Corrupt Bush Justice Dept Goes after Eliot Spitzer

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Why is the Justice Department wasting resources on internet call-girls and a john?

Some Questions About the Spitzer Incident
By: Jane Hamsher Monday March 10, 2008 5:39 pm

ABC is reporting that Eliot Spitzer came under the attention of the Feds because his bank reported "suspicious money transfers" to the IRS. The Justice Department brought it to the FBI's Public Corruption Squad, who looked into it and found that payments were made to a company called QET, which did business as The Emperor's Club.

All kinds of questions arise here:

1. Why would the bank tell the IRS and not Spitzer himself if there was a suspicious transfer? Spitzer is a longtime client, a rich guy and the governor. We're talking thousands of dollars here, not millions. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense that they spotted a "suspicious transfer" made by the governor, and that this is how things began. It's possible it was just ordinary paperwork the bank had to file with the government whenever some particular flag was raised, but if that's the case, why did the DoJ go to DefCon 3?

2. What is a USA doing prosecuting a prostitution case? This isn't normally what the feds spend their time with.

3. Mike Garcia is a Chertoff crony. Sources familiar with the investigation say that he sent a prosecution memo to DC two months ago asking for authority to indict a public figure (Spitzer). Which means they had their case made long before the wire tap of February 13. Why did they then include this line from that conversation in the complaint?

LEWIS continued that from what she had been told "he" (believed to be a reference to Client-9) "would ask you to do things that, like, you might not think were safe -- you know -- I mean that...very basic things...."Kristen" responded: "I have a way of dealing with that...I'd be like listen dude, you really want the sex?...You know what I mean."

This salacious detail does not seem like it's necessary to make their case, and appears to be added for no other purpose than to destroy Spitzer's career.

4. How did Spitzer's name get leaked to the media, and who did it? Didn't happen to Dave Vitter.

5. Why did Mike Bloomberg suddenly start talking about running for governor recently? And why did he give $500,000 to Joe Bruno? He's good buddies with Mike Mukasey. What did he know and how did he know it?

6. The Mann Act? Are you kidding?

7. Spitzer's been in the line of fire of the GOP hit squad for a while. Roger Stone, Roger Stone, Roger Stone.

There are all kinds of things about this that just don't pass the smell te

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The Mann Act?????

Mann-date

by digby

To those of you who are in high dudgeon over Spitzer possibly violating the Mann Act --- please. The Mann Act is bullshit in a situation where the parties were consensual. Here's Wikipedia's history of the Mann Act. It's often been used for political purposes.

Obviously Spitzer's in big trouble and is very likely to resign. When you build your career as a self righteous crusader, you don't get the benefit of the doubt on stuff like this. But there are questions that should be asked. It is unusual to release the names of johns and it's weird that we still don't know why the feds were wiretapping on some seemingly inconsequential prostitution case in the first place. Is that something the feds spend a lot of time doing these days?

Far be it for me to mistrust the Bush Justice department or think they might have partisan motives, but it might be worth asking whether there might be a little partisan prosecutorial hanky panky involved. It certainly wouldn't be the first time.

In any case, we should all try to do better than the media, which has let its tabloid id run free on this story today. I know it's important, but you'd think they could at least get some of the facts straight before they spout every rumor they hear on the air.

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dailykos.ocm

And the Difference Between Spitzer and Vitter Is ...
by SusanG
Mon Mar 10, 2008 at 04:58:21 PM PDT

Via CQ's Ground Game, we get a look at a press release from the Republican Governors Association:

The Governor of New York should immediately resign from office and allow the people of New York to pursue honest leadership. The American people are tired of corrupt and hypocritical politicians. The Governor of New York is just another in the long list of politicians that have failed their constituents." - Nick Ayers, RGA Executive Director

Still waiting for the Republican calls for the resignation of David Vitter.

And speaking of Vitter, Ken Silverstein over at Harpers shares an email he received from a skeptical reader with an astute observation:

Amazing how Senator David Vitter's name never leaked out of the Justice Department after the arrest of the D.C. Madam, but Eliot Spitzer's name leaked out of the Justice Department within a week of the initial arrest in the Emperor V.I.P. case.

Amazing indeed.

* ::

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Did Rove and Gonzales Order Investigation?

