John
McCain
2008
Election
|
Rick
Renzi
RICK RENZI News:
20080527
-
John
McCain - Rick
Renzi - Jon
Kyl - Money
- Politics
- Federal
- Investigation
- Phoenix
- Arizona
- Real
Estate - Land
- Legislation
- Nevada
- "FBI
interviews Arizona staffers." ... "Federal agents
interviewed staffers for likely [2008 Election] Republican presidential
nominee [and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain (Ariz. [Arizona]) as part
of their corruption case against [Arizona Republican
Representative] Rep. Rick Renzi (R-Ariz.[Republican-Arizona])."
... "[United States] U.S. Attorney for the District
of Arizona Diane J. Humetewa and fellow prosecutors disclosed the interviews
with aides for McCain and fellow Arizona Republican [Senator] Sen. Jon
Kyl in a written response to Renzi’s attorneys, who asked for the contents
of the interview to help prepare for Renzi’s upcoming trial, which is scheduled
for October [2008]." ... "The aides
were interviewed about land exchanges, according to an April letter from
Humetewa filed with the U.S. District Court of Arizona late last week."
... "A federal land swap critical to developing a $3 billion copper mine
southeast of Phoenix [Arizona] is at the heart of the case against Renzi,
who is facing 35 public corruption charges, including conspiracy, money-laundering,
extortion and insurance fraud." ... "Renzi is alleged to have told executives
for Resolution Copper Mining that he would not support a land deal the
mining company was interested in unless they bought his former business
partner’s property as part of the deal, according to the [February] Feb.
22 federal indictment." ... "Under the deal, 5,000 acres of non-federal
land owned by Resolution Copper were to be exchanged for 3,025 acres of
federal land. The federal land sits on a large copper deposit, and the
exchange would have allowed mining on land for the first time since a 1954
executive order by [Republican] then-President Dwight D. Eisenhower." ...
"Renzi allegedly wanted land owned by a business partner who owed Renzi
money to be included in the deal. If the land had been included, prosecutors
charge, it would have allowed the business partner to pay a debt to Renzi."
... "Resolution Copper refused to cooperate, but another company, Preserved
Petrified Forest Land Investors LLC [Limited Liability Company] of Las
Vegas [Nevada], agreed to buy the land. Prosecutors allege this netted
Renzi more than $700,000." ... "Renzi twice introduced a land swap bill,
in 2005 and 2006, before taking his name off of the measure after the FBI
[Federal Bureau of Investigation] raided his family business in April 2007.
[Arizona Democratic Representiave] Rep. Ed Pastor (D-Ariz.[Democratic-Arizona])
then introduced the legislation on [August] Aug. 1, 2007, along with Arizona
[Republican Representatives] Reps. Jeff Flake and John Shadegg, both Republicans,
and Democrat[ic Representative] Harry Mitchell (D[Democratic])." ... "Sens.
McCain and Kyl introduced companion legislation in the Senate, most recently
in July 2007. " (1, 2)
-By Susan Crabtree -TheHill.com
20080420
-
John
McCain - Psychology
- Politician
- History
- US
- International
- 2008
Election - Rick
Renzi - New
Hampshire - Virginia
- Texas
- Arizona
- "McCain:
A Question of Temperament." ... "Since the beginning
of [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate John] McCain's public
life, the many witnesses to his temper have had strikingly different reactions
to it. Some depict McCain, now the presumptive Republican nominee for president,
as an erratic hothead incapable of staying cool in the face of what he
views as either disloyalty to him or irrational opposition to his ideas.
Others praise a firebrand who is resolute against the forces of greed and
gutlessness." ... "Former senator Bob Smith, a New Hampshire Republican,
expresses worries about McCain: "His temper would place this country at
risk in international affairs, and the world perhaps in danger. In my mind,
it should disqualify him."" ... "He [McCain] recalls in his writings how,
as
a toddler, he sometimes held his breath and fainted during moments of fury."
