Village Voice: Sleeping with the GOP (Sharpton covert GOP operative?)

[Dover]

http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0405/barrett.php


A Bush Covert Operative Takes Over Al Sharpton's Campaign
Sleeping With the GOP

by Wayne Barrett with special reporting by Adam Hutton and Christine Lagorio
February 5th, 2004 8:20 AM


Roger Stone, the longtime Republican dirty-tricks operative who led the mob that shut down the Miami-Dade County recount and helped make George W. Bush president in 2000, is financing, staffing, and orchestrating the presidential campaign of Reverend Al Sharpton.

Though Stone and Sharpton have tried to reduce their alliance to a curiosity, suggesting that all they do is talk occasionally, a Voice investigation has documented an extraordinary array of connections. Stone played a pivotal role in putting together Sharpton's pending application for federal matching funds, getting dollars in critical states from family members and political allies at odds with everything Sharpton represents. He's also helped stack the campaign with a half-dozen incongruous top aides who've worked for him in prior campaigns. He's even boasted about engineering six-figure loans to Sharpton's National Action Network (NAN) and allowing Sharpton to use his credit card to cover thousands in NAN costs—neither of which he could legally do for the campaign. In a wide-ranging Voice interview Sunday, Stone confirmed his matching-fund and staffing roles, but refused to comment on the NAN subsidies.

Sharpton denounced the Voice's inquiries as "phony liberal paternalism," insisting that he'd "talk to anyone I want" and likening his use of Stone to Bill Clinton's reliance on pollster Dick Morris, saying he was "sick of these racist double standards." He did not dispute that Stone had helped generate matching contributions and staff the campaign. Asked about the Stone loans, he conceded that he "asked him to help NAN," but attributed the financial aid to his and Stone's joint "fight against the Rockefeller drug laws," adding: "If he did let me use his credit card to cover NAN expenses, fine." The finances of NAN and the Sharpton campaign have so merged in recent months that they have shared everything from contractors to consultants to travel expenses, though Sharpton insists that these questionable maneuvers have been done in compliance with Federal Election Commission regulations....cont'd

[Yavin4]

1. Sharpton Is An Opportunist

He's out for himself and no one else. People who believe Sharpton are fools. The man has a long, long track record of cutting deals for himself.

[lcordero]

2. For the exception of Kucinich

Which of these politicians don't have a long, long track record of cutting deals for himself?

[Yavin4]

3. Because Other Pols Do It, That Excuses Sharpton?

Yes, politicians always cut deals for themselves, but Sharpton claims to be an activist, speaking truth to power, and here he is using Republican help for his campaign.

[lcordero]

5. how does it excuse the other pols?

I find the other pols to be slimier than Sharpton.

1. taking away rights
2. aiding and enabling an arch war criminal
3. helping turn the US into a corporatist/fascist state
4. cutting away at the safety net
5. helping push working people into poverty
6. lack of accountability of big business which means that big business is not punished for poisoning our environment


Sharpton is small-time compared to these criminals

[wabeewoman]

7. Ahem!

I believed that about Kucinich until when asked why he would throw his support behind a pro-war, anti-gay marriage Edwards, he said he wanted the delegates. Before then, I believed as you do.

[lcordero]

8. Is that a long, long track record of deals?

[Sugarbleus]

9. Bingo! Icordero!

I think all the candidates, except DK, have a wee bit of "Me ism" going on. I'm not happy with any of them. However, at this point, I will vote "any dem" for obvious reasons.

Is anyone else getting antsy for this election to be over? I'm starting to get really tired and grouchy. eek.

[Dover]

4. Is this a strategy to shift the black vote to Kerry going into S.C.

and the Southern primaries? This article came out just days ago, so at the very least it's interesting timing.

Yes there are serious issues of Sharpton's affiliations, but is there also some truth to Sharpton's assertions that there is a double standard?

Not sure, but this is pretty damning.

[Native]

12. According to Barrett, Stone's purpose is to use Sharpton

as a disrupter. As you know, Stone was behind the Miami recount demonstrations.

[Dover]

6. I think the implications are more serious than just exposing Sharpton

It exposes something about the Dem Party as well. We must assume that this is NOT news to political insiders and yet no one called him on this.

I think the candidates and parties are interchangeable and that the whole thing is a distraction from a bigger truth. These guys ALL work for the same corporate interests and only differ on how to carry out their common agenda. We keep getting evidence of this "crossover" in our candidates and yet refuse to see it for what it is.

[Sugarbleus]

10. Yup! right you are Dover n/t

[Native]

11. Excellent interview with Wayne Barrett , investigative reporter

for the Village Voice, can be heard at http://democracynow.org
Great questions from Goodman about the piece referenced above.

[Red_Storm]

13. He wrote ........

an great biography about the REAL Rudy Giuliani for those interested in learning about the "Mayor of America"