(Jeff Danziger’s website)
From the NYTimes:
LAS VEGAS — Four days after his announcement as Mitt Romney’s running mate, Representative Paul D. Ryan was not in Florida talking Medicare with elderly voters or in drought-ridden Iowa talking about a farm bill. He traveled to the Venetian hotel here for a meeting hosted by Sheldon Adelson, the billionaire casino mogul who has pledged to spend as much as $100 million this year to defeat President Obama.
Mr. Adelson has already contributed more money to defeat Mr. Obama than anyone: over $50 million has gone to the 2012 campaign, including $10 million to a “super PAC” backing Mr. Romney and $10 million to Crossroads GPS, which has run millions of dollars of advertisements against Mr. Obama.
In keeping with Mr. Adelson’s penchant for staying below the radar, Romney aides refused to say who attended the meeting with Mr. Ryan, though the location (a private room at one of Mr. Adelson’s hotels) and leaks from the Romney camp left little doubt. And in keeping with laws that prohibit elected officials from explicitly asking donors for super PAC money, aides to Mr. Romney insisted before the event that the meeting was not a fund-raiser.
“It’s a finance event, not a fund-raiser,” an aide told reporters. Asked if people were paying to attend, he repeated, “It’s a finance event, not a fund-raiser.”
Monte Miller, a longtime Republican donor who planned to attend, described it as an opportunity for major contributors and influential Las Vegas Republicans to size up Mr. Ryan.
“I’ve watched Ryan for the last few years,” Mr. Miller said. “I think I know what he’s going to bring. But I haven’t been in the same room as him. I want to see his charisma and communication skills.” …
Dance, little monkey, dance!
Since what happens in Vegas — and Macau — doesn’t always stay there, Adelson may need all the political help he can buy:
… In the political arena, Mr. Adelson is perhaps best known as a hawkish defender of Israel. But whatever the outcome of the inquiries involving his businesses in China, an examination of those activities suggests a keen interest in Washington’s China policy and highlights the degree to which politics and profits are often intertwined for Mr. Adelson….
The Sands has faced a conundrum in China as a casino company whose fortunes are heavily dependent on its operations in a country where gambling is illegal, except in Macau. The company relies on the good will of Chinese officials, who mete out approvals and have the power to curtail the flow of mainland visitors. As a result, Mr. Adelson has sought to use financial clout and connections to exert political influence at the highest levels of government. …
The broad outlines of the mainland China investigation were reported last week by The Wall Street Journal. But a review of more than a thousand pages of corporate records in China, as well as interviews with former Sands executives and others, provides a more detailed picture.
The documents show that the Sands paid out more than $70 million to companies tied to Mr. Yang for the trade center and for a Chinese basketball team the Sands sponsored. But several million dollars appear to be unaccounted for after the projects were suddenly shut down by the company, The New York Times found…
Pro Publica has even more detail here and here.
I know I keep repeating this, but seriously: Can you imagine how Darryl “IOKIYAR” Issa would react if news organizations were reporting that a Democratic donor was under investigation for multiple long-term violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act? Especially if it involved tabloid-friendly headlines about paying off ChiCom “princelings” so that organized crime rings both here and overseas could ship prostitutes, launder money, and smuggle pirated goods?
Patricia Kayden
Wonder what Adelson will get in return for all the $$$ he’s pouring into Republican candidates (first Gingrich, and now Romney). Tax cuts and no regulations come to mind. What does he think Romney will do for Israel that Obama won’t do?
dr. bloor
Yeah, he’s the original Invisible Man.
Baud
The press also. If Ryan and Adelson were Democrats, this meeting would be non-stop news through election day.
Hill Dweller
OT: A commercial for wingnut Dinesh D’Souza’s new documentary just ran during Maddow’s show block.
cathyx
And I suppose the definition of a finance event is secret too.
Zam
@Hill Dweller: Yea I saw that earlier. Screaming at the top of their lungs that Obama is “different.”
Cheap Jim
The Pope’s toe must be feeling mighty unused just about now.
Yutsano
@cathyx: It’s a finance event. They’ve told you all you need to know about that.
Yutsano
@cathyx: It’s a finance event. They’ve told you all you need to know about that.
Zifnab25
Given Issa’s current track record, I imagine he’d take a look at all the paperwork and start feeling kinda bored and lazy, then kick off to SoCal for a few rounds of golf.