... "The nicknames hung on him at Episcopal [private High School in Alexandria,
Virginia] mocked his hair-trigger feistiness: "Punk" and "McNasty."" ...
"In 2007, during a heated closed-door discussion with Senate colleagues
about the contentious immigration issue, he angrily shouted a profanity
at a fellow Republican [Senator], John Cornyn of Texas, an incident that
quickly found its way into headlines." ... "Reports recently surfaced of
[Representative] Rep. Rick Renzi, an Arizona Republican, taking offense
when McCain called him "boy" once too often during a 2006 meeting, a story
that McCain aides confirm while playing down its importance." ... "[Former
New Hampshire Republican Bob Smith] "I've witnessed a lot of his temper
and outbursts," Smith said. "For me, some of this stuff is relevant. It
raises questions about stability. . . . It's more than just temper. It's
this need of his to show you that he's above you -- a sneering, condescending
attitude. It's hurt his relationships in Congress. . . . I've seen it up-close.""
(1, 2,
3,
4,
5)
-By Michael Leahy -WashingtonPost
20080225
-
Rick
Renzi
- John
McCain
- Money
- Legislation
- Arizona
- Real
Estate - 2008
Election - "Renzi
Says He Won’t Resign." ... "Representative Rick Renzi,
the Arizona Republican who was indicted last week by a federal grand jury
on 35 corruption charges, issued a statement on Monday saying that he would
not resign despite signals from Republican leaders in Congress that they
would welcome his swift departure." ... "Mr. Renzi had been serving as
a Arizona state co-chairman of [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate
and Arizona] Senator John McCain’s campaign for president." ... "A grand
jury last week indicted Mr. Renzi on a raft of corruption charges, including
fraud, money laundering and extortion. Prosecutors charged that Mr. Renzi
pressured constituents to purchase land from his business partner in exchange
for his support for legislation that the constituents needed. At least
$733,000 in proceeds from the land sale were funneled back to Mr. Renzi,
according to the indictment." ... "Prosecutors also said that Mr. Renzi
and a partner in an insurance firm that he owned swindled clients, many
of them non-profit organizations, by selling them policies and then stealing
the premiums." -By
David M. Herszenhorn -NYTimes
20080222
-
Rick
Renzi
- John
McCain
- Politics
- Arizona
- Indiana
- 2008
Election - "Renzi
to step down from McCain camp." ... "On his weekly
blogger conference call, [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate]
John
McCain said that [Arizona Republican Representative] Rep. Rick Renzi
(R [Republican]) would probably step down as co-chair of his Arizona
campaign. McCain was unaware of the Arizona congressman's indictment until
asked about it this morning after a town hall in Indianapolis [Indiana],
at which point he said that you always think about the family in these
circumstances and he would look into Renzi's role in his campaign." -By
Mark Murray with contributions by Adam Aigner-Treworgy and Kelly O'Donnell
-MSNBC

-
Rick
Renzi
- John
McCain
- Money
- Politics
- Real
Estate - Federal
- Land
- Phoenix
- Arizona
- 2008
Election - "Rep.
Renzi indicted on fraud, finance charges." ... "Republican
[Representative] Rep. Richard Renzi of Arizona was indicted on 35 criminal
counts, including conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering and official
extortion stemming from land deals in his state, Justice Department officials
said on Friday." ... "The indictment stemmed from plans by Renzi and an
associate, a real estate investor, to benefit from a land-exchange deal
in Arizona in return for Renzi's support for necessary federal legislation,
court documents said." ... ""It was an object of the conspiracy for Renzi
to enrich (his associate) and personally benefit himself," according to
the 26-page indictment handed up by a federal grand jury in Phoenix [Arizona]
that the Justice Department released in Washington." ... "It also accused
Renzi, a three-term congressman who was a state co-chair for [2008 Election
Republican Presidential Candidate and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain's
presidential campaign, of embezzling premiums from clients of an insurance
business to fund his congressional campaign." (1, 2)
-By Randall Mikkelsen, James Vicini, Rick Cowan and
Thomas Ferraro, with contributions by Eric Walsh
-Reuters

-
Rick
Renzi
- Money
- Politics
- Real
Estate - US
Attorneys - Investigation
- Phoenix
- Arizona
- Federal
- Land
- "Rick
Renzi, Republican Congressman, Indicted by U.S. (Update3)."
