The LA Story, Part IV: Program for Torture Victims

**Updated with Lavelle Stewart transcript**

Lavelle Stewart, of ACORN in South Central Los Angeles, tells us she thinks we have to hook up with “someone who’s on that international sex business level,” that “14 and 15 year olds been traveling overseas for years,” that she can do independent research for us, and that she has had meetings with Porn magnate Larry Flynt.  As for laundering the sex money into my faux political campaign, Lavelle says, “there are ways, people do it all the time.  Yeah there are ways, especially out here in California.”

Part I

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Tags: ACORN, ACORN LA, ACORN pimp and prostitute, acorn video, ACORN video scandal
Posted Nov 19th 2009 at 4:50 pm in ACORN, Featured Story | 34026305 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/jokeefe/2009/11/19/the-la-story-part-iv-program-for-torture-victims/The+LA+Story%2C+Part+IV%3A+Program+for+Torture+Victims2009-11-19+23%3A50%3A47James+O%26%2339%3BKeefe

Los Angeles Robocall Proves ACORN ‘Internal Review’ Is a Scam

Just a few weeks after the first undercover ACORN videos were released, Big Government received a recording of a robocall from ACORN that ran in the Los Angeles area. Around this time, ACORN’s Chief Organizer Bertha Lewis went before the National Press Club to stress that the actions of her employees revealed in the videos “made her sick.” She reiterated that she fired the employees involved and promised a thorough internal review and reform of ACORN.

So, the robocalls were a mea culpa and promise that ACORN would do better in the future? Hardly. Away from the kleig lights of the national press, ACORN continued to deny wrongdoings and deflect attention to “extremists” attacking her. On the calls, ACORN even reiterates the lie that James O’Keefe and Hannah Giles were turned away in Los Angeles.

Listen for yourself (in English and Spanish):

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Transcript and more after the jump.

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Tags: ACORN, ACORN corruption, ACORN internal review, ACORN Los Angeles, ACORN video scandal
Posted Nov 18th 2009 at 6:59 am in ACORN, Featured Story, Media Criticism, News, Politics | 8802112 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/capitolconfidential/2009/11/18/los-angeles-robocall-proves-acorn-internal-review-is-a-scam/Los+Angeles+Robocall+Proves+ACORN+%27Internal+Review%27+Is+a+Scam2009-11-18+13%3A59%3A57Capitol++Confidential

ACORN Sues To Put Its Hand Back In Your Pocket

When the winds were swirling in Washington, DC about the possibility of the Congress ‘defunding’ ACORN, its chief organizer Bertha Lewis shrugged it off, likely believing it would never happen.

When it did happen, she shrugged it off, telling an audience at the National Press Club that, “ACORN will still go on with its members and its donors,” according to CNSnews.com.

Now, devoid of the federal teat, ACORN is suing the federal government with the hopes of latching back on to continue sucking our tax dollars.

FOXnews.com reports that the Center for Constitutional Rights is suing Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Director of the Office of Management and the Budget Peter Orszag, and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan.

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Tags: ACORN, ACORN federal funding, ACORN funding, ACORN video scandal, Bertha Lewis
Posted Nov 13th 2009 at 9:47 am in ACORN, Congress, Justice/Legal, Politics | 2984672 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/kolson/2009/11/13/acorn-sues-to-put-its-hand-back-in-your-pocket/ACORN+Sues+To+Put+Its+Hand+Back+In+Your+Pocket2009-11-13+16%3A47%3A54Kyle+Olson

Ratner Family Ties: ACORN and Justice Department Plot Thickens

Following the courageous expose by two young investigative journalists released on the pages of this very blog, there were widespread calls for a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into the criminal enterprise that is ACORN. One would think there would be swift, decisive action from the administration that promised to be the most transparent in history. Despite the urging of some in congress and action on the regional level, and an internal investigation into funding, terrorist sympathizer U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder refuses to appoint a special prosecutor to oversee a criminal investigation of ACORN. There’s no evidence that any internal investigation is ongoing or making any progress since a 2008 request from Indiana’s Secretary of State. Instead, President Obama’s political arm is attempting to dismiss it as a “fear campaign” while ACORN insinuates that it is racist. Yes, they are still playing that card.

