Jeb Bush forms new company and gets into 'privatized' disaster response business

[seafan]

Source: St. Petersburg Times

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is getting into the for-profit disaster response business. ..... Bush has joined forces with O'Brien's Response Management, an emergency planning company, according to a story in the Maritime Executive on its web site today.

According to the Maritime Executive's story, O'Brien's is a a wholly owned subsidiary of SEACOR Holdings Inc. and joined forces with Bush's company, Old Rhodes Holdings LLC, to help the company expand into new markets. "O’Brien’s provides emergency planning, disaster response, preparedness consulting, crisis communications and regulatory compliance services to corporations and governments,'' the report says.

“We are pleased to enter into this partnership with one of the leading response organizations in the United States, backed by SEACOR’s global network,” Bush said. “Together we look forward to helping a broader array of organizations and communities become more resilient through preparation, response, communication and recovery.”

Old Rhodes Holdings LLC was formed on Aug. 30, 2011, with Bush's former general counsel Rocky Rodriquez serving as his registered agent, according to the Florida Division of Corporations. Bush and Amar Bajpai are the only officers. The two also formed Britton Hill Partners. Both companies are based on Coral Gables.

.....


Read more: http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/content/jeb-bush-forms-new-company-and-gets-privatized-disaster-response-business

---

'Let's keep the disasters rolling, Boyz.'


From the Maritime Executive website:

.....

“We have a long history in the oil and gas, marine and industrial sectors and believe there are significant opportunities to diversify our existing products and services into new markets,” said Charles Fabrikant, executive chairman of SEACOR Holdings. “O’Brien’s will also continue our international expansion in Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and particularly Asia.” Fabrikant added. “Governor Bush has unparalleled experience in crisis management, as he helped guide Florida through some of the most significant natural disasters in its history. He will be integral to our ongoing growth initiatives and we welcome him to the team.”

Yeah, Jeb Bush was instrumental in "guiding" FEMA recovery funds to the Miami-Dade area, that somehow, was strangely not affected by Hurricane Frances in September, 2004.

But let's not get bogged down into 'who shot John'.



If there is one thing that turns ol' Jeb's head, it is the chance to profit from disaster.


Profiting, such as the deal with MWI's defective flood control pumps installed in New Orleans, that were built and marketed by Jeb Bush's now-former Bush-El business partner ..... Years earlier, partner Jeb Bush was selling these water pumps in Nigeria, yet insisting he 'made no money on the deal'.


There were many of these murky "business deals" since he came to Florida from Texas in 1980. And many are documented.


Skipping ahead to early 2007, after he left the governor's office, there was Jeb's new gig as a director of troubled hospital chain Tenet Healthcare, May 9, 2007.

And later being named as lead defendant in the Tenet shareholder suit lodged against Jeb Bush and the Board.... February 1, 2011. Ooops.


Then it was 'all aboard the gravy train' for Jeb as a Lehman Brothers financial advisor, and working with JP Morgan/Lehman to pitch the idea of privatizing the Florida lottery, which would bring in millions to Lehman/JP Morgan, September 11, 2007.


But, within a year, Lehman came crashing down, October 6, 2008. Ooops.


Then there was the plum of a seat for Jeb on the CNLBancshares board, November 16, 2007.


And after that was the board of directors seat for Jeb at Rayonier, 'a Jacksonville-based timber and real estate company that claims ownership of 200,000 acres along Interstate 95 from Savannah, Ga. to Daytona Beach.'


Mighty expensive land, there.



From the news at the time, December 1, 2008:

.....The company should be familiar with Bush — Rayonier did tens of millions of dollars in land deals with the state while he was governor, including a $60 million deal in 2001 to connect Osceola National Forest to Georgia’s Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and a $30 million agreement in 2003 that put 8,465 acres in St. Johns County into the Florida Forever program.

In 2000, Bush blasted a $20 million deal with the company as too expensive but joined a unanimous vote from the Cabinet to approve the agreement. Here’s his quote that ran in the Orlando Sentinel and the Vero Beach Press Journal:

“Man, I can’t wait to get back into the real estate business and sell property to the state,” Bush said.

