Rangel Should Have Worked for the UN
Rep. Charles Rangel is having an unpleasant season, convicted on Tuesday by a House panel on 11 counts of ethics violations — including failure to properly disclose hundreds of thousands of dollars in personal financial assets.
Rangel would have done far better to work for the United Nations. For UN senior staff members, as long as they don’t get carried away and attempt an act of genuine transparency, it is virtually impossible to fail to properly disclose their personal financial assets to the public. That’s not because they are all paragons of disclosure. The reason they can hardly fail is that the UN has redefined the procedure of “public disclosure” to mean that UN officials do not need to disclose to the public anything whatsoever. This is the twisted product of the 2006 “reforms,” in which the Oil-for-Food-tainted UN promised greater transparency.
In the U.S. House, as the Rangel case reminds us, the requirements of disclosure involve enough detail so you can check out — with names and addresses attached — such information as, say, how much Rep. Nancy Pelosi says she made in rental income, or in Miscrosoft dividends. If you want to play around with this yourself, just type in the name of your favorite representative in the search space on this web page for the Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives.
But at the UN, UN senior officials — unlike Rep. Charlie Rangel and his colleagues — get a choice. Collectively, they are entrusted with handling billions of U.S. tax dollars (the U.S. chips in more than $6 billion per year, bankrolling roughly one-quarter of the UN’s system-wide budget), and they serve in high positions of global, public trust. But when it comes to disclosing their personal finances to the public, UN senior officials may, at their own discretion, opt out entirely and have the UN release zilch. Or — I’m not making this up — they can allow the release of a one-page form on which they check a box to disclose only that they don’t want to disclose anything (for instance, check out the 2009 “public disclosure” form of one of Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon’s special envoys for climate change, Ricardo Lagos Escobar).
Or, there’s a third way, which at the UN represents going all out on public disclosure. They can allow the UN to release to the public a one-page form on which they declare their personal financial circumstances in terms so vague that the listings include only the broadest generic descriptions, such as “house” — with no dollar amounts attached. For instance, here’s the “public disclosure” form of UN Under-Secretary General Sha Zukang, who hails from China and who recently made waves by presenting an award to the retired Chinese defense minister who had operational command of the crushing of the 1989 protests in Tiananmen Square. Sha lists just two items: “Private House, joint with spouse, China,” and “Chinese Bonds, joint with spouse: Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.”
Though, in fairness to Sha Zukang, his public disclosure form provides more information than many. At least he lists a house and gives the name of the bank in which he holds his bonds — even if there’s no clue whether these assets are worth $10 or $10 million. There are other officials who apparently have no assets, no liabilities, no house, no rental income, no nothin’ — or at least nothing they consider relevant to the process of public disclosure. For instance, the secretary-general’s high representative for the Iranian-grandfathered, globe girdling initiative known as the Alliance of Civilizations, Jorge Sampaio, a former president of Portugal, on his UN public disclosure form, discloses exactly one thing: “I am not engaged in any outside activities at the present time.”
But don’t take my word for just how obfuscatory UN “public disclosure” can get. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, on his official UN web site, has an entire section labeled “Public Disclosure,” where, if you scroll down, you can search for yourself — here are the forms for 2009. I have more on the origins and oddities of this UN version of transparency in my Forbes.com column this week on “The Deepening Mysteries of UN Financial Disclosure,” noting that in the process of UN disclosure, the Russian official who has been running the grand UN complex in Geneva since 2002 has gone from disclosing “Bank Savings accounts” as his sole assets, to listing, simply, “Nil.”
No one’s saying that any of these UN officials, individually, are doing anything wrong. Apparently, they are complying with the UN system in ways that UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is proud to post on his official UN site under the category of “Ethical Standards.” I’m just saying, Charlie Rangel never had it this good.
