Cebu_4_2
22nd February 2014, 11:54 AM
Anti-gun California political powerhouses indicted on corruption charges
http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/image_content_width/hash/84/7d/847d69f7e9bca62bd5d55da8b1ca5c49.jpg?itok=gSVAZLcl California State Senate Majority Caucus
http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/square_thumb_medium/hash/70/61/706132ee197a6c1bd628234c4963b2b9.png?itok=EpfYPplQ
David Codrea (http://www.examiner.com/gun-rights-in-national/david-codrea)Gun Rights Examiner (http://www.examiner.com/gun-rights-in-national/david-codrea)
February 22, 2014
California State Senator Ron Calderon and his brother, former Assemblyman Tom Calderon, have been indicted on political corruption charges resulting from an FBI (http://www.examiner.com/topic/fbi) investigation, the Los Angeles Daily News/Whittier Daily News reported Friday (http://www.dailybreeze.com/government-and-politics/20140221/sen-ron-calderon-brother-tom-calderon-indicted-on-federal-charges-of-political-corruption), citing what officials call “the largest insurance fraud case to date in California.
“Sen. Ron Calderon was charged ... with fraud, bribery, conspiracy to commit money laundering, money laundering and aiding in the filing of false tax returns,” the report explains. “His brother, Tom Calderon, a former Assemblyman, was also charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering.
“The charges seemed certain to tarnish the Calderon clan, a political dynasty that’s long held power in southeast Los Angeles County,” the report predicted.
That power within the Calderon’s “political web” is further elaborated by The Los Angeles Times (http://graphics.latimes.com/calderon/) in a report yesterday detailing “The Calderon family’s connections,” and featuring not just Tom and Ron, but also brother Charles, a former assemblyman and state senator, and his son Ian, 27, “who became the assemblyman representing Whittier in 2012.”
In a development tangentially related to the corruption charges, a $25,000 contribution last year by “Yes We Can,” a political committee tied to the California Latino Legislative Caucus, a group Thomas Calderon was vice chair of, to Californians for Diversity, a nonprofit group that in 2011 listed him as president, was “raising eyebrows around the Capitol,” The Los Angeles Times reported in October (http://articles.latimes.com/2013/oct/30/local/la-me-pc-tom-calderon-nonprofit-received-25000-from-latino-caucus-panel-20131030). Not only had Calderon’s group not filed tax returns for 2012 at the time of that report, but concerns were raised over the inordinate amount of expenditures for “travel and food and beverages [and] entertainment for public officials.” That prompted Kathy Feng, executive director of the “progressive” advocacy group California Common Cause, to assess “that Californians for Diversity is a nonprofit that does not have a clear charity or social benefit purpose. I am also concerned that this nonprofit may have been created just to serve as a pass-through for money."
One connection "Authorized Journalists (http://www.examiner.com/topic/authorized-journalists)" writing for "mainstream" outlets have not, and will not explore, is the affinity the Calderon clan has for using their political power to impose citizen disarmament edicts.
Among his many anti-gun votes (http://votesmart.org/candidate/key-votes/28545/ron-calderon/37/guns#.UwjX3oV4A8B), Ron Calderon supported prohibiting semi-automatic rifles with detachable magazines, expanding the list of crimes to disqualify individuals from firearms ownership, prohibiting lead ammunition for hunting, and expanding loaded firearm restrictions.
When he was in power (http://votesmart.org/candidate/evaluations/16666/thomas-calderon/37#.UwjYyYV4A8B), indicted brother Thomas earned an “F” rating from NRA, a “0%” score from Gun Owners of America, and a “100%” approval from the Jack Berman Advocacy Center, a group “created ... to work on violence reduction and gun control (http://www.examiner.com/topic/gun-control).” Likewise, brother Charles was given an “F” by NRA (http://ca.opengovernment.org/sigs/47-national-rifle-association-political-victory-fund?year=2010) in 2010, and young Ian also appears to be insatiable on the gun issue (http://votesmart.org/candidate/140248/ian-calderon?categoryId=37&type=V,S,R,E,F,P#.UwjWsYV4A8A), supporting magazine capacity limits and all the other restrictions Uncle Ron demands.