Parting Shot?

by digby

There's lots of new information in this NY Times article about the allegedly suspicious financial transactions that led the Feds to Spitzer's call girl habit. It's still vague about how these scrappy investigators came to be interested in the finances of the governor of New York, but I assume that will be dealt with. Meanwhile, I found this tidbit interesting:

The rendezvous that established Gov. Eliot Spitzer's involvement with high-priced prostitutes occurred last month in one of Washington's grandest hotels, but the criminal investigation that discovered the tryst began last year in a nondescript office building opposite a Dunkin' Donuts on Long Island, according to law enforcement officials.

[...]

Soon, the I.R.S. agents, from the agency's Criminal Investigation Division, were working with F.B.I. agents and federal prosecutors from Manhattan who specialize in political corruption.

The inquiry, like many such investigations, was a delicate one. Because the focus was a high-ranking government official, prosecutors were required to seek the approval of the United States attorney general to proceed. Once they secured that permission, the investigation moved forward.

I'm just wondering when exactly last year that permission was sought. Rove and Gonzales both resigned in August of 07 under a cloud for a plot to fire US Attorneys who refused to trump up charges of "voter fraud" and pursue cases against Democratic politicians. Mukasey was sworn in in November. Peter D. Keisler was acting attorney general during the interim. Which one ordered the investigation?

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More on the Mann Act

Quote:

The Mann Act and Should Spitzer Resign?
By Jeralyn, Section Other Politics
Posted on Tue Mar 11, 2008 at 12:15:13 AM EST
Tags: Eliot Spitzer (all tags)
Share This: StumbleUpon del.icio.us reddit reddit

Update: The New York Times reports the Attorney General authorized the investigation of Spitzer:

The inquiry, like many such investigations, was a delicate one. Because the focus was a high-ranking government official, prosecutors were required to seek the approval of the United States attorney general to proceed. Once they secured that permission, the investigation moved forward.

****

The S.D. Florida blog has a post on whether it's right (as opposed to legally permissible) to charge Gov. Eliot Spitzer under the Mann Act (18 USC 2421, 2422 are the possible applicable sections.)

Now, should the feds pursue a simple prostitution case just because the prostitute traveled from state to state? There is nothing to suggest that the prostitute was coerced or was forced into this business (in fact, she was making more per hour than just about every lawyer in town). The original Mann Act of 1910 was really meant to outlaw forced prostitution (and was known as the "White Slave Traffic Act.") Although recent cases have greatly expanded the scope of the Act and the prosecution would be permissible, do you think such a prosecution is appropriate?

Trivia -- The most famous person prosecuted under the Mann Act is probably Charlie Chaplin.

Chaplin was acquitted. I'll add Chuck Berry to the list, although in his case the woman was a minor.

The Mainstream Media is finally catching on the real story. On Morning Joe, Abrams and other talking heads are questioning why a wealthy individual's transfer of a few thousand dollars triggered an investigation. It makes no sense. The obvious answer seems to be this is political retribution. Spitzer made a lot of enemies and many of them were in powerful positions and had friends in the highest of places including the White House.

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Roger Stone

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So, you think he should get a pass on some technicality?

The guy is french toast

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I hope you are kidding here. Else, you are the biggest apologist on the planet.

First, given the size of the dollars in question, I EXPECT the FBI to investigate when a GOVERNOR is "washing" large sums of money to questionable people. Does extortion come to mind?

Last I checked, prostitution is illegal. Government officials MUST BE held to a higher standard. Especially a Former DA who put these people in jail.

Last I check, transferring money across State lines in connection with an illegal activity is a Federal Crime.

It is attitudes like those above that makes this Govt a joke. These idiots above who try to blame others for their own failures is a reason we are losing our way as a society.

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farmerman wrote:

So, you think he should get a pass on some technicality?

The guy is french toast

When is David Vitter resigning?

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Roxxxanne wrote:

farmerman wrote:
So, you think he should get a pass on some technicality?

The guy is french toast

When is David Vitter resigning?

Irrelevant. Answer his question.

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I think the school for ethics should not be based upon reciprocal action. Id like to think that Spitzer will show the honorable way. (PS, IM ADemocrat)

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woiyo wrote:

I hope you are kidding here. Else, you are the biggest apologist on the planet.

First, given the size of the dollars in question, I EXPECT the FBI to investigate when a GOVERNOR is "washing" large sums of money to questionable people. Does extortion come to mind?

