Mark Kirk and Peter Roskam Ties to Notorious Criminal Organization Exposed

On September 28, 2009, in Economic Justice, Friends of Peter Roskam, Mark Kirk, Organized Labor, Peter Roskam, Peter Roskam's Corporate Agenda, by RSR
0

kirk-bush-280x200cheney_roskam

Anti-labor Republican Representatives Mark Kirk and Peter Roskam addressed the media today calling for the U.S. Census to sever its partnership with the  Service Employees International Union (SEIU) because of SEIU’s alleged ties to the community organization ACORN.  ACORN has been the subject of a right-wing smear campaign of late because of its advocacy work on behalf of low- and moderate-income people and particularly because of its efforts to mobilize voters. Kirk and Roskam, who use their offices to advance the interests of corporate contributors and economic elites and thus hate unions almost as much they hate poor voters, have identified an opportunity to damage SEIU by association and to distract the public from their attempts to block healthcare reform, financial industry regulation, and meaningful legislation to address the threat of global climate change.

The U.S. Census Partners are government, non-profit, corporate or community organizations that have formally pledged their commitment to share the 2010 Census message and mobilize their constituents in support of the Census Bureau’s goal of achieving a complete count. SEIU is just one of many diverse partners. Others include American Baptist Churches of the South, American Library Association, U.S. Conference of Mayors, United Way of America, University of Texas, Meals On Wheels Association of America, Marathon Oil Corporation, Monsanto Company, Boy Scouts of America, Home Depot, General Mills, United Methodist Women, to name just a few.  Roskam and Kirk’s assertion that SEIU somehow presents a threat to the “integrity of the Census” is patently ridiculous.

Meanwhile, in a related development, RSR has learned of Peter Roskam’s and Mark Kirk’s shocking ties to to an actual criminal organization, whose members in recent years have been indicted and/or convicted on a variety of serious criminal charges and have been involved in all manner of sexual impropriety. Members of that organization, the Republican Party, also known as the GOP, have been implicated in numerous implicated of bribery, tax evasion, conspiracy, money laundering, fraud, and obstruction of justice and have engaged in voter suppression, frequented prostitutes, solicited sex in mens rooms and conducted inappropriate sexual chit chat with under-aged Congressional pages. Both Roskam and Kirk have maintained close personal ties with members of the GOP and it is believed that money may have been transferred between the GOP and the Roskam and Kirk campaigns.

While it is yet to be determined whether Roskam and Kirk will be forced to relinquish their offices due to their connections to this corrupt organization, it is clear that the integrity of the Census demands that Roskam, Kirk, and their associates in the GOP be banned from any participation in its conduct.

Here are just a few of the more outrageous examples of Republican impropriety from recent years:

Jack-Abramoff-main

Jack Abramoff:  A former Republican lobbyist and influence-peddler currently incarcerated at the Federal Correction institute in Cumberland, Maryland.  Abramoff was convicted in 2006 and 2008  of multiple felony counts related to his defrauding several Indian tribes of millions of dollars in gaming revenues and his trading of epensive gifts and trips with Republican legislators in exchange for political favors for his clients.

160px-Bob_Ney

Bob Ney:  A former Republican Representative from Ohio’s 18th Congressional district, Ney was convicted in 2006 on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, falsifying financial disclosure forms, in connection with actions he took on behalf of an Abramoff client and a foreign businessman. Ney served 17 months in federal prison. He was released in 2008. Mark Kirk received a campaign contribution from Ney, which he later returned.

160px-Duke_Cunningham

Randy “Duke” Cunningham:  Former Republican Congressman who represented California’s 50th district. Cunningham was convicted in 2005 of federal charges of conspiracy to  commit bribery, mail fraud, wire fraud and tax evasion. Cunningham used his position on the defense appropriations subcommittee to award contracts to defense contractors in exchange for bribes.  He is currently incarcerated in the United States Penitentiary in Tucson, Arizona.