The 90s era Republicans wanted to be in power. This new breed is just going through the motions.
Yutsano
Oh and FYWP. No really.
dr. bloor
@Yutsano:
There we go.
NotMax
Ryan never kissed more than 13% of the ring and no photos will ever be released, so we just have to trust him.
Wag
@Patricia Kayden:
“Wonder what Adelson will get in return for all the $$$ he’s pouring into Republican candidates (first Gingrich, and now Romney). Tax cuts and no regulations come to mind. What does he think Romney will do for Israel that Obama won’t do?”
I wonder what he gets for all the money spent if Romney loses.
Reply
Josie
I dutifully clicked through and tried to read the Times article. Honestly, it just made my head hurt. How do these people get by with all this shit?
Todd
Shelley had better pray Romney wins. If he doesn’t, I can imagine that his businesses could come under scrutiny and his buddy Bibi will be left to dangle in the wind over his militarism (hopefully literally, which is sadly unlikely to happen).
Todd
@Wag:
Indicted?
cathyx
If Mitt feels good about his 13% tax rate, then why not show us his returns?
scav
It’s finance, not fund-raising. Don’t you people speak English?!
Martin
Rich people should pay the same tax rate as the rest of us because they don’t get any more benefits out of society than poor people.
Wag
@Todd:
We can hope.
lamh35
@NotMax: This whole business is really pissing me off. So ’cause Romney says he paid 13% that’s its then. The MSM seem ready and willing to accept this BS just on Romney’s word alone, cause he’s so trustworthy ya know, let’s forget about the fact that the Romney campaign have been using lies and distortions since the damn primaries, but yeah let’s take this mofo’s word that be paid what he said he paid. And this lead all the mainstream nightly news (ABC, CBS, NBC) with practically no damn push-back. It ridiculous and just a damn shame. If like my mom and many others I know, you get most of your news from the nightly and local news, then this is just sad that the press either refuses or just could care less to do their job of ya know informing the populace and providing real good information.
Nope, Romney says he paid, so hey he paid…over to you Harry Reid (I literally read this on some reporters twitter or blog)….
Ugh. the pessimist in me already knows Romney is gonna get away with it too. The optimist in me agrees with the pessimist.
Ugh.
burnspbesq
@Todd:
What Wag said.
Good thing I looked before I hit “submit.” I don’t want Clyde Prestowitz accusing me of plaigiarism.
Villago Delenda Est
@lamh35:
Trust.
But verify.
Let’s see the returns, Mittens.
JGabriel
@Patricia Kayden:
Whatever Bibi tells him to.
.
ChrisNYC
I think Obama’s gonna win and may win big but man is this going to be painful. Top story on memeorandum? “Obama says he will stick with Biden.” Because nonsense Palin and the idiots decided to talk about ditching Joe.
O Milbank, o Gregory, o Brian Williams, o Wolf. We looooong for that serious conversation that you promised you were going to have with Paul Ryan. Get up close and personal like you know you want to.
JGabriel
NY Times:
What the holy evasive fuck does that mean? What is the distinction between a “finance event” and a fund-raiser?
Inquiring minds, and eventually FBI investigators one hopes, want to know.
.
Suffern Ace
@lamh35: Go after the Ira and the other odd ways he earned his fortune.
burnspbesq
@ChrisNYC:
Can you imagine what would happen if Ryan was ever on “This Week” on the same Sunday as Krugman?
scav
@lamh35: Is there a little inner pragmatist that could point out that a) the topic may or may not actually go away or perhaps just die down for a bit and b) he just spent a good many news cycles establishing himself (and spouse) as an arrogant prick(s) and that eau de cologne might usefully linger? This one’s likely to be long, hard-fought and uglier yet.
Peter
What the hell does that mean?
Fnarf
The chief funding source of the Republican Party nowadays is the Chinese gambling Mafia. Great.
burnspbesq
@Peter:
Imagine Ryan as a steer and Sheldon Adelson holding a branding iron. It’s a way of signaling who owns whom.
scav
It’s snort, snappy, memorable, and gets to the very core of the ethos of the man.
Might prove useful.
JGabriel
Shelly Adelson is 79 years old. He already has $25 billion dollars.
