Indicted NY Biz Man Republican Player? Or Sucker? (NRCC fundraiser scam)

[Oilwellian]

Josh, looking into Abdul Tawala Ibn Ali Alishtari (aka Michael Mixon), the New York businessman indicted last week for terrorist financing and bilking investors of millions of dollars, notes that Alishtari, in addition to doling out thousands to the National Republican Congressional Committee, also claims in an online CV to be a member of the "White House Business Advisory Committee" and at having been a "National Republican Congressional Committee Businessman of the Year" in 2002 and 2003.

So was Alishtari a Republican heavy hitter?

Well, if he was, these awards aren't an indication of it.

As ABC's new ace investigative reporter Justin Rood reports today in his story on Alishtari, "the NRCC 'Businessperson of the Year' fundraising campaign, which gave such 'awards' to at least 1,900 GOP donors, has been derided as a telemarketing scam by political watchdogs."

Here's how it works, as reported in The Washington Post back in 2003:

The call starts with flattery: You have been named businessman of the year, or physician of the year, or state chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee's Business Advisory Council.

Then comes the fundraising hook: a request for as much as $500 to help pay for a full-page Wall Street Journal advertisement, then a request for $5,000 to reserve a seat at a banquet thrown in your honor. Can't handle that? How about $1,250 for the no-frills package?

Back then, the calls frequently featured a recording of ex-Majority Leader's Tom DeLay (R-TX). But the program is a long-time fixture of the NRCC's fundraising apparatus, dating back to 1998 and still going strong. And that's despite several news stories exposing the award as a sham. Apparently there are plenty of people who don't mind being hit up for thousands of dollars in order to receive an award: As NRCC spokesman told the Post back in 2003, "There are many, many happy members of the Business Advisory Council."

(Note: There is no such thing as the "White House Business Advisory Committee," as Alishtari terms it. And given that the award lines up with his "Businessman of the Year" honor (and his contributions to the NRCC), it's safe to assume he's referring to the same program.)

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/002600.php

[Dr.Phool]

1. Funny

About 15 minutes ago, I got a message from the RNCC. They want to give me a National Leadership award. I wonder how they got my name, and how much it's going to cost me.

[leveymg]

2. Don't send them any money - it's a FBI counter-terrorism operation.

:patriot: :hide: :nuke: :evilgrin: :nuke: :hide: :patriot: B-)

[Oilwellian]

3. Chumps of the Year Award

Jesus...just Google "National Republican Congressional Committee Businessman of the Year" ... there are pages of the following:


For immediate release from the National Republican Congressional Committee:


Washinton, D.C. - Congressman Tom Davis (R-VA) announced today that Mr. Karl Baldwin has been awarded the 2003 Virginia Businessman of the Year Award. The award recogizes the top U.S business leaders who have successfully integrated business and financial success with the support of Republican issues like tax cuts and debt reduction.

Mr. Baldwin was selected to receive the award for efforts as a member of the NRCC's Business Advisory Council. The Council is made up of top business people from across the country who have joined together with Republicans in the House of Represenatives to provide support for a pro-business agenda in Congress. Mr. Baldwin was particularly instrumental in helping Republicans pass the first across-the-board tax cut in a generation earlier, as well as an Economic Stimulas package in October 2002.

Mr. Baldwin is also to be considered for the NRCC's highest honor, the "Rpublican of the Year." Winners of the Republican of the Year award will be announced in March of 2004.

http://www.hostsearch.com/news/websites_online_inc_news_1681.asp

NATIONAL REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE’S BUSINESS
ADVISORY COUNCIL - REPUBLICAN OF THE YEAR 2006 NAMED
Snell & Wilmer partner Timothy O’Neill honored
DENVER (September 12, 2006) The National Republican Congressional Committee’s Business
Advisory Council announced today that Snell & Wilmer attorney Timothy O`Neill is a 2006
Republican of the Year from Colorado.
NRCC Chairman Tom Reynolds explained that the award is given to a select
group of business and community leaders from each state who have championed
the free enterprise system and supported the ideals of smaller government,
lower taxes and less regulation. Congressman Reynolds commented, “I am
extremely grateful for the tremendous support that Tim has shown for our Party,
especially in this critical election year.”
The Business Advisory Council is a special project of the NRCC in which small businessmen
and women work with Republican leaders in Washington to help shape the Party’s agenda and
also provide financial support for conservative candidates to the House of Representatives.

http://72.14.209.104/search?q=cache:fMneHSVxhzEJ:www.swlaw.com/data/whatsnew/ONeillRofYear.pdf+National+Republican+Congressional+Committee+Businessman+of+the+Year&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=5&gl=us&client=firefox-a



America Honors Prof. Peter Nwangwu With The Third Prestigious Award In 30 Days

Universal Pharmacy Consultants (Washington, DC)
January 10, 2006

Prof. Peter Uchenna Nwangwu, a Nigerian-American professional living in the United States, has been named "Business Man of the Year 2005", by the Business Advisory Council of the United States, Washington, D.C. Prof. Nwangwu is one of twelve men in the United States selected for this distinguished honor. In March 2006, Nwangwu will receive the prestigious trophy in Washington, D.C at a presentation ceremony honoring him and the other recipients selected across the nation. Their names will be published in a full-page add in the Wall Street Journal announcing the recipients of the coveted award.
This award of "Business Man of the Year 2005" announced by the Business Advisory Council on December 15, 2005, is the third distinguished honor conferred on Prof. Nwangwu within 30 days in the United States. During the first week of December 2005, U.S. Congressman Tom Reynolds (R-NY), chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, announced that Prof. Nwangwu was the recipient of the eminent "2005 President Ronald Reagan Republican Gold Medal", awarded annually by the National Republican Congressional Committee, Washington, D.C. As recipient of the gold medal, Prof. Nwangwu's name will be permanently listed in the ranks of the Republican Honor Roll at the National Republican Congressional Committee headquarters in Washington, D.C.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200601100520.html

2003 Awarded Congressional Order of Merit by National Republican Congressional Commission (NRCC)
The Chairman and Executive Committee of the National Republican Congressional Committee bestowed the NRCC Congressional Order of Merit upon Ananda Roberts. The NRCC Congressional Order of Merit honors a select group of individuals who have unselfishly given of themselves and is a most coveted civilian honor.


2003 Named Presidential Partner by Business Advisory Council of the National Republican Congressional Commission (NRCC)
Ananda Roberts, Arizona's only Presidential Partner, works with top Republican Party officials to generate support for the President's tax cuts. Roberts also serves as Honorary Chairman of the NRCC's Business Advisory Council, which advocates a pro-business agenda in Congress.

http://www.nfocus.com/news/awards.html


Tom Schmidt, president of T.A. Schmidt & Associates of Oklahoma City, was recognized as one of the 2003 Businessmen of the Year by the National Republican Congressional Committee's Business Advisory Council. The award ceremony in Washington, D.C., was in conjunction with the Committee's Congressional Tax Summit discussing the impact of the President's Economic Agenda.
Recently named honorary co-chairman, Schmidt also serves as a special advisor on the Business Advisory Council. An active member of the National Association of Insurance Financial Advisors since 1988, he is vice president of membership for the Oklahoma City Insurance Financial Advisors chapter. A certified senior advisor, Schmidt is the owner of T.A. Schmidt & Associates, an insurance and investment agency established in 1988.
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4182/is_20030710/ai_n10158817


What a bunch of chumps...and buying a title for themselves to boot.