Tuesday, September 25, 2018
Banking Fraud:
Martin Selsoe Sorensen: Danske Bank Says Billions May Have Been Laundered at Single Branch
"When a whistle-blower alleged that employees of a branch of the Danish lender Danske Bank had been knowingly working with customers who had broken the law, it was not the first time that questions had been raised about that particular office. It would not be the last. Danske Bank said on Wednesday that its headquarters and its Estonian branch failed for years to prevent suspected money laundering involving thousands of customers. The lender said it was unable to estimate the total amount of the suspicious transactions, but its nonresident operation in the Baltic nation improbably had total flows of 200 billion euros, or $234 billion — nearly equivalent to the size of the Danish economy. The chief executive, who had previously headed the bank’s international operations, quickly said he would resign. In an 87-page report commissioned and paid for by Danske Bank, a Danish law firm, Bruun & Hjejle, found that misconduct took place at the lender’s Estonian branch from 2007 to 2015, involving “objectionable” omissions, inaction and faulty processes at all levels of the bank..."
Transportation:
Richard Florida: How Cars Divide America
Car dependence not only reduces our quality of life, it’s a crucial factor in America’s economic and political divisions.
Big Money In Politics:
Jeremy W. Peters: Sheldon Adelson Sees a Lot to Like in Trump’s Washington
"...Mr. Adelson, the billionaire casino magnate, and his wife, Miriam, a physician, have emerged as the biggest and potentially most influential contributors to Republicans in the midterm season. Despite initially harboring qualms about President Trump’s leadership, the Adelsons have found much to like in a Republican-controlled government that has aligned with their most cherished priorities: unflinchingly pro-Israel, unaccommodating to Middle Eastern adversaries and dedicated to deregulation and lower taxes. Mr. Adelson in particular enjoys a direct line to the president. In private in-person meetings and phone conversations, which occur between the two men about once a month, he has used his access to push the president to move the United States embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and, more recently, cut aid to the Palestinians, according to people familiar with their discussions, who spoke anonymously to discuss private matters. Mr. Trump has done both, triggering a backlash from some American allies... ...More than a dozen people who know the Adelsons professionally or personally, some of whom are also friendly with Mr. Trump, said in interviews that the durability of Mr. Adelson’s relationship with the president hinges not on any personal affinity between the two, but on a mutual appreciation for something both men have built their careers on: the transaction. “I think there are a lot of leaders in the establishment Jewish community for whom Donald Trump is not the kind of guy they’d want to break matzo with, but they sure like his polices and what he’s doing,” said Ari Fleischer, the former White House press secretary under President George W. Bush who is on the board of the Republican Jewish Coalition with Mr. Adelson..."
Martin Selsoe Sorensen: Danske Bank Says Billions May Have Been Laundered at Single Branch
"When a whistle-blower alleged that employees of a branch of the Danish lender Danske Bank had been knowingly working with customers who had broken the law, it was not the first time that questions had been raised about that particular office. It would not be the last. Danske Bank said on Wednesday that its headquarters and its Estonian branch failed for years to prevent suspected money laundering involving thousands of customers. The lender said it was unable to estimate the total amount of the suspicious transactions, but its nonresident operation in the Baltic nation improbably had total flows of 200 billion euros, or $234 billion — nearly equivalent to the size of the Danish economy. The chief executive, who had previously headed the bank’s international operations, quickly said he would resign. In an 87-page report commissioned and paid for by Danske Bank, a Danish law firm, Bruun & Hjejle, found that misconduct took place at the lender’s Estonian branch from 2007 to 2015, involving “objectionable” omissions, inaction and faulty processes at all levels of the bank..."
Transportation:
Richard Florida: How Cars Divide America
Car dependence not only reduces our quality of life, it’s a crucial factor in America’s economic and political divisions.