What’s Holder’s hold-up?  One major factor of course is that ACORN serves as a taxpayer-funded Democrat army.  As with unions, it behooves Democrats to ignore corruption amongst the ranks of the powerful forces that elect them. What appears on the surface to be mere political payback for a job well done is in fact much more insidious.  One family’s involvement with ACORN and the Obama administration is of particular interest and elucidates the complicated web of connections and cash behind ACORN and this President.

Meet the Ratners.

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Tags: ACORN, acorn scandal, ACORN video scandal, Atlantic Yards development, Bruce Ratner
Posted Nov 12th 2009 at 4:29 pm in ACORN, Justice/Legal, News, Politics | 2995475 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/johara/2009/11/12/ratner-family-ties-acorn-and-justice-department-plot-thickens/Ratner+Family+Ties%3A+ACORN+and+Justice+Department+Plot+Thickens2009-11-12+23%3A29%3A06John+M.+O%26%2339%3BHara

The Hypocrisy of Jerry Brown, California’s Top Cop

The Communications Director for California Attorney General Jerry Brown resigned last week after admitting he regularly taped telephone conversations with reporters without their permission.  Under California state law, the recording of private telephone conversations without consent is illegal.  Although the Attorney General’s Office worked to shut down the story by calling it an internal personnel matter, the potentially illegal behavior of a senior staff member to California’s top cop raises some serious questions.

Here’s one: How can one of the most powerful law enforcement officials in America not know his communications director routinely engaged in activities that may have been unlawful?

Or, how is it that only this senior member of the staff knew this was occurring as they currently claim?

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Tags: ACORN, ACORN video scandal, democratic nomination, Gavin Newsom, Hannah Giles
Posted Nov 12th 2009 at 1:03 pm in ACORN, Justice/Legal, News, Politics, State Politics | 2977436 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/rnehring/2009/11/12/the-hypocrisy-of-jerry-brown-californias-top-cop/The+Hypocrisy+of+Jerry+Brown%2C+California%E2%80%99s+Top+Cop2009-11-12+20%3A03%3A30Ron+Nehring

ACORN Sues Feds Over Funding Cut

From Politico:

A non-profit organization filed a lawsuit against the federal government Thursday morning, seeking to overturn a law stopping the flow of federal funds to ACORN.

The suit, filed in federal court in New York, claims that bills passed by the House and Senate to defund the group qualify as bills of attainder, legislation that unfairly targets one group. Such bills are unconstitutional.

The suit will seek to restore funding and roll-back the ban, which was passed as part of the legislative branch appropriations bill in September.

ACORN claims that the legislation was of “malicious and punitive intent.” The suit also claims Congress violated the Fifth Amendment by skirting due process before doling out the punishment of the funding cut. OMB Director Peter Orszag and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner are listed as co-defendants in the suit.
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Tags: ACORN, ACORN federal funding, ACORN lawsuit, acorn scandal, ACORN video scandal
Posted Nov 12th 2009 at 9:55 am in ACORN, Congress, Justice/Legal, News, Politics | 2970245 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/publius/2009/11/12/acorn-sues-feds-over-funding-cut/ACORN+Sues+Feds+Over+Funding+Cut2009-11-12+16%3A55%3A21Publius

Exclusive: Audio From ACORN Claims Jerry Brown Will Whitewash Investigation

On October 15th, local ACORN spokesman David Lagstein was the special guest of the East County Democrat Club in El Cajon, CA. Lagstein is ACORN’s chief organizer in the San Diego area. The meeting was held at Coco’s Restaurant, a very public venue. Because of ACORN’s close ties to the Democrat party, Mr. Lagstein clearly felt he was among friends. These two clips suggest  the investigation of ACORN announced by California Attorney General Jerry Brown already has a pre-determined outcome.