That revolving door of land deals with the state of Florida whirls madly for Jeb Bush. Nice how these deals always work out in Jeb's favor, eh?



If he can make money from it, he's right there in your face.


Now, it's privatizing public education dollars that he covets, disguised as "Bold Education Reform".


The sharks never stop swimming.



Our Fauntleroy Still Thinks He's Special (Jeb "Devious Plans" Bush)

Fair warning: Do not let Jeb Bush slip off the radar. Ever.

Jeb Inc.


Bush Family Value$, December 1, 1992.



Jeb Bush: Make the Money and Run, September 20, 1998



This is Florida's ongoing fate with Jeb Bush. It is also the country's fate with Jeb Bush.


And, today, he's getting into the for-profit disaster response business.



Any questions?

[Demeter]

1. Anywhere a Bush Goes, a Disaster Is Sure to Result

ask Iraq, Afghanistan, Colombia, etc.

[No Elephants]

27. Nazi, Germany, Saudi Arabia, S &Ls, Goldman Sachs, Florida, Lebanon, etc.

How many Bush family crimes can you name? might make a good trivia game.

Maybe we could even require people to give rhyming answers. otherwise, the challenge level might be too low to keep people engaged.

[goforit]

28. and 911?..., money in another mihop?

How very convenient.
Like his brother heading the Wash National Airport during 911

[curiousdemo]

29. This is what President Dwight D. Eishenhower called

THE MILITARY INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military-industrial_complex

[SharonAnn]

57. Anywhere a Bush goes, they tap the pipeline of taxpayer revenue.

None of them actually start a business that is a "real" business. They always find something that their connections will give them an advantage to suck money out of taxpayer revenue.

Matt Taibbi's phrase about Goldman Sachs comes to mind, "relentless jamming into anything that smells like money."

They can't compete in the free market, only in the rigged market.

And, interestingly, the Bushes have a terrible reputation in dealing with disasters. GHWB and his inadequate response to Hurricane Andrew during his term and GWB and his inadequate response to Hurricane Katrina during his term.

Do we really need more Bush family members to screw up disaster response?

[NV Whino]

2. Oh shit.

[xxqqqzme]

3. Vulures completing the job

of stripping the flesh off the bones. These people make me sick!

[hunter]

58. I like vultures. Vultures recycle the dead. These people are more like blood sucking ticks.

Jeb Bush at work:



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tick

[midnight]

4. K&R It's kinda working out for them bush's isn't it?

[ChiciB1]

5. OH SHIT... I Second The Sentiment! Knew He Was Still Around

down here and wasn't going away. Wonder what goodies he has planned for us in FL NOW!! Or elsewhere!

I've had too many BUSHIES to last me for a lifetime! THEY never go away!

[Lost-in-FL]

6. "Privatized" Disaster? Well, he has the experience… right?

I mean, as a creator of economic disaster that is.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

7. He's looking for new hurricanes

[peacetalksforall]

8. Why do I think there is going to be a man made disaster in the US that won'tsi

involve bombs from the air? A third Pearl Harbor, but without aircraft - can't do that again.

Info on Amar Bajpai-

>>>>> "Amar Bajpai is associated with Britton Hill Partners, LLC with the role of Manager. Amar Bajpai has a relationship with John E Bush and is located in Coral Gables, FL.
Source: Florida Department of State last refreshed Wednesday, June 22, 2011 "

http://www.corporationwiki.com/Florida/Coral-Gables/amar-bajpai/66886875.aspx

>>>>> BE SURE TO take a look at the website for Britton Hill Parners - a name, e-mail address, and a telephone number. That's it - nothing more.

http://brittonhillpartners.com/

>>>>> Here is more on Britton Hill Partners:

The Investors & Figg propose to build new Elizabeth River toll bridge in Norfolk, Virginia. US

http://www.tollroadsnews.com/node/3910

The investors Figg Bridge well-known bridge builders, and Britton Hill Partners LLC (BHP) a private investment company are asking to be granted title to the old bridge and the land it stands on in return for an undertaking to replace it with a modern high level bridge. This is a replay of the way the original bridge was built in the mid-1920s and the way most major bridges were built in the US in 19th century

>>>>> Scott C. Dorey

Mr. Dorey is a founding partner at Britton Hill Partners LLC, a private investment firm based in Miami and New York. Formally a senior executive at Lehman Bothers, he also serves as a director of several Toronto Stock Exchange public companies.

http://www.innovativecompositesinc.com/advisory_board.php

>>>>> Scott Dorey of Britton Hill is associated with Largo - a Canadian Company? dealing in tungsten-molybdenum, vanadium, gold - global.