Can someone please tell me on what, exactly, Shelly intends to spend that $25 billion over the next 5-20 years he has left? More importantly, why does he need more tax breaks? In the deep recesses of the night, in the cul-de-sacs and declivities of Shelly Adelson’s addled brain, what is that makes him think, “I just need another billion in tax breaks, and then I can afford to …”
What? Fly to Mars? Join the Scientologists? Hire the entire population of Ireland to keen at your wake? WHAT?
.
Villago Delenda Est
@efgoldman:
It’s subject to reborking at any time.
replicnt6
@Peter: A fund-raiser is where lots of people give the candidate money. A finance event is where one person give the candidate a whopping lot of money.
replicnt6
@JGabriel:
Well, one thing is to avoid being indicted. I think that’s worth quite a bit of money.
Narcissus
@JGabriel: It means there are different rules for rich people.
ChrisNYC
@burnspbesq: It doesn’t even take that firepower.
Ryan got all choked up about HIS OWN ACHIEVEMENTS (to wit, the kryptonite Ryan budget and being picked by Romney — ahem) when he went to WI after the VP pick. He’s been coddled for years. I think you poke him a couple of times, forbid him from using the term “wonk” to evade questions and he collapses into incoherence.
NotMax
@replicnt6
Also an event where lots of people write large checks to dark money Super-PACs.
jayjaybear
@Fnarf: Remember the furor over Al Gore having a fundraising dinner at a Buddhist temple? CHICOM BACKERS! We were all so innocent then…
NotMax
As it happened in Las Vegas, it brings a whole new meaning to Rat Pack.
muddy
@JGabriel: Finance. The sport. Finance, the Sport of The Worthy.
Mike in NC
Shelly would cut a fine figure in an orange prison jumpsuit. Die, you fucker.
burnspbesq
“Somebody’s goin’ to Emergency,
Somebody’s goin’ to jail.”
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v224/burnspbesq/skinkintrouble.jpg
Shawn in ShowMe
@burnspbesq:
“You’re glib, Paul. You don’t even understand how the economy works. I do.”
Either awesome or ridiculous depending on which Paul is saying it.
Hill Dweller
@ChrisNYC: Like Willard, he immediately starts whining when confronted.
After Obama eviscerated Ryan’s budget, with him sitting in the front row, Boy Wonder stormed out, and whined incessantly for days to his fanboys in the Village.
Both Ryan and Romney have glass jaws. Their saving grace might just be the Village, who is largely letting Willard get away with a level of mendacity I’ve never seen in a Presidential election.
Frankensteinbeck
Adelson is one scary fuck trying to buy the US looking the other way so Bibi can pursue genocide fast, not slow. My only consolation is that he’s going to spend 100 million dollars this year and get jack squat for it. I’m rather hoping the oceans of money they’ll pour down the drain this election will lead to a sense of helplessness and defeatism among the corrupt rich.
Heirn
@Hill Dweller: Another ad aired during The Ed Show. I recorded both Ed and Rachel tonight. I was wondering about that ad myself.
gogol's wife
I had people over for dinner tonight and while I was in the kitchen I could hear them discussing how terrible it was that Joe Biden said the thing about “chains.” I started to explode so my husband forcibly held me back from running into the living room. I really couldn’t very well tell all my guests to go home 15 minutes after they had arrived. But it told me how this is being perceived out there. How does this happen?
muddy
@gogol’s wife: I was just watching this new show on FX, Totally Biased w/ W.Kamau Bell, Rachel Maddow was the guest. Anyway aside from the interview, it’s political stand-up, it’s produced by Chris Rock.
He was scolding Biden for saying “y’all” and saying that he shouldn’t make slavery allusions to black people.
I thought Biden was fine (over the top, but he’s always been a passionate guy), I think the Romney’s of the world would love for all of us to be in chains, at least metaphorical ones. But I’m not black, so wev.
hoppipolla
@scav: personally, i prefer “kiss my ass, this is a holy site.” so succinct.
The Republic of Stupidity
@Zifnab25:
No no no… h’d scratch his head and wonder, ‘Damn how do I ME some of that action?’
chuck butcher
@gogol’s wife:
This happens because this country is an ass about race.
karen marie
@chuck butcher: That, and the people in question have absorbed the GOP talking point which has been so ably ladled out by the gasbags on TV. Reciting it back makes them feel smart and politically aware.
The Other Bob
When it comes to someone like Adelson, who is willing to drop $100 million on an election, is that he doesn’t just hire his own Army with that $100 million and resort to violence.