Day: December 15, 2008

NM: Pay to Play Issue?

Gov. Bill Richardson is facing allegations related to a company involved in a municpal bond controversy in Alabama, according to this report. The grand jury in Albuquerque is looking into Beverly Hills, California-based CDR Financial Products Inc., which received almost $1.5 million in fees from the New Mexico Finance Authority in 2004 after donating $100,000 […]

Siemens AG FCPA Guilty Plea

In the largest case of its kind, Siemens AG pled guilty to violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and agreed to pay a criminal fine of $450 million. From the 1990s through 2007, Siemens engaged in a systematic and widespread effort to make and to hide hundreds of millions of dollars in bribe payments […]

Exploring the Causes of the Financial Crises

The Times is publishing a series of articles exploring the causes of the financial crises.  The latest is a profile of Sen. Schumer. Senator Schumer plays an unrivaled role in Washington as beneficiary, advocate and overseer of an industry that is his hometown’s most important business. … Donors describe the Schumer pitch as unusually aggressive: […]