AP: Frist AIDS Charity Paid Consultants

[BR_Parkway]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051217/ap_on_go_co/frist_charity

14 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist's
AIDS charity paid nearly a half-million dollars in consulting fees to members of his political inner circle, according to tax returns providing the first financial accounting of the presidential hopeful's nonprofit.

The returns for World of Hope Inc., obtained by The Associated Press, also show the charity raised the lion's share of its $4.4 million from just 18 sources. They gave between $97,950 and $267,735 each to help fund Frist's efforts to fight AIDS.

<snip>

The rest of the money went to overhead. That included $456,125 in consulting fees to two firms run by Frist's longtime political fundraiser, Linus Catignani. One is jointly run by Linda Bond, the wife of Sen. Christopher "Kit" Bond, R-Mo.

The charity also hired the law firm of Vogel's wife, Jill Holtzman Vogel, and Frist's Tennessee accountant, Deborah Kolarich. Kolarich's name recently surfaced in an e-mail involving Frist's controversial sale of stock in his family founded health care company. That transaction is now under federal investigation.

[Ezlivin]

1. What a bunch of good-hearted corporate donors

The donors included several corporations with frequent business before Congress, such as insurer Blue Cross/Blue Shield, manufacturer 3M, drug maker Eli Lilly and the Goldman Sachs investment firm.

They only had the suffering of AIDs victims in mind, I'm sure.

[LuckyTheDog]

31. Culture of corruption

Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption. Culture of corruption.

We can't say it too much.

[WhiteTara]

2. Oh, Goody Goody, I see indictments

on the horizon. This could be a beautiful blooming spring indeed. The new year starts with the Lay trial, followed by the Abramoff trial, followed by the Delay trial. Kidan has pleaded guilty so we won't have the joy of that trial, but Conrad Black should provide days of wonderful amusement as we watch the facade crumble before our eyes.

[stop the bleeding]

3. So this means indictments?

Give Mommy a Kiss....."

[BR_Parkway]

4. Dunno, but makes me wonder about the other money laundering

Delay, Duke Cunningham

We've only begun to see the reports of what the K-Street project has managed to do to keep these crooks in power.

[asjr]

5. Sleaze begets sleaze. nt

[mediaman007]

6. Who starts these things?

Is this a mutual creation between industry and the politicians? or is it a shakedown of the industry by insiders?

This is really awful for the employees of the companies. Just like Anderson Consulting a lot of good people will get hurt when their management engages in these sleezy operations. I wonder if the board of directors of each corporation is in on this. Perhaps its time to go after the boards. Their might be a connection between these corporations on the board level.

[Thor_MN]

30. Look at CEO pay.. Corporate boards are giant circle jerks...

CEO A sits on Board B, CEO B sits on Board C and CEO C sita on Board A. Is it any wonder that they keep giving themselves raises? Is there really such a shortage of CEO's that we need this Corporate "nepotism?" I'd like to see more separation, something like a "six degrees of Kevin Bacon." Ban boards from seating anyone that is closer than six degrees to any current board member or chief executive.

Get rid of the corruption of executive pay and it will go a long way towards reducing the corruption of politics by the corporate world. Reduce the personal economic power of corporate execs and there is a lot less money available to influence government.

[SpiralHawk]

7. A culture of corruptions pervades the Republican party

shame on all those crooks in ties.

[seafan]

8. World of Hope will turn into Sen. Frist's World of Hurt n/t

[Blaq Dem]

28. He should definitely go to hell for this one

How evil can one get???? This is insane!!! People are dying and Frist is using their cause to pocket money into his friends' pockets. And they call this "Christian Values"?

[NanceGreggs]

9. Looking for an exciting new career?

Join America's fastest growing career opportunity - the investigation and indictment of our own corrupt government.

Applications now being accepted - don't hesitate! Get in on the ground floor of the country's ONLY growth industry!

Act now before these positions start being outsourced ...

[converted_democrat]

10. Sad. n/t

[electropop]

11. Hey Billy, time to sacrifice another cat?

Maybe you can beseech Beelzebub to help you out just one more time?

[jilln]

32. Instead of doing it himself...

I guess he's helping Eli Lilly do it

[Joanne98]

12. Oh! GOOD!

[Joanne98]

13. The beneficiaries were Evangelical Christian Groups....

OF COURSE!

World of Hope's beneficiaries include evangelical Christian groups with Republican connections.

Cortes, Esperanza USA's president, is an influential evangelical leader who hosted Bush at this year's National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast.

Frist has worked and traveled extensively with Samaritan's Purse in Africa as well as during the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Franklin Graham is the son of the Rev. Billy Graham.