First Clip: Attorney’s General Office Visits ACORN

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Second Clip: Fault Will Be Found With Filmmakers

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Lagstein notes that the Attorney General is a “political animal.” He states that he has been in communication with Brown’s office and assures the crowd that “the fault WILL be found with the people that did the video — not ACORN.”

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Tags: ACORN, ACORN Investigation, ACORN video scandal, California Attorney General, David Lagstein
Posted Nov 10th 2009 at 2:51 pm in ACORN, Justice/Legal, News, Politics | 28610259 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/capitolconfidential/2009/11/10/exclusive-audio-from-acorn-claims-jerry-brown-will-whitewash-investigation/Exclusive%3A+Audio+From+ACORN+Claims+Jerry+Brown+Will+Whitewash+Investigation2009-11-10+21%3A51%3A22Capitol++Confidential

Big Media Press Club Flaks for ACORN’s Bertha Lewis

Jonathan Salant of Bloomberg News is the past president of the National Press Club.  A profile on him at WashingtonJewishWeek.com begins:  “I grew up during the protests for civil rights and the Vietnam War and I saw what journalists were doing,” he said, explaining that becoming a journalist was a “chance to make the world a better place.”  If there is a better admission of the mindset of today’s establishment journalists and their influence and belief in advocacy versus objectivity, I’m not sure one exists.

So, knowing this, let’s take a look at how Mr. Salant introduced ACORN CEO Bertha Lewis at the National Press Club last week.  Here are the first few minutes of the introduction.

“The Associated of Community Organizations for Reform Now, better known as ACORN, exploded onto national headlines with the recent release of a series of undercover video tapes.  Tapes recorded by two conservative activists, a 20-year-old woman and 25-year-old man posing as a prostitute and her pimp.  Hanna Giles and James O’Keefe secretly taped their visits to ACORN offices as they asked about housing assistance for their pretend prostitution ring.  Some ACORN workers turned them down, one even called the police.  “

Really?  Spoken as a FACT, Mr. Salant?  Is there any evidence of this claim?  Have you seen the evidence?  Is it not interesting that the first action cited by Mr. Salant of an ACORN worker is the one ACORN would like everyone to believe was the standard and overwhelmingly common response?  Also, why are they merely referred to as “Conservative Activists”?  Isn’t that meant to diminish them, categorize them?  When Michael Moore gives a speech, is he introduced as “Liberal Activist”?

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Tags: ACORN, ACORN video scandal, Andrew Breitbart, Bertha Lewis, Bloomberg News
Posted Oct 16th 2009 at 5:46 am in ACORN, Featured Story, Media Criticism, News, Politics | 1701042 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/sright/2009/10/16/big-media-press-club-flaks-for-acorns-bertha-lewis/Big+Media+Press+Club+Flaks+for+ACORN%27s+Bertha+Lewis2009-10-16+12%3A46%3A38Larry++O%26%2339%3BConnor

Fool Me Hundreds of Times: Who Gets to Clean Up ACORN?

Imagine: In the days following the public revelations of the accounting scandal at Enron, then-CEO Ken Lay convened a news conference. He forcefully expressed his disgust with the actions of his subordinates and vowed to begin “cleaning house” at the company. Taking a few turns to slam the company’s critics and the reporters who had uncovered the scandal, he stressed that, this time, there would be a thorough revamp of the company. He even said that people would be fired! Reassured, reporters, lawmakers and regulators shrugged and went back to their daily lives.

ACORN CEO Bertha Lewis and Former Enron CEO Ken Lay

Substitute Bertha Lewis for Ken Lay and ACORN for Enron, in this hypothetical situation, and you’ll have a pretty good idea of what was asked of us at Lewis’ tour-de-force theatrical performance at the National Press Club earlier this week. She alternated between attacking her critics, expressing disgust with the actions of her employees caught on tape by James O’Keefe and Hannah Giles and vowing to pursue a lawsuit against the filmmakers for capturing on film her employees’ misdeeds. Oh, and by the way, she really, really—she means it this time—intends to “clean house” at ACORN.

