Is Hsu the Democrat’s Abramoff

Jack Abramoff became a household name when it was disclosed that he was using a lot of money to influence members of Congress. The Democrats successfully linked him exclusively to Republicans by either lying about donations (as in Howard Dean stating that no Abramoff money went to Democrats) or by assuring voters that the money they received was a pure as the driven snow (like Harry Reid). Abramoff was whisked away to jail before he could name names, ones that would certainly include Democrats.

Now there is a new name on the horizon that is causing a stir with regard to money for candidates. The man is Norman Hsu (pronounced shoe) and he is a huge supporter of Democrats and particularly the Clintons. On the list of people to whom he has given or raised money for, a Republican is yet to be seen. Hsu has been a huge supporter of the Democratic Party and has raised millions of dollars by soliciting donations from friends. The donations are in question because there are enough indications that Hsu donated his own money in the names of others or that he reimbursed those who donated. There are enough red flags to warrant an investigation into his dealings.

Hsu is also wanted on an outstanding warrant stemming from some a bankruptcy and failure to appear years ago in California. His attorney has indicated that it is a mistake and that neither he nor Hsu remember the matter being settled in a fashion that is now causing the problems. In any event, when the story about questionable donations was released yesterday the Clinton campaign had this to say:

A Clinton campaign spokesman, Howard Wolfson, said in an email: “Norman Hsu is a longtime and generous supporter of the Democratic party and its candidates, including Senator Clinton. During Mr. Hsu’s many years of active participation in the political process, there has been no question about his integrity or his commitment to playing by the rules, and we have absolutely no reason to call his contributions into question.” WSJ

It would appear that now there is a question about his integrity and playing by the rules because the Clinton campaign has decided to donate the money that was directly donated by him to charity. They are divesting themselves because of the legal issues in California but have decided to keep the money he solicited from others, though that money remains questionable.

When the Abramoff scandal hit the news Republicans were coming out of the woodwork to get rid of any money connected to him. Now it appears as if Democrats are having the same reaction to Hsu. Obama has received money as has Al Franken and Hsu also released these names:

In the email to the Journal, Mr. Hsu listed several Democratic politicians to whom he has given money, and said he has never asked any for favors. They include Pennsylvania Gov. Edward G. Rendell; New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine; Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy; California Sen. Dianne Feinstein; and Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown. WSJ

None of these folks have indicated what they are doing with the money but I find it difficult to believe, given the criminals on that list, that favors were not a part of the deal. None of these folks has a clean record with regard to ethics and most on this list have been bought before. Therefore, I find Hsu’s assertions rather unbelievable.

This incident has the potential to be particularly damaging to Hillary Rodham given the Clinton’s illegal ties to China and the fact that Hsu is from Hong Kong. The idea that illegal donations would not be tolerated by the Clintons is humorous given Hillary’s difficulties with people who made illegal contributions and then fled the country after being indicted. Hillary claims not to know what this person was up to but she is has denied being involved in other illegal fund raising ventures even though she was caught on video tape participating in the process. She will soon testify under oath in the case.

Will Norman Hsu be the Democrat’s Abramoff? Only time will tell but one thing is for certain. The Abramoff scandal involved nearly as many Democrats as Republicans but Hsu loved Democrats and this scandal is owned exclusively by them.

In a related item, what is it about Democratic supporters and illegal donations? A George Soros group was fined “$775,000 for using unregulated soft money to boost John Kerry and other Democratic candidates during the 2004 elections.” The Politico

Big Dog

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9 Responses to “Is Hsu the Democrat’s Abramoff”

  1. Rosemary says:

    No. You’re forgetting, they’re all marxists.

  2. Bosun says:

    But, Big Dog, it is OK for a liberal or democrat to redefine the definition of is.

    By the way, I understand that Larry Craig may change his stripes to DNC, isn’t it career enhancement for Democrats to have loose morals? Heck Craig would fit right in with Gerry Eastman Studds, or; Barney Frank, or; James McGreevey, Melvin Jay Reynolds, or; Frederick Richmond; Neil Goldschmidt or;
    David Gilesor, or; Allan Turner, or; Joseph Waggonner Jr., or; Jerry Springer, or; our famous president “BJ” Clinton. I did not separate the heterosexual from the homosexual indiscretions. After all, isn’t a sexual indiscretion is a sexual indiscretion, isn’t it?

  3. irtexas44 says:

    BD,

    Maybe we should drive all of the dimwits nuts with calls an emails and demand an inquiry of the Clinton and Schumer’s donation practices and anyone else on that list. Bet that would last about a second and a half.

    Maybe do the same thing with Ol Hil that what’s fair for her running mates is also true for her. Why Ms. Clinton don’t you want anyone to see your papers. I can’t wait for someone that she represented at the Rose Law Firm to question her qualifications to do so. Sense when and if she ever passed the bar.

    After being in DC when bubba was in office it was hard to know who ran the country.

    With all the things Bubba did in office it hard to imagine what could be worse

  4. Turning the ‘Culture of Corruption’ Charge Against on the Dems…

    Bill Clinton got into a bit of trouble in the mid 1990s over fund raising. It seems that he liked to accept money from China. Fund raising errors are not limited to Bubba, Hill is having her share as well.
    It seems that a family living in a modest gree…

  5. Patsy says:

    This won’t go anywhere, BD. If Bill Clinton could sell satellite missile weapons tracking technology to Red China and receive millions in campaign contributions in return and not even be investigated for that, then this is going nowhere, fast. They have Hillary on video tape contradicting her sworn testimony about that fundraiser in Hollywood that has already bankrupted and sent several people to prison, and yet she isn’t even being considered for criminal prosecution. What a crock of ….. This is just SOP for the Clintons. They are never going to be held to account for any crimes they commit, that is the fate of the peons around them to suffer.

    Sorry is I sound so cynical, but I believe in this case it’s justified.

  6. Billy Joe says:

    Intriguing question.

    I guess we would first have to know:

    Who would be Hsu’s Ralph Reed, a religious entrpreneur, who referred to the religious right as ‘wackos’ and was Abramoff’s partner in their swindles?

    Who would be Hsu’s Grover Norquist at an influential PAC that drives his party’s agenda?

    Who would be his Tom Delay in Congress to implement said agenda?

    And who would be his friend from College Republican days (aside from Reed) and point man in the White House, Karl Rove?

    If you can answer these questions, your answer might be yes.

  7. Big Dog says:

    The reference is will Hsu be their undoing. It makes no difference about the other people because they were not at the center of the storm.

    However, since you brought it up, I would start with the list of people he mentioned. Those in elected office are not taking his money with no strings attached regardless of what he says.

    Certainly this group has enough corruption dispersed among it to qualify for what you ask. Clinton is a recipient of large sums so she might well fit the bill of your DeLay reference (BTW, why has he not been prosecuted?)

    His point man in the White House would not be Rove but could well be any Democrat who works there.

    Get serious. Abramoff was the central figure and so is Hsu.

    Will he be the undoing of the Democrats? Time will tell but it certainly casts doubt on that claim of a transparent, ethical government…

    I know, I know. They are your buddies in Liberal land so they could not possibly do anything wrong. No matter how much you deride me for partisanship, I am the only one who points to the failures of both sides. Seems you are the only one here who marches in lock step with the tin foil hat wearers.