Kaptur weighs Congressional investigation of Noe

[Algorem]

Former coin dealer's activities with U.S. Mint draw increased scrutiny

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060404/NEWS24/604040396/-1/NEWS


By STEVE EDER and JAMES DREW
BLADE STAFF WRITERS


U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur yesterday demanded answers about what happened behind the scenes that led to Tom Noe’s federal appointment to a U.S. Mint advisory committee...

Miss Kaptur said she plans to consult with Democratic leaders in Washington this week about whether a congressional investigation into Mr. Noe and his role at the U.S. Mint is necessary...

Mr. LaVera said Mr. Noe was “rewarded with a plum position that he used to direct public policy to his narrow interests.” The spokesman said the appointment “is an abomination of the political process.”...

In October, Mr. Noe was charged with illegally funneling $45,400 to Mr. Bush’s campaign and accused of using two dozen people as “conduits” to make illegal contributions at a $2,000-a-seat fund-raiser in Columbus. He has pleaded not guilty...



Article published Sunday, April 2, 2006

Advisory post gave Noe voice in U.S. Mint policy
Coin dealer pushed gold pieces; Treasury Dept. conducts probe

http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060402/NEWS24/60402016

By JAMES DREW
and STEVE EDER
BLADE STAFF WRITERS

WASHINGTON — In the months before Tom Noe came under scrutiny for his state-funded rare-coin venture, he used a federal appointment to forge relationships with U.S. Mint officials that opened doors for him on Capitol Hill, documents obtained by The Blade show.

And before he was brought down by scandal last year, the coin dealer helped persuade Congress — for the first time in the nation’s history — to authorize the minting of a 24-karat gold coin.

Mr. Noe’s quest to become a Washington power broker and to help redesign all U.S. coins fell apart last year when controversy gripped the $50 million rare-coin investment he managed for the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation and federal authorities announced they were investigating the GOP fund-raiser for allegedly laundering political contributions to President Bush’s campaign.

Last week, Greg Weinman, the Mint’s senior counsel and ethics official, told The Blade that the Treasury Department’s inspector general had opened an investigation into Mr. Noe’s role as a member and chairman of the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee, a panel that advises the Treasury secretary on themes and designs for coins and congressional gold medals...

[NYC]

1. I like Marcy Kaptur.

It must have been about 20 years ago that I watched her give a speech about oil around midnight. Congress had gone home, but she was reading it into the record. I've liked her ever since.