Lost in the SOTU Non-News: Court Approves Bachmann's Pardon Pal's Plan to Pay Off Ponzi Victims

What great timing, eh?

You may remember that Frank Vennes filed the motion for his "work-out" plan the day after the November election. Naturally, there was hardly any news about it. Yesterday, Judge Montgomery ruled on the motion.

The Strib:

Investors with Frank Vennes, the unindicted co-conspirator of former Wayzata businessman Tom Petters, will get 35 to 74 cents on the dollar for their losses in the state's largest fraud, according to a court order filed Tuesday.

Three banks whose loans were secured by assets of Vennes will receive 65 percent to 74 percent of their losses, or $11.4 million.

Investors with personal guarantees by Vennes will receive half of their losses, while those without personal guarantees will recover about 35 percent of their losses. This group will receive $16.4 million.

And Mr. Vennes didn't do too bad either... from Judge Montgomery's decision:

Mr. Vennes will receive from the Liquidating Trustee reasonable living expenses for one year totaling $62,400, which sum is consistent with the living expenses provided during the § 1345 Vennes receivership in this matter. Upon request, Mr. Vennes will assist in the efforts of the Liquidating Trustee in the sales or other dispositions of assets and the carrying out of the Asset Distribution Plan. Reasonable expenses incurred by Mr. Vennes in such efforts at the request of, and previously approved by, the Liquidating Trustee will be reimbursed to him.

Read more about Frank Vennes at Karl Bremer's Ripple in Stillwater blog.



UPDATE: Good links to stuff about Bachmann's SOTUS response at Crooks and Liars... including this hilarious video of Bachmann primping and preening before her speech:

Bachmann Running for President to Pardon Frank Vennes Jr. Herself?

ABC News:

ABC News has learned that Bachmann, R-Minn., also is seriously weighing whether to seek the Republican nomination for president in 2012.

TPM:

Keep in mind that the last time Bachmann decided to run for a higher office -- going from state Senate to the U.S. House in 2006 -- she said that she and her husband fasted for three days, praying for confirmation from God that He was indeed calling them to do it.

As Bachmann told a friendly mega-church crowd during that campaign: "And after -- along about the afternoon of day two -- He made that calling sure."

Hart Denburg at the City Pages Blotter suspects another motive:

Or maybe it's just a publicity stunt. Bachmann's demonstrated that she knows how to ride the crazy train for headlines, and then rake in the campaign contributions that follow. As a result she's sitting on a mountain of cash left over from the 2010 election cycle that could start boosting her national visibility.

A serious run for President would be a disaster for Bachmann. She has too many skeletons in her closet... and Team Dump Bachmann has archived nearly all of them... just a few off the top of my head:

Bathroomgate.

Bachmann & the Pod People.

Bachmann's fundraising and prayers for Bradlee Dean - Karl Bremer has more recent info on the financial shenanigans of YCRBYCH here and here.

Bachmann's ties to sham charity U.S. Navy Vets... just curious how long she'll keep that photo of USNV, and pod lobbyist Edwin Cain on her Congressional website...

The Fabulous Marcus "First Husband" Bachmann.

Dump Bachmann's bizarre videos of Bachmann preaching at Mac Hammond's church.

Bachmann kissing Bush.

Bachmann's support for a group on the State Department Terrorist Watch List.

I'm sure our regular readers will remember more... and you are welcome to put them in the comments.

The biggest skeleton in Bachmann's closet has to be her letter requesting a pardon for convicted money launderer and Petters Ponzi associate Frank Vennes Jr.

Perhaps Bachmann wants to be President so she can give that pardon to Frank Vennes herself?

Vennes Supporters Behaving Badly

In the last post, I asked commenter "Pete" to clarify his criticism of my post about the hearing for the Frank Vennes work-out plan. This is Pete's reply:

My reference to Sexual persuasion has nothing to do with the Petters Ponzi scheme. It is a reference to the people who are posting on this blog of yours. It is apparent that it is a blog for liberal homosexuals who hold God in great contempt, and because you really cant take on God, you choose to bash anyone that might have views which would lean towards Gods view which he shares through the Holy Bible. My point would be that you choose to bash a guy like Frank Vennes without knowing anything about him other than he is a Christian.

