Clark challenges Dean, other rivals to release records

[maddezmom]

TOM RAUM, Associated Press Writer Friday, January 16, 2004
(01-16) 08:37 PST MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) --

Wesley Clark on Friday challenged his rivals for the Democratic nomination for president to join him in releasing financial and other personal records, a clear prod at Howard Dean.

"I challenge all Democrats in the race to follow suit," Clark told a news conference as he released military, voter registration and financial records. "Everybody ought to be open about what they've done in public office."

Clark, along with several other candidates, has criticized Dean for not opening all of his records as Vermont governor.

Clark also urged President Bush to reverse policies the retired general contended have shut out citizens from government. He charged that Bush had run "the most closed administration" since President Nixon.

~snip~

more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2004/01/16/politics1041EST0547.DTL


Looks like Clark isn't just going after bush*, "open government" includes his rivals. Things are heating up.

edited to add quotes to "open government"

[Jack_Dawson]

1. General Smackdown on a Tear

This guy is on fire. Gen on board or get rolled by a tank.

[democratreformed]

9. They were released long ago

and posted on his website. Some of them are still there. All may be - not sure. Here's the link to part of them: http://clark04.com/records/documents/

[democratreformed]

14. This was supposed to be down there

under the military record question.

[Alex146]

2. Has he disclosed all of his military records?

Just wondering.

[WillyBrandt]

3. I believe so, but I'm not sure

He has no options about some of that, I believe, since some are in gov't hands.

[Jack_Dawson]

4. Everything. Including Cohen and Shelton Praising Him

during his retirement.

:bounce:

I think the transparency theme will play huge in this era of secrecy and intimidation. GO GENERAL.

[robbedvoter]

5. Wonder as you produce. I'll show mine if he shows his don't play no more

Clark has all his cards on the table. We'll see yours now, please?

[wndycty]

6. I would assume if he is calling on others to release theirs. . .

. . .he has put all of his out there.

[deminflorida]

8. Here's a link....

http://www.markarkleiman.com/archives/wesley_clark_/2003/10/clark_releases_his_military_records.php

[deminflorida]

12. Here's another Link...

http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/10/16/elec04.prez.clark.military/index.html

[Clark4VotingRights]

50. Thanks deminflorida.

eom

[funky_bug]

10. All within his power

But military records, quite frankly, belong to the military. He can't release what he doesn't own.

[funky_bug]

7. That's my General!

Okay, so I'll admit I've been wondering why Clark hasn't answered Kerry's call for financial disclosure. I figured it was for the same reason that he rarely addresses some of the goofy stuff that gets thrown his way... but THIS... oh god this is beautiful. He didn't go with "show me your and I'll show you mine" as I've seen other supporters of other candidates post here lately... he said, "Here's mine. Where are yours?"

And need I mention, he answered Kerry's call in less than ONE WEEK, while other candidates are still covering their tracks after months of prodding.

AND he did not mention any names, so if the media wants to read "Dean" into it, as they have in the headline, so be it. I am personally getting tired of Dean being a media target, as it creates bad blood between us all... but I digress.

Class act, that Clark.

[TexasPatriot]

13. i wonder

if Kerry will acknowledge it... for all the pissing between some camps those two seem to have a silly-gotcha friendship going on

[funky_bug]

15. I'd say the DID

but I'm not so sure now. When Clark entered the race, Kerry vowed he would never say anything negative about Clark. The Clark started getting some serious attention, and Kerry dropped his cherry bomb.

It's just nice to know that the general is too busy getting his message out to play tag. I'd say this is more like chess.

[returnable]

11. Once again Clark does what all leaders should do:

He leads :toast:

[democratreformed]

16. Yes! You are right about that

:thumbsup:

[copithorne]

22. I've been calling friends in New Hampshire

Asking them to vote for Wesley Clark and talking about the election in general.

Several of them have said they are disturbed that Howard Dean won't release his records from being Governor of Vermont and they won't vote for him on that basis.

I don't really touch that because to me it is a non-issue. I think that all this poring over the past records looking for contradictions is a lot of rhetoric. I don't care that Howard Dean worked to seal the records.

But a chunk of voters do care. Point to Clark.

[Leilani]

38. It's a big issue for me

We should be for open government, right?

This is OUR government, the people's government & the politicians are our employees.

Well, we are entitled to as much info as possible, before making a decision.

Also, if there are things that are detrimental they should come out now, befor the Repugs discover it in the GE.

[Name removed]

17. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[maddezmom]

18. before I click

what the subject of the article?

[Maddy McCall]

21. Don't click...it's a bullshit rightwing site that is against DU rules

Don't click. It's garbage.

