Lieberman rival owns stock in Wal-Mart

[FormerDem06]

Before anyone yells at me, I know it's a conservative leaning paper. But it came up in my news crawl this morning.


http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/20060803-112200-4787r.htm

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But Mr. Lamont and his family are part owners of the company, according to financial disclosure records he filed earlier this year with the secretary of the Senate. Mr. Lamont, his wife and a dependent child own as much as $31,000 in Wal-Mart stock.
Mr. Lamont and his wife jointly own two accounts containing as much as $16,000 in Wal-Mart stock. Their Wal-Mart holdings spin off as much as $3,500 in annual dividends. In addition, a trust fund he set up for one of his children contains as much as $15,000 in Wal-Mart stock and spins off as much as $1,000 in dividends.

In his remarks at the anti-Wal-Mart rally this week, Mr. Lamont never mentioned his shareholder status in the company. He did, however, criticize Mr. Lieberman for not doing more during this three terms in the Senate to help the workers he says are so mistreated by Wal-Mart.

But Lamont supporters mercilessly flogged Mr. Lieberman as a hypocrite because he had once received -- but later returned -- a $1,000 contribution from Wal-Mart's political action committee. "Are we ready to take their PAC money?" one man shouted at Mr. Lieberman as he spoke.

"Let me just answer that lie with a fact," Mr. Lieberman shot back, according to published reports. "Wal-Mart PAC sent my campaign a check in March, and we returned it a week later. Deal with the facts."
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Sounds like Lieberman is coming unhinged a little....

[Zynx]

1. A guy with $300 million is bound to have some in Walmart.

If you own an S&P 500 index fund, you probably have quite a bit of Walmart too.

[Name removed]

2. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[FormerDem06]

7. apparently I am going to have to change my screen name...

about half the people on this board are petty enought that they can't get past it. I am currently boycotting the Democratic Party in my home state (North Carolina). I will still vote Dem in national elections, plain and simple.

The Democratic leadership in my state has turned into a bunch of good-ol-boy glad handing with lobbyists DINOs.

Here is the link that I had to post to defend myself from my screen name yesterday if you care to peruse:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=1807571&mesg_id=1808698

[leveymg]

11. It was the combination of your post, which is inaccurate, and

your screen name that prompted that response. The WalMart holding is, indeed, part of an equity fund. The Moonie Times extract you posted didn't mention that.

If I got your motives wrong, I apologize.

[FormerDem06]

22. No Problem, I've explained my screen name about 10 times already

Actually it's in a managed stock account at Goldman Sachs. He provides the money and Sachs buys the stocks. I just find it wierd that a guy whose whole campaign is built around the war would hold haliburton and several other war based contractors...not to mention big oil. And since it's in a managed stock account, he owns those shares directly:

http://www2.goldmansachs.com/client_services/asset_management/products/managed_accounts.html

The money in this account is all his, it's not like a mutual fund where he owns it with a ton of other folks. He is right though in that he doesn't make the decisions about what is bought and sold.



PETER URBAN [e-mail] (the link is no longer available, so I had to get it from Google cached file, sorry)....


"I know from the limited disclosure that he has stock in Halliburton, and some of the big oil companies," Lieberman told reporters during a recent event in Connecticut. "This is just public right to know."

On Tuesday, Lieberman told the Post's editorial board that he wondered why Lamont had not divested, given his opposition to the war in Iraq.

Lieberman's own financial disclosure form, however, shows that he has invested as much as $30,000 in two mutual funds that hold Halliburton stock. Victory Diversified Stock Fund has 4.7 percent, and Columbia Marsico Focused Equity 3.3 percent of its equity in the company.

For Lieberman, that would work out to as much as $1,200.

Lamont has $50,000 invested in Halliburton through an account managed by Goldman Sachs. The account holds investments in more than 260 corporations including large investments in Exxon-Mobil, Citigroup and Bank of America.

Marion Steinfels, a spokeswoman for Lieberman's campaign, said Thursday that the campaign was not aware that Lieberman's mutual funds were invested in Halliburton. She did not know if Lieberman knew.

"We are looking into this," she said.

Steinfels noted that Lieberman has called for a congressional investigation of Halliburton, which critics claim has wasted hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars through no-bid contracts a subsidiary KBR, also known as Kellogg Brown & Root, received to provide food, water, shelter, laundry service and other logistical support for troops in Iraq. The Army plans to rebid the multibillion-dollar contract after years of complaints over how the deal has worked in Iraq.

Steinfels would not say what Lieberman would do when he finds out the mutual funds are invested in Halliburton.

"One step at a time, we are looking into it," she said.

As to Lamont, Steinfels said that she found it troubling that he was not honest about his investment.