If a conservative, Republican or any other honest man (Lindsey Graham, Newt Gingrich, Carl Rove and every other RINO, including those two sheilas from the North-East and that murky cow from the frozen North-West, excluded) was convicted of half of those charges he’d be looking at the inside of a cell for around 15 years.
And I’ll bet New York City to a single brick the head of the Harlem Mafia, AKA congresscrook wangle, gets a symbolic slap on the hand.
Claudia Rosett is expert at comprehending the United Nations…Unfortunately–to date–the powers that be have not truly responded to her findings, e.g. the infamous UN “Oil for Food”…
Hopefully, the United States of America, given new leadership through our 2012 elections–will cease taxpayer contributions to that organization–COMPLETELY!
From the desk of Charlie Rangel:
Dear Fellow Congresspeople,
I am here today to tell you that I deplore the ridiculous and unconstitutional actions taken against me by the highly partisan and Republican-dominated ethics committee. In finding me guilty of these eleven charges, this committee has violated every rule of fair justice known to man. I find it unbelievable that this great body would sit idly by while my name is slandered in this malicious fashion, and so have chosen to take this opportunity to address the charges made against me.
First of all, let me talk to you about that little villa in the Dominican Republic. So I forgot to file my rental income from that little place on my tax return. Can you really expect me to keep up with every little detail like that? I have more important things to worry about, like writing the tax code for the IRS. Sure, I chair the committee that wrote this law, but why do you think that means I know what’s in it? We all pass laws here every day that have mountains of stuff we don’t know about. It’s like Speaker Pelosi said about our health care bill, you have to pass it to know what’s in it.
I would further like to point out that I was not even in the room when this verdict was handed down! Now tell me, how can that be justice? If the defendant leaves in a fit, you must acquit! Look here, if that bunch of Republicans was willing to convict me without even saying it to my face, then how can you take this verdict seriously? I ask you, my fellow congresspeople, have you no shame? On top of that, I was denied my constitutional right to legal representation in this so-called hearing. I tell you, lack of representation is as bad as segregation! If an African-American Congressman like me is denied representation, there is no justice in this nation! On the other hand, I do have a nice condo for rent if you need a vacation.
Now you need to understand this also, my fellow congresspeople. If this can happen to me, then it can happen to any of you. I have served in this fine body for forty years, I have championed all the great causes of our time, I have stood for truth, justice and freedom! And what do I get? Convicted for failure to report income! I tell you this, you could all face trials for your income, and then some! Do you hear where I’m coming from?
And tell me this, if you would please, would this happen if I were white? No, and I can wrap that case up tight. I forgot a few hundred thousand on my tax return, while Barney Frank over there let his lover boy run a brothel in the basement! Have we forgotten Gingrich, and not seen how he got rich? I look on both sides of the aisle, and see you folks have forgotten I’ve been here quite a while. I know about the secrets you keep, and where your teen-age honeys sleep. I know about the bribes you’ve been taking and the deals you’ve been making, and here you want to put it all off on me! Well not this time, folks. If you want to convict me you can, but at the end of the day I’ll still be the man.
So you think the threat of censure will bring any pressure? Try this one out, plenty of fine folks will shout, “no justice, no peace” when you vote against me. I see Pelosi and the Democrat caucus have turned out to be just like the Republican circus. It’s all the same to all of them, just let the Brother go down, they won’t miss him. Well I’ve got news, you can try all your spin, but when it comes to D.C. mine’s a pretty small sin. I was a soldier before most of you folks were born, and from this seat I will never be torn. I know how to fight all through the night, and when I get done you’ll see I have won!
Do you really think this was settled in your little committee? My ring is the street, and my people you’ll meet! I fought for our rights against Nixon and Reagan and Bush and even Clinton, presidents all; they’re all gone and I still stand tall. So if you think I can be pushed aside, you’ve mistaken the scope of this tide! The Congressional Black Caucus knows that you need us, so open your ears up and listen to heed us. I’ve stood by your side all through the years, given my heart, my soul and my tears. You don’t dare expel me, you know it is true, and if you try then this day you will rue.
