Saturday, June 27, 2009

Where is CAIR on Iran?

Cross-posted by Gary Fouse
fousesquawk



Mr Awad, Mr Hooper?


I periodically check out the official website of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) to see if they have issued a statement on the happenings in Iran. I have thus far, failed to find any mention of Iran on their site. Of course, it may be that they posted something briefly and I missed it. Or it may be that their national leaders have issued a statement which doesn't appear on the website. Maybe it's all my ineptitude, but I just can't find any mention or statement by CAIR.

Of course, any time you read their website, you will find lots of reports of anti-Muslim bigotry and Islamophobia that they report, as well as reports of all the good works they are doing to promote inter-faith understanding and articles that dispel rumors about the group.

I have found a statement on Iran on the website of the Islamic Society of North America, which calls on the Iranian government to release those arrested during the disturbances, particularly one individual. That's about as far as it goes.

But nothing from CAIR. Can anybody help me out here? Or does CAIR not want to discuss the atrocities and crimes carried out by Islamic governments against their own people? If you want to find CAIR condemnations of Israel when it fights back against terrorists, you will be rewarded. But what about an Islamic government (that's what it calls itself) murdering its own people on the streets of Iranian cities?

So if anyone can illuminate me on any statements by CAIR, it's executive director, Nihad Awad or press spokesman, Ibrahim Hooper, I will be happy to acknowledge them.

Friday, June 26, 2009

Michael Jackson

Cross-posted by Gary Fouse
fousesquawk






I never was a fan of Michael Jackson. Maybe I was just a few years too old to be caught up in his music. That is not to deny his talent, which he was obviously born with. As a singer, he was OK. His extraordinary skill was his dancing and choreography. But who am I? Michael Jackson was possibly the biggest music star of all time. Still, with all the monumental problems going on in the world-especially in Iran, it seems incongruous to me that the world has come to a standstill over his death. Better it come to a standstill over the death of Neda, the young Iranian woman shot dead in the streets of Teheran by a hoodlum government.

Like it or not, however, this Michael Jackson thing is not going away any time soon. The whole episode is a mess-far beyond a 50-year-old man-child dying suddenly of cardiac arrest. No, this has all the ingredients of another Anna Nicole Smith drama complete with drugs, pain-killers, questionable conduct by a physician, alleged injections of Demerol, pending autopsy results, prominent pathologists like Cyril Wecht coming out of the woodwork to second-guess, and CPR performed by a cardiologist on a bed. Throw in the custody battle to come over his three kids and fighting over his estate. Add millions of fans lighting candles, holding vigils, crying, and what have you; it's going to be all Michael-all the time-even if the world comes to an end.

As cynical as I am, I was touched yesterday by the account of local ABC reporter Leo Stallworth, as he recounted his meeting with Jackson a few years back during the course of the infamous child-molestation trial. One day, Stallworth was walking across the parking lot of the courthouse when he encountered Jackson, who was sitting in an SUV. Jackson, recognizing him as a reporter, waved him over, introduced himself, and invited him into the vehicle for a chat. He asked Stallworth about his childhood and how he came to be a reporter. He then explained to Stallworth that he himself was a human, but one who had never had the opportunity to have a cherished childhood. There's not much more I can add to that because I can't tell the story in as moving a way as Stallworth did.

From what we all know of Jackson's life, it is a given that he did not have a normal childhood. Nor did he have the opportunity to become a normally-functioning adult. He have heard stories of possible abuse by his father, but I am no more qualified to pass judgement on that than anyone else. Nor can I pass judgement on the charges of pedophilia, of which he was acquitted. I have my own opinion, but that is all it's worth.

For all his talent, Jackson's legacy will always be clouded. There will always be the questions about chemical dependency, his eccentricities, and the eternal question of his relationships with young children. Was it simply a matter of a confused individual trying to capture a childhood he never had for altruistic reasons, or was it something more sinister? Aside from the superstar performer and the million-selling hits, what will be Jackson's legacy as a person and a citizen? It is unfortunate that we may never settle that question once and for all. Yes, he was a tragic figure-like many others who were brought down by their careers and celebrity. Jackson enjoyed many rewards in life for his talent, but it came at a price.

At the end of it all, I can't decide whether I pity him or not. I do feel, however, that there are more important people and issues in the world that we should be crying over.