"The fact is it is not in a mutual fund as he said it was — it is not true. It is simple as that," she said.

Liz Dupont-Diehl, a spokesman for Lamont, conceded that he had misspoken about the investment. It is not in a mutual fund but in a managed account.

"It is like a mutual fund in that it is not client-directed, so the individual investor does not direct the investment and is not told when a stock is purchased or sold," Dupont-Diehl said.

As to Lieberman's mutual fund holdings, Dupont-Diehl would only say that it was "interesting" and reiterated that "the charges around Ned owning Halliburton stock in this extremely removed and minor way are really distractions."

Gary Rose, a professor of politics at Sacred Heart University, said the negative attacks are not likely to help Lieberman.

"This whole primary is about the war — that is what Lamont's campaign is all about. Lieberman's campaign is trying to divert attention onto investments, and I don't think primary voters are going to buy it at all," Rose said.

[leveymg]

26. I wish you had posted that originally.

Oh, well. We've all tasted crow.

[sendero]

30. It's not just..

... in your state my friend.

[WhiteTara]

60. we are the party. Get in there and work

to make your views known. Those good ole boys wouldn't be in charge, if there was adequate participation. And yes, you might want to change your screen name unless you want people here to think you are a troll (and I find trolls to be treated rather harshly). Good luck in your stay here at DU :hi:

edited for spelling

[geomon666]

3. Yawn

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1222948,00.html

In response to questions from TIME Thursday, Lamont's campaign manager, Tom Swan, said the candidate was not actively controlling the investment. "He does not own any stock directly, it's not a direct holding," he said. Part of the Wal-Mart stock is held in a Goldman Sachs "Tax Advantaged Core Strategies managed account", according to a letter released Thursday by Swan. He said the account is designed to track the S+P 500 index, and that Goldman Sachs makes the investment decisions for the account.

[Warren Stupidity]

17. Anyone with an index fund is holding walmart

This is such crap. Joemomento is an ass.

[Zhade]

46. An increasingly desperate ass at that!

It's fun to watch, though his bullshit smears and lies are a bit much.

[bleedingheart]

4. Hell one of my 401k funds is invested in Wal Mart...

also invested in Halliburton, Exxon,...etc

[kskiska]

5. Doesn't Lieberman own Halliburton stock?

[SOS]

21. Yes

Victory Diversified Stock Fund is listed in Lieberman's financial disclosure.
Top stocks are GE and Halliburton.

[FormerDem06]

24. Liebermans holdings amount to $1200.00

From the CT post (again I pulled it from a google cached file as the article went into archives and I'd have to pay to get it:

---------------------------------------------
Lieberman's own financial disclosure form, however, shows that he has invested as much as $30,000 in two mutual funds that hold Halliburton stock. Victory Diversified Stock Fund has 4.7 percent, and Columbia Marsico Focused Equity 3.3 percent of its equity in the company.

For Lieberman, that would work out to as much as $1,200.
---------------------------------------------

On Lamont:
Actually it's in a managed stock account at Goldman Sachs. He provides the money and Sachs buys the stocks. I just find it wierd that a guy whose whole campaign is built around the war would hold haliburton and several other war based contractors...not to mention big oil. And since it's in a managed stock account, he owns those shares directly:

http://www2.goldmansachs.com/client_services/asset_mana...

The money in this account is all his, it's not like a mutual fund where he owns it with a ton of other folks. He is right though in that he doesn't make the decisions about what is bought and sold. But it would only take a phone call to get them to stop investing in those companies from him.

They need his fees too much.

[rooboy]

6. Well, that just changes EVERYTHING.... :) n/t

[OKthatsIT]

59. LOL...indeed.

[Warren Stupidity]

8. Uh $31,000 pays $3500 annually in dividends?

I call bullshit on this. That is a dividend of over 10%. In reality of course Walmart stock dividends are 1.4% http://quicktake.morningstar.com/Stock/Diagnostics.asp?Country=USA&Symbol=WMT&stocktab=interpret

Thanks for posting rightwing bullshit from the official voice of rev. moon.

[Bretttido]

13. The entire mutual fund (or whatever it is) must be returning the $3,500.

Its a bunch of word-dancing by a Conservative columnist who tries to give the impression that he makes this money directly from Wal-Mart stock. Its obvious to the discerning eye that this is a mutual fund or 401k that is managed by someone else.

[Warren Stupidity]

15. No shit.

Once again I'd like to thank the OP for polluting DU with rightwing moonie bullshit.

[MrPrax]

20. Yup...

I zero'ed in on that BS too. For usually the same reason -- hell I can MAKE 3500 bucks on a 31,000 investment...well he's got my vote!! Why are we wasting our time working then? Viva le Revolution!!!