Fellow Congresspeople, that wraps it up. I may have made a few errors on my taxes, but I know how many of you have done worse, and if I talk your career’s in a hearse. So go ahead with your vote now but just remember, the old lion always laughs last in December.
Your fellow Congressman,
The HONORABLE Charlie Rangel
Why would the old crook Wrangel move to the UN when he has had the finest opportunity in the world to rip off the taxpayers knowing that at most he will get a slap on the hands when apprehended. He hasn’t even needed to wast money on attorneys let alone hang around for the ethics hearings. What better place to get rich, insure lifetime benefits, and become “connected” than working in congress ? The ethics participants don’t have what it takes to dish out real justice to a black guy any more than Holder could dish out justice to the Black Panther thugs. What a joke.
“For UN senior staff members, as long as they don’t get carried away and attempt an act of genuine transparency…”
Ms. Rosett, you owe me new computer equipment. For when I read the above quote from your article, it caused me to spew coffee all over my monitor and keyboard. I hope I won’t have to sue you and PJM. Please make good on this, and by the way, keep writing these wonderful articles and shedding light on the madness and insanity that is the UN.
The UN has become the Bernie Madoff of International Relations. It is a Ponzi scheme with just about the same transparency. This “disclosure” that doesn’t disclose is a classic case in point.
Look for congress to adopt something similar if we aren’t watching.
If it wern`t so serious and yet another window on what goes on in Congress,you could laugh yourself to death.Charley Rangel being tried by a bypartisan group of fellow crooks! Why isn`t this law breaker being tried in the in the court system that would try us ,US citzens?
The name of the game in Congress seems to be,Be kind to charlie for the next candidate for the same treatment may be me!
With the new Congress about to be seated,it should extend the present tax structure and add a further tax reduction!
If you look at Rangel’s positions, attitudes and actions, he actually does work for the UN.
Charlie Rangels defence is,of course, a racist answer to charges against him.They wouldn`t do this to a white congressman.
I wonder if the Big Cheese is goint to invite Congress to a luncheon at the WH to tell them their treatment of CR is racist and shoud apologise to him
Funny how Republicans win the House and their first order of business is to smear the most-respected black member of the House.
Last I saw, it was both parties in the current (old) Congress who did him in. And if he’s the most respected, I’d hate to think what the others have done to rip us all off.
Sorry Vinny. Mr. Rangel was being investigated long before the election. It’s just that your Dem-friendly media decided that it wasn’t newsworthy. Now that the Repubs have House majority, the media plays it as a witchhunt. Obviously, you fell for their ingenuous modus operandi. So sad for you.
Huh? How is this the Repubs’ “first order of business” when Nancy Pelosi is still Speaker? Last I saw, a Democrat was running the Ethics Committee. This is a lame duck session and it is being run by the Democrats, not the GOP. The committee is evenly split, so Dems could have blocked Rangel’s hearing if they chose to. Next is Maxine Waters. What will you say about her?
Hope you got a REAL firm grip on that straw you’re holding on to for dear life.
Rather funny how the Rangle was investigated under the Pelosi house,and tried under the Pelosi house. The newly elected Republicans don’t take office until January.
So: Is it the Democrats who in their last order of business is to smear a black member of the house?
Or was Rangle so bad that they couldn’t sweep it under the rug anymore?
It was an act of mercy, and it probably is sweeping most of the garbage under the rug. They needed to get this over with before the new Republican dominated house came into session who would have most certainly dealt with him in a far different, and much more severe, manner.
Even ol’ lefty Rangel doesn’t hate Jews enough to belong in the UN.
Next order of business should be Articles of Impeachment, to be filed as soon as the new Congress convenes. (Whatever the present committee delivers as a slap on the wrist.)
Want to withdraw from the UN and toss the UN out? http://www.ConstitutionParty.com