If Pete wants to pin a pink triangle on me, I'll wear it proudly. Pete's homophobic smear is yet another reason to carefully look at the character and motives of Vennes supporters.

There is a discussion about this over at the Topix forum. A comment from "whats really going on":

The real issue here is: how in the hell is Vennes not in jail? Take everything he ever earned from this Ponzi scheme and give it back to the people he ripped off. He sold himself as a God ordained authority on money. This is no different than a creepy TV evangelist recruiting donations, enriching the cult leader.

Vennes did in fact give a lecture in February of 2007 at something called the "God and Money Dinner" (audio here).

A reply from Vennes supporter "Mike":

Before you write like this maybe you should learn how to read the news article. Let me help you. FRANK VENNES WAS NOT INVOLVED IN THE SCHEME HE WAS A VICTIM LIKE OTHERS, HE WILL ALSO LOSE LIKE ALL THE OTHERS AS HE HAS ALREADY COMMITTED EVERYTHING HE HAS TO PAY BACK THOSE THAT BORROWED HIM THEIR MONEY. It really isnt very complicated now is it! If you need another picture read Hebrews 10:32-39 in your bible if you have one, if not borrow one, it is very good reading and often times relevent to our own lives. Let me know what you think.

"Whats really going on" replies:

First, "Mike," you should watch your snide, belittling tone when you communicate with people on the internet. It makes your brand of Christianity look small, irrelevant, backwater, and unappealing. You sound like a snobby jerk. Second, I would caution you not to blaspheme. The passage you quoted is in reference to people of faith, suffering even unto death, in their pursuit of spreading the word of God. They actually physically suffered (hunger, famines, beatings, enprisonment) for their faith. Paul, Peter, or any other of the apostles didn't spend their life recruiting investors into a Ponzi scheme. They weren't rich, didn't revolve their lives around the gaining of wealth. Your pal's main focus for 15 years of his life was in encouraging people to put all their eggs in his basket. He made hundreds of millions of dollars off of a Ponzi scheme. How dare you immortalize him as some kind of hero, enduring a of holy trial.

There actually is evidence against him. Perhaps you should read some of the trial transcripts or wire tapes played in court (they're available online at the United States Attorney's website). There is also evidence that Tom informed Vennes that some of the notes were compromised, and Vennes did nothing about it. Read the search affidavit. There are plenty of things that have come out that, if you're paying attention, should make you pull your hat out of his ring. Where there is smoke there is fire. And if you can't see that, you're a blind fool.

You make Christians look like idiots.

At the hearing for the Frank Vennes' work-out plan Friday, there was a great deal of sympathy expressed by attorneys for the plight of the group of investors who lost fortunes when they trusted Frank Vennes Jr. who in turn invested their money in Tom Petters' Ponzi scheme. As Petters receiver Doug Kelley pointed out at the hearing, the Vennes investors are demanding to go to the front of a long line of investors - getting 35 cents to 50 cents on the dollar instead of the estimated 5 cents on the dollar the the other investors will likely receive.

From a conservative, free-market perspective, the Vennes investors deserve little or nothing - they gambled on a risky investment and lost. They made the investment based on faulty judgement. Unlike the Petters investors, they had knowledge, as did Michele Bachmann of Vennes' prior felony conviction (money-laundering, drug and gun trafficking). If the Vennes investors had done their due diligence, they would have also been wary of the high rate of return, a red flag for fraud. We were told some of the Vennes investors put all their savings eggs into the Petters/Vennes nest - any book on investing recommends spreading the risk. If Vennes acted as an investment counselor for the victims, he should have advised a diversified approach.

Compensation for the poor investment decisions of the Vennes/Petters victims should not come out of the pockets of other Petters victims.

What Does "Sexual Persuasion" Have to do With Ponzi Schemes?

A comment from "Pete" on the previous post about the hearing yesterday for the "work out plan" for Frank Vennes:

I dont know who Avidor is, but i'm guessing his anger and Mike Malloy's indignant anger has something to do with their sexual persuasion, just a hunch!! Let me know if i am correct, just like to know who i am hearing from so i can frame their comments correctly.

What does Pete mean by "sexual persuasion" and why it is relevant to a post about the ongoing mess created by Tom Petters with the assistance of Frank Vennes Jr.?