Catholic Colleges Supporting Abortion Advocates and Gay Marriage

by Barbara W. Sowell

The Cardinal Newman Society has posted an article naming 10 Catholic Colleges and universities that are promoting student internships with organizations that support abortion and/or Gay marriage.

Here's an excerpt from the article, "Ten Catholic Colleges Support Internships with Advocates of Abortion, Gay Marriage"

A national Catholic higher education organization has identified 10 Catholic colleges and universities that are promoting student internships with organizations whose missions or activities are directly opposed to the moral teachings of the Catholic Church, including on fundamental issues such as abortion and marriage.

“This discovery validates the concerns of so many thousands of faithful Catholic parents and students, that public scandals at Catholic colleges are just the tip of the iceberg,” said Patrick J. Reilly, President of The Cardinal Newman Society. “Under what definition of ‘Catholic education’ do students receive academic credit to work for leading pro-abortion organizations?”

Last week, CNS wrote to the presidents of these colleges and universities to inform them of the problems with their internship programs. None have yet indicated that they will take steps to remedy the problems.

The internship programs—along with concerns about theological dissent, weakening academic standards and declining campus culture at many Catholic colleges and universities—help explain why most students and recent graduates of Catholic institutions believe that abortion and gay marriage should be legal, despite the Church’s clear teachings to the contrary. That was one of the disturbing findings of a November 2008 study published by the CNS Center for the Study of Catholic Higher Education and titled “Behaviors and Beliefs of Current and Recent Students at U.S. Catholic Colleges.”

Go to the article here for a listing of the institutions involved.

Message from Focus on the Family Action, Inc.

Congress is considering two bills – the Hate Crimes Act and ENDA (Employment Non-Discrimination Act) – that would severely threaten our religious beliefs and our ability to share those beliefs. I invite you to join me in signing a Focus Action petition opposing these bills and asking Congress to stop them now.

Sign the Petition here.

Join Christians Against Leftist Heresy

 

A Major Shift in Priorites


Michael Jackson is dead. All other current crises will now be put on hold. Sorry Ahmadinejad, sorry Kim Jong Ill, but your audiences have all left the room. No one is paying any attention to you today, current events have pushed you off the stage. Ahmadinejad, you will just have to continue work on your nuclear weapons without comment from the West. And Kim Jong Ill, your threats and provocations have no weight with us today. Your newsworthiness has been usurped by a much more significant story, a much more significant crisis.
Michael Jackson is dead. From Fox News to the BBC, it has already been decided, this is the major issue of the day. Forget about nuclear proliferation. Forget about escalating threats and impending confrontations. Forget about the Global War on Terror. The Western World has spoken, they have made their priorities known. The Western World has decided what is truly important today, and what is not. And you, Ahmadinejad, and you Kim Jong Ill, just don't have what it takes to compete with this current crisis. So, just do whatever you want to do, we're going to be ignoring you for awhile. You see, you're just not as important as you thought you were. - rg

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

3 Years Is Too Long!

by Findalis


June 25, 2009 will be the 3rd anniversary of the kidnapping of Gilad Shalit. 3 years of being a POW. Yet in his case the International Red Cross is not allowed to visit, the world's media (excluding the media in Israel) is silent, and the leaders of the world are more concerned with recognizing Hamas (the kidnappers) and not one lone Israeli soldier.

It was Yelena Bonner, the widow of Andrei Sakharov who brought up Gilad's plight to the public forum in a speech given at the Oslo Freedom Forum:
Why doesn’t the fate of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit trouble you in the same way as the fate of the Guantanamo prisoners?

You fought for and won the opportunity for the International Committee of the Red Cross, journalists, and lawyers to visit Guantanamo. You know prison conditions, the prisoners’ everyday routine, their food. You have met with prisoners subjected to torture. The result of your efforts has been a ban on torture and a law to close this prison. President Obama signed it in the first days of his coming to the White House…

But during the two years Shalit has been held by terrorists, the world human rights community has done nothing for his release. Why? He is a wounded soldier, and fully falls under the protection of the Geneva Conventions. The Conventions say clearly that hostage-taking is prohibited, that representatives of the Red Cross must be allowed to see prisoners of war, especially wounded prisoners, and there is much else written in the Geneva Conventions about Shalit’s rights.