[Maddy McCall]

23. More on the owners of that right wing website

http://www.mediatransparency.org/search_results/info_on_any_recipient.php?63

[maddezmom]

28. thanks, didn't click...but are they related to

http://www.cmpa.com/index.htm

the ones that published the info about Dean getting bad press on the national news?

[funky_bug]

20. UGH!

Twisting much? Clark is right; he's their biggest threat. The freepers are scared... very very scared.

[IrateCitizen]

19. Will Clark be disclosing his status as a lobbyist as well?

A week ago on NOW with Bill Moyers, one of the guests was Charles Lewis, head of the Center for Public Integrity.

Lewis revealed the fact that Wesley Clark was a paid lobbyist for the defense industry not only at the same time that he was promoted as a military analyst on CNN -- but also at the time that he made his Presidential announcement! While I certainly find this to be a troubling fact, his subsequent calling upon others to release THEIR records while he has failed to disclose such a major conflict of interest is just a tad hypocritical.

And for those of you familiar with the Center for Public Integrity, they are anything but partisan or biased. They are completely neutral, with their goal being solely the championing of democratic process through removal of corruption and patronage from the halls of government.

[Renew Deal]

25. That's already public info.

Someone here has links to that.

[returnable]

27. Shhhhh!

You're ruining the storyline :hi:

[IrateCitizen]

30. I'm not talking about military records, rather lobbyist records

FWIW, Clark's failure to disclose the little fact that he was a paid lobbyist of the defense industry at the same time as he was providing services as a "military analyst" to CNN is a slight conflict of judgement. Not that it's all that different from what anyone else is doing right now (that's a sad commentary on how bad things are in general right now, rather than an aside at Clark alone), but in absolute terms, it is still a little bit "murky", ethically speaking.

The fact that he was a paid defense industry lobbyist at the time of his jump into the ring was "public knowledge" only in the sense that if anyone investigated it they would find it out. Once again, this isn't an aside at Clark -- but rather an example of how much in the toilet our system really is for things like this to pass by without a whimper.

What I AM attempting to point out, however, is the manner in which Clark is calling on others to open their records when he was not entirely forthright. While it may work for many in projecting him as being "above the fray", it does nothing in the end to reconcile his previous conflicts of interest -- ones that he has tried as much as possible to keep "under the radar."

Also, FWIW, I completely disagree with Dean's decision to keep his records sealed. They are not HIS records, they are the PUBLIC'S records. I'm just looking for consistency across the board, that's all.

[returnable]

31. Clark has disclosed his financial records...

...and I'm assuming they'll include his salary from Axciom.

If they don't, then you could have a point.

[Dookus]

36. Acxiom was NOT a defense industry corporation...

It's a database company that had never had any federal contracts prior to hiring Clark.

[IrateCitizen]

43. You're right -- he was not a defense lobbyist. BUT...

You were right, he was not a lobbyist for a defense contractor. One of the companies on whose behalf he lobbied was Acxiom -- whom he helped in securing Homeland Security contracts.

There is nothing wrong with that, in and of itself. The point that Lewis is making in the interview is that, if a paid lobbyist ran for political office just ten years ago, he would be laughed out of the room. Now, it is perfectly acceptable.

Once again, this is not a dig on Clark. His work as a lobbyist probably was on the up-and-up. The point is really about how twisted our system is when it is perfectly acceptable for lobbyists to move directly into elected office (a la Haley Barbour).

[TLM]

48. Yes he was... for several defense contractors and those who wanted

to become defense contractors with Clark's help.


Pentagon Ties Boost Clark's Business
Retired General Helps Firms Navigate Homeland Security and Defense-Procurement Maze
By Jacob M. Schlesinger and Sara Schaefer in Washington and Greg Hitt in Little Rock,Ark.

Wall Street Journal, 9/18/03

IN ANNOUNCING his presidential campaign, Wesley K. Clark promoted himself as the candidate best qualified to prosecute the war on terror. As a businessman, he has applied his military expertise to help a handful of high-tech companies try to profit from the fight. Since retiring from a 34-year Army career in 2000, Gen. Clark has become : chairman of a suburban Washington technology-corridor start-up, managing director at an investment firm, a director at four other firms around the country and an advisory-board member for two others. For most, he was hired to help boost the companies' military business.

...


Stephens Inc., the large, politically connected Little Rock investment firm, hired him to boost its aerospace business shortly after he gave up his NATO command. He left Stephens last year and opened his own consultancy, Wesley K. Clark & Associates.

...