---OH oh wait a minute...it must be some sorta MUT and LIEberman has simply grabbed the bad stocks, got a calculator and made himself look stupid...

Good eye...

[OKNancy]

9. Please change your subject line to read:

Lieberman rival owns stock in Wal-Mart

LBN rules state that the article title and subject line must match exactly

OKNancy
LBN Moderator

[FormerDem06]

10. Thank you, I apologize....

n/t

[OKNancy]

12. No problem

:thumbsup:

[Zhade]

47. Um, Nancy, did you notice the rightwing source?

You must have - are DU mods now allowing rightwing lies to be posted as fact?

[muryan]

51. Just because the article is editorialized with right wing bs

doesn't mean the facts presented in the article aren't true. Just read the facts, ignore the spin. Unless someone disputes the article i don't see why it cant be posted

[Zhade]

53. Uh, you do realize the Washington Times leaves facts out, right?

The paper and the word "fact" really don't belong together, as evidenced elsewhere on the thread where it was pointed out that this stock is part of a larger fund in which the purchase of stocks is out of Lamont's hands - a fact which the WT left out, likely intentionally.

The Washington Times is a BANNED source in DU LBN, and for good reason. If the story is legit (as the WT presents it, it's not) it'll be in a more reputable, more honest source. That's my point.

[OKNancy]

56. The Washington Times is not banned from LBN and never

has been. Fox is also allowed. In fact even Drudge is allowed if it breaks news.
If you disagree with the source, then it's probably best to bring it up in the thread and dispute it with facts.

[Zhade]

57. Oh, my mistake, I thought DU didn't allow blatant lies.

EDIT: and strangely, the DU rules seem to support my contention:

Do not link to blogs, vanity sites, or blatantly biased sources, except in cases where reputable mainstream sources are not available.

I do think it's undeniable that the Washington Times is heavily biased against liberals and favors rightwingers, as discussed in detail by such former insiders as David Brock.

[mainer]

14. Which implies to me that Lamont is a very, very clean guy.

Since I invest in index funds, I assume I own stock in Walmart too. If this is the WORST they can come up with against Lamont, then I would have to assume there's no real dirt on the guy. It almost sounds like part of his own campaign ("Lamont makes bad coffee!")

[MrCoffee]

28. If he does make bad coffee, then he's dead to me

Might as well kick babies as make bad coffee. We need to get our priorities straight, folks.

[calico1]

33. Well, that's NOT all they have on him....

He makes a lousy cup of coffee, his singing stinks and he has a very messy desk.

:rofl:

[MrCoffee]

36. October Surprise

He leaves the toilet seat up! Scandal rocks Hartford as allegations that DEMOCRATIC nominee Ned Lamont leaves the toilet seat up. Joe Lieberman kisses a toilet seat at a rally filled with skinheads and college republicans. Rush Limpdick goes on a 45 minute drug-addled tirade against toilet seat leaver-uppers before vomiting all over himself, shorting out the microphone.

[antonialee839]

16. This is not LBN

I heard this story a couple weeks ago.

[Omaha Steve]

29. Since Lamont spoke out Wednesday against Walmart

I think this is LBN. I wonder IF Lamont dumped the stock after the news broke a few weeks back?

[prolesunited]

35. In an index fund, you can't dump specific holdings

It's all or nothing.

The only alternative is to go to specially designed socially responsible funds that don't have any holdings in weapons or tobacco, etc. I'm not sure that there are any that specifically steer clear of Wal-Mart or any other big-box retailers.

[Omaha Steve]

37. Responsible fund Pax has no Walmart because of the womens issues etc

http://www.paxworld.com/

The article says Lamont owns Walmart stock, not a fund. Socially responsible funds screen for women on the boards and discrimination against women etc... So Walmart misses out on these, especially with the class action trial on the way.

[antonialee839]

61. This story broke over a week ago that Lamont owned

Walmart stock. The fact that Lamont spoke out against Walmart still doesn't make this story LBN. It belongs in general discussion.

[alcibiades_mystery]

18. Desperate desperate desperate

Will you be a sad little pony on Tuesday...:rofl:

[Frank Cannon]

19. Oh, for Pete's sake. I've seen desperation, but this is...

ridiculous.

Let's take a look at what's in Joe's portfolio, shall we? I'm sure he's making a ton of dough off the illegal war he so enthusiastically supports.

If this is all that Lieberman and his little fellow leprechauns have on Lamont, then I think it's pretty clear that there is no real dirt on the guy. Nice try.

[Isere]

23. No one needs to own Wal-Mart!

I wouldn't walk into a Wal-Mart, nor would I put my money into an fund that invested in it. It isn't difficult to do, you know. You just tell your friendly account executive that you don't invest in Wal-Mart.