The fact that representatives of the Quartet conduct negotiations with the people who are holding Shalit in an unknown location, in unknown conditions, vividly demonstrates their scorn of international rights documents and their total legal nihilism. Do human rights activists also fail to recall the fundamental international rights documents?

And yet I still think (and some will find this naive) that the first tiny, but real step toward peace must become the release of Shalit. Release - and not his exchange for 1,000 or 1,500 prisoners who are in Israeli prisons serving court sentences for real crimes.

Returning to my question of why human rights activists are silent, I can find no answer except that Shalit is an Israeli soldier, Shalit is a Jew. So again, it is conscious or unconscious anti-Semitism. Again, it is fascism.
Gilad Shalit is a Jew. That is why the world accepts Hamas' continued captivity of Sgt. Shalit. Dr. Bonner saw the truth, when will the rest of the world see it.

Dhimmi Carter has suggested to President Obama that Hamas be taken off the terror group list. Perhaps President Obama do so when and if Hamas releases Sgt. Shalit first. It would be a gesture on Hamas' part that they are willing to become civilized and follow international law. Until that they must be kept on the terror group list.

Not once during President Obama speech to Muslims that he gave in Egypt did he mention Gilad Shalit. Not once. Isn't it about time that he did.

And isn't it about time you did too. You can. For the next 24 hours go onto Twitter, Facebook and other networking sites and shout out about this injustice. A Soldier's Mother has done just that with:
We MUST get #Gilad to the top on Thursday! Spread it using RT Facebook, LinkedIn – email. Please Thursday remember #Gilad!"
Let us all make Thursday Gilad Shalit Day.

It is time to bring Sgt. Shalit home. Let it be soon!

"From Mumbai to the USA: Are you ready yet?": A Second Look



A note from Radarsite. Interestingly, this article from November 2008 shows up as the most read article on Radarsite for today, June 24, 2009. It has consistently been among the top three Radarsite articles for the past three days. These hits are coming from all over the world. I have no idea why this particular article has garnered so much interest lately, and I would appreciate any thoughts on this subject. - rg
FBI Academy
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---------------------------------------------------------------

How could our enemy make themselves any more obvious? Here is the truth, plain and simple: the enemy is Islam. Their avowed mission is to utterly destroy or totally dominate the West. They have been prosecuting this War against the West for at least five decades now. Since World War Two, they have been responsible for innumerable bloody attacks against our innocent civilians, against our innocent women and children. Every year they grow stronger, and more and more emboldened. Every year they increase the frequency and the severity of their attacks. And what price have they paid for this relentless orgy of mass murder? What real pain have we ever actually inflicted on them? What have we done to them to deter them from further attacks? Anything? Have we ever really hurt them at all?
Are we going to continue relying on the United Nations to admonish them and to dissuade them from their great jihad against the West? Are we going to look for help from this useless multi-national organization, who has repeatedly sanctioned these terrorist attacks by presenting Islam as the victim of Western aggression? Are we going to look to the toothless and morally conflicted EU to help us to win this war? Those cowardly Europeans who cannot even find the will to protect their own nations from this encroaching Muslim menace?
After all this time, do we really not know who the enemy is? Do we really not know who gives them comfort and succor? Are we still determined to close our eyes and ears to this loud and clear message from Mumbai?
Or are we finally ready now to fight this war with brave deeds instead of cowardly words, to finally inflict some real pain on this blood-soaked enemy who is determined to destroy us? Are we ready now?
If we are ready, if we are truly determined to protect ourselves, then we must deter the enemy. Do we really have no weapons in this war? Are we really that helpless? The answer is No. We have the weapons to use, we just have to use them. We just have to get serious. Here is how we could begin.
Number one:
All Muslim immigration to the US must be curtailed immediately.
Number two:
All Muslims here in this country, whether citizens of this country or not, must be treated as enemy aliens, and either rounded up or deported.
Number three:
Islam must be declared to not be considered a religion, but rather an enemy ideology, incompatible with our democratic principles, and the practice of Islam must be declared illegal in the US or any of its territories.
Number four:
We must close all mosques and all Islamic organizations. Anyone promoting or advocating Islam must be declared to be an enemy of the State.
Number five:
Any country that promotes the cause of Islam must henceforth be considered an enemy of the United States.
Number six:
Any threats against the West in general or America in particular must be considered acts of war. And the country from which these threats emerge must be punished in some immediate and meaningful way. In this, we will act ruthlessly and unilaterally, regardless of the interests of other countries or of the corrupt, anti-Western, pro-Islamic UN.
Number seven:
All options must be left on the table. The nuclear option must be made real. If our very existence is to be at stake, then we must be prepared to threaten the very existence of our enemies.
Number eight:
No more words. No more empty diplomatic sanctions. If we are attacked we will react violently and disproportionately and without mercy.
Number nine:
We are ready now to show the world that we truly do have the will to survive and the will to inflict terrible injuries on our enemies. And to our enemies we say this, We have exhausted all other means of deterrence, now we are going to use our awesome might to subjugate you and destroy your will. If you will not respect us then, by God, you will learn to fear us. Know that there will be no limits to our revenge. We will find you and we will kill you. We will kill your families and we will destroy your homes. We will flatten your cities and reduce your countries to ashes before we will submit to your barbaric will. Take a lesson from Imperialist Japan. You have awakened and angered a great beast and now you will pay the terrible consequences of your folly.