Time Domain Corp., a Huntsville, Ala., advanced wireless-technology company, recruited Gen. Clark to become an adviser in February 2002 through one of its chief operating officers, who had been a colonel under his NATO command during the Bosnia campaign. Gen. Clark has counseled the company on how to answer Pentagon concerns that its low-power radar system might interfere with global positioning and communications systems, as well as to better craft that technology for military use. board of Entrust, at the request of CEO William Conner, who had served with him on a Pentagon advisory panel.

At Entrust, Gen. Clark has provided advice on how to sell to various NATO governments, says David Wagner, Entrust's chief financial officer. He has also helped emphasize the firm's product securing electronic networks for new homeland-security applications.

[KaraokeKarlton]

46. Acxiom is an IT Outsourcing company

As in IT JOB Outsourcing. Just as bad, in my opinion.

[TLM]

47. Kind of like Halliburton had no government contract before Cheney...

came in and showed them how to rip of tax payers for his own benefit.


I won't vote for defense lobbyists to be in charge of defense policy.

That's like putting a crack whore in charge of a rehab clinic.

[Dookus]

57. that would be a salient point

if it were true at all.

Halliburton (and its various subsidiaries) have been doing work for the government for decades. The company was founded in 1919. It did defense work during WWII. It built the Johnson Space Center in the '60's.

Facts are stupid things, as a certain President said.

[Jerseycoa]

33. And will Dean?

I would like to learn more about his support of his state trooper accused of spousal abuse. This is a subject in which I have a very deep interest. I know it is something doctors have first hand knowledge of and professional experience with, and it is a policy interest of Dean's, so I would like to be assured there is nothing to this story.

http://abcnews.go.com/sections/WNT/Investigation/dean_domestic_abuse_040114-1.html

Perhaps the opening of his records will set this matter to rest. I certainly hope so.

[TLM]

51. Try following the link and reading the whole thing...

You'll find the following...

Madore said he believes the governor would have fired him if he had known of the domestic violence.

It wasn't until three years after Dean filed his affidavit, in August 2000, that state police opened an investigation into the domestic abuse allegations.

In September 2000, Madore was removed from the governor's detail because of the investigation. He was later fired in December 2000 because "he had engaged in acts of domestic violence during the course of his marriage and had possibly committed perjury during his divorce proceedings," according to the current Vermont attorney general, William Sorrell.

A Vermont official said Madore could not be prosecuted for domestic abuse because Donna Madore never pressed charges, and the statute of limitations has expired.



Seems pretty clear to me that the abuse wasn't exactly obvious... the woman did not report it until 3 years later and never pressed charges. And as soon as Dean found out about it, he fired the guy.

What more can you expect from him? The support from Dean came long before the accusations of abuse were made.

Honestly does your boss know everything you do in your off time? If your boss gave you a good reference, then 3 years later it came out that you were involved in some illegal activity, would that mean your boss supported the activity?

Come on. Claiming Dean somehow supports domestic abuse because he gave a statement that one of his employees was a good dad, 3 years before the guy's wife made accusations of abuse, is completely desperate cheap shot.

[Dookus]

55. I agree...

the Domestic Abuse issue being used against Dean is baseless and stupid.

That being said, Dean is 100% wrong for not opening his public records.

[bitchkitty]

58. Oh, sure you do.

You're so concerned about Dean and hope that there's nothing to this. Uh huh.

[bain_sidhe]

34. Quite a lot of information on his "defense lobbying" here

http://www.mail-archive.com/[e-mail]/msg109145.html

Some snips:

The path between the Pentagon and major defense contractors (whose board seats pay as much as $200,000 a year) is well trod — Gen. John M. Shalikashvili, now retired, sits on the Boeing board, while another retired general, John Ralston, is on the Lockheed Martin board. Other wartime generals, like Colin L. Powell, H. Norman Schwarzkopf and Tommy R. Franks, have turned their fame into million-dollar book deals.

But General Clark was perhaps not in a position to cash in as readily, in part because as allied commander during the Kosovo war he was not as well known as the men who ran the first war in Iraq. Moreover, his potential as a lobbyist in the eyes of the defense industry could have been undercut by his publicized run-ins with the Pentagon — although those close to General Clark said he was drawn more to working with small entrepreneurial companies.

And

Using this springboard, he fashioned a career representing smaller defense contractors in Washington and writing a book, but for less money than military superstars like Mr. Powell.

"Wesley Clark must be one of the few four-star generals not associated with a Fortune 500 company," said Loren Thompson, a military analyst with the Lexington Institute, a Northern Virginia nonprofit.

Stephens — where General Clark worked until last March, first as a consultant and later as a managing director — has long supported both parties. Its reputation was tarnished by ties to some people involved in Clinton fund-raising scandals. The Stephens family has also given to Republicans, including both Bushes and Bob Dole.

