BOMBSHELL - Clinton To Give Back $850,000 From Norman Hsu-Linked Donors - Drudge Report / AP Wire

Between this and the Peter Paul matter, it's shaping up to be an interesting political race and this is the turning point.

Clinton to Return $850,000 Raised by Hsu
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Sep 10, 10:28 PM (ET)

By LARA JAKES JORDAN

(AP) Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Clinton speaks during a Democratic forum hosted by...
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WASHINGTON (AP) - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's presidential campaign said Monday it will return $850,000 in donations raised by Democratic fundraiser Norman Hsu, who is under federal investigation for allegedly violating election laws.
Clinton, D-N.Y., previously had planned only to give to charity $23,000 she received from Hsu for her presidential and senatorial campaigns and to her political action committee, HillPac.
The FBI is investigating whether Hsu paid so-called straw donors to send campaign contributions to Clinton and other candidates, a law enforcement official said Monday.
"In light of recent events and allegations that Mr. Norman Hsu engaged in an illegal investment scheme, we have decided out of an abundance of caution to return the money he raised for our campaign," Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson said in a statement Monday night. "An estimated 260 donors this week will receive refunds totaling approximately $850,000 from the campaign."
Wolfson said the Clinton campaign also will vigorously review its fundraisers, including thorough criminal background checks, in the future. "In any instances where a source of a bundler's income is in question, the campaign will take affirmative steps to verify its origin," he said.
The amount that the campaign identified as raised by Hsu would make him one of her top fundraisers. During the first six months of this year, her presidential campaign raised $52 million from individual contributors, second to Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., who raised $58.5 million.
While Clinton will return the money raised by Hsu, Wolfson said the individual contributors could make new donations.
"We will accept their contributions and ask them to confirm for our records that they are from their own personal funds," he said in an e-mail.
Since 2004, Hsu has donated $260,000 to Democratic Party groups and federal candidates, and raised hundreds of thousands of additional dollars. He was regarded as a top party fundraiser until recent reports surfaced that he was wanted on a warrant in California in connection with a 1991 grand theft charge.
Federal authorities are examining whether Hsu leaned on investors to contribute to political candidates after paying them big earnings from a shady business venture he was running, the law enforcement official said. Such a scam - using conduit contributors known as straw donors - is a violation of the Federal Election Campaign Act, which limits how much money individuals can give to candidates and political committees.
The FBI may be looking at other potential charges as well, according to the law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation.
In addition to the $260,000 he contributed to federal candidates, Hsu also contributed at least $330,000 to state Democratic candidates and state party committees and ballot initiatives during the 2004 and 2006 election cycles. Among the state officials who received money were New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer and New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. Both have said they would divest their campaigns of the donations.
Additionally, last week Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell said he would donate nearly $40,000 in contributions, and Rep. Mark Udall, D-Colo., said he had donated a $1,000 contribution to a charity that helps soldiers.
The purpose of Hsu's business venture was unclear. The Los Angeles Times reported Monday that it was an investment pool that had recently drawn the suspicion of associates who questioned its legality.
An attorney for Hsu did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday.
Hsu remained hospitalized in Grand Junction, Colo., where he has been since failing to show up for a California court hearing last week. It was unclear when he might be returned to California to face charges.
Hsu pleaded no contest in 1991 to accusations that he defrauded investors of $1 million. He was facing up to three years in prison when he skipped town before his sentencing in 1992. He finally surrendered to the arrest warrant Aug. 31, but disappeared before last week's hearing where he was expected to turn over his passport and ask a judge to cut his $2 million bail in half.
Wolfson said the Clinton campaign was "unaware of Mr. Hsu's decade-plus old warrant," despite what he described as a thorough review of public records.
Since Thursday, Hsu has been at the Colorado hospital, when he was taken from an eastbound Amtrak train for treatment of an undisclosed ailment. He'd failed to show up for the hearing a day earlier. He is expected to be taken to the Mesa County Jail in Colorado to await extradition proceedings in state court once he is well enough to leave the hospital.
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Associated Press writer Jim Kuhnhenn contributed to this report.

Ground Broken on "New Medaowlands"

Tuesday September 4th was a red letter day for the Jets, Giants, and the New Jersey Sports and Expsition Authority. The ground was broken on the site of the new stadium that will be shared by both NY teams. Currently the stadium is referred to as the "New Meadowlands, but the NJSEA and the Teams are working on a Naming Sponsorship that could Net close to 250 million dollars over the life of the agreement. For the average fan, the concern is weather or not they will be priced out by Personal Seat leases(PSL's). The new complex will feature a 100,000 square foot Tailgate plaza, improved access roads, a "Great Wall" of Colored panels that will be interchangeable for each team, and an additional 4,500 regular seats, plus 200 assorted luxury boxes.

The new Stadium will host at least 20 NFL games per season, more than any other stadium in the nation, as well as numerous other events ranging from college football to international soccer, concerts and more – as many as 80 a year, in addition to Giants and Jets games.

The groundbreaking ceremony was attended by New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine, State Senate President Richard Codey, New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority Chairman Carl Goldberg, former Authority Chairman and current Rutgers Athletic Director Bob Mulcahy, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, plus Giants President and CEO John Mara, Giants Chairman and Executive Vice President Steve Tisch, and Jets Chairman and CEO Woody Johnson.

Robert Duvall To Host $2,300-Per-Person Event For Rudy Giuliani

From one Godfather to another - Robert Duvall is set to host a $2,300 event for Ex-New York Mayor and Republican Presidential Candidate Rudy Giuliani. According to the Washington Times...

