Kathianne
06-28-2012, 01:09 AM
In all fairness, this isn't a D or R issue, it's a taxpayers issue and should be remedied. However the BIGGEST news item of this article is buried further down:
http://freebeacon.com/donilon-double-dips/
<header class="entry-header"> Donilon Double Dips Top Obama aide Tom Donilon receives taxpayer salary plus six-figure pension from bailout recipient Fannie Mae, records show
BY: Andrew Stiles (http://freebeacon.com/author/andrew-stiles/) - <time class="entry-date" datetime="2012-06-27T05:00:14+00:00" pubdate="">June 27, 2012 5:00 am
</time>
<!-- .entry-meta --> National Security Adviser Tom Donilon collected more than $148,000 in pension payments from bailed out mortgage giant Fannie Mae in 2011, on top of his White House salary of $172,200, according to a Free Beacon analysis of White House personal financial disclosure forms (http://freebeacon.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Donilon-Thomas-278_12A-copy.pdf).
Donilon netted more than $320,000 in income in 2011 between the two taxpayer-funded sources, including monthly payments totaling $12,391 as part of Fannie Mae’s “Executive Pension” and “Qualified Benefit” plans, the documents show.
“Most taxpayers are struggling to make ends meet. Yet, Mr. Donilon is still profiting from his work during the Fannie Mae buildup of the housing bubble that led to a recession and massive taxpayer bailouts,” said Sen. Jim DeMint (R., S.C.) in a statement to the Washington Free Beacon.
“We find it fairly unsurprising an Obama adviser is double-dipping the public coffers,” said Mattie Duppler, government affairs manager at American for Tax Reform. “After all, after trillion-dollar deficits for four years running, what’s a few hundred thousand?”
The optics of the arrangement were especially troubling, Duppler added, given that Donilon’s taxpayer-funded income is “three times what the average middle class taxpayer in making.”
A spokesperson for the National Security Council did not respond to questions about whether Donilon is still receiving Fannie Mae pension payments as of this year, and whether Donilon has participated in any discussions about the transfer of federal funds to Fannie Mae.
Donilon, who some suspect to be the primary source (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303734204577466910796158718.html) of controversial leaks (http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/302912/vanity-leaks-rich-lowry) of classified information (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gOinHsdvoe5ht2WP8Mxqd4G3zo4w?docId=4c4d37e19 78f4f20a7db680cc7a7e999) to reporters, worked as a registered lobbyist (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/oct/13/obama-choice-helped-fannie-block-oversight/) for Fannie Mae from 1999 to 2005....
</header>
Notice the buried lede? Here's more:
http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/234955-gop-senators-write-holder-demanding-special-counsel
Republican senators write Holder demanding special counsel for leaks
By Jeremy Herb - 06/26/12 07:37 PM ET
..
The calls for addressing leaks in the intelligence community came from both parties over revelations several weeks ago, sparked by The New York Times’s David Sanger reporting that the United States had launched a cyberattack against Iran. Lawmakers said that was the most egregious in a disturbing series of major classified breaches, including reports on a double agent infiltrating al Qaeda in Yemen and a terrorist “kill list.”
In the letter sent to Holder on Tuesday, the GOP lawmakers singled out National Security Adviser Thomas Donilon as a likely source of leaks, pointing to his portrayal in Sanger’s book, Confront and Conceal.
“Mr. Sanger clearly has enjoyed great access to senior White House officials, most notably to Thomas Donilon, the national security adviser,” the lawmakers say in their letter to Holder. “Mr. Donilon, in effect, is the hero of the book, as well as the commenter of record on events.”
McCain was more hesitant about pinpointing Donilon.
“I’m not ready to indict someone until an investigation is completed,” he said at the press conference.
McCain and the White House have battled over the motivations behind the leaks, with Obama’s 2008 presidential opponent accusing the administration of allowing them in an effort to boost Obama’s image for his reelection campaign.