"Largo Appoints Scott C. Dorey to Advisory Board
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - April 7, 2008) -

NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OR THROUGH U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES

LARGO RESOURCES LTD. (TSX VENTURE:LGO) is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Scott C. Dorey to the Company's Advisory Board.

Scott has recently joined Britton Hill Partners, LLC as a General Partner and Executive Managing Director, a private investment firm with a global focus based in Miami and New York. Previously, Scott was a senior investment banker at Lehman Brothers in New York and has significant experience serving boards and structuring transactions around the world across a number of sectors. His 8 years of experience with Lehman includes roles both in mergers and acquisitions and principal transactions on behalf of Lehman clients, the firm and with some its most important sales and trading relationships. Before joining Lehman, Scott was a corporate lawyer at Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton and Garrison in New York after receiving a law degree from King's College in the United Kingdom. He is also qualified as a barrister and solicitor in Canada. He also serves on the board of Inter-Citic Minerals which is listed on the TSX.

Largo President and CEO, Mark Brennan, remarked "Scott is a welcome addition to our Advisory Board. Scott's financial experience and relationships will be very helpful in the months ahead as we continue to advance our exciting vanadium-PGM deposit at Maracas (Brazil) and our very large Northern Dancer Tungsten-Molybdenum project in the Yukon."

In Connection with his appointment, Mr. Dorey has been granted 75,000 stock options at $0.50. The options shall vest immediately subject to the four month hold and expire on April 7, 2013. The options are subject to exchange and regulatory approval.

About Largo Resources Ltd.:

Largo Resources is a Canadian natural resource development and exploration company with two advanced stage projects: the Maracas Vanadium-PGM deposit in Brazil and the Northern Dancer Tungsten-Molybdenum deposit in the Yukon. Largo also has a large (60,000 hectare) land position and prospective gold exploration properties in Ecuador. The company is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol LGO.

For more information please refer to Largo's website: www.largoresources.com."

[peacetalksforall]

9. Heavy duty Wall Street buddies - more on Britton Hill; Jeb an Amar

Further Lane Joins With Hexagon as Smaller Brokers Consolidate
Q
By Jody Shenn - Jun 13, 2011 11:49 AM CT

inShare
More Print Email
Further Lane Securities LLC and Hexagon Securities LLC are merging amid consolidation among the smaller fixed-income brokers founded or expanded as the largest banks struggled during 2008 and 2009.
The combined firms will operate under the Further Lane name, said David Castillo, the San Francisco-based head of sales and trading at Further Lane, which focuses on securitized debt. Nine people will join from New York-based Hexagon, bringing total employees to about 50, he said.

The deal is “consistent with the contraction going on” among securities firm, in which Further Lane is focusing on “taking on good people,” Castillo said in a telephone interview.

Wall Street’s largest banks have regained competitive advantages lost during the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, leading to consolidation among smaller firms. CRT Capital Group LLC said on June 8 it had acquired the institutional sales and trading team of Braver Stern Securities LLC, after Institutional Financial Markets Inc., the former Cohen & Co., said in April it would combine its capital-markets unit with PrinceRidge Holdings LP.

Further Lane, which is based in New York, has also added two former partners at Fieldstone Capital Group, Carol Bunevich and Martin Andrews, who will run a new division known as Britton Hill that will be responsible for sales and trading in distressed securities, according to an e-mailed statement.
“We will continue to opportunistically add talent as the industry shrinks and adjusts to the new reality,” Further Lane Chief Executive Officer Michael Araiz said in the statement.

reporter Jody Shenn in New York at [e-mail]
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Alan Goldstein at [e-mail]


http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-06-13/further-lane-joins-with-hexagon-as-smaller-brokers-consolidate.html

[jwirr]

10. If he does not do it any better than his brother then we had better

pray he never has to rescue us.