There is no need to deify Lamont and rush to cover for his misjudgements.

[Zynx]

39. If you own any index fund or many actively managed funds, Wal-Mart

will always be in there.

[Isere]

42. Yes, but you need to tell your broker

that you don't want to invest in those instruments. It's pretty simple.

[Zhade]

48. Read upthread - you CAN'T.

It's pretty simple.

[LordLovesAWorkingMan]

50. Wait a minute

I read this site for a long time before I registered and donated, and I have never seen anything but bile tossed at Walmart, RIGHTFULLY, for its cultural and economic crimes. Now it's OK to own part of the company?

Can someone tell me what the official acceptable threshold for red company ownership is?

I can reconcile Lamont's ownership of a company he (as a part owner) would like to change. But I haven't seen that argument here at all. Is it, or is it not, OK to own shares in an evil company?

And did Michael Moore ever divest his stake in Halliburton? It sure feels like we blue and green investors are left to twist way too often...

[Zhade]

52. Where did I say it was okay? Please point it out.

NT!

[Zynx]

58. If you own a fund, they don't make special exceptions for you.

I'd love to see you tell Vanguard that you would like to invest in their S&P 500 Index fund, but make sure there's no Wal-Mart in there. Just try it. I dare you.

[Dover]

25. Lol!! Affiliation with Wal-Mart becomes a litmus test....hehehehe n/t

[blogslut]

27. Lieberman took Walmart PAC money

Then he claimed he gave it back...only he didn't

At the presser following today’s WalMart rally, Jane says that Joe Lieberman claimed to the press that he had returned the WalMart PAC money that he had previously received as a campaign donation in this past election cycle.

If that is so, it would require that a form be filled out and turned into the FEC regarding the change in status of the donation. And yet, there is no form that I have been able to find in the records saying that there was a return of monies of any kind...

http://www.firedoglake.com/2006/08/02/about-that-walmart-pac-money/

[sendero]

31. I'm so tired of this..

.. owning a pittance of stock is meaningless. It doesn't contribute to the company in any meaningful way.

I have a few K in an energy sector fund. I haven't looked, but it's a pretty good bet that some of it is in companies I don't care much for, i.e. Halliburton.

What am I supposed to do, not invest at all? There is no way to participate in index funds, sector funds, a lot of mutual funds without investing a few bucks in companies you don't like.

Big Fat Hairy Deal

The crap some people can get exercised about never ceases to amaze me.

[Skittles]

32. do I smell desperaton???

LOL

[IndianaGreen]

34. $31K out of $90M is not even worth considering

This was brought up a couple of months ago by the two DUers that support Lieberman, and it was debated and dismissed as a desperation tactic by the gnome of Connecticut.

[Bretttido]

38. "Gnome of Connecticut"

:rofl:

[JPZenger]

40. I wish there was a way we could unrecommend a post

www.dailykos.com has a button that allows each person to rank a post negatively, in addition to positively. I suggest that be added to DU to address these types of "moranic" (sic) posts.

Besides, this item was posted about 2 or 3 months ago, and got the same response from everyone.

[Bretttido]

41. That would be sweet

[BeachBuckeye]

43. Which is it?

Do you work for Lieberman or the RNC?

[FormerDem06]

44. Neither at all

I just think some people are cutting off their nose to spite their face. You're trading one semi-rich guy for one uber-rich guy, it's apples to shiny apples to me.

[IndianaGreen]

45. Lieberman has been endorsed by Coulter, Hannity, and Tom DeLay

Lieberman has not rejected their endorsements.

[Zhade]

49. Well, maybe you should base your thinking on facts...

...and not distorted half-truths (at best) from known rightwing liars.

Just a thought.

[UTUSN]

54. & Osama/Usama owns stock in Shrub-a-rola, SOOO/???/ n/t

[SideshowScott]

55. Remember Kids! Its only bad when a Democrat is rich!

But a member of the GOP can have his hands in any pot of cash no matter how dirty it is.. SO fikkin WHAT!?!? I hate Wall mart. Ill never shop at one. But I dont think there is anything wrong with anyone who shops at one or has stock in it. Its smart and a return investment in stocks.
It kills me how the GOP can get away with being greedy and corrupt but a lib or Dem is not allowed to have money.

[IndianaGreen]

62. That's right! Kerry with all of his money. and his rich wife!

Wealth is only a problem when it is a Democrat!

[mopinko]

63. the moonie times does not "lean conservative"

it is a propaganda organ of the lowest order.

[retread]

64. Why is it ok to stink up DU by quoting the Moonie Times? n/t