Obama called McCain’s accusations “offensive” earlier this month at a press conference, saying the White House takes all leaks seriously.
...
http://freebeacon.com/donilon-double-dips/
<header class="entry-header"> Donilon Double Dips Top Obama aide Tom Donilon receives taxpayer salary plus six-figure pension from bailout recipient Fannie Mae, records show
BY: Andrew Stiles (http://freebeacon.com/author/andrew-stiles/) - <time class="entry-date" datetime="2012-06-27T05:00:14+00:00" pubdate="">June 27, 2012 5:00 am
</time>
<!-- .entry-meta --> National Security Adviser Tom Donilon collected more than $148,000 in pension payments from bailed out mortgage giant Fannie Mae in 2011, on top of his White House salary of $172,200, according to a Free Beacon analysis of White House personal financial disclosure forms (http://freebeacon.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Donilon-Thomas-278_12A-copy.pdf).
Donilon netted more than $320,000 in income in 2011 between the two taxpayer-funded sources, including monthly payments totaling $12,391 as part of Fannie Mae’s “Executive Pension” and “Qualified Benefit” plans, the documents show.
“Most taxpayers are struggling to make ends meet. Yet, Mr. Donilon is still profiting from his work during the Fannie Mae buildup of the housing bubble that led to a recession and massive taxpayer bailouts,” said Sen. Jim DeMint (R., S.C.) in a statement to the Washington Free Beacon.
“We find it fairly unsurprising an Obama adviser is double-dipping the public coffers,” said Mattie Duppler, government affairs manager at American for Tax Reform. “After all, after trillion-dollar deficits for four years running, what’s a few hundred thousand?”
The optics of the arrangement were especially troubling, Duppler added, given that Donilon’s taxpayer-funded income is “three times what the average middle class taxpayer in making.”
A spokesperson for the National Security Council did not respond to questions about whether Donilon is still receiving Fannie Mae pension payments as of this year, and whether Donilon has participated in any discussions about the transfer of federal funds to Fannie Mae.
Donilon, who some suspect to be the primary source (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303734204577466910796158718.html) of controversial leaks (http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/302912/vanity-leaks-rich-lowry) of classified information (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gOinHsdvoe5ht2WP8Mxqd4G3zo4w?docId=4c4d37e19 78f4f20a7db680cc7a7e999) to reporters, worked as a registered lobbyist (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/oct/13/obama-choice-helped-fannie-block-oversight/) for Fannie Mae from 1999 to 2005....
</header>
Notice the buried lede? Here's more:
http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/234955-gop-senators-write-holder-demanding-special-counsel
Republican senators write Holder demanding special counsel for leaks
By Jeremy Herb - 06/26/12 07:37 PM ET
..
The calls for addressing leaks in the intelligence community came from both parties over revelations several weeks ago, sparked by The New York Times’s David Sanger reporting that the United States had launched a cyberattack against Iran. Lawmakers said that was the most egregious in a disturbing series of major classified breaches, including reports on a double agent infiltrating al Qaeda in Yemen and a terrorist “kill list.”
In the letter sent to Holder on Tuesday, the GOP lawmakers singled out National Security Adviser Thomas Donilon as a likely source of leaks, pointing to his portrayal in Sanger’s book, Confront and Conceal.
“Mr. Sanger clearly has enjoyed great access to senior White House officials, most notably to Thomas Donilon, the national security adviser,” the lawmakers say in their letter to Holder. “Mr. Donilon, in effect, is the hero of the book, as well as the commenter of record on events.”
McCain was more hesitant about pinpointing Donilon.
“I’m not ready to indict someone until an investigation is completed,” he said at the press conference.
McCain and the White House have battled over the motivations behind the leaks, with Obama’s 2008 presidential opponent accusing the administration of allowing them in an effort to boost Obama’s image for his reelection campaign.
Obama called McCain’s accusations “offensive” earlier this month at a press conference, saying the White House takes all leaks seriously.
...