Steven_Griles

J. Steven Griles: A former coal industry lobbyist who served as Deputy Secretary of the Interior during the Bush administration. Griles was convicted of obstruction of justice in 2007 after making false statements in the Abramoff investigation. Griles pledged to Abramoff that he would use his authority to block an Indian casino that Abramoff was lobbying against. Griles was sentenced to 10 months imprisonment.

scooter_libby

I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby: Aide to President George W. Bush and Chief of Staff for Vice President Dick Cheney, Libby was convicted of federal charges of obstruction of justice, perjury, and making false statements to federal investigators in connection with the investigation of the Bush administration’s suspected  “outing” of CIA operative Valerie Plame in retaliation for her husband’s criticism of the Iraq war. Libby was sentenced to 30 months in prison but his sentence was ultimately commuted by President Bush.

060410_tobin_vmed_3p.widec

James Tobin: Chairman of George W. Bush’s New England campaign, Tobin was convicted in 2005 of telephone harrassment in connection with a 2002 Republican plot to jam Democratic Party phone lines and frustrate get-out-the vote efforts. That conviction was overturned by a federal appeals court on a technical issue. Tobin was indicted again in 2008, for making false statements to the FBI in connection with the case.

tom-delay-mugshot

Tom DeLay: Late of “Dancing with the Stars”,  DeLay is an ex-exterminator from Texas who served as Republican House Majority Leader until 2005.  DeLay, an associate of Jack Abramoff and recipient of numerous Abramoff gifts, is presently under indictment in Travis County, Texas for conspiracy to violate campaign finance laws.  DeLay was lobbied by Abramoff to stop legislation banning sweatshops in the U.S.’s Northern Mariana Islands.  After traveling with Abramoff to the islands, Delay block a bill from consideration that would have granted wage and hour protections to workers there. No criminal charges have yet been filed related to DeLay’s relationship with Abramoff. Peter Roskam is an ex-employee of Tom DeLay. Mark Kirk’s campaign has received funding from Tom deLay’s PAC, Americans for a Republican Majority.

Larry Craig mugshot

Larry Craig:  The former Republican Senator from Idaho, Craig was arrested for lewd conduct in a men’s room at the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport in 2007, after attempting a sexual liason with an undercover police officer. Craig plead guilty, then unsuccessfully tried to retract his initial plea.

30nw.vitter

David “Diaper Dave” Vitter: The Republican sitting junior Senator from Louisiana, Vitter confessed in 2007 to having committed “a very serious sin”. That was shortly after his phone number was found to be included in the published list of clientele of the famous “D.C. Madam” , Deborah Jean Palfrey.  He was also alleged to have been a regular customer of New Orleans’ “C anal Street Madam”. Vitter is running for re-election to his Senate seat in 2010.

225px-Mark_Foley,_official_109th_Congress_photo

Mark Foley: Former Republican Representative from Florida’s 16th District. Foley resigned his seat in 2006 after it became public knowledge that Foley had sent sexually explicit text messages and suggestive emails to under-aged males then serving as, or who formerly served as, pages in the House. During the subsequent investigation, it became clear that Foley had been previously been warned about his conduct by the Republican leadership but that nothing had been done to remove him from contact with the pages.

And that’s just the short list.

Tagged with: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
 

Peter Roskam Gives Only Lip Service to Safety

On June 2, 2009, in Peter Roskam, Workplace Safety, by RSR
0

On May 19, 2009, Peter Roskam introduced H.Res.459, expressing support for the dedication of June as “National Safety Month”.  Roskam’s resolution states, in part, that the House

(1) supports the designation of ‘National Safety Month’;
(2) recognizes the contributions of the National Safety Council and its ongoing commitment to raising awareness about the need for the implementation of safe practices in our schools and jobs; and
(3) encourages citizens to observe the ‘National Safety Month’ with appropriate ceremonies and educate themselves about the importance of implementing safe practices in our schools and on our jobs to prevent unintentional injury and death.