Big Money In Politics:
Jeremy W. Peters: Sheldon Adelson Sees a Lot to Like in Trump’s Washington
"...Mr. Adelson, the billionaire casino magnate, and his wife, Miriam, a physician, have emerged as the biggest and potentially most influential contributors to Republicans in the midterm season. Despite initially harboring qualms about President Trump’s leadership, the Adelsons have found much to like in a Republican-controlled government that has aligned with their most cherished priorities: unflinchingly pro-Israel, unaccommodating to Middle Eastern adversaries and dedicated to deregulation and lower taxes. Mr. Adelson in particular enjoys a direct line to the president. In private in-person meetings and phone conversations, which occur between the two men about once a month, he has used his access to push the president to move the United States embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and, more recently, cut aid to the Palestinians, according to people familiar with their discussions, who spoke anonymously to discuss private matters. Mr. Trump has done both, triggering a backlash from some American allies... ...More than a dozen people who know the Adelsons professionally or personally, some of whom are also friendly with Mr. Trump, said in interviews that the durability of Mr. Adelson’s relationship with the president hinges not on any personal affinity between the two, but on a mutual appreciation for something both men have built their careers on: the transaction. “I think there are a lot of leaders in the establishment Jewish community for whom Donald Trump is not the kind of guy they’d want to break matzo with, but they sure like his polices and what he’s doing,” said Ari Fleischer, the former White House press secretary under President George W. Bush who is on the board of the Republican Jewish Coalition with Mr. Adelson..."
Tuesday, September 11, 2018
Trump vs The Truth
NY Times: Trump Falsely Claims G.D.P. Growth Is Higher Than Unemployment ‘for the First Time in 100 Years’
"It has happened at least 185 times in the past century...
Gross domestic product increased at a 4.2 annualized rate in the second quarter of 2018, and the unemployment rate was 3.9 percent in April, 3.8 percent in May and 4.0 percent in June. But Mr. Trump is wrong that G.D.P. growth has not been higher than the unemployment rate in the past century. In fact, it has happened in 185 months since 1948, according to data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Most recently, in the first quarter of 2006, the gross domestic product grew at a rate of 5.4 percent, while the unemployment rate was 4.7 percent in January, 4.8 percent in February and 4.7 percent in March. The biggest positive gap between the quarterly gross domestic product growth rate and unemployment occurred in September 1950. At that time, the American jobless rate was 4.4 percent, and the gross domestic product increased at 16.5 percent in the third quarter — a difference of 12 points..."
NY Times: Trump Falsely Claims G.D.P. Growth Is Higher Than Unemployment ‘for the First Time in 100 Years’
"It has happened at least 185 times in the past century...
Gross domestic product increased at a 4.2 annualized rate in the second quarter of 2018, and the unemployment rate was 3.9 percent in April, 3.8 percent in May and 4.0 percent in June. But Mr. Trump is wrong that G.D.P. growth has not been higher than the unemployment rate in the past century. In fact, it has happened in 185 months since 1948, according to data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Most recently, in the first quarter of 2006, the gross domestic product grew at a rate of 5.4 percent, while the unemployment rate was 4.7 percent in January, 4.8 percent in February and 4.7 percent in March. The biggest positive gap between the quarterly gross domestic product growth rate and unemployment occurred in September 1950. At that time, the American jobless rate was 4.4 percent, and the gross domestic product increased at 16.5 percent in the third quarter — a difference of 12 points..."
Monday, September 10, 2018
Russia, Trump, Deutsche Bank & Justice Kenndy
NY Times: Inside the White House’s Quiet Campaign to Create a Supreme Court Opening
"...One person who knows both men remarked on the affinity between Mr. Trump and Justice Kennedy, which is not obvious at first glance. Justice Kennedy is bookish and abstract, while Mr. Trump is earthy and direct. But they had a connection, one Mr. Trump was quick to note in the moments after his first address to Congress in February 2017. As he made his way out of the chamber, Mr. Trump paused to chat with the justice. “Say hello to your boy,” Mr. Trump said. “Special guy.” Mr. Trump was apparently referring to Justice Kennedy’s son, Justin. The younger Mr. Kennedy spent more than a decade at Deutsche Bank, eventually rising to become the bank’s global head of real estate capital markets, and he worked closely with Mr. Trump when he was a real estate developer, according to two people with knowledge of his role. During Mr. Kennedy’s tenure, Deutsche Bank became Mr. Trump’s most important lender, dispensing well over $1 billion in loans to him for the renovation and construction of skyscrapers in New York and Chicago at a time other mainstream banks were wary of doing business with him because of his troubled business history..."