A recent forensic assesment by PricewaterhouseCoopers says $36 billion flowed through the Petters Ponzi scheme The ultimate loss suffered by investors was $3.8 billion. Should we be angry about this? The Justice Department (PDF) quoted one of Petters' victims:

The fact that so many people trusted Tom Petters because he portrayed himself to be a committed follower of God, and a supporter of charitable organizations is highly disconcerting. Does this man not have a conscience? Does he not care for anyone other than himself? Does he have any understanding of the words – trust, caring, commitment?

Tom Petters has hurt and personally devastated so many, many lives – elderly people, nursing home residents, young families, retired people like myself . . . How could Tom Petters so blatantly lie to so many, many people, and then when apprehended continue to lie and refuse to take responsibility for his actions by trying to play on the sympathy of the jury. Lying while facing people and under oath, even when some of his close associates confessed to their parts in the scandal is almost inconceivable. I repeat . . . Does this man not have a conscience? Does he not care for anyone else but only his own selfish, greedy motives?

So, "Pete", what does my "sexual persuasion" have to do with financial fraud?

Court-Appointed Receiver Opposes "Workout Plan" of Frank Vennes Jr.

Karl Bremer reported at his Ripple in Stillwater blog on the "workout plan" of Frank Vennes Jr. which would he hoped would put the Petters Ponzi mess behind him. Bachmann's pardon pal submitted his plan to the court the day after the election.

Receiver Gary Hanson filed his opposition to the Vennes plan on Thursday saying the Vennes plan would put creditors at a disadvantage - distributing assets without the same rights and protection the creditors would have in a bankruptcy setting. The Receiver also criticized the plan for a variety of other reasons.

It will be interesting to see how the court will rule on the Vennes plan.

Pardongate: Frank Vennes and the "Friends of Hope Academy"

Earlier today, we posted Karl Bremer's excellent article about the motion by convicted money launderer and top donor to Bachmann to put the Petters Ponzi mess he helped create behind him. Very convenient for Michele Bachmann that Vennes filed his motion the day after the election. Bachmann wrote a letter recommending a pardon for Frank Vennes. Vennes is not a constituent.

In the motion filed last week, Vennes listed an entity called "Friends of Hope Academy".

Hope Academy is a " private, inner-city, Christian school (grades K-12)"

Hope Academy is in what used to be called Hope Commons which has a messy and puzzling history.

See is you can follow the history from a court order filed 06/23/10:

The Complaint... in this case list Hope Commons, LLC as a defendant. Specifically, the case caption
identifies Hope Commons, LLC as “Frank E Vennes Jr. dba . . . Hope Commons, LLC.” Hope Commons, LLC is not referenced in the body of the complaint or the amended complaints...

Hope Commons LLC was registered in Florida by Frank Vennes December 27, 2007.

.... back to the history...

In 2006, Friends of Hope Academy, LLC purchased the property located at 2300 Chicago Avenue South (the “Property”) in Minneapolis, Minnesota for $3 million. Defendant Vennes was the sole owner of Friends of Hope Academy, Friends of Hope Academy, LLC is listed in the Receivership Orders.

Friends of Hope Academy, LLC began to renovate the Property. It borrowed $4 million, secured by a mortgage on the Property, to finance the renovations.

On or about December 28, 2007, prior to the Receivership, Friends of Hope Academy, LLC deeded the Property to Hope Commons, LLC. Hope Commons, LLC was owned 93.34% by Defendant Vennes. Two other persons equally shared the remaining 6.66%.

On or about December 31, 2007, also prior to the Receivership, Defendant Vennes and the other two owners of Hope Commons, LLC donated their ownership interests in Hope Commons, LLC to Fidelis Supporting Organization.

Bachmann wrote her pardon letter for Vennes the same month. The Feds claim they have evidence Vennes knew something was fishy about the Petters biz that same month.

