Political Corruption Never Ends

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We know beyond a shadow of doubt that political corruption never ends. Sometimes they get away with it and sometimes they don’t. When they don’t why are we not surprised?

Recently in New Jersey (aka the Corrupt Capitol of the U.S.), an article appeared in the Asbury Park Press exposing a political fraud and how other politicians are so excited because it opens the door for takeover. The article was written by Charles Stile of the APP. Here goes; Oh yeah, all comments in ( ) are mine.

“U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez is in a spot no career politician wants to be. Federal prosecutors want to put him in a prison cell, and operatives in both parties are already measuring for curtains in his Washington office.

Menendez, 63, whose trial on federal corruption charges is set to begin Wednesday (9/6/17) in Newark, has no intention of going anywhere except back to work.

He has steadfastly maintained his innocence of charges that he put his Senate office at the service of friend and donor, Florida ophthalmologist Salomon Melgen, in exchange for a lavish list of gifts – free air travel; trips to Melgen’s villa at a Dominican Republic resort; and hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign donations.

After charges were filed, Senator Menendez said in court and to the public that he was not guilty and looked forward to showing that the allegations against him were false. Now, as the trial approaches, he will have the opportunity to do that so all can see. His attorney said that the Senator is in good spirits, has faith in the American system of justice, and is confident that when all the facts are heard, he will be vindicated.

For nearly four decades, Menendez, clawed his way up through Hudson County politics, first as a member of the Union City school board.

He went from mayor to legislator to Congress and the Senate in 2006. During his climb he became a powerful caretaker of the North Jersey Democrats, and a counterweight to the ascendant South Jersey political bloc.

Now, with his career in peril, Menendez opens the door for more scrambling and political opportunities (my comment).

Both parties are spinning hypothetical scenarios of a New Jersey political landscape without Menendez and how they could benefit from his departure.

Republicans are salivating over the prospect of padding their slim, two-vote majority in the senate.

A number of close calls and close collapses – the last attempt to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) came up one vote shy in late July – has underscored the importance of having a bigger cushion of votes in the unpredictable, wild ride of the Donald Trump era.

Republicans are banking on a long-shot scenario where Menendez is convicted sometime this fall and will vacate the seat, either through cutting a plea deal with prosecutors or if the Republican Senate moves quickly to expel him.

Since the task of filling a vacated Senate seat would fall to the sitting governor, Republicans hope that Menendez will abandon his seat sometime before (corrupt) term-limited Republican Gov. Chris Christie leaves office on Jan. 16th. If that happens, Christie is expected to pick a Republican replacement.

But to many, expelling Menendez before Christie leaves office remains a GOP pipe dream. For one thing, The Senate Ethics Committee, which would investigate and recommend a possible removal, has traditionally moved slowly.

The Senate moved to expel NJ Sen. Harrison “Pete” Williams in May 1982, 10 months after he was convicted in the notorious “ABSCAM” investigation. Williams was captured on tape accepting a loan from an FBI informant disguised as an Arab Sheikh.

Expulsion is rare, in part, because it requires a two-thirds vote of the Senate. Expelling Menendez, then, would require Republicans to enlist the support of 15 Democrats.

Aware of the steep math they face, Republican operatives are planning to turn up the heat on 10 incumbent Senate Democrats up for re-election last year in states that President Trump won and a handful where Democrat Hillary Clinton barely won.

A spokesman for the National Senatorial Campaign Committee said the if Menendez is convicted, Senate Democrats will have a choice to make – whether to stand with a convicted felon, or do the right thing. The right thing being pledging to support expulsion because it would be hard to face voters in a Republican state, saying you voted against censuring or expelling a guy who has been convicted.

Others, though, are saying that turning a possible Menendez conviction into a national election issue is unlikely with the ever present Trump devouring the daily news cycle. Trump, with his dismal standing in the polls, his divisive rhetoric ranging from Charlottesville to pardon the Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpalo and his so far, thin resume of achievement, will loom large over the 2018 midterm contests.

While Democrats may be forced to distance themselves from Menendez, Republican challengers will have to decide how far to run away from the president, the party’s standard bearer.

If convicted, most Democrats expect Menendez to appeal and exhaust all legal options before resigning – a process that could take well into next year.

Gubernatorial candidate and Democrat Philip Murphy, who enjoys a 27-point lead in the polls over Republican Kim Guadagno, as well as a 3-to-1 advantage in cash, is favored to succeed Christie this November. The possibility that a new Governor Murphy picking a replacement has many Democrats jockeying for a just-in-case position.

Among them is former Senator Robert Torricelli who was severely admonished by the Senate Ethics Committee for taking gifts from a longtime campaign contributor. Congressman Donald Norcross, who represents the First District in South Jersey is another possibility. His brother George, who is the state’s most powerful unelected Democrat official, along with Robert, have been supportive of Menendez throughout the legal battle and held a fundraiser for him earlier this year.