While the charges have yet to be proven in a court of law, and while the Calderons deserve a presumption of innocence, there’s a pattern emerging here that is familiar to gun owners, especially those who have noticed an unmistakable connection between the politically powerful, the connected (http://www.laweekly.com/2013-11-21/news/ron-calderon-corruption-resignation/), the special interest panderers (http://www.laweekly.com/2011-06-02/news/worst-legislator-in-california-part-ii/) and the corrupt, and how many of those types always seem to take the lead in demanding “ordinary citizens” be disarmed.
That such types always appear to have a lock on power in their districts, no matter how they conduct themselves and in spite of all the red flags they raise, points to factors other than strictly politics in play. It more than hints at cynical, self-interested exploitation of human issues (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1dkOrQgIlE) to advance the larger agenda for what Barack Obama calls “a fundamental transformation,” currently blocked in part by a major obstacle “progressives” need to overcome (http://www.examiner.com/article/nra-failing-members-by-ignoring-immigration-threat-to-gun-rights): an armed citizenry that will not be ruled by men such as these.
------------
If you're a regular Gun Rights Examiner (http://www.examiner.com/gun-rights-in-national/david-codrea) reader and believe it provides news and perspectives you won't find in the mainstream press, please subscribe to this column and help spread the word by sharing links, promoting it on social media like Facebook (David Codrea (https://www.facebook.com/david.codrea)) and Twitter (@dcodrea (https://twitter.com/dcodrea)), and telling your like-minded friends about it. And for more commentary, be sure to visit "The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance (http://waronguns.blogspot.com/)."
------------
Despite all those blood-curdling screams coming from those haunting the halls of politics, the true chilling threat is to our rights. My latest GUNS Magazine "Rights Watch" (http://gunsmagazine.com/category/rights-watch/) column is online, and you can read it well before the issue hits the stands. Click here to read "Ghost Guns (http://gunsmagazine.com/exclusive-ghost-guns/).”
http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/image_content_width/hash/84/7d/847d69f7e9bca62bd5d55da8b1ca5c49.jpg?itok=gSVAZLcl California State Senate Majority Caucus
http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/square_thumb_medium/hash/70/61/706132ee197a6c1bd628234c4963b2b9.png?itok=EpfYPplQ
David Codrea (http://www.examiner.com/gun-rights-in-national/david-codrea)Gun Rights Examiner (http://www.examiner.com/gun-rights-in-national/david-codrea)
February 22, 2014
California State Senator Ron Calderon and his brother, former Assemblyman Tom Calderon, have been indicted on political corruption charges resulting from an FBI (http://www.examiner.com/topic/fbi) investigation, the Los Angeles Daily News/Whittier Daily News reported Friday (http://www.dailybreeze.com/government-and-politics/20140221/sen-ron-calderon-brother-tom-calderon-indicted-on-federal-charges-of-political-corruption), citing what officials call “the largest insurance fraud case to date in California.
“Sen. Ron Calderon was charged ... with fraud, bribery, conspiracy to commit money laundering, money laundering and aiding in the filing of false tax returns,” the report explains. “His brother, Tom Calderon, a former Assemblyman, was also charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering.
“The charges seemed certain to tarnish the Calderon clan, a political dynasty that’s long held power in southeast Los Angeles County,” the report predicted.
That power within the Calderon’s “political web” is further elaborated by The Los Angeles Times (http://graphics.latimes.com/calderon/) in a report yesterday detailing “The Calderon family’s connections,” and featuring not just Tom and Ron, but also brother Charles, a former assemblyman and state senator, and his son Ian, 27, “who became the assemblyman representing Whittier in 2012.”
