Senate Hearings Begin for Wealthiest Cabinet in U.S. History Despite Lack of Vetting

[umbertino]

January 09, 2017

 

https://www.democracynow.org/2017/1/9/senate_to_begin_confirmation_hearings_for

[Shabibilicious]

Grill 'em....then confirm them, or don't.  

GO RV, then BV

[SgtFuryUSCZ]

Jealous much, umbertino...?

We're pushing back against your kommie red tide here and now you don't like it...

and your team of kommie deviants want to LIE - DENY - DEFLECT from Truth.

Well, waah, waah, wahh....   Too damned bad for you and your evil ilk. 

SUCK IT kommies.

[SnowGlobe7]

I want to think that these are successful business men and women.....or gov needs to be ran like a successful business,..one that has a surplus not a deficit

lets hope they can make that happen. It wont be overnight...but at least start to head that direction and I will note them in again

[yota691]

Wealthiest, means they work, and it looks like hard work paid off...the Title of this article is Racist...

[SgtFuryUSCZ]

***//// Exactly right, SNOWCAT & YerYOTAness !

Both of your incredibly valid points are everything the evil kommies hate.

 

They'd rather enslave the whole lot of US and have US all beholden to the gubment --

what our resident kommie here fails to accept is that we are a Government By The People, for The People,

and our government employees work for US.... not the other way around !

 

And we're hiring people who can do the job to turn around the massive ILLEGAL inroads they've made here

under an illegal usurper who works for them.... not US.

[bostonangler]

Terrorism, I guess it's okay if you can profit from it. Not my opinion mind you, but that of Rex Tillerson, you know the nominee for secretary of State.

 

 

ExxonMobil did business with Iran, Syria and Sudan through a European subsidiary while President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of State was a top executive of the oil giant and those countries were under U.S. sanctions as state sponsors of terrorism, Securities and Exchange Commission filings show.

That business connection is likely to surface Wednesday at a confirmation hearing for ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

The sales were conducted in 2003, 2004 and 2005 by Infineum, in which ExxonMobil owned a 50% share, according to SEC documents unearthed by American Bridge, a Democratic research group.

 

ExxonMobil told USA TODAY the transactions were legal because Infineum, a joint venture with Shell Corporation, was based in Europe and the transactions did not involve any U.S. employees.

The filings, from 2006, show that the company had $53.2 million in sales to Iran, $600,000 in sales to Sudan and $1.1 million in sales to Syria during those three years.

 

 

He became a senior vice president at ExxonMobil in August 2001, president and director in March 2004 and chairman and chief executive on Jan. 1, 2006.

The SEC letter questioned ExxonMobil’s failure to disclose to shareholders that it had transactions with three state sponsors of terrorism. Decisions to make such disclosures should be based on “the potential impact of corporate activities upon a company`s reputation and share value,” and not simply the monetary value of the transactions, the SEC said.

Compared to Exxon’s overall annual revenue of $371 billion, “these transactions are not material by any reasonable measure,” Richard Gutman, ExxonMobil’s assistant general counsel at the time, wrote in response to an SEC inquiry regarding the transactions. He did not address the SEC's concerns about the impact on the oil company's reputation

Infineum’s European affiliates manage business transactions in those three countries “under a policy and procedure consistent with U.S. legal requirements and no United States person is involved in those business transactions,” Gutman wrote. The subsidiary has offices in the United States, United Kingdom and Singapore.

“These are all legal activities complying with the sanctions at the time," Alan Jeffers, media manager at ExxonMobil, told USA TODAY. "We didn’t feel they were material because of the size of the transactions.”

 

 

“They (Infineum) have an independent management that operates the entity. And it’s not a U.S. entity,” Jeffers said.

At the time of the SEC inquiry, such indirect transactions between Iran and American companies were not unusual, said Mark Dubowitz, an expert on Iran sanctions at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington think tank.

“It’s the reason Congress eventually shut down U.S. companies from doing business (with Iran) through foreign subsidiaries,” Dubowitz said. Congress also required such transactions to be disclosed. The Iran nuclear deal that went into effect in early 2016 reopened the loophole under certain conditions, Dubowitz said.

Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey, the ranking Democrat on the Foreign Relations panel, said he was “deeply skeptical about Mr. Tillerson’s actions as CEO of Exxon that were in direct contravention to express United States policies put in place to secure Americans and our country."