David Leonhardt: The Urgent Question of Trump and Money Laundering
"...The latest reason to be suspicious is Trump’s attacks on a formerly obscure Justice Department official named Bruce Ohr. Trump has repeatedly criticized Ohr and called for him to be fired. Ohr’s sin is that he appears to have been marginally involved in inquiries into Trump’s Russian links. But Ohr fits a larger pattern. In his highly respected three-decade career in law enforcement, he has specialized in going after Russian organized crime. It just so happens that most of the once-obscure bureaucrats whom Trump has tried to discredit also are experts in some combination of Russia, organized crime and money laundering...
...Trump also had a habit of selling real estate to Russians in all-cash deals. Money launderers like such deals, because they can turn illegally earned cash into a legitimate asset, usually at an inflated price that rewards the seller for the risk. One especially dubious deal was Trump’s $95 million sale of a Palm Beach house to a Russian magnate in 2008 — during the housing bust, only four years after Trump had bought the house for $41 million. Then there is Trump’s paranoia about scrutiny of his businesses. He has refused to release his tax returns. He said that Mueller’s investigation would cross a red line by looking into his finances. When word leaked (incorrectly) that Mueller had subpoenaed Deutsche Bank’s records on Trump, he moved to fire Mueller (only to be dissuaded by aides). Trump is certainly acting as if his business history contains damaging information."
NY Times: Inside the White House’s Quiet Campaign to Create a Supreme Court Opening
"...One person who knows both men remarked on the affinity between Mr. Trump and Justice Kennedy, which is not obvious at first glance. Justice Kennedy is bookish and abstract, while Mr. Trump is earthy and direct. But they had a connection, one Mr. Trump was quick to note in the moments after his first address to Congress in February 2017. As he made his way out of the chamber, Mr. Trump paused to chat with the justice. “Say hello to your boy,” Mr. Trump said. “Special guy.” Mr. Trump was apparently referring to Justice Kennedy’s son, Justin. The younger Mr. Kennedy spent more than a decade at Deutsche Bank, eventually rising to become the bank’s global head of real estate capital markets, and he worked closely with Mr. Trump when he was a real estate developer, according to two people with knowledge of his role. During Mr. Kennedy’s tenure, Deutsche Bank became Mr. Trump’s most important lender, dispensing well over $1 billion in loans to him for the renovation and construction of skyscrapers in New York and Chicago at a time other mainstream banks were wary of doing business with him because of his troubled business history..."
David Leonhardt: The Urgent Question of Trump and Money Laundering
"...The latest reason to be suspicious is Trump’s attacks on a formerly obscure Justice Department official named Bruce Ohr. Trump has repeatedly criticized Ohr and called for him to be fired. Ohr’s sin is that he appears to have been marginally involved in inquiries into Trump’s Russian links. But Ohr fits a larger pattern. In his highly respected three-decade career in law enforcement, he has specialized in going after Russian organized crime. It just so happens that most of the once-obscure bureaucrats whom Trump has tried to discredit also are experts in some combination of Russia, organized crime and money laundering...
...Trump also had a habit of selling real estate to Russians in all-cash deals. Money launderers like such deals, because they can turn illegally earned cash into a legitimate asset, usually at an inflated price that rewards the seller for the risk. One especially dubious deal was Trump’s $95 million sale of a Palm Beach house to a Russian magnate in 2008 — during the housing bust, only four years after Trump had bought the house for $41 million. Then there is Trump’s paranoia about scrutiny of his businesses. He has refused to release his tax returns. He said that Mueller’s investigation would cross a red line by looking into his finances. When word leaked (incorrectly) that Mueller had subpoenaed Deutsche Bank’s records on Trump, he moved to fire Mueller (only to be dissuaded by aides). Trump is certainly acting as if his business history contains damaging information."
Wednesday, September 05, 2018
Riding on vacation
If you like to ride a road bike on vacation, and are up for a challenge, the 'Stelvio Experience' in Bormio, Sondrio (IT) is a great one. Extraordinary mountain passes and scenery, guides & van support.
If you like to ride a road bike on vacation, and are up for a challenge, the 'Stelvio Experience' in Bormio, Sondrio (IT) is a great one. Extraordinary mountain passes and scenery, guides & van support.