The article goes on to list some of the companies he lobbied for: WaveCrest, marketing electrical bicycles to special operations forces; Sirva, the Chicago-based parent of North American Van Lines, which moves military families; Messer Geiesheim, a German maker of industrial gas, partly owned by Goldman Sachs; and of course, the (in)famous Acxiom, which started out in Little Rock as a Democratic mailing-list company

As the article states:

After the 2001 terror attacks, Acxiom, which had never before had a federal contract, discovered its computers had personal data on 11 of the 19 hijackers and sought the government's attention.

General Clark telephoned federal officials for Acxiom on a pro bono basis. By December he had joined the Acxiom board.

"Wes started making phone calls to people in the upper reaches of government," said Jerry Jones, Acxiom's legal counsel, "and then they started calling us."

Hardly what I'd call evidence of "corruption." And by the way, I consider the NOW report a hack job for that reason. I have no beef with them "exposing" the fact that Clark was a lobbyist for "defense companies," I have a major beef with Moyers letting stand - no, actually encouraging - the implications that 1) Clark tried to hide it (he didn't) and 2) that his lobbying was anything like on a par with the kinds of lobbying Halliburton and other "biggies" do (it wasn't). I have never been more disappointed in Moyers.

[Dookus]

35. Heheh...

The other important thing to note among people who think Acxiom was a "military-industrial complex" corporation - it never had a federal contract before Clark joined them.

It's a database company.

How anybody can consider that lobbying for the MIC is beyond me.

[bain_sidhe]

42. It's also worth noting

that Ralston, the one on the board of Lockheed Martin, is the General who Shelton and Cohen brought in to replace Clark four months early in the "early retirement" bruhaha.

[maddezmom]

37. good link

thanks

[Leilani]

40. There is info on lobbying on Yahoo

By Saturday all info will be given to press & posted on his website.

[TacticalPeek]

24. I smell a Shrub trap.

Hopefully Clark will include his military pay records.

A look at aWol's military pay records would prove vedddy interestinck.

:evilgrin:

[Cheswick2.0]

26. Cute reconnaissance strategy

from someone with no public records of his own to worry about.

[returnable]

29. And if the others don't have anything to "worry about"...

...they'll follow suit, right? :hi:

[phillybri]

32. Right on!!!

Everyone else should follow suit...

[LuminousX]

39. What I love about this

Clark doesn't have an executive or legislative history to build upon, to help him make his case or hurt him.

He is flat, which has its advantages.

I wonder if he had a few years in an elected office if he might feel differently. I mean, has he actually had to meet with constituents and cut deals with fellow lawmakers? He knows the process only as a lobbyist and as a recipient of congressional money.

[Dookus]

41. What I love about this

is Clark is releasing his PERSONAL information while Dean is still hiding his PUBLIC information.

[LuminousX]

49. Clark doesn't have public records to secure...

[TLM]

53. Flase.... Dean's public info is public...

The majroity of his records are already open tot he public.

The sealed materials are corrisponsdance and memos... not the public materials.

And those sealed materials are no longer sealed, as they are currently under judicial review.


Now will CLark be making public ALL of the sources that paid him "speaking fees"?

I'm still waiting to see him disclose that info and not just the parent company. Dean's records on speaking fees are open tot he public, not hidden behind a parent company.

[in_cog_ni_to]

44. WTG, Wes!

I love this man.

OK, let's see Governor Dean's Vermont SEALED records. I'm ready. :bounce:

[KaraokeKarlton]

45. So did Clark release

what he taught (the materials) at the School for the Americas?

[Dookus]

52. I doubt it...

why do you think course materials for a military training institute would be publicly accessible? Why do you think Clark owns those materials?

Has Dean released his PUBLIC information yet?

[TLM]

54. Dean's public records have been public for a long time...

The majority of his records are already open. What is sealed are correspondence and memos.

Will Clark be making his correspondence public? Or will he continue to hypocriticaly hide them while calling for others to make their private corrispondance public?

[Dookus]

56. Correspondence and memo's...

Memo's covers a whole lot of stuff - like who he was dealing with regarding energy matters.

It's "memo's" we want Cheny to release, too.

I am flabbergasted by the audacity of people who attack Clark about his private info while forgiving Dean for hiding his PUBLIC info.

And Clark released his info today. Dean should follow suit.

[Clark4VotingRights]

59. What Dean failed to mention...

"What Dean failed to mention was that the sealing of his records was also motivated by a desire to protect himself. "We didn't want anything embarrassing appearing in the papers at a critical time in any future endeavor," he told statehouse reporters last year at the time of the sealing, according to The New York Times and The Boston Globe."

http://www.factcheck.org/article.aspx?docID=124