business, personal and campaign trips, why Gupta gave Bill Clinton a $3.3 million consulting contract and why the company paid for extravagant luxuries Gupta enjoyed.

According to the lawsuit, InfoUSA has spent nearly $900,000 since 2001 flying the Clintons to domestic and international locations and political events.

link

What Did Bill Clinton Do To Get $15M From Ron Burkle?

The campaign press statement accompanying the release on Friday of Hillary Clinton's 2000 - 2007 tax returns includes some useful summary data for the media: Bill and Hillary Clinton's total income over the past 8 years, $109 million; her Senate salary, $1.1 million; his presidential pension, $1.2 million; her book royalties, $10.5 million; his book royalties, $29.6 million; and his speaking fees, $51.9 million.

One big line item is missing from the press summary however: the $15 million paid to Bill Clinton between 2003 and 2007 by Ron Burkle's Yucaipa Global Opportunities Fund.

In fact, the Burkle payments, buried deep in the income tax forms themselves, were the only real news in tax documents, which were made public for the first time.

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Clinton campaign spokesman Jay Carson provided a statement that did not reveal much:

"The President provides his best advice on potential investments, advocates generally on behalf of the funds, and seeks to create opportunities for investors to consider investing in these funds or in the investments the funds make."

In more common parlance, this translates to "rainmaker" and "door opener."

Burkle, who is worth at least $2.5 billion according to Forbes, and Clinton are business and social partners, often traveling the Los Angeles social circuit together.

more

edited typo

[Mags]

1. What's up with the Rezko trial and his friend B. Obama?

[grantcart]

4. actually nothing is up about it

[ProSense]

5. Did Rezko give Obama $18 million in personal income? Rezko is on trial, in case you didn't know

it has nothing to do with Obama.

[papau]

14. Nah - Obama is a cheap Whore - just a few hundred thousand via real estate and same amount in contri

[ProSense]

18. So you're saying Hillary is a more expensive "whore"? Rezko is BS! n/t

[Major Hogwash]

19. President Obama - get used to it.

Not very long now. Only 7 months.

[AnarchoFreeThinker]

10. info for you here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/03/09/clinton-got-money-from-re_n_90605.html

[SwampG8r]

27. this rezko or a different one?

[SwampG8r]

29. crickets nm

[NightWatcher]

2. I cant wait till their taxes are thoroughly picked over

I'm curious to see where they got their millions

[Barack_America]

3. Where do you see $18 million from InfoUSA?

Aren't InfoUSA and Yucaipa separate corporations?

Or are you saying that the "missing $18 million" that Politico was talking about is actually from InfoUSA?

I'm confused.

[ProSense]

7. $3 million from Info USA (plus perks), $15 million from Burkle (plus perks) n/t

[Barack_America]

9. Okay. Have you heard anything about that supposedly missing $18 million?

I'm really curious where that came from.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0408/The_Clintons_taxes.html

[MethuenProgressive]

6. "Clinton Tax Returns Reveal Success! Charity! HillHaters Cry No Fair!"

:rofl:

[Major Hogwash]

16. Bubba is an influence peddler.

He's not a Democrat to me anymore.

He's just another cheap suit lobbyist.

[bigbrother05]

8. More on Ron Burkle

adobe
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/politics/memo2.pdf
interesting read

[ProSense]

13. Wow, thanks for the link. n/t

[ProSense]

11. " unanswered questions about some of Bill Clinton's business ties"

Moreover, there are unanswered questions about some of Bill Clinton's business ties that could cause trouble for his wife's campaign.

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The former president earned $15.4 million from billionaire Ron Burkle's Yucaipa Cos. investment firm since 2003, according to the tax documents. Tax lawyers said the Yucaipa partnership income for Clinton, 61, looks to be a form of salary because it was in round numbers for most years, raising questions about what services he performed for Los Angeles-based Yucaipa, whose investors include the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid al-Maktoum.

InfoUSA

Bill Clinton also earned $800,000 in 2006 and 2007 as an adviser to infoUSA Inc., a data-mining company owned by Vinod Gupta, a longtime supporter.

InfoUSA shareholders sued over the payments to Clinton and over the more than $146,000 it spent to fly the Clintons to Acapulco in 2002. Gupta has said the expenditures were legitimate. In December, the company's chief financial officer said the Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating.

Clinton also invested in an offshore hedge fund, Quellos Alpha Engine LP, run by Seattle-based Quellos Group LLC. In 2006, a Senate panel detailed in a report how Quellos Group had ``designed, promoted and implemented'' an illegal tax shelter based on fake securities transactions and shell companies.

link

[AnarchoFreeThinker]

12. move along everybody. nothing to see here. hey, that black guy is screaming on youtube!

[ProSense]

20. Really. n/t

[Major Hogwash]

15. Bubba sold out a long time ago.

These are payoffs, no doubt about it.

[shrub chipper]

17. This is the kind of email I get from InfoUSA

"McCain More Business Friendly as President,
According to infoUSAPoll.com™ "
(OMAHA, NE) — Nearly half of businesses are betting on McCain to be more business friendly, according to the latest survey from infoUSAPoll.com™.

From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, this week’s question, “Who do you think will be more business friendly as President?” was posted to U.S. businesses. More than 45% of respondents picked John McCain as the best choice for business. The results:

• 736 respondents, or 45% said John McCain
• 615 respondents, or 35% said Barack Obama
• 336 respondents, or 19%, said Hilary Clinton




I had to laugh at that, but then again the Clintons would probably rather have the $$$$.

[ProSense]

26. Ugh! n/t

[Lugnut]

21. K&R n/t

[bigbrother05]

22. K and R

[radfringe]

23. k&r

[DerekJ]

24. K&R

[kid a]

25. k r

[Baby Snooks]

28. He left out influence peddling...

"In more common parlance, this translates to "rainmaker" and "door opener."

Bill Clinton couldn't open a door if his life depended on it. All eyes return to all those photos of the Bush "family" including the adopted son and daughter-in-law. Usually smiling. Smiling with Daddy.