[rucognizant]

37. WHAT DO YOU MEAN?

"If he does not do it any better than his brother then we had better......pray he never has to rescue us. "
THERE IS NO PROFIT in doing things "better!"
bushs are criminal, not stupid ( except W, & he was taking orders.....JUST AS OBAMA IS NOW! Jeb is one of them GIVING the orders...............
Mark my words. After even the densest Repubs get tired of Romney, Palin, Bachman, Perry............they'll push Jebby forward and it will be such a relief.............. he will get votes!

[jwirr]

39. Unfortunately.

[Firebrand Gary]

11. How long before FEMA is privatized?

[Enthusiast]

21. It is in the plans.

Just like the military and postal service.

[Fire Walk With Me]

54. Sure seems to be why Dubya took such pains to make FEMA look utterly incompetent.

And rewarded his agent provocateur with "You're doing a great job, Brownie".

[defendandprotect]

12. BFEE never miss a beat on cashing in -- usually to create a disaster -- !!

[lib2DaBone]

13. It's a cryiing shame to think how hard people have to work for so little money...

...while these shysters and film-flam artists skim the cream off the top.

It's a giant revolving door from government to Wall Street and back into government again.

I wonder where his good buddies Rudy Guilliani, Michael Chertoff and Tom Ridge are? (always lurking not far away)

Plus it helps to have a brother in the White House who knows when and where the next false flag attack will occur.

We are living in the new age of the Robber Barons. Who can stop these demons?

[iamthebandfanman]

14. not the first political crony to get into that business...

infact, theres one from our side of the isle operating one in my state right now as we speak !

rumors around town say he made a killing on katrina too, over charging the government for meals..

[No Elephants]

25. And you are not naming him because...?

[iamthebandfanman]

56. honestly?

because then the city i live in will become apparent to some people, which id rather not have happen.

ill private msg his name to ya if youd like.

[madamesilverspurs]

15. So will W go to work for him?

He has proven himself in the disaster arena. Creating, that is. . .

[usrname]

16. What a disgusting business model

When people are in desperate situations, come in a charge them an arm and a leg because it's either pay up or lose everything. What a bunch of scum sucking deviants.

I hesitate to call them creatures because there are creatures that are gentle and sympathetic. Even a lion would would nurse you back to health for free. This sort of
business should be outlawed.

[shanti]

17. ruh roh

where there's smoke, there's fire. sounds like he's betting on a disaster. be very afraid.

[Enthusiast]

22. Easy.

All they have to do is continue to fight against CO2 limits. Presto -extreme weather events ramped up.

[sam11111]

18. privatize: low wage, hi price, shabby product: Owner buys elections:Low wages..no consumer demand so

factories close...recessions result (from the Private Sector low wages) about every ten years.

Pathetic 3% longterm growth... is the result of this inefficient Private Sector. The claim of efficiency is disproven by the lame 3% growth rate.

[global1]

19. Wow - Just In Time For Global Climate Change To Kick In - Hmmmm......nt

[Uncle Joe]

49. Precisely. n/t

[Enthusiast]

20. Bush greed has no boundaries.

They can never grab enough. And they use malfeasance to acquire it.

[aquart]

23. Those people are locusts.

[No Elephants]

24. The Bush crime family, privatization and "public private partnerships" are among the biggest

disasters this country has ever faced, including what Jeb and his Secretary of State did in 2000.

Jeb should really begin by admitting that and abandoning his effort to enrich himself and his cohorts even further by glomming onto more public money. His family has been responsible for more than enough transfers of wealth from the "lower" classes to the lowest of low classes.

[lunatica]

26. My stomach just got that old familiar knot

God! I hate that family! They destroy everything they touch.

[seafan]

42. I understand about that knot you have. I've had mine since November 7, 2000.

Jebbie says we got it! Jebbie says we got it!