Last I checked, prostitution is illegal. Government officials MUST BE held to a higher standard. Especially a Former DA who put these people in jail.

Last I check, transferring money across State lines in connection with an illegal activity is a Federal Crime.

It is attitudes like those above that makes this Govt a joke. These idiots above who try to blame others for their own failures is a reason we are losing our way as a society.

What happened to the War on Terror? The FBI is now going to focus on the millions of men who hire prostitutes online i.e. transferring money across state lines to hire escorts, yada, yada, yada. This is insanity.

Spitzer hasn't been charged with anything. The only prosecution that would pass the smell test is a Class B Misdemeanor. I agree the Bush Justice Department is a joke,ordering an investigation into the affairs of a wealthy man who transferred a few thousand dollars. Obama Bin Ladedn must be laughing his ass off.

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Roxxxanne wrote:

woiyo wrote:
I hope you are kidding here. Else, you are the biggest apologist on the planet.

First, given the size of the dollars in question, I EXPECT the FBI to investigate when a GOVERNOR is "washing" large sums of money to questionable people. Does extortion come to mind?

Last I checked, prostitution is illegal. Government officials MUST BE held to a higher standard. Especially a Former DA who put these people in jail.

Last I check, transferring money across State lines in connection with an illegal activity is a Federal Crime.

It is attitudes like those above that makes this Govt a joke. These idiots above who try to blame others for their own failures is a reason we are losing our way as a society.

What happened to the War on Terror? The FBI is now going to focus on the millions of men who hire prostitutes online i.e. transferring money across state lines to hire escorts, yada, yada, yada. This is insanity.

Spitzer hasn't been charged with anything. The only prosecution that would pass the smell test is a Class B Misdemeanor. I agree the Bush Justice Department is a joke,ordering an investigation into the affairs of a wealthy man who transferred a few thousand dollars. Obama Bin Ladedn must be laughing his ass off.

YOU are what wrong with this society!

How DARE you try to sway the subject in order to "protect one of your own". You and your kind think we are STUPID and think you can get over on the voters.

ANY ELECTED official involved in ANY criminal activity should immediately resin from office PERIOD.

You apparently have little knowledge of Federal Law as Spitzers action of paying for transportation violates FEDERAL LAW and is a FELONY.

By the way, the FBI is not involved in "catching Osama".

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woiyo wrote:

I hope you are kidding here. Else, you are the biggest apologist on the planet.

First, given the size of the dollars in question, I EXPECT the FBI to investigate when a GOVERNOR is "washing" large sums of money to questionable people. Does extortion come to mind?

Spending large amounts of mony is not "washing". People spend large amounts all the time. For it to be "washing" they must get the money back.

Quote:

Last I checked, prostitution is illegal. Government officials MUST BE held to a higher standard. Especially a Former DA who put these people in jail.

How about the same standard? Certainly they shouldn't be held to a lesser standard.

Quote:

Last I check, transferring money across State lines in connection with an illegal activity is a Federal Crime.

He withdrew cash from an ATM. That is not 'transferring money across state lines.' Nor can it really be considered a "federal crime" to use an ATM in a state other than the one your personal bank is in. What he did do was arrange for the girl to travel across state lines.

Quote:

It is attitudes like those above that makes this Govt a joke. These idiots above who try to blame others for their own failures is a reason we are losing our way as a society.

Spitzer hasn't tried to blame anyone to my knowledge.

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So woiyo,

When are you going to demand that Bush resign for authorizing torture in violation of the law? When are you going to demand that Bush resign for authorizing wire taps in violation of the law?

If you want to be consistent than be consistent but don't whine that others aren't being that way if you aren't going to do the same.

Warning to you woiyo - protesting that it hasn't been proven that Bush violated the law will only continue to show your inconsistency.

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parados wrote:

woiyo wrote:
I hope you are kidding here. Else, you are the biggest apologist on the planet.

First, given the size of the dollars in question, I EXPECT the FBI to investigate when a GOVERNOR is "washing" large sums of money to questionable people. Does extortion come to mind?
Spending large amounts of mony is not "washing". People spend large amounts all the time. For it to be "washing" they must get the money back.

