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Kenneth P. Vogel Profile picture
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2 Mar, 5 tweets, 5 min read
Government watchdogs should call out transparency & influence concerns regardless of partisan affiliation.

@POGOwatchdog has exemplified this, flagging links between BIDEN's inner circle & shadowy consultancies like WESTEXEC as emblematic of the DC swamp. pogo.org/topics/legaliz…
.@POGOwatchdog has asserted WestExec "circumvents" lobbying disclosure laws, "sells influence & connections” & called it “disappointing” that Biden tapped so many WestExec alumni “because I thought the message was clear … that the swamp is unacceptable & it’s time for a change.” ImageImageImageImage
So it’s puzzling to see @POGOwatchdog’s Senior Ethics Fellow @waltshaub accusing me of being a partisan for using the words “Dem Swamp” to describe WestExec’s merger with another opaque corporate consultancy (@Teneo) that grew out of its ties to Clinton.
.@waltshaub's criticism is especially puzzling given how many facets of the TRUMP SWAMP my reporting revealed. nytimes.com/2020/07/06/us/… nytimes.com/interactive/20… nytimes.com/2018/12/10/us/… nytimes.com/2020/07/13/us/… nytimes.com/2017/08/01/us/… nytimes.com/2021/01/17/us/… politico.com/story/2017/04/…
Looks like @waltshaub deleted his latest series of attacks on my integrity.

Here it is, so you can judge whether it was valid criticism. Image

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More from @kenvogel

Kenneth P. Vogel Profile picture
10 Feb
.@BernieSanders to @neeratanden: “Your attacks were not just made against Republicans. There were vicious attacks made against progressives, people who I have worked with — me personally… Can you reflect a little bit about some of your decisions…?”
For reference: in 2008, @NeeraTanden, then a top @HillaryClinton aide, punched @fshakir in the chest after he asked Clinton about her Iraq war vote.

Neera’s reaponse: “I didn’t slug him, I pushed him.”

Shakir became @BernieSanders’s 2020 campaign chief. nytimes.com/2019/04/15/us/…
During his 2020 campaign, @BernieSanders sent a letter to @neeratanden’s board accusing her of “maligning my staff and supporters and belittling progressive ideas.” nytimes.com/2019/04/14/us/…
Read 7 tweets
Kenneth P. Vogel Profile picture
8 Feb
NEW: ALAN DERSHOWITZ helped craft & push proposals for GEORGE NADER to be released from a 10-year sentence (for child pornography/sex trafficking) & returned to the U.A.E. (on an Emirate jet) so he could play a role in backchannel Middle East peace talks. nytimes.com/2021/02/08/us/…
GEORGE NADER's allies believed @AlanDersh was pushing for clemency from TRUMP.

DERSHOWITZ says that was a small part of his work for Nader, who didn't get out.

But the episode shows how DERSHOWITZ was sought after by people seeking relief from TRUMP. nytimes.com/2021/02/08/us/…
ALAN DERSHOWITZ used his access to lobby TRUMP for clemency for clients, & played a role in at least 12 clemency grants, including JONATHAN BRAUN.

When @AlanDersh learned that Braun had a history of violence & threats, he donated the $ paid by the Brauns. nytimes.com/2021/01/22/us/…
Read 4 tweets
Kenneth P. Vogel Profile picture
12 Jan
SHELDON ADELSON was portrayed as a master political manipulator.

But his giving was often feckless & driven by relationships.

When I asked why he was funding a @newtgingrich '12 super PAC, he said “I’m just a loyal guy," then compared NEWT's ill-fated campaign to a steak dinner Image
That interview (which was in my book) came after @maggieNYT & I wrote for @politico that ADELSON had committed to donating $20M to a super PAC supporting GINGRICH's 2012 campaign.

*Adelson denied he made any such commitment.

**He ended up donating $20M. politico.com/story/2011/12/…
The few times I talked to Adelson, I found him engaging & unpredictable.

GOP operatives were often frustrated by his unpredictability & tendency to wait until late in the cycle to give big $.

They expect his widow MIRIAM ADELSON to continue giving $$$, perhaps more predictably.
Read 5 tweets
Kenneth P. Vogel Profile picture
10 Jan
NEW: Allies of @WikiLeaks founder JULIAN ASSANGE have ramped up a push for a last-minute pardon from TRUMP, filing a clemency petition with the WH & enlisting a lobbyist with connections to the administration, ROBERT STRYK. nytimes.com/2021/01/10/us/…
The Australia-based press freedom group @BPFreeSpeech retained ROBERT STRYK to seek a pardon for JULIAN ASSANGE.

Stryk says he is working for free "in solidarity with Julian Assange" & will continue seeking a pardon under BIDEN, if TRUMP doesn't grant it. nytimes.com/2021/01/10/us/…
NEW DOCUMENT: The pardon petition filed by JULIAN ASSANGE’s lawyer.

It seems tailored for TRUMP, highlighting revelations in the @DNC hack & noting Assange's prosecution stems from publishing material related to "wars initiated by a prior administration." int.nyt.com/data/documentt…
Read 4 tweets
Kenneth P. Vogel Profile picture
16 Dec 20
NEW: For $1M, corporations can be listed as a "chair" of JOE BIDEN's inauguration ($500k for individuals).

Donor packages include "virtual signed photos" with Biden, @KamalaHarris & their spouses, plus virtual briefings with inaugural & campaign leaders. beta.documentcloud.org/documents/2042…
NEW: BIDEN's inaugural is forgoing fossil fuel $, but liberal groups want the ban expanded to "all major corporate sectors" to prevent them "from wielding undue influence."

The groups, led by @demandprogress, released a letter to @BidenInaugural today. nytimes.com/live/2020/12/1…
The BIDEN inaugural committee's "drive to raise so much $ without a clear use for it is perplexing & the appearance of doing so is disconcerting, as we must strive to stamp out the unfettered corruption that has defined the TRUMP era," wrote liberal groups s3.amazonaws.com/demandprogress…
Read 5 tweets
Kenneth P. Vogel Profile picture
17 Nov 20
BIDEN WH STAFF SO FAR:

➡️Venture capital executive (@RonaldKlain).
➡️Former pharmaceutical, insurance lobbyist (Steve Ricchetti).
➡️Top Dem recipient of Big Oil $ (@CedricRichmond).
➡️Co-founder of firm that represents pharma & private equity (@jomalleydillon).
MORE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION PICKS:

➡️Co-founder of firm that represents big defense & tech companies (@ABlinken).
➡️Ex-consultant for data-miner @PalantirTech (Avril Haines).
➡️Senior VP (on leave) of firm that represented embattled Swiss-based mining giant Glencore (@LindaT_G).
BIDEN ECONOMIC TEAM PICKS:

➡️Managing director for massive NY financial firm (@BrianCDeese).
➡️ex-senior advisor for massive NY financial firm (@wallyadeyemo).
➡️CEO of DC think tank that has raised millions from Wall St, big banks, big tech & defense contractors (@neeratanden).
Read 16 tweets

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