"It was just the three of us guys handing the phone back and forth--me with the numbers, one of them a governor, the other the president-elect. Now that was cool." ---John Ellis, Bush cousin, working the Fox News Channel election desk on November 7, 2000, as the network unilaterally proclaimed a Bush win at 2:16 am.

The incalculable, ongoing damage perpetrated on this country and other countries around the world by this one family, is unsurpassed.



And for these ongoing, calculated and destructive acts against our nation and others, we will neither forgive nor forget.

[Javaman]

30. when all is said and done, how much will this morons* corporation

actually help people? we know the answer to that.

just more of the typical well connected repuke bullshit of making money off the helpless.

[ensho]

31. I wouldn't trust anything Jeb had a hand in

nt

[Jello Biafra]

32. It wont be a profitable company until....

Jeb hires Brownie (way to go......)....

[Zoeisright]

33. That's a Bu$h for you. Try to get rich off misery.

Making millions on ordinary American's suffering. What a bunch of sick assholes.

[seafan]

34. Jeb Bush secured highly inflated FEMA contracts for Carnival Cruise ships to house Katrina victims.

The backstory:


After Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005:


Carnival Cruise company (CEO Micky Arison) was under scrutiny for a decision by FEMA in 2005 to charter three cruise ships to be used as temporary housing for Katrina victims. The contracts awarded to Carnival were exorbitant and were under investigation by Henry Waxman on the Gov't Reform Committee.

Jeb Bush pulled the strings to obtain these FEMA contracts for Carnival.


Discussed in this link; direct links to articles are below.



Carnival CEO defends cruise ship deal for hurricane evacuees

September 30, 2005

.....

The senators also asked Chertoff to explain why the U.S. didn't accept Greece's offer to send two ships for free. Gov. Jeb Bush said those ships wouldn't have arrived until Oct. 10.

Bush said the contract might be an example of government waste, "but don't blame Carnival Cruise Lines for canceling cruise ships with 100,000 customers. That's their business."

"No good deed goes unpunished," Bush said at the convention.

FEMA cruise ship contracts defended

October 2, 2005

In a joint statement (the senators) said that "the Senate Federal Financial Management Subcommittee's investigation into a six-month $192 million FEMA contract with Carnival Cruise Lines has discovered that taxpayers are paying, per evacuee, four times the amount a vacation cruise passenger would have to pay. Three Carnival ships are only half full and mostly occupied by relief workers. Carnival's overhead costs in the FEMA operation are far lower than during normal cruises. The Carnival ships are docked. No fuel is being used and no entertainment is being provided to the relief workers. Yet, taxpayers are paying $2,550 per guest per week, which is four times the cost of a $599 per person '7 Day Western Caribbean' Cruise from Galveston."

"When the federal government would actually save millions of dollars by forgoing the status quo and actually sending evacuees on a luxurious six-month cruise it is time to rethink how we are conducting oversight. A short-term temporary solution has turned into a long-term, grossly overpriced sweetheart deal for a cruise line," Obama and Coburn said.

The FEMA contract has, however, found a defender in Florida Governor Jeb Bush.

Speaking to travel agents at an event in Fort Lauderdale he said critics who have labeled the (Carnival) contract a "sweetheart deal" are wrong, and that the charge could inhibit companies in Florida from stepping forward in the future if a similar hurricane situation develops there.

"There's some senators and politicians up there in Washington criticizing this and I think it's wrong," the Sun-Sentinel newspaper reports Bush as saying.

....

So, to recap the connections:

John McCain--->Vicki Iseman, lobbyist---Alcalde & Fay lobbying firm-->Iseman's client Carnival Corporation-->Micky Arison, CEO of Carnival-->recipient of $236 Million FEMA Katrina contracts-->Jeb Bush, facilitator of FEMA contracts and recipient of Hector Alcalde's largess.

So, Jeb Bush used his influence as Florida Governor to secure inflated FEMA contracts for Carnival Corporation, a client of Alcalde and Fay. And magically, Hector Alcalde is a large benefactor for Jeb Bush.

You see, Jeb (*the smart one*) performs the lobbying, the influence peddling AND gets the payoff.



Nice how it somehow ALL works out grandly for the Bush Family.

