September « 2015

September 25, 2015

More China Money?

Filed under: Probable Cause — Tags: Espionage, MSS — Bill @ 3:37 pm

On Thursday, September 24, 2015, ABC News reported that, “The FBI has arrested a politically prominent Chinese millionaire [Ng Lap Seng], the alleged secret source of foreign money in a campaign finance scandal during the Clinton administration, on charges he lied about why he brought more than $4.5 million in cash into the United States over the last two years.”

Our August 13, 2015, OpenCdA post entitled The Clinton Family Trie (Huang , Hsia, and Riady, Too) reminded readers of the connection between the Clintons and Yah Lin “Charlie” Trie, a major fundraiser and long-time close friend of the President, who accepted a plea agreement in return for telling how he had routed illegal donations from the PRC to the Clinton Presidential Campaign. The ABC news story makes the connection between Trie and Ng.

Here is a link to the the federal criminal complaint.

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September 24, 2015

Will Port of Hope Move to Post Falls?

Filed under: Probable Cause — Tags: Administrative Incompetence, Port of Hope, Public Corruption — Bill @ 7:20 am

OpenCdA has received word that northern Idaho’s Port of Hope, Inc., currently in Coeur d’Alene, has applied for a special use permit to establish a federal residential re-entry center in Post Falls. We believe this will result in the closure of the Coeur d’Alene facility which has been in operation since 1998.

OpenCdA fully understands the Port of Hope’s apparent desire to leave Coeur d’Alene. The shameful efforts by members of the City of Coeur d’Alene Planning Commission with help from employees of School District 271 to run Port of Hope out of town in 2013 were documented in this series of OpenCdA posts. Thankfully, the Coeur d’Alene City Council resoundingly rejected those efforts in its meeting on October 1, 2013.

We hope that the members of the Post Falls Planning & Zoning Commission will look at our posts linked above. These posts revealed how hysteria and deception can drive a completely unsupported decision in a planning commission hearing. Our hope is that however the Post Falls Planning & Zoning Commission rules on Port of Hope’s application, the Commissioners’ votes will be based entirely on their objective evaluation of the relevant evidence presented during the hearing.

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September 14, 2015

The Ferguson Commission Report

Filed under: Probable Cause — Tags: Police Conduct — Bill @ 7:08 am

Here is a link to the 198-page digital version of Ferguson Commission Report. The print version will be released to the public later today.

Even though the report primarily focuses on the greater St. Louis, MO, area, many of the findings and recommendations are applicable and worthy of consideration throughout the country.

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September 13, 2015

Otter’s Veto: Intentionally Illegal?

Filed under: Probable Cause — Tags: Administrative Incompetence, legal gambling, Public Corruption — Bill @ 7:51 pm

For the reasons we’ve beaten to death in our earlier posts concerning historic horse racing machines in Idaho, OpenCdA agreed with Governor Otter’s decision to veto S 1011 passed during the 2015 legislative session. That bill repealed Idaho Code § 54-2512A. His decision to veto the repeal effort was the right one.

However, we also agree with the Idaho Supreme Court’s decision released September 10, 2015, to overturn Otter’s veto. Otter bungled the veto. It is impossible for us to believe that an honest, competent, and experienced governor could accidentally or even carelessly mess up the state’s clearly defined veto process.

To OpenCdA it looks as if Governor Clement L. Otter intended for his veto to be unable to withstand the inevitable and ultimately successful legal challenge that was mounted against it. (more…)

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September 5, 2015

What’s in a Name?

Filed under: Probable Cause — Tags: LCDC, Public Corruption, Urban Renewal Money Abuse — Bill @ 7:32 am

In her online newsletter dated September 3, 2015, State Senator Mary Souza offered some advice to the Coeur d’Alene Urban Renewal Agency.

Sen. Souza advised, “Ditch the new name and logo, cancel the PR contract, return to the original name of Coeur d’Alene Urban Renewal Agency. Get rid of the paid consultants, lobbyists and the overpaid executive director position. Hire a manager and a clerical assistant and let’s have the board members stand for public election. We can even pay them a small fee for their time, which would place them under a higher level of the Idaho Ethics law.”

OpenCdA agrees with Senator Souza. (more…)

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September 3, 2015

Corruption Investigation — Palm Springs Mayor

Filed under: Probable Cause — Tags: Public Corruption — Bill @ 7:09 am

Imagine that! In southern California the Inland Empire Public Corruption Task Force that includes the FBI, the Internal Revenue Service, the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office, and the San Bernardino District Attorney’s Office has served a search warrant at the Palm Springs, CA, city hall.

It has been alleged that Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet may have taken a walk on the shady side when he received about $200,000 from a local developer, Richard Meany. Seems Meany was going to need to purchase some Palm Springs city property for the project, so he hired the Palm Springs mayor to consult with him on the project. The mayor and council subsequently voted to approve the sale of the property to the developer at a questionable price .

Palm Springs is a resort city with a population of about 46,300 residents in the Coachella Valley.

Fortunately for us in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, nothing like that could ever happen here. Mayor Steve Widmyer would never have any close ties with any local developer and then be involved in a deal for city land with that developer’s company, right?

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