"Finding loopholes to make lucrative business deals with geo-political adversaries, while showing no clear regard for U.S. national interests, is not a resume builder for a prospective diplomat-in-chief," Menendez said in a statement to USA TODAY. "This is one of the many issues I look forward to hearing more about during the upcoming confirmation hearings.”

 

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2017/01/09/exxonmobil-and-iran-did-business-under-secretary-state-nominee-tillerson/96359776/

 

B/A

[SgtFuryUSCZ]

***///  Do YOU personally believe he's a supporter of terrorists, BA...

you know, like ho'bummer is...?

[bostonangler]

9 minutes ago, SgtFuryUSCZ said:

***///  Do YOU personally believe he's a supporter of terrorists, BA...

you know, like ho'bummer is...?

I personally think profits over people is his mantra.

B/A

[Jaxinjersey]

6 minutes ago, bostonangler said:

I personally think profits over people is his mantra.

B/A

Hmmm... that's about as vague as me saying, "can't have prosperous people without profits!".  Care to elaborate, B/A?

[bostonangler]

Just now, Jaxinjersey said:

Hmmm... that's about as vague as me saying, "can't have prosperous people without profits!".  Care to elaborate, B/A?

Our country had these terror states under sanction. Exxon skirted the laws to do their business. So they booked their profits, while the dictators killed men, women and children. It may not be illegal, but it sure isn't pretty. It would be like making money off Hamas while they kill Jews. It may be legal, but would your conscience let you sleep at night? Bottom line, these people who head up the multi-nationals are sociopaths. JMHO

 

B/A

[Jaxinjersey]

5 minutes ago, bostonangler said:

Our country had these terror states under sanction. Exxon skirted the laws to do their business. So they booked their profits, while the dictators killed men, women and children. It may not be illegal, but it sure isn't pretty. It would be like making money off Hamas while they kill Jews. It may be legal, but would your conscience let you sleep at night? Bottom line, these people who head up the multi-nationals are sociopaths. JMHO

 

B/A

Thanks for the additional perspective B/A!  I see your point... and would agree more so, had the sanctions included the US Subsidiaries from the initial onset.  "Loophole" or otherwise... an "engine" the size of Corporate Oil is a hard thing to "stop".  I'm just glad ultimate sanctions were imposed...

With that, most here know I am vehemently opposed to any "investment" in Iran, and the Iranian Rial, as I've expressed in the Rial thread here on DV.

[SgtFuryUSCZ]

***///  Wow, BA... you mean just like ho'bummer and klinton did...?  Holy smokes ! Shocking !

Hate big business much....?  Hate OPEC much....?  Want to stop the world and make 'em cut it out...?

What about the war-mongering-profiteering GLOBAL ILLUMINAT CABAL whose actions you condone by your own leftist beliefs...?

Tell us how you'd change it all in your idealistic rainbow and ponies world you're being duped into believing can actually

happen by your left-mantra slave masters....

 

[SgtFuryUSCZ]

2 minutes ago, Jaxinjersey said:

Thanks for the additional perspective B/A!  I see your point... and would agree more so, had the sanctions included the US Subsidiaries from the initial onset.  "Loophole" or otherwise... an "engine" the size of Corporate Oil is a hard thing to "stop".  I'm just glad ultimate sanctions were imposed...

With that, most here know I am vehemently opposed to any "investment" in Iran, and the Iranian Rial, as I've expressed in the Rial thread here on DV.

EXACTLY.  Thanks, JAXinJ !

BA is pushin' a rock up a hill his leftists gave him.

Counterproductive.

[bostonangler]

4 minutes ago, SgtFuryUSCZ said:

***///  Wow, BA... you mean just like ho'bummer and klinton did...?  Holy smokes ! Shocking !

Hate big business much....?  Hate OPEC much....?  Want to stop the world and make 'em cut it out...?

What about the war-mongering-profiteering GLOBAL ILLUMINAT CABAL whose actions you condone by your own leftist beliefs...?

Tell us how you'd change it all in your idealistic rainbow and ponies world you're being duped into believing can actually

happen by your left-mantra slave masters....

 

Huh???? Anyone who is found to work with terror nations should be held accountable. But starting off a new administration with that kind of baggage, just doesn't seem like a good idea.

B/A

[Jaxinjersey]

Just now, SgtFuryUSCZ said:

EXACTLY.  Thanks, JAXinJ !

BA is pushin' a rock up a hill his leftists gave him.

Counterproductive.