The National Safety Council is based in Itasca, in Roskam’s district, explaining his sponsorship. It will, not doubt give him a few photo ops with which he will attempt to burnish his rep among his constituents and cover up his history of bad votes in the realm of safety.  “Appropriate ceremonies” and self-education is about all we are likely to get from Roskam. He is not a believer in government protection of workers from occupational hazards. Roskam’s corporate clients and his masters at the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) don’t approve of OSHA.

Roskam had at least two good opportunities during the 110th Congress to stand up for the safety of workers in the workplace. In both cases he refused.

One was in H.R. 5522, Worker Protection Against Combustible Dust Explosions and Fires Act of 2008. Roskam voted against this measure to require the Secretary of Labor to issue interim and final occupational safety and health standards regarding worker exposure to combustible dust, and for other purposes. You can read my post about Roskam’s vote here.

The other was H.R. 2693: Popcorn Workers Lung Disease Prevention Act to direct the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to issue a standard regulating worker exposure to diacetyl. You can read my post about Peter Roskam and the Popcorn Worker here.

Please give Peter Roskam a call and let him know that “appropriate ceremonies” don’t cut it when it comes to workplace safety and that the 6th district needs a Congressman who will stand up to protect workers when it really counts. You can reach him at (202) 225-4561 in Washington or at (630) 893-9670 in Bloomingdale.

Tagged with: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
 

Peter Roskam Lies About Colombia Anti-Union Violence On Fox News Infomercial for TPA, Caterpillar

On May 31, 2009, in Colombia, Organized Labor, Peter Roskam, Peter Roskam's Corporate Agenda, by RSR
0

This is not breaking news, by any means. I just came upon this clip while browsing Roskam’s YouTube collection. It is from back on February 12, 2009.The House Labor and Education Committee had just heard testimony that anti-labor violence was on the increase in 2008 and that the goverment has been, if not complicit in the killings, negligent in the prosecution of those responsible:

“Despite the great emphasis the current administration is placing on security, after a few years of declining murder rates, violence against labor unions showed a steep increase in 2008”, said Jose Luciano Sanin, director of the Escuela Nacional Sindical (National Labor School). “More than 60 percent of the all murdered unionists in the world are Colombians. The murder rate of unionists in Colombia is five times that of the rest of the countries of the world, including those countries with dictatorships that have banned union activity.”

“Despite the great emphasis the current administration is placing on security, after a few years of declining murder rates, violence against labor unions showed a steep increase in 2008”, said Jose Luciano Sanin, director of the Escuela Nacional Sindical (National Labor School). “More than 60 percent of the all murdered unionists in the world are Colombians. The murder rate of unionists in Colombia is five times that of the rest of the countries of the world, including those countries with dictatorships that have banned union activity.”

Human rights advocates in Colombia contend that many of these killings were planned the leadership of the country’s right-wing paramilitary organization, the A.U.C, as well as the Colombian military, and national police. Although some prosecutions are being conducted, witnesses testified, prosecutions often stop short from holding those who conspired, ordered or paid for anti-labor murders accountable.

“It is a systematic pattern that in all of these criminal acts, the public prosecutor is content to determine the responsibility of the material authors, leaving out the intellectual authors, who are the most important, given that they are the ones who sponsor, order the executions, put up the money, and always remain in impunity,” said Jose Nirio Sanchez, a former Colombian special court judge for labor-homicide cases. “Thus, these crimes will not stop, since the true perpetrators are not prosecuted.”

So the very same day, Peter Roskam goes on on FOX to actively promote the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement, citing what a boon it would be to Caterpillar, one of his major campaign contributors, and saying how labor leaders and labor organizers  in Colombia are less likely to to be subject to violence than the rest of the population.

Every time I think I might like this guy a little, he reminds me what a bastard he is. We have been having a national conversation about whether empathy is a valuable quality in a Supreme Court justice. Even if it you think it is not, it is certainly something whe should expect in our representatives in Congress. Roskam is absolutely blind to human suffering, both at home in his district and in the world. I guess that’s what enables him to sleep at night as he uses our seat in Congress to promote his ruthless pro-corporate agenda.