George is holding a fundraiser for Murphy and the Democratic Association in Cherry Hill, which is seen as an attempt to boost his brother’s chances (FYI, Murphy is a phony that only says what he need to say to get elected. What else is new?)

A spokesperson for George said the fundraiser is part of the routine party-building work George has done for the Democratic Party and viable candidates for governor (nothing like sucking up to the money guy!)

If Menendez is acquitted the the discussion is moot. But, even then Menendez faces more political headaches.

The Senate Ethics Committee, which halted its own probe of Menendez’s gifts from Melgen two years in deference to the federal investigators, will likely resume its work, armed this time with trial testimony. The panel could then possibly release its findings during Menendez’s 2018 re-election campaign.

That prospect, could in theory, weaken his re-election chances. Some Democrats might be emboldened to challenge him in a primary.

But most Democrats lack the money or the stomach to take on Menendez, a formidable fundraiser (who takes money from wherever he can get it) and a take-no-prisoner campaigner. He has already put $3.7 million in his campaign account.

Here’s the bribes he was accused of:
“ Influence immigration visas so Melgen’s girlfriends from Brazil, the Dominican Republic and Ukraine could visit him in Florida;

“ Pressure the State Department to convince the Dominican government to honor a Melgen-owned company’s exclusive contract to screen outbound cargo containers;

“ Stop the Homeland Security Department from donating cargo-screening equipment to the Dominican government;

“ Influence Medicare officials in a $9 million billing dispute over Melgen being reimbursed for administrating multiple doses of an expensive eye drug drawn from what were supposed to be single-dose vials.

Menendez faces six counts of bribery, three counts of honest services fraud, one count of conspiracy, one count of interstate travel to carry out bribery, and one count of making false statements on his congressional financial disclosures to conceal the crimes.

(Maybe it’s about time we abolish the “two-party” system and vote for a person based upon what he/she would like to accomplish).

If you think this is bad, I will put together an article describing the Hawaii fraudulent rail project that will literally blow your mind about blatant lies and corruption.

Aloha!

Hesh Goldstein
When I was a kid, if I were told that I'd be writing a book about diet and nutrition when I was older, let alone having been doing a health related radio show for over 36 years, I would've thought that whoever told me that was out of their mind. Living in Newark, New Jersey, my parents and I consumed anything and everything that had a face or a mother except for dead, rotting, pig bodies, although we did eat bacon (as if all the other decomposing flesh bodies were somehow miraculously clean). Going through high school and college it was no different. In fact, my dietary change did not come until I was in my 30's.

Just to put things in perspective, after I graduated from Weequahic High School and before going to Seton Hall University, I had a part-time job working for a butcher. I was the delivery guy and occasionally had to go to the slaughterhouse to pick up products for the store. Needless to say, I had no consciousness nor awareness, as change never came then despite the horrors I witnessed on an almost daily basis.

After graduating with a degree in accounting from Seton Hall, I eventually got married and moved to a town called Livingston. Livingston was basically a yuppie community where everyone was judged by the neighborhood they lived in and their income. To say it was a "plastic" community would be an understatement.

Livingston and the shallowness finally got to me. I told my wife I was fed up and wanted to move. She made it clear she had to be near her friends and New York City. I finally got my act together and split for Colorado.

I was living with a lady in Aspen at the end of 1974, when one day she said, " let's become vegetarians". I have no idea what possessed me to say it, but I said, "okay"! At that point I went to the freezer and took out about $100 worth of frozen, dead body parts and gave them to a welfare mother who lived behind us. Well, everything was great for about a week or so, and then the chick split with another guy.

So here I was, a vegetarian for a couple weeks, not really knowing what to do, how to cook, or basically how to prepare anything. For about a month, I was getting by on carrot sticks, celery sticks, and yogurt. Fortunately, when I went vegan in 1990, it was a simple and natural progression. Anyway, as I walked around Aspen town, I noticed a little vegetarian restaurant called, "The Little Kitchen".

Let me back up just a little bit. It was April of 1975, the snow was melting and the runoff of Ajax Mountain filled the streets full of knee-deep mud. Now, Aspen was great to ski in, but was a bummer to walk in when the snow was melting.

I was ready to call it quits and I needed a warmer place. I'll elaborate on that in a minute.

But right now, back to "The Little Kitchen". Knowing that I was going to leave Aspen and basically a new vegetarian, I needed help. So, I cruised into the restaurant and told them my plight and asked them if they would teach me how to cook. I told them in return I would wash dishes and empty their trash. They then asked me what I did for a living and I told them I was an accountant.

The owner said to me, "Let's make a deal. You do our tax return and we'll feed you as well". So for the next couple of weeks I was doing their tax return, washing their dishes, emptying the trash, and learning as much as I could.