We opened yesterday's mail to see that Academy Award-winning actor and director Robert Duvall and his fourth wife, Luciana, will host a high-end cocktail party at their country home in The Plains, Va., later this month to benefit Republican presidential candidate Rudolph W. Giuliani.

The invitation to the Sept. 20 gala requests a campaign contribution of $2,300 per guest, which gets you a photo with the candidate (and maybe even the celebrated actor). Others can fork over $1,000 ($500 if you're younger than 35) to mingle about the Middleburg-area estate and listen to Mr. Giuliani's remarks.

Mr. Duvall, who is a descendant of both Robert E. Lee and George Washington, announced his support for Mr. Giuliani earlier this week.

Paula Zahn Likes To Spend Money - $25 Million

Ex-CNN Star Paula Zahn's ex-hubby claims that he didn't spend $25 million, but that she spent it all -- mostly on a mansion in Conneticut.

Life's not the best for Zahn. She's lost her CNN gig, and is going through all of this. I don't believe she's all bad for one moment, but this is personal. The only thing I have to go by is how all of the New York limo drivers tell me how nice she is, and that she takes time to talk with them.

Maybe she just has poor choice in men. Gotta get the cha-ching outta her eyes!

Scary Amazon Clinton Book Offers - From 9/11 and Sex to Murder

Folks, I'm not -- not making this up. As I was reading about Kathleen Willey's claim of theft by the Clintons on WorldNetDaily, I saw this description of books available at Amazon.com:




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Special offers:

"Their Lives: The Women Targeted by the Clinton Machine" by Candice E. Jackson.

'Mega Fix': The dazzling Clinton political deceit that led to 9-11

Finally, Hillary in her own (unedited) words

Hillary's attempt to muzzle Farah, other Net journalists

Was Ron Brown murdered? How 1 man's death saved the Clinton presidency and Hillary's future

This is pretty freaky stuff. You don't see Obama or Edwards or even Mike Gravel with this kind of book trail!

Kathleen Willey Blames Theft On Hillary Clinton and Bill Clinton

Kathleen Willey's about to come out with a book on the Clinton's in November called "Caught In The Crosshairs" or words to that effect. In the New York Post and WorldNetDaily, she claims that her home was broken into and a copy of the manuscript was stolen -- presumably by the Clintons.

Frankly, she probably lost the thing in her place.

Unvision Debate - Democrats debate on Hispanic channel

Democrats debate on Hispanic channel
Hopefuls discuss immigration, diplomacy, trade

By Ray Quintanilla | Tribune staff reporter

MIAMI—The nation's Latino voters took center stage Sunday as the Democratic presidential candidates debated on Spanish-language television for the first time, courting a voting bloc that has often backed Democrats but was split when President Bush won re-election in 2004.

Much of the night focused on two front-burner issues to Hispanics: immigration reform and promoting U.S. relations with Latin America, especially Cuba and Venezuela.

"We have to start lifting the embargo against Cuba," said New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, a Latino who chided Univision—the broadcast network sponsoring the forum—for not letting him answer questions in Spanish.

"As president, I would pay attention to Latin America and associate myself with the democratic movements in Brazil, Argentina and Chile," he explained, criticizing Sens. Hillary Clinton of New York, Barack Obama of Illinois and Christopher Dodd of Connecticut for supporting immigration reform legislation that included construction of a barrier along the U.S. border with Mexico.

Obama called the fence a necessary part of border security and pledged to create "a pathway" to legalization for illegal immigrants in the United States within his first year in the White House. That vow generated applause from the audience of several hundred at the University of Miami.

Clinton took the issue a step further, saying she would speak out against a wave of anti-Latino sentiment as the nation struggles to reach consensus on immigration. "We must treat people with dignity," Clinton said, adding that her campaign manager, Patti Solis Doyle, is a Latina.

"The Cuban people deserve freedom and democracy," Clinton said. "We need to do all we can to work with our friends to ensure a peaceful transition."

Dodd, a former humanitarian worker in the Dominican Republic, said the political transition in Cuba has already begun and called for lifting travel restrictions because "it's hurting us. We do not need to fear Fidel Castro. Are we going to sit on the sidelines or be a part of the transition?"

Former Sen. Mike Gravel of Alaska called on the U.S. government to stop deportation raids against suspected illegal immigrants, saying immigrants are being turned into scapegoats for U.S. failures at home and around the world.

Gravel said he would reach out to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. "Did we forget our CIA tried to depose him?" Gravel asked. "We are doing the same thing in Iran."

Former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina said the United States could "pull the rug" out from under Chavez by "being a force for good and healing" across Latin America.

Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio called the North American Free Trade Agreement a major problem between the United States and Mexico. If elected, he would scrap it, he said, and replace it with an agreement that enables workers to form unions to promote better living standards on both sides of the border.

"I will cancel NAFTA," Kucinich said. "Immigration reform should mean a path to legalization, not walls," he added.

The Latino vote is growing and gaining political muscle, especially in California, Florida, Illinois, Nevada, New York and Arizona—home to many of the nation's 44 million Hispanics.

The Pew Hispanic Center says about 54 percent of Latino eligible voters were registered in 2006, up from 53 percent in 2002. In the 2004 general election, 7.6 million Latinos cast ballots. Bush captured about 40 percent of the vote, enough to help him defeat Sen. John Kerry.

During Sunday's debate, the moderators asked questions in Spanish that were translated into English for the candidates. The candidates' answers were delivered in English and translated into Spanish for viewers.

Sen. Joseph Biden of Delaware, who just returned from a trip to Iraq, did not attend.