Washington Post columnist Dana Milbank captured the surreal tableau best:

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Tags: ACORN, ACORN Czar, ACORN embezzlement, acorn scandal, ACORN video scandal
Posted Oct 9th 2009 at 6:00 am in ACORN, Big Labor, Featured Story, Politics | 1467842 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/mikeflynn/2009/10/09/who-gets-to-clean-up-acorn/Fool+Me+Hundreds+of+Times%3A+Who+Gets+to+Clean+Up+ACORN%3F+2009-10-09+13%3A00%3A26Mike+Flynn

Official at ACORN Funder to Head Corporation for National and Community Service

President Obama announced he plans to nominate Patrick Corvington to be chief executive of the Corporation for National and Community Service, which oversees Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America. Big Government readers will remember that “the Corporation” assumed a prominent role on the infamous NEA Conference call, where ”the Corporation’s” Nell Abernathy joined White House and NEA officials to nudge artists to produce works supporting the Obama Administration’s legislative priorities.

Although the charity Corvington works for, Annie E. Casey Foundation of Baltimore, Maryland, has granted funding to ACORN during his tenure, it is unclear if Corvington has ties to ACORN.

Nonetheless, Corvington is part of the same cluster of organizations that provides financial and other support for ACORN which is a longtime fixture in the activist community.

Since 2001 the Annie E. Casey Foundation has pumped at least $1,705,500 into the ACORN network, according to philanthropy database information.

Of the $1,705,500, at least $850,500 was earmarked for ACORN operations in Baltimore, Maryland, home of the ACORN branch office first shown in the recent undercover videos that debuted on BigGovernment.com. Those videos show James O’Keefe and Hannah Giles pretending to be a pimp and a prostitute and receiving mountains of advice on evading laws pertaining to tax evasion and prostitution (among other things).

The Annie E. Casey Foundation is a major funder of other groups on the left.

Looking at just the first letter of the alphabet, its grant recipients are labor federation AFL-CIO, abortion rights think tank Alan Guttmacher Institute, and liberal policy shop the Aspen Institute.

Although most of its grants go to groups on the political left, the foundation has funded at least one think tank on the political right. It has provided a few grants to the American Enterprise Institute.

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Tags: ACORN, ACORN Baltimore, ACORN video scandal, AFL-CIO, Alan Guttmacher Institute
Posted Oct 6th 2009 at 9:51 am in ACORN, Obama | 1336224 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/mvadum/2009/10/06/official-at-acorn-funder-to-head-corporation-for-national-and-community-service/Official+at+ACORN+Funder+to+Head+Corporation+for+National+and+Community+Service2009-10-06+16%3A51%3A15Matthew+Vadum

Wade Rathke’s a ‘Dangerous Fellow’

“I’m Recognized to be a Fairly Dangerous Fellow Out There in the Community” – Wade Rathke

Let’s be honest, if Wade Rathke saw me walk into his book signing last Tuesday, he wouldn’t have been at his most candid.  I wanted insight into the man who created this racket that is the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, or is it the American Institute for Social Justice, or Citizens Consulting Inc?  I’m still not too sure.  I know it operates under 361 different affiliates in at least 43 states and the District of Columbia.

In his newly released book Citizen Wealth, he paints himself as a modern day Robin Hood, stealing from the evil faceless corporations to give to the poor.  But as he recounts these campaigns it becomes clear the corporations have faces, their CEOs, who he doesn’t hesitate to harass at home to demand financial concessions.  Wade’s stilted story almost makes him sound noble as he provides innocuous reasons why he would like to collect and store copies of people’s personal financial records and birth certificates or as he tries to rationalize why people would be well served by becoming dues paying ACORN members.

These past few months I believed Wade’s the blissfully ignorant captain whose been stripped of his command but still seems intent to go down with the ship.  He hasn’t “run” the organization since the very public revelation that his brother embezzled close to $1 million from ACORN and Wade went about covering it up.  He was negotiated out of the coveted “chief organizer” role that he had held for decades.  The ACORN Board allowed him to retain control of ACORN International, but when public pressure started building, he even went ahead and changed its name to COI – Community Organizations International.