[mother earth]

35. Disaster is the new game, profits galore, after his brother

fucked up the country and anything resembling accountability is now gone with the wind. It pays to be in that 1%ile of elite capitalist pigs.

Editing to add: Be very, very afraid. This is more than an omen of things to come, this is outright expectation.

[hue]

36. They don't believe in global warming/change but are willing to

capitalize on it!! @$$h0l#$

[7wo7rees]

38. K&R

Like a dang Octafish thread. (The best kind.)

[newspeak]

40. and the teabaggers cry "small government"

if every government agency is privatized, who you gonna trust? When a corporations major concern is growing and making profit, even off the backs of misery--most could care less who dies, who suffers as long as there is profit. As more things are privatized, the more the american people will be paying through the nose!!!!! And, as more government responsibilities are privatized, the more POWER the corporations gain. These are not american companies anymore--those sitting on the boards come from all over the world, controlling you, controlling your government. Most could care less if this country and its' people goes down as long as they still hold the power and gain profit.

FEMA barely worked during Katrina because Little Boots just wanted to prove to the public, that government doesn't work, especially when he appointed a suck up, no experience buddy in the position.

Privatize the post office, privatize our security, privatize social security, privatize FEMA and see how much more the american people will be paying these shysters with no representation when you're being screwed or have to complain about shitty services.

And some still think there is still a free market. The "too big to fail" corporations, even after harming thousands just change their names and still flim-flam the public. Without regulations, corporations can be very, very sociopathic in nature.

[tawadi]

41. Sickening. eom

[SoapBox]

43. A typical member of the sleazy Bush Family...

Always on the take.

[left on green only]

44. As I've Always Said, "Watch Out For His Right Jeb, Rocky"

[Fire Walk With Me]

45. This is exactly why George worked to damage FEMA

and to make people think it's useless.

As I've said a dozen times before, they are windowmakers who go around town throwing rocks with their business card attached.

Thank you for the detailed warning, permalinking!

[newspeak]

47. and don't forget the bush brother in the S&L scandal

can't work in banking anymore (not even prison time)--now he's in the education field, I believe him and Milken (the junk bond king) selling schools their products.

[Fire Walk With Me]

53. Good old Neil. It sure seems the Bush family are the Anti-Kennedys.

[Overseas]

46. Privatization = profiteering, over and over again.

Profiteering on climate destabilization.

Guess that shouldn't shock me after all the Bush Cheney war profiteering.

[UTUSN]

48. The Shrubs can smell profits!1 They SUPPLY and DEMAND ensues!1 n/t

[sellitman]

50. The mother effer doesn't believe in Global Warming but he sure as shit would profit from it.

Why would he invest in a service not needed unless.....

[CrispyQ]

51. Our entire tax base will be used to support industry/shareholders/PROFIT.

The American public is also to blame for falling for the "private industry can do it better & cheaper" propaganda. The fact that many private sector workers are resentful of the pay, benefits & pensions of governement workers (union workers, too), instead of fighting for better pay/benefits for themselves.

[Dawson Leery]

52. Horrible family. All of them.

The Bush's never do anything unless a profit is involved for they and their backers.

[IcyPeas]

55. This is an example of "The Shock Doctrine" by Naomi Kline

Part 5 introduces the Disaster Capitalism Complex where the author describes how companies have learnt to profit from disasters. She talks about how the same personnel move easily from security-related posts in US government agencies to lucrative positions in corporations.

Part 6 discusses the occupation of Iraq, which Klein describes as the most comprehensive and full-scale implementation of the shock doctrine ever attempted.

Part 7 is about the winners and losers of economic shock therapy, how narrow groups will often do very well by moving into luxurious gated communities while large sections of the population are left with decaying public infrastructure, declining incomes and increased unemployment.

Conclusion is about the backlash against the shock doctrine and economic institutions that propagate it like the World Bank and IMF. South America and Lebanon post-2006 are examined as sources of positive news, where politicians are already rolling back free-market policies, with some mention of the increased campaigning by community-minded activists in South Africa and China.

[avaistheone1]

59. Satan & Sons Incorporated

Disasters is our business. It is our only business.