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Tuesday, June 23, 2009

U.S. Attorney Larry Brown and CNCS Displeasure with Walpin

By Maggie at Maggie's Notebook

One of the issues concerning Gerald Walpin's firing that is not being discussed much, is the displeasure of acting U.S. Attorney General Lawrence Brown with Walpin. Another not being discussed at all, is why the CNCS board turned hostile toward an investigation CNCS had tasked Walpin with, via Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.


Lawrence G. Brown

Acting Attorney General Lawrence G. Brown sent a letter to the "Integrity and Ethics" Counsel of Inspectors General, asking that Walpin be scrutinized for an ethics breach in the investigation of Kevin Johnson, Sacrament0 Mayor, and of course, former NBA "star."

At this point, the investigation had been completed. Here are Brown's concerns about Walpin:

1) Walpin was not authorized to recommend Suspension and Debarment for Kevin Johnson and Dana Gonzalez - overstepping his authority.

2) Walpin's report and his conclusions seemed overstated and not reflective of the investigation

3) Walpin released information to the press that the case was being referred to the U.S. Attorney's office for a decision on whether to prosecute criminally or civilly, before notifying Brown's office. Brown asserts that he learned about it through the Sacramento Bee and not through proper channels.

4) Walpin withheld information from the U.S. Attorney's office.

5) Walpin did not achieve a "settlement agreement" quickly enough to allow Johnson to be released from the Suspension upon becoming Sacramento's Mayor. The Sacramento Bee was calling for a quick resolution because it was believed that the City of Sacramento could not receive federal funds if their Mayor was under suspension.

Brown wrote the letter to the Ethics Committee on April 29, 2009.
You can read Brown's letter here.

Gerald Walpin responded with an 18 page letter [undated from what I can see]. You can read Walpin's letter here. Because he answers every accusation by Brown in detail, I cannot easily put it down in a bulleted list. I've outlined what I see as the pertinent points dispelling Brown's claims.

This is important because after Walpin was fired, reports were everywhere that he mishandled the investigation of Kevin Johnson? But did he? We have an acting U.S. Attorney General making the charge. How does Walpin fight back against that? Maybe his 18-page response "to the complaint" shows another side, and in fact, it does - if the media would just report it.

Here are snippets of Walpin's counter:

About overstepping his authority: Walpin said it is his job to forward an investigation to the U.S. Attorney when he believes it may merit criminal or civil prosecution. He explained to Brown that the difference between "grant fraud" and the "contract fraud" that U.S. Attorney's offices are more familiar with, is an important difference. Walpin said I:
...quoted one of "Mr. Brown's ultimate supervisors, the Deputy Attorney General in emphasizing the importance of prosecuting "grant fraud," and support of "an energized and empowered IG community working in tandem with...Federal prosecutors" to achieve that end.
Walpin pointed out his procedure for submitting the case to the U.S. Attorney General was the same procedure his predecessors used:
I am informed that it has been the custom in my office, before I commenced as IG, to send a referral with such a covering letter. Aside from personally communicating the seriousness of the OIG’s decision to make the referral, it serves as an Executive Summary of the referral, which here was 33 pages long. Most United States Attorney’s offices to which I have forwarded referrals with such an “executive summary” cover letter, always containing my explanation of why I believed the conduct warranted prosecutorial action, have expressed appreciation for such explanations and summaries. Indeed, when I, together with Supervisory Special Agent (“SSA”) Morales and Special Agent Wingers, met with Mr. Brown and several of his fellow Assistant U.S. Attorneys, on August 25, 2008, they complimented us on our referral and the personal interest we took in it by traveling to California to meet with them.
Walpin responded that Mr. Brown's view that an IG has no further role is wrong:
The Senate Report, explaining the purpose of the Inspector General Act of 1978, specifies that the IG has the duty to “[a]ssume a leadership role in any and all activities which he deems useful to promote economy and efficiency in the administration of programs and operations or prevent and detect . . .waste in such programs and operations.” S. Rep. No. 95-1071, at 27 (1978), reprinted in 1978 U.S.C.C.A.N. 2676, 2702 (emphasis added).