Agreed Gals... I view these things from a very PRACTICAL and PRAGMATIC perspective of today's reality.  We can complain all day long in our idealistic desires... but, you can't just go "turning off" the engines of the world, much less the US.  Who is John Galt?

[bostonangler]

1 minute ago, Jaxinjersey said:

Agreed Gals... I view these things from a very PRACTICAL and PRAGMATIC perspective of today's reality.  We can complain all day long in our idealistic desires... but, you can't just go "turning off" the engines of the world, much less the US.  Who is John Galt?

The Mob just called. They want you to kill your mother, her business is hurting their business. Money is no object. How much would it take? $10,000? $100,000? $1,000,000? What's a life compared to riches?

Can't stop the wheels of commerce.

Of course this post is in jest.

B/A

[SgtFuryUSCZ]

4 minutes ago, Jaxinjersey said:

Agreed Gals... I view these things from a very PRACTICAL and PRAGMATIC perspective of today's reality.  We can complain all day long in our idealistic desires... but, you can't just go "turning off" the engines of the world, much less the US.  Who is John Galt?

  (outta Plus+1's... ya got a BIG one comin'...!)

[bostonangler]

7 minutes ago, Jaxinjersey said:

complain all day long in our idealistic desires... and...  Who is John Galt?

That's rich.

B/A

[SgtFuryUSCZ]

11 minutes ago, bostonangler said:

Huh???? Anyone who is found to work with terror nations should be held accountable. But starting off a new administration with that kind of baggage, just doesn't seem like a good idea.

Then why was it a good idea for ya'll to run Criminal Klinton, pray tell..?

or even ho'bummer... who can't prove who / what HE is... yet we all know he supports terror against US...?!

 

.

 

Edited January 11, 2017 by SgtFuryUSCZ

[Jaxinjersey]

1 minute ago, bostonangler said:

The Mob just called. They want you to kill your mother, her business is hurting their business. Money is no object. How much would it take? $10,000? $100,000? $1,000,000? What's a life compared to riches?

Can't stop the wheels of commerce.

Of course this post is in jest.

B/A

Even in jest... I can't understand your context.  I'll just say, I'm an Individual... I put my individual needs ahead of everything else.  That's my moral imperative.  When I can thrive first... I can support and benefit others, family, friends, neighbors, communities, society at large... as a natural byproduct.

[bostonangler]

Just now, SgtFuryUSCZ said:

Then why was it a good idea for ya'll to run Criminal Klinton, pray tell..?

or even ho'bummer... who can't prove who / what HE is...?!

 

I think you may have had too many cocktails since the election. You seem to think I voted for Clinton. I have posted many times I couldn't vote for her or the other criminal. So whatever happens from January 20th and on ain't my problem. I'm just going to sit back and watch the show. This spectacle called an election has really been quite the spectator sport.

B/A

[bostonangler]

2 minutes ago, Jaxinjersey said:

Even in jest... I can't understand your context.  I'll just say, I'm an Individual... I put my individual needs ahead of everything else.  That's my moral imperative.  When I can thrive first... I can support and benefit others, family, friends, neighbors, communities, society at large... as a natural byproduct.

I get that. But you would not condone murder to profit. That is what happens when you sell technology and equipment to terror states. Ask the 400,00 people in Syria how they feel. Oh wait, they are dead at the hands of the dictator.

 

B/A

[SgtFuryUSCZ]

3 minutes ago, bostonangler said:

I think you may have had too many cocktails since the election. You seem to think I voted for Clinton. I have posted many times I couldn't vote for her or the other criminal. So whatever happens from January 20th and on ain't my problem. I'm just going to sit back and watch the show. This spectacle called an election has really been quite the spectator sport.

There's your problem right there.

You sure like to wax on about what a horror show it all is -- yet check out when things don't go your way and

you refuse to be part of a solution.

Typical lefty.

Here's puppy and a pony.

Have fun in your self-imposed 'safe space'.....

 

Let the adults in the room work on it for ya before ya hurt yerself. 

[Jaxinjersey]

2 minutes ago, bostonangler said:

I get that. But you would not condone murder to profit. That is what happens when you sell technology and equipment to terror states. Ask the 400,00 people in Syria how they feel. Oh wait, they are dead at the hands of the dictator.

 

B/A

Agreed... as I already did a few posts ago.  Go dive into the Rial thread, early on in the first few pages... and you'll see how we are in accord.

As far as Tillerson goes, I give him support based on the definitions and timing of the sanctions.  I believe he is a good man.