... "Representative Rick Renzi, a Republican from Arizona who isn't seeking
re-election, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in an alleged scheme
to profit from a land deal." ... "Renzi, 49, who was first elected to the
House in 2002, was charged along with James Sandlin, 56, a real estate
investor and one of his political backers, and Andrew Beardall, 36, an
attorney who had been general counsel of Renzi's family insurance business.
Renzi and Beardall are accused of embezzling money from insurance clients
to fund the lawmaker's congressional campaign." ... "``Congressman Renzi
misused his public office by forcing a land sale that would financially
benefit himself and a business associate, and in so doing, he betrayed
the trust of the citizens of Arizona,'' said U.S. Attorney Diane Humetewa
of Phoenix [Arizona] in a statement." ... "The U.S. alleged that Renzi
offered to sponsor legislation to help a company seeking to swap land with
the federal government if it purchased property owned by Sandlin. Renzi,
who sat on a committee that approved such deals, told the company in early
2005 that he wouldn't support the request if it didn't buy the land, according
to the indictment. No deal was made." ... "Later, Renzi pressured a separate
investment group, also looking for approval of a land exchange, to purchase
the property, prosecutors said. That group agreed to buy 480 acres from
Sandlin for $4.6 million in April 2005, the government said." ... "The
Renzi investigation was highlighted during a congressional inquiry last
year into the [Republican President] Bush administration's firings of nine
U.S. attorneys. One of the dismissed prosecutors, Paul Charlton, had been
in charge of the probe." -By Robert Schmidt
-Bloomberg
|
US
Attorneys Scandal
20070425
Renzi
- Gonzales
- Miers
- Kyle
Sampson
- Arizona
- 2006
Election - US
Attorneys - Political
- Government
- Land
- Business
- Enforcement
"Delays
in Renzi Case Raise More Gonzales Questions." ...
"As midterm [2006] elections approached last November, federal investigators
in Arizona faced unexpected obstacles in getting needed Justice Department
approvals to advance a corruption investigation of [Arizona Representative]
Republican Rep. Rick Renzi, people close to the case said." ... "The delays,
which postponed key approvals in the case until after the election, raise
new questions about whether Attorney General Alberto Gonzales or other
officials may have weighed political issues in some investigations. The
Arizona U.S. attorney then overseeing the case, Paul Charlton, was told
he was being fired in December, one of eight federal prosecutors dismissed
in the past year. The dismissals have triggered a wave of criticism and
calls from Congress for Mr. Gonzales to resign." ... "Investigators pursuing
the Renzi case had been seeking clearance from senior Justice Department
officials on search warrants, subpoenas and other legal tools for a year
before the [2006] election, people close to the case said." ... "Mr. Renzi
is the subject of a criminal inquiry into land deals, among other things.
The
Wall Street Journal reported last week that federal agents are focusing
on a $200,000 cash payment Mr. Renzi received from a former business partner
in 2005 following a land sale that was to be part of a proposed government
land-exchange bill." ... "In September, [Republican] President Bush hosted
a fund-raiser in Scottsdale [Arizona] on his behalf. About the same time
Mr. Charlton was added to a list of prosecutors "we should now consider
pushing out," wrote Mr. Gonzales's then-chief of staff, Kyle Sampson, in
a Sept. 13, 2006, email to then-White House counsel Harriet Miers." -By
John R. Wilke and Evan Perez -WSJ.com
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