In a development tangentially related to the corruption charges, a $25,000 contribution last year by “Yes We Can,” a political committee tied to the California Latino Legislative Caucus, a group Thomas Calderon was vice chair of, to Californians for Diversity, a nonprofit group that in 2011 listed him as president, was “raising eyebrows around the Capitol,” The Los Angeles Times reported in October (http://articles.latimes.com/2013/oct/30/local/la-me-pc-tom-calderon-nonprofit-received-25000-from-latino-caucus-panel-20131030). Not only had Calderon’s group not filed tax returns for 2012 at the time of that report, but concerns were raised over the inordinate amount of expenditures for “travel and food and beverages [and] entertainment for public officials.” That prompted Kathy Feng, executive director of the “progressive” advocacy group California Common Cause, to assess “that Californians for Diversity is a nonprofit that does not have a clear charity or social benefit purpose. I am also concerned that this nonprofit may have been created just to serve as a pass-through for money."
One connection "Authorized Journalists (http://www.examiner.com/topic/authorized-journalists)" writing for "mainstream" outlets have not, and will not explore, is the affinity the Calderon clan has for using their political power to impose citizen disarmament edicts.
Among his many anti-gun votes (http://votesmart.org/candidate/key-votes/28545/ron-calderon/37/guns#.UwjX3oV4A8B), Ron Calderon supported prohibiting semi-automatic rifles with detachable magazines, expanding the list of crimes to disqualify individuals from firearms ownership, prohibiting lead ammunition for hunting, and expanding loaded firearm restrictions.
When he was in power (http://votesmart.org/candidate/evaluations/16666/thomas-calderon/37#.UwjYyYV4A8B), indicted brother Thomas earned an “F” rating from NRA, a “0%” score from Gun Owners of America, and a “100%” approval from the Jack Berman Advocacy Center, a group “created ... to work on violence reduction and gun control (http://www.examiner.com/topic/gun-control).” Likewise, brother Charles was given an “F” by NRA (http://ca.opengovernment.org/sigs/47-national-rifle-association-political-victory-fund?year=2010) in 2010, and young Ian also appears to be insatiable on the gun issue (http://votesmart.org/candidate/140248/ian-calderon?categoryId=37&type=V,S,R,E,F,P#.UwjWsYV4A8A), supporting magazine capacity limits and all the other restrictions Uncle Ron demands.
While the charges have yet to be proven in a court of law, and while the Calderons deserve a presumption of innocence, there’s a pattern emerging here that is familiar to gun owners, especially those who have noticed an unmistakable connection between the politically powerful, the connected (http://www.laweekly.com/2013-11-21/news/ron-calderon-corruption-resignation/), the special interest panderers (http://www.laweekly.com/2011-06-02/news/worst-legislator-in-california-part-ii/) and the corrupt, and how many of those types always seem to take the lead in demanding “ordinary citizens” be disarmed.
That such types always appear to have a lock on power in their districts, no matter how they conduct themselves and in spite of all the red flags they raise, points to factors other than strictly politics in play. It more than hints at cynical, self-interested exploitation of human issues (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1dkOrQgIlE) to advance the larger agenda for what Barack Obama calls “a fundamental transformation,” currently blocked in part by a major obstacle “progressives” need to overcome (http://www.examiner.com/article/nra-failing-members-by-ignoring-immigration-threat-to-gun-rights): an armed citizenry that will not be ruled by men such as these.
------------
If you're a regular Gun Rights Examiner (http://www.examiner.com/gun-rights-in-national/david-codrea) reader and believe it provides news and perspectives you won't find in the mainstream press, please subscribe to this column and help spread the word by sharing links, promoting it on social media like Facebook (David Codrea (https://www.facebook.com/david.codrea)) and Twitter (@dcodrea (https://twitter.com/dcodrea)), and telling your like-minded friends about it. And for more commentary, be sure to visit "The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance (http://waronguns.blogspot.com/)."
------------
Despite all those blood-curdling screams coming from those haunting the halls of politics, the true chilling threat is to our rights. My latest GUNS Magazine "Rights Watch" (http://gunsmagazine.com/category/rights-watch/) column is online, and you can read it well before the issue hits the stands. Click here to read "Ghost Guns (http://gunsmagazine.com/exclusive-ghost-guns/).”