Weeks before Frist's convention fundraiser, the senate leader traveled to Chad, Sudan and Kenya on a trip underwritten by Samaritan's Purse, Senate records show.

Samaritan's Purse spokesman Jeremy Blume said the $490,000 that World of Hope donated to Samaritan's Purse in 2004 was spent on AIDS programs in sub-Saharan Africa.

The recipients of the charity's money were Africare, Samaritan's Purse, Esperanza USA, Nashville's Meharry Medical College, Taso-Uganda and Save the Children

[Scout1071]

22. Exactly! Are they buying the evangelical vote?

With corporate money?

Incredible. All this time, I thought the Evangelicals bought the Republicans. Now I think it's the other way around. Smarmy politicians doing the corporate bidding and buying smarmy Evangelical "preachers" who cruise around in Rolls Royce's and spend their days crafting their message and strategizing with their flock on how to get these good ol' boys elected.

[tedzbear]

26. Samaritan's Purse is bullshitting.

Yes, they spent $490,000 in sub-Saharan Africa but they probably spent another $490,000 aiding the Republican Party which they would not have been able to do without the $490,000 donation from Frist's World of Hope. It's ye old shell game in action. One would have to do a thorough investigation of their books to see all the places their money is going.

Crooks!

[FSogol]

14. Isn't it time for this sleeze-publican to resign in shame? n/t

[norml]

15. Frist's "Charity" Aids Himself and His Friends

Recommended

[tinrobot]

16. Simply disgusting

Using AIDS donations to line his friend's pockets is disgusting enough.

But from a man who claims to be a medical doctor... doubly disgusting.

Revoke his medical license and send him to jail.

[Botany]

17. Kinda like ...

.... the Lincoln Group (Propaganda in Iraq) money laundering of tax $.
..... MRZ Duke Cunningham's sugar daddy
...... Tom Noe & Coingate in Ohio
....... Jack Abramoff & company
....... Halliburton making billions of the Iraqi war
....... bush's uncle making 4+ million .... weapons manufacturing in St. Louis
....... Ralph Reed taking millions from gambling interests to stop competing gambling
...... Dick Cheney's daughter Liz getting a $200,000/year helping rebuild Iraq (she worked from D.C.)
...... the former head of FEMA turning the job over to Brownie and then signing 5 million $ w/ of contracts w/ FEMA




I want my country back.

[madmark]

18. Abramoff-Lite

[Faygo Kid]

19. AP: Frist AIDS Charity Paid Consultants

AP: Frist AIDS Charity Paid Consultants

By JONATHAN M. KATZ and JOHN SOLOMON, Associated Press Writers

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist's AIDS charity paid nearly a half-million dollars in consulting fees to members of his political inner circle, according to tax returns providing the first financial accounting of the presidential hopeful's nonprofit.

The returns for World of Hope Inc., obtained by The Associated Press, also show the charity raised the lion's share of its $4.4 million from just 18 sources. They gave between $97,950 and $267,735 each to help fund Frist's efforts to fight AIDS.

The tax forms, filed nine months after they were first due, do not identify the 18 major donors by name.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051217/ap_on_go_co/frist_charity;_ylt=AoqmB1pQqrv8RCVnWcF_qT2s0NUE

[Olney Blue]

20. Something ain't right here.

[stillcool]

21. Watch the money...go round and round....

I think half of these foundations are set up purely for laundering money.

[SoCalDem]

25. BINGO.. Foundations & Think Tanks are the conduit

for cash and ideas.. Bad ideas & dirty money.. That's what the republicans wallow in..

[hang a left]

27. I was just thinking the same thing.

They all have Laundromats.
Frist's Fluff and Fold
Delay's Quickie Wash

[wiley]

23. The question is what a non-profit paid these consultants to do

Frist and the others involved with this organization should be in jail. Talk about violating both law and ethics.

Scum, scum, scum!

[Up2Late]

24. Good to see the AP finally waking up to the fact that all the ReThugs are

DIRTY!

[jarnocan]

29. Frist's charity raises question$

IMHO all about -Hypocrisy, greed and the lust for power -grrr.

Quote:
"charity paid nearly a half-million dollars in consulting fees to members of his political inner circle,"
http://www.comcast.net/news/index.j.../18/286316.html I bet most of the far-rightie mighties will just ignore this story, they don't seem to appreciate reality checks.

Quote:
"and evangelical Christian groups with ties to Republicans " http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2002690065_frist18.html

this is so pathetic too, because those IMHO are in reality NOT charitable groups- again all about greed and power! HYPOCRIT$!

[efhmc]

33. Is this illegal? Can someone please lay this out for me?

Are there real, technically strong grounds to go after him with this information?

[Dr Fate]

34. Frist is an unethical QUACK.

n/t