Mr. Brown’s misunderstanding of the proper role of the IG is further shown in his
assertion that the IG is the “investigative arm of the CNCS Agency.” The IG is statutorily made independent of the CNCS Agency, with responsibility to oversee and criticize what CNCS is doing if the IG believes that the agency is thereby wasting Federal funds -- including the waste of the right to recovery Federal funds from a grantee that misused Federal funds granted to it.
Of Brown's assertion that the IG "is not intended to act as an advocate for suspension or debarment," Walpin responds:
...the procedure exists to protect all Federal funds by denying new funds to an individual or entity who/which has shown by uncovered facts not to be trustworthy or responsible in the prior use of Federal funds....For the Suspension and Debarment procedure to work to protect Federal funds, the investigative agency, upon determining that the facts it uncovered warrant suspension, must make a recommendation of suspension to the agency's Suspension and Debarment official. That is exactly what OIG did here.
Walpin's response on When and How Mr. Brown Learned of the Suspension Recommendation: Brown not only knew "long before" he says he knew, but "he and his office assisted OIG in its suspension recommendation by submitting a letter, requested by the Suspension and Debarment Official as needed before that official would issue the Suspension order.
Mr. Brown’s assertion of lack of advance knowledge and surprise at the suspension
procedure is clearly without factual basis.
There's far more on Brown's alleged surprise notification in the letter on pages 4-6.

Walpin's response on The Propriety of the OIG Press Release: The Sacramento Bee, on September 24, 2008 and it's morning edition on September 25th, reported "its own discovery of the names of suspended parties" from a list that the General Services Administration (GSA) maintains. He says the OIG issued no press release on that date, as Brown accused.

After The Bee's initial article was published, Walpin says the OIG issued a press release on September 25, 2008. In that press release, Walpin says he "largely repeated the grounds for suspension set out in the Notice of Suspension, issued by the Corporation's Suspension and Debarment Official and publicly posted on the GSA website.

It's important to note that before the idea of firing Gerald Walpin became the thing to do, the corporation, CNCS, issued the Notice of Suspension of Kevin Johnson. Perhaps CSNC didn't know that their soon-to-be-President Obama would not be happy with their actions.

Walpin responds to The OIG Investigators' Alleged Withholding of Information From the U.S. Attorney's Office: Brown said that Walpin held back a letter from an elementary school principal (Herinder Pegany) where the principal claimed that "St. HOPE AmeriCorps members had performed after-school tutoring at his school." Walton said the letter actually said that the principal "knew that members were assigned to his school to conduct tutoring," but "he did not know how many members were assigned to his school...because he did not directly supervise the members." The point, said Walton, was not whether or not AmeriCorps members had been assigned to the school, but if in fact, they had "performed such tutoring." That fact was not established through the Principal's testimony because he said he had "no personal knowledge" of such tutoring.
Simply put, OIG does not provide to U.S. Attorney’s office all documents prepared as memoranda of work done during an investigation (and OIG’s Special Agents so informed Mr. Brown when they met with him), but rather all documents which provide usable evidence, whether probative of guilt or innocence. Particularly given the lack of personal knowledge provided by Mr. Pegany, I fully understand, as I previously told Mr. Brown, the good faith judgment call made by these two experienced Agents not to include that memorandum in the referral to the United States Attorney’s office. That decision certainly does not warrant the charge against them of any intent to conceal.
Brown asserted that Walpin "misled" his office through a heading in OIG's referral letter, titled "AmeriCorps Members Performed No Tutoring." Walpin says below that heading was the explanation that substantiated interviews with staff.