Fidelis Supporting Organization is described here as a "Religious Organization" located at "3189 Fernbrook Ln N, Plymouth, MN" and in care of Craig Howse (Vennes lawyer and lobbyist)

Craig Howse was the board chairman of Fidelis Foundation (3189 Fernbrook Ln N Plymouth, MN ). Craig Howse donated $5,000 to Bachmann’s campaign committee. This is how Bachmann described Fidelis:

“As a U.S. Representative, I am confident of Mr. Vennes’ successful rehabilitation and that a pardon will be good for the neediest of society.... Mr. Vennes is seeking a pardon so that he may be further used to help others. As I know from personal experience, Mr. Vennes has used his business position and success to fund hundreds of nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping the neediest in our society. The Fidelis Foundation, backed by Mr. Vennes, has directed over $10.7 million in total gifts in the last three years, and the Fidelis Foundation has ranked #6, #9 and #7 as the largest grant-making foundation in Minnesota over the past three years.... ”

Here is another take on Fidlelis from the Mpls Upside Down blog:

Soon after the Petters story broke, MnTC posted this letter which in part says,"[A] donor suggested that we work with the Harvest Fund, and later the Fidelis Foundation, organizations that work with many other Christian ministries, and consider investing some of his large charitable gifts in the Petters Companies, a once strong, respected corporate entity in Minnesota."

Who was that donor? At this point, MnTC won't disclose the donor's identity except to say that he or she knew Petters. The donation was significant, $3.225 million. Did Vennes use the "nonprofit" MnTC as just another way to facilitate investment in the Ponzi scheme? He apparently "reviewed" the investment as a member of MnTC's finance committee.

Isn't it a little odd that no one at MnTC seems to have wondered about the fabulous rate of return they were getting on their investments, as much as 24% on 90 day notes at one point? I know that it is unusual in the nonprofit world for a donor to earmark its donation as an investment in a specific company. At least, I used to think so.

You'd think....

Back to the history:

Defendant Vennes does not have any ownership interest in Fidelis Supporting Organization.

On or about March 31, 2008, Hope Commons, LLC, through its managing member Fidelis Supporting Organization, became the new borrower on the mortgage.

Hope Commons, LLC’s only asset is the Property, along with the mortgage on the Property.

Hope Commons, LLC stopped making payments on the mortgage in approximately September 2008. Hope Commons, LLC is currently in default under the mortgage. The current balance of the mortgage encumbering the Property is approximately $1.9 million

No equity... so the court ordered that Hope Commons be removed from receivership.

For laughs, watch this video about Hope Commons with a rare glimpse of Craig Howse:

Pardongate: Frank Vennes Files Motion the Day After Election

Was it just coincidence that politically connected money-launderer Frank Vennes Jr. filed a motion in U.S. District Court to approve a plan to repay victims of the Tom Petters Ponzi scheme the day after Election Day?

Karl Bremer has the scoop at his Ripple in Stillwater blog and reposted here:


Was post-election filing of plan to settle with investors politically motivated?

By Karl Bremer

The day after Election Day, politically connected convicted money-launderer and Tom Petters associate Frank Vennes Jr. filed a motion in U.S. District Court to approve a “work-out plan” to repay victims of the Petters Ponzi scheme through the liquidation of most of his assets. In return, Vennes and his investment business, Metro Gem, would receive a release from all liability related to financial losses from the Petters scam—a scam that Vennes claims he knew nothing about.

Vennes invested heavily in Petters’ Company notes on behalf of his Metro Gem investors from 1995 to 2008. When federal agents swooped down on Petters in September 2008, Metro Gem had more than $130 million in unpaid investments in Petters notes.

Vennes’ court filings list his total debts at $55.4 million.

Vennes, a heavy-hitting political contributor to Republicans Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, Governor Tim Pawlenty and former Senator Norm Coleman, as well as Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar, was implicated but never charged in the multibillion-dollar Petters Ponzi scheme. His millions of dollars in assets, which included gold and silver coins and figurines, artwork, Harley Davidsons, and properties in Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio and Florida, have been frozen and in receivership since the Petters scheme came crashing down over two years ago. Some properties already have been liquidated.




The Nov. 3 timing of Vennes’ first motion seeking relief in over two years is curious—especially given his close political and personal ties to Bachmann, who was engaged in an expensive re-election battle with Tarryl Clark until Nov. 2. Revisiting the story of Bachmann’s relationship with a convicted money launderer during the election would not have helped Vennes’ former beneficiary.

Pawlenty, who has been grooming himself for national political greatness after he leaves his part-time job as governor of Minnesota in January, also isn’t likely to be thrilled to see Vennes’ name back in the headlines.