But, like I said, the mud was getting to me. So I picked up a travel book written by a guy named Foder. The name of the book was, "Hawaii". Looking through the book I noticed that in Lahaina, on Maui, there was a little vegetarian restaurant called," Mr. Natural's". I decided right then and there that I would go to Lahaina and work at "Mr. Natural's." To make a long story short, that's exactly what happened.

So, I'm working at "Mr. Natural's" and learning everything I can about my new dietary lifestyle - it was great. Every afternoon we would close for lunch at about 1 PM and go to the Sheraton Hotel in Ka'anapali and play volleyball, while somebody stayed behind to prepare dinner.

Since I was the new guy, and didn't really know how to cook, I never thought that I would be asked to stay behind to cook dinner. Well, one afternoon, that's exactly what happened; it was my turn. That posed a problem for me because I was at the point where I finally knew how to boil water.

I was desperate, clueless and basically up the creek without a paddle. Fortunately, there was a friend of mine sitting in the gazebo at the restaurant and I asked him if he knew how to cook. He said the only thing he knew how to cook was enchiladas. He said that his enchiladas were bean-less and dairy-less. I told him that I had no idea what an enchilada was or what he was talking about, but I needed him to show me because it was my turn to do the evening meal.

Well, the guys came back from playing volleyball and I'm asked what was for dinner. I told them enchiladas; the owner wasn't thrilled. I told him that mine were bean-less and dairy-less. When he tried the enchilada he said it was incredible. Being the humble guy that I was, I smiled and said, "You expected anything less"? It apparently was so good that it was the only item on the menu that we served twice a week. In fact, after about a week, we were selling five dozen every night we had them on the menu and people would walk around Lahaina broadcasting, 'enchilada's at "Natural's" tonight'. I never had to cook anything else.

A year later the restaurant closed, and somehow I gravitated to a little health food store in Wailuku. I never told anyone I was an accountant and basically relegated myself to being the truck driver. The guys who were running the health food store had friends in similar businesses and farms on many of the islands. I told them that if they could organize and form one company they could probably lock in the State. That's when they found out I was an accountant and "Down to Earth" was born. "Down to Earth" became the largest natural food store chain in the islands, and I was their Chief Financial Officer and co-manager of their biggest store for 13 years.

In 1981, I started to do a weekly radio show to try and expose people to a vegetarian diet and get them away from killing innocent creatures. I still do that show today. I pay for my own airtime and have no sponsors to not compromise my honesty. One bit of a hassle was the fact that I was forced to get a Masters Degree in Nutrition to shut up all the MD's that would call in asking for my credentials.

My doing this radio show enabled me, through endless research, to see the corruption that existed within the big food industries, the big pharmaceutical companies, the biotech industries and the government agencies. This information, unconscionable as it is, enabled me to realize how broken our health system is. This will be covered more in depth in the Introduction and throughout the book and when you finish the book you will see this clearly and it will hopefully inspire you to make changes.

I left Down to Earth in 1989, got nationally certified as a sports injury massage therapist and started traveling the world with a bunch of guys that were making a martial arts movie. After doing that for about four years I finally made it back to Honolulu and got a job as a massage therapist at the Honolulu Club, one of Hawaii's premier fitness clubs. It was there I met the love of my life who I have been with since 1998. She made me an offer I couldn't refuse. She said," If you want to be with me you've got to stop working on naked women". So, I went back into accounting and was the Chief Financial Officer of a large construction company for many years.

Going back to my Newark days when I was an infant, I had no idea what a "chicken" or "egg" or "fish" or "pig" or "cow" was. My dietary blueprint was thrust upon me by my parents as theirs was thrust upon them by their parents. It was by the grace of God that I was able to put things in their proper perspective and improve my health and elevate my consciousness.

The road that I started walking down in 1975 has finally led me to the point of writing my book, “A Sane Diet For An Insane World”. Hopefully, the information contained herein will be enlightening, motivating, and inspiring to encourage you to make different choices. Doing what we do out of conditioning is not always the best course to follow. I am hoping that by the grace of the many friends and personalities I have encountered along my path, you will have a better perspective of what road is the best road for you to travel on, not only for your health but your consciousness as well.

Last but not least: after being vaccinated as a kid I developed asthma, which plagued me all of my life. In 2007 I got exposed to the organic sulfur crystals, which got rid of my asthma in 3 days and has not come back in over 10 years. That, being the tip of the iceberg, has helped people reverse stage 4 cancers, autism, joint pain, blood pressure problems, migraine headaches, erectile dysfunction, gingivitis, and more. Also, because of the detoxification effects by the release of oxygen that permeates and heals all the cells in the body, it removes parasites, radiation, fluoride, free radicals, and all the other crap that is thrust upon us in the environment by Big Business.

For more, please view www.healthtalkhawaii.com and www.asanediet.com.

Namaste!