Brown's assertion that in the August 25th meeting he and his staff "expressed [their] concern that the Walpin's report conclusions "seemed overstated...."
What Mr. Brown and his colleagues said was that they would be studying all of the files that OIG had provided to see if criminal intent and knowledge could be established for a criminal prosecution; they never expressed any concern concerning the existence of a viable civil case.
Regarding the charge that Walpin failed to conduct an audit:
OIG then responded that an audit was neither feasible nor needed, and is not used in many investigations. OIG explained that the allegations in this case involved misuse of AmeriCorps members, and not to missing or misused funds, making an audit not warranted.
However, on September 11th, Assistant U.S. Attorney Newman asked OIG to prepare a report on St. HOPE's financial records to determine the extent of St. HOPE's liability to return any or all of the grant funds that it had received." At this time, a subpoena was served on October 1, 2008 on St. HOPE. As late as January 22, 2009 only partial information had been provided. Repeated letters to St. HOPE and St. HOPE's attorney on non-compliance were issued.
Yet, the U.S. Attorney's office took no action to enforce the subpoena.
On February 4, 2009, additional documents were provided, and AUSA Newman advised that OIG auditors "should base their report on the documents" available, "even though a big void in the required documents remained." Missing were:
“Source documentation for costs charged to the grant; complete general ledger (only a partial ledger was produced); reconciliation of costs charged on the Financial Status report to the general ledger, including match funds; explanation of the methodology for allocating costs between match and federal share; [and] identification of the accounting system used.” In other words, there were gaping
holes in the documentation. But to demonstrate OIG’s cooperation with the USA’s office, OIG's audit staff prepared its report.
The conclusion:
The report’s conclusion was straight forward:
None of the costs charged to the grant are allowable, primarily because the
AmeriCorps members’ service activities were not consistent with the grant
requirements.

Contrary to . . . grant requirements and prohibitions, we found that St. HOPE AmeriCorps members performed little, if any, of the service agreed to and stipulated under the grant. Instead, they were used for non-authorized and prohibited activities, including services that displaced St. HOPE employees, a violation of 42 U.S.C. § 12637 Non duplication and Non displacement. We also found instances where AmeriCorps living allowances and benefits were unlawfully used to supplement the salaries of St. HOPE employees. Another grant requirement is that all allowable cost must be adequately documented. . . . . We found an almost total lack of documentation to support St. HOPE’s performance of the grant, despite our repeated requests to St. HOPE for grant-related documents.
After the U.S. Attorney General's office asked for an audit, and after a subpoena was largely ignored by Kevin Johnson, the Attorney General's office refused to enforce the subpoena. Note also that Executive Director of Kevin Johnson's St. HOPE Academy, Rick Maya, resigned due to misconduct by Kevin Johnson. Maya claims that another board member deleted Kevin Johnson's emails during the federal investigation that Walpin was conducting. This article details 9 reasons for Maya's resignation. It's astounding. I hope you'll read it.

At the time of Walpin's firing he had also completed an investigation into City University of New York (CUNY), AmeriCorps largest program. Walpin said neither the CUNY report or the Kevin Johnson-St. HOPE Academy investigation were "well-received by top CNCS management."

So what changed at CNCS, because after all, the investigation came at the request of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger:
A Sacramento-based nonprofit run by former NBA star and Sacramento mayoral candidate Kevin Johnson is facing scrutiny after a teenager complained of inappropriate touching by Johnson.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s office asked the federal government to investigate because the nonprofit, St. HOPE, has received money in the past from the federal AmeriCorps program.

One thing changed? Barack Obama was elected President and we know he has big plans for AmeriCorp. How can you achieve the huge expansion he has in mind, with millions, probably billions in federal funds funneled to them, with a-Gerald-Walpin reporting some nasty theft of taxpayer dollars?

A new report:
Schwarzenegger Involvement: Kevin Johnson Investigation by Gerald Walpin


Related and Background:

Michelle Malkin has news of The First Lady's coming speech at CNCS

Gerald Walpin Firing Update: AmeriCorp $75 Million Musused: Michelle Obama Hires?

Kevin Johnson - St. Hope Scandal: Rick Maya Resigns, Gerald Walpin Investigates


White House Charges Walpin Confused, Disoriented, Disruptive

Who is Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson - Walpin-Johnson Investigation