Quote:

Last I checked, prostitution is illegal. Government officials MUST BE held to a higher standard. Especially a Former DA who put these people in jail.
How about the same standard? Certainly they shouldn't be held to a lesser standard.

Quote:

Last I check, transferring money across State lines in connection with an illegal activity is a Federal Crime.
He withdrew cash from an ATM. That is not 'transferring money across state lines.' Nor can it really be considered a "federal crime" to use an ATM in a state other than the one your personal bank is in. What he did do was arrange for the girl to travel across state lines.

Quote:

It is attitudes like those above that makes this Govt a joke. These idiots above who try to blame others for their own failures is a reason we are losing our way as a society.
Spitzer hasn't tried to blame anyone to my knowledge.

HERE COME THE APOLOGISTS.

Get your facts straight. He MAILED the "Emperors Club" the fee AND had her transported from NY to Washington DC.

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parados wrote:

So woiyo,

When are you going to demand that Bush resign for authorizing torture in violation of the law? When are you going to demand that Bush resign for authorizing wire taps in violation of the law?

If you want to be consistent than be consistent but don't whine that others aren't being that way if you aren't going to do the same.

Warning to you woiyo - protesting that it hasn't been proven that Bush violated the law will only continue to show your inconsistency.

Bush should resign immediately for alot more than just torture.

I am the only one being consistant when I say EVERY elected official is to be held to a higher standard than ordinary citizens. ANY elected official convicted of ANY crime should resign their position.

Unlike you, I stay objective and consistant.

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woiyo wrote:

parados wrote:
woiyo wrote:
I hope you are kidding here. Else, you are the biggest apologist on the planet.

First, given the size of the dollars in question, I EXPECT the FBI to investigate when a GOVERNOR is "washing" large sums of money to questionable people. Does extortion come to mind?
Spending large amounts of mony is not "washing". People spend large amounts all the time. For it to be "washing" they must get the money back.

Quote:

Last I checked, prostitution is illegal. Government officials MUST BE held to a higher standard. Especially a Former DA who put these people in jail.
How about the same standard? Certainly they shouldn't be held to a lesser standard.

Quote:

Last I check, transferring money across State lines in connection with an illegal activity is a Federal Crime.
He withdrew cash from an ATM. That is not 'transferring money across state lines.' Nor can it really be considered a "federal crime" to use an ATM in a state other than the one your personal bank is in. What he did do was arrange for the girl to travel across state lines.

Quote:

It is attitudes like those above that makes this Govt a joke. These idiots above who try to blame others for their own failures is a reason we are losing our way as a society.
Spitzer hasn't tried to blame anyone to my knowledge.

HERE COME THE APOLOGISTS.

Get your facts straight. He MAILED the "Emperors Club" the fee AND had her transported from NY to Washington DC.

I am shocked! SHOCKED!!! That a politician would hire a prostitute!

If are you suggesting a violation of The Mann Act better do some more research as to the intent of the law. If you can find a conviction or even a prosecution that concerns hiring an escort who was lavishly com0pensated for her services, please post a link and I will stand corrected. Good luck!

When is David Vitter resigning?

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wikipedia.org

The United States White-Slave Traffic Act of 1910 prohibited white slavery. It also banned the interstate transport of females for "immoral purposes." Its primary stated intent was to address prostitution, immorality, and human trafficking. The act is better known as the Mann Act, after James Robert Mann, an American lawmaker.

According to historian Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones, the Federal Bureau of Investigation's "racially skewed enforcement of the Mann Act was just one chapter in the history of Jim Crow"[1], the system of primarily state laws in the U.S. that enforced discrimination against African-American.s

The first person prosecuted under the act was heavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson, who had an affair with a prostitute named Lucille Cameron. Johnson married Cameron so that she couldn't be made to testify against him. Belle Schreiber, a prostitute that had at some point left a brothel and traveled with him to another state, was the next in line to testify against Johnson. He was eventually prosecuted and sentenced to the maximum penalty of a year and a day in prison.

Pioneering sociologist William I. Thomas's academic career at the University of Chicago was irreversibly damaged after he was arrested under the act when caught in the company of one Mrs Granger, the wife of an army officer with the American forces in France, although he was later acquitted in court.

British film actor Charles Chaplin was prosecuted in 1944 by Federal authorities for Mann Act charges related to his involvement with actress Joan Barry. Chaplin was acquitted of the charges, but the trial permanently damaged his public image in the US, and contributed to his departure for Switzerland in the early 1950s.