Even in exile he denies that ACORN is a criminal enterprise and claims that allegations that federal and tax-exempt funds have been used for political purposes are a “complete fabrication.”

I had to hear him speak.  I had to see for myself if he really bought what he was selling.  But let’s be real.  I’m a twenty-eight year old Republican lawyer… and I look like one.  I wear Brooks Brothers suits, bold ties, and nine times out of ten there’s a pair of elephant cufflinks on my wrists.  If he saw me coming I doubted he would be as open in his proselytizing for community organizing.

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Tags: ACORN, ACORN International, acorn scandal, ACORN video scandal, American Institute for Social Justice Inc.
Posted Oct 5th 2009 at 2:15 pm in ACORN, Culture | 1224660 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/cberg/2009/10/05/wade-rathkes-a-dangerous-fellow/Wade+Rathke%27s+a+%27Dangerous+Fellow%272009-10-05+21%3A15%3A06Chris+++Berg

Giles: If You’re Going Through Hell, Keep Going

Ever since Hannah and O’Keefe boldly cracked open ACORN with their video expose of  ACORN counselling dirty deeds on our dime, I’ve been inundated with emails and interviews asking me how wifey and I raised such a plucky kid.  

Matter of fact, because of the insane interest in Hannah and what makes her tick, I’m brewing up a book on raising righteous and rowdy girls in today’s culture.  Evidently, the Giles formula works.  I think I’ll name it Contra Mundus Mamas.  How does that sound? 

 Until that book pops on the scene, though, there is another option. If you’re curious and you would like to get a taste of how the weird Giles family rolls when up against a rock and a hard place, you should check out my latest book, If Youre Going Through Hell, Keep Going!.  It’s a tasty and short read that’ll give you the proper piss-n-vinegar perspective to plow through the various crud life slaps us all with.  Details below:

Doug Giles, popular Townhall.com columnist and father of Hannah Giles, who played the prostitute in the now famous nation-rocking ACORN expose, has just released a new book that shows us how to thrive when things “stink worse than a sundried manatee carcass.”   

Giles’ latest tome, If You’re Going Through Hell, Keep Going! (Bridge-Logos 2009) is for people who are experiencing a rough earthly patch and are looking for some powerful, practical and faith-filled answers to help them plow through life’s mud.  

In this fast and funky read Giles points out that if you’re currently being stretched then you’re in line for growth and . . . you’re in good company.  Some of the most powerful and amazing folks who have ever graced this globe have gone through prolonged periods of internal and external crud that wasn’t enjoyable.  And get this: They actually grew—even prospered—through their pain. 

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Tags: ACORN, acorn scandal, ACORN video scandal, Andrew Breitbart, Doug Giles
Posted Oct 4th 2009 at 2:34 pm in ACORN, Culture, Featured Story | 1231858 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/dgiles/2009/10/04/giles-if-youre-going-through-hell-keep-going/Giles%3A+If+You%27re+Going+Through+Hell%2C+Keep+Going2009-10-04+21%3A34%3A32Doug+Giles

Wash Post: Big Foundations Defunding ACORN

We’ve always given at least bit of credence to the theory that the most interesting stories in the Washington Post and New York Times run on Saturday, when editors try to dump any real reporting that happens to slip through their filters. This Saturday, the Washington Post added another data point supporting this theory with decent reporting on ACORN’s troubles with its big donors:

The liberal political organizing group ACORN, battered by the release of embarrassing videos and allegations of financial mismanagement and fraud, has also been losing support from several major foundations.

The Ford Foundation, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the Marguerite Casey Foundation and Bank of America have stopped funding the group and its affiliates over the past year and a half.

Read the whole article here.

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Tags: ACORN, acorn scandal, ACORN video scandal, Annie E. Casey Foundation, Bank of America
Posted Oct 4th 2009 at 9:52 am in ACORN, Media Criticism, News, Politics | 1221845 Commentshttp://biggovernment.com/publius/2009/10/04/wash-post-big-foundations-defunding-acorn/Wash+Post%3A+Big+Foundations+Defunding+ACORN2009-10-04+16%3A52%3A47Publius