Possible Obama SEC Pick Specializes in Helping Corporations Hide Political Expenditures

[HomerRamone]

http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/30750-possible-obama-sec-pick-specializes-in-helping-corporations-hide-political-expenditures

As 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 House’s 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 House’s 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]

1. The revolving door again, again and again.

Obama Officials who have spun through the Revolving Door (by department)

https://www.opensecrets.org/obama/rev.php

[Elwood P Dowd]

2. I imagine we will keep getting pummeled with bad news like this

until the Trojan Horse administration leaves office.

[Purveyor]

3. Sometimes I have to ponder whether or not someone blackmails our political leaders after they

attain office with their most personal and damaging files. I doubt few among us are able to withstand such scrutiny...

[tblue]

4. You may be right

but we need to elect people who are better than that. The need is still there.

[Stryst]

5. How much about the NSA programs don't we know?

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]

6. It's Crossed My Mind!

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]

9. the only thing worse than that possibility, is that

they don't need to bribe or threaten them in the slightest

[Scuba]

7. Can't wait for the "it takes one to know one" reply defending Obama's consideration of this guy.

Most transparent administration my ass.

[FlatBaroque]

8. Wait a minute

are there people still defending Obama? WTF??