Canadian author Elizabeth Smart describes being arrested under the Mann Act in 1940 when crossing a state border with her lover, the British poet George Barker, in her (partly fictionalised) book By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept. She memorably intertwines the callous police interrogation aimed at arresting her under this law with quotations about love from the Song of Songs.

In the late 1950s, Kid Cann, a notorious organized crime figure from Minneapolis, Minnesota, was prosecuted and convicted under the Mann Act after transporting a prostitute from Chicago to Minnesota. Although his conviction was later overturned on appeal, Kid Cann was later prosecuted and convicted of offering a $25,000 bribe to a juror at his trial under the Mann Act.

The 1948 Mann Act prosecution of Frank LaSalle for abducting Florence Sally Horner is believed to have been an inspiration for Vladimir Nabokov in writing his novel Lolita; the book's protagonist, Humbert Humbert, seeking to escape watchful eyes and bind the nymphet Dolores Haze in his care more closely to him, imitates LaSalle's multi-state road trip during the course of the story.[2]

[edit] Mann Act case decisions by the United States Supreme Court

* Hoke v. United States (227 U.S. 308, 322) (1913). The Court held that Congress could not regulate prostitution per se, as that was strictly the province of the states. Congress could, however, regulate interstate travel for purposes of prostitution or "immoral purposes."
* Athanasaw v. United States (227 U.S. 326, 328) (1913). The Court decided that the law was not limited strictly to prostitution, but to "debauchery" as well.
* Caminetti v. United States (242 U.S. 470, 484-85) (1917). The Court decided that the Mann Act applied not strictly to purposes of prostitution, but to other noncommercial consensual sexual liaisons. Thus consensual extramarital sex falls within the genre of "immoral sex."
* Gebardi v. United States (287 U.S. 112) (1932). The Court held that the statutory intent was not to punish a woman's acquiescence; therefore, consent by the woman does not expose her to liability.
* Cleveland v. United States (329 U.S. 14, 16-17) (1946). The Court decided that a person can be prosecuted under the Mann Act even when married to the woman if the marriage is polygamous. Thus polygamous marriage was determined to be an "immoral purpose."
* Bell v. United States (349 U.S. 81, 83) (1955). The Supreme Court decided that simultaneous transportation of two women across state lines constituted only one violation of the Mann Act, not two violations.

[edit] Notable individuals prosecuted under the Act
This section does not cite any references or sources. (March 2008)
Please improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.

* Chuck Berry
* Charlie Chaplin
* Rex Ingram
* Jack Johnson
* William I. Thomas
* Frank Lloyd Wright
* Charles Manson

[edit] Notable individuals investigated under the Act

* Duko Popov, a World War II spy with a "James Bond" lifestyle, was threatened with arrest under the Mann Act.[3]
* Individuals associated with a prostitution ring that had Governor of New York Eliot Spitzer as a client.[4]

[edit] References

1. ^ Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones (2007). The FBI: A History. Yale University Press. ISBN 0300119143.
2. ^ Alexander Dolinin. What Happened to Sally Horner?: A Real-Life Source of Nabokov's Lolita. zembla. Art & Humanities Library of Pennsylvania State University. Retrieved on 2008-03-10. Humbert, the narrator, at one point explicitly refers to LaSalle.
3. ^ Gentry, Curt (2001). J. Edgar Hoover: The Man and the Secrets. W. W. Norton & Company, 272. ISBN 0393321282.
4. ^ New York Times, "Spitzer Is Linked to Prostitution Ring", 2008-03-10, Retrieved: 2008-03-10

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Technically, his actions DO violate the Mann Act and you know this to be true.

If the Justice Department feels like prosecuting him on this act is irrelevant to me. He admitted he violated his public trust and should resign immediately. He violated his oath of office and admitted breaking the law.

You fell compelled to defend his actions? Then why should you care about what any politician does. You are the party to this hypocracy we used to call the US Government.

As a result, that makes you a traitor to the Constitution in my opinion.

I am tired of arguing this point with apologists and defenders of "liberalism".
We are supposed to be a Nation of Laws. Yet, you ignore the Law when it effects you and yours.

You are part of the problem.

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Corrupt Bush Justice Dept Goes after Eliot Spitzer

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