Tagged with: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
 

Bush and Roskam’s Banana Republic

On April 2, 2008, in Colombia, Human Rights, Organized Labor, Peter Roskam, by RSR
0

In the worst tradition of Republican policy in Central and South America, George Bush is again pushing hard for passage of a Colombia free trade pact, ignoring the ongoing violence against trade unionists and innocent peasants in that country. He called the matter urgent in remarks made as he was about to leave for a visit to the Ukraine yesterday.

Peter Roskam’s friends at the National Association of Manufacturers meanwhile are also pushing hard, urging citizens to contact their legislators in support of the proposed pact:

 

Roskam, you will recall, has voted the NAM position consistently during his term in office, and he, too, has been pushing for the pact. He journeyed to Colombia early last month to meet with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe and came back proclaiming that everything in Colombia was just fine and that we should go ahead with the free trade agreement with all due speed.

Bush, Roskam and NAM are not telling you the truth. Things are not OK in Colombia.

As documented in a recent story in the LA Times, extrajudicial killings by the Colombian military are on the rise. As a bizarre consequence of pressure by the Bush administration to show progress in it’s fight against leftist guerrillas, poor innocent civilians are being killed and then dressed as guerrillas, to be used as evidence. And this killing is being funded by the U.S. Government in its role as a leading state sponsor of terrorism.

Violence also continues against trade unionists and human rights activists, even being spurred on by advisers close to Uribe. 4 unionists were murdered early in March, just after Roskam’s return from the country. In years past, American corporations such as Drummond Co., Coca-Cola, and Chiquita have been linked to such anti-union violence. And it is on behalf of corporations such as these that Roskam and Bush are pushing the free trade pact.

Illinois unionists, especially, should be horrified to know that their tax dollars are funding violence against their brothers and sisters in Colombia. I urge all my readers to contact Peter Roskam and demand an end to U.S. funding to the Colombian military and the rejection of the proposed trade agreement while violence continues. You may reach his office in Bloomingdale at (630) 893-9670 or in Washington at (202) 225-4561.

I would be very interested to hear from Jill Morgenthaler her thoughts on this grave issue.

This is a video about the March 6th protest against paramilitary violence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tagged with: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
 

Roskam Turns Blind Eye to Colombian Anti-Union Violence

On March 6, 2008, in Colombia, George Bush, Human Rights, Organized Labor, Terrorism, by RSR
1

bush_uribe_sm.jpg

Illinois labor leaders and union workers should take a long, hard look at Peter Roskam.

At the behest of the Bush Administration, Roskam recently traveled to Colombia and came back singing the praises of President Alvaro Uribe and his Colombian “success story”. Roskam has chosen to totally ignore the persistent violence that is occurring against union organizers, human rights activists, journalists and indigenous people by paramilitaries with ties to Uribe’s administration and to American and other foreign corporations. Bush is agressively pushing for a free trade agreement and Roskam is staying on message.

In promoting the free trade agreement for Bush, Roskam is wholeheartedly embracing the immoral Latin American policies of the two George Bushes, Henry Hyde, Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon and their predecessors going back many years, men who have embraced terrorism and brutal right wing regimes to advance the interests of American corporations at the expense of the lives of countless voiceless people.

Roskam looks at Columbia and doesn’t see the plight of its people. He sees only profits for American corporations, some of whom have been actively funding paramilitary violence.

Unionists in this country should be infuriated that Roskam cares so little about the oppression and murder of their brethren and they should understand that Roskam has no more support for their cause here. And if men like Roskam are allowed to continue turning the reigns of our own government over to corporate elites, the kinds of abuses that happen in Colombia can happen here as well.

BTW: If Roskam is interested in promoting trade, perhaps he should push for normalizing relations with Cuba. My sense is that the people of Cuba would actually benefit from such an opening and Americans could benefit as well.

Tagged with: • • • • • • • • • • • • •