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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsPossible Obama SEC Pick Specializes in Helping Corporations Hide Political Expenditures
http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/30750-possible-obama-sec-pick-specializes-in-helping-corporations-hide-political-expendituresAs a battle rages over whether the Securities and Exchange Commission should require publicly traded companies to disclose their political expenditures, the White House is said to be considering nominating a high-powered Washington attorney to the SEC who specializes in advising corporate clients on how to avoid such disclosures.
Bloomberg and other news organizations have reported that Keir Gumbs, a partner at Covington & Burling, is one of the White Houses top two picks to replace outgoing Democratic commissioner Luis Aguilar. Though Gumbs' nomination, which requires Senate approval, would maintain the Democrats 3-2 advantage on the commission, many progressive groups like CREDO have already publicly criticized the White Houses presumed nominees for having no track record of being Wall Street reformers.
In recent years, campaign finance reform advocates have pressured the SEC to adopt rules requiring public companies to release information about political expenditures. Such a move would force the disclosure of massive corporate contributions to the secretive non-profit organizations that have become major players in electoral politics. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, these dark money organizations, 501(c)(4)s and 501(c)(6)s, spent just over $5 million in 2006, but in the 2012 presidential election that amount had grown to $300 million.
Capitalizing on this pressure for disclosures, Gumbs and his legal partner, Robert Kellner, have been offering corporate leaders one-hour primers on how to counteract shareholder political demands since at least 2013. In fact, they just published a comprehensive guide for companies in the March/April issue of the Corporate Governance Advisor, including strategies and tips on grappling with disclosure issues. The report advises companies on how to appear open to dialogue and transparent without disclosing invasive details about corporate political activities.
pa28
(6,145 posts)Obama Officials who have spun through the Revolving Door (by department)
https://www.opensecrets.org/obama/rev.php
Elwood P Dowd
(11,443 posts)until the Trojan Horse administration leaves office.
Purveyor
(29,876 posts)attain office with their most personal and damaging files. I doubt few among us are able to withstand such scrutiny...
tblue
(16,350 posts)but we need to elect people who are better than that. The need is still there.
Stryst
(714 posts)Seems like having a shadowy government agency with nearly unlimited wire tapping and data mining capabilities is a pretty quick way to build up some blackmail.
markmyword
(180 posts)It's crossed my mind too, is it blackmail or a threat to the president or his family?
The secret service has been extremely negligent in protecting Obama. It could be that those in power, let him know that they could pull a string anytime that want to and he and his family won't be protected.
Obama's appointments, positions on many policies are so different from candidate Obama. Could it be that this is really him and he pretended( lied to us) to be a progressive to get elected OR has he been threatened?
J. Edgar Hoover( the head of the FBI in the 1960's) had files on everyone in D.C.and did use the information to blackmail the politicians.
EVERYTIME I think it can't get any worse, he goes and appoints or nominates someone who has represented the industry they're going to be police now!!
Isn't this guy coming from Eric Holders old law firm, before he became attorney general??
MisterP
(23,730 posts)they don't need to bribe or threaten them in the slightest
Scuba
(53,475 posts)Most transparent administration my ass.
FlatBaroque
(3,160 posts)are there people still defending Obama? WTF??