Besides taking tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from Vennes and his family, Bachmann, Pawlenty, Coleman, and former state GOP Chair Ron Ebensteiner all solicited a presidential pardon during the Bush administration for Vennes’ past federal crimes of money laundering, cocaine- and gun-running. That was after Vennes was released from Sandstone Federal Prison but before he became implicated in the Petters Ponzi. The issue raised questions about whether Vennes was engaged in a “pay-for-pardon” scheme.

Due to the negative publicity over her close relationship with Vennes after the Petters scandal broke, Bachmann first rescinded her pardon request and then gave to charity a portion of the campaign contributions she had received from Vennes that election year—despite the fact that Vennes is still presumed to be innocent. But even that proved to be problematic for the congresswoman. She first tried to donate the money to Minnesota Teen Challenge, where Vennes once sat on the board of directors with Mary Pawlenty, Tim Pawlenty's wife. But being a victim of Vennes’ involvement in the Petters Ponzi themselves, Minnesota Teen Challenge returned the money to Bachmann.

Coleman, Pawlenty and the state GOP did not return any of Vennes’ allegedly “dirty money.” None of the recipients of Vennes’ tens of thousands of dollars in political contributions have ever responded to inquiries about their relationships with the convicted money launderer.

Listed among Vennes’ secured creditors in his proposed work-out plan is Richard Scherber, executive director of Minnesota Teen Challenge. Documents filed with Vennes’ proposal show Scherber was owed $910,000 when the Petters scheme ended. Minus the returns he had received on his investments with Vennes, Scherber had an out-of-pocket loss of $423,759, according to court documents. Under Vennes’ proposed work-out plan, Scherber would receive only $173,741.

Also listed among Vennes’ secured creditors is locally owned First State Bank of Bayport, shown as a co-creditor on four individuals’ IRAs. Total out-of-pocket losses shown for those IRAs is $1.4 million. Under Vennes’ proposal, those IRAs would recover only $574,067 of their combined out-of-pocket losses.

“The work-out plan represents the best opportunity for Mr. Vennes’ creditors to receive meaningful financial recovery for their losses sustained as a result of the Petters fraud,” Vennes’ motion states.

Vennes notes that he is under “no compulsion” to enter into any agreements with creditors. Since he has not been charged with any crime, he is not facing a forfeiture or restitution order and says he could just as easily have filed for bankruptcy, leaving his creditors with little or nothing.

Vennes is the subject of a $2.7 billion “clawback” lawsuit in the bankruptcy proceedings of Petters’ estate. However, Vennes proclaims his innocence in the Petters Ponzi and has filed claims against Petters.

“Metro Gem, Inc., and I were victims of the Petters fraud,” Vennes states in court documents filed with his work-out proposal motion. “I was not a co-conspirator of Thomas J. Petters or anyone else in that fraud.”

Tarryl Clark Mentions Bachmann's Pardon Request for Convicted Money Launderer Frank Vennes Jr.

Post-debate interview with Tarryl Clark from The Uptake:

She [Bachmann] put in for a pardon for a convicted drug dealer and money launderer...

Listen (2:00):



Clark is talking about Bachmann's connection to convicted felon Frank Vennes Jr.:

In 2008, it was revealed that Bachmann had received tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from Frank Vennes Jr. and his family. Vennes is a convicted money-launderer/cocaine runner/gun runner for whom Bachmann had requested a presidential pardon in 2007.

When Vennes became implicated—but never charged—in the Tom Petters multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme in 2008, it didn’t take long for Bachmann to abandon her principled “innocent until proven guilty” stance. She quickly rescinded her pardon request for her close personal friend, and then tried to further save face by giving away a portion of the money she had taken from Vennes and family—although it was only $9,200 of the $27,400 she had hauled in from the Vennes family from 2005-2008.

Bachmann first tried to give the money to Minnesota Teen Challenge, a favorite evangelical charity of Bachmann’s that once had very close ties to Vennes. He is a former board member of the organization. However, Minnesota Teen Challenge allegedly lost $5.7 million in investments in Petters companies that were made through one of Vennes’ companies.

Rich Scherber, executive director of Minnesota Teen Challenge, said his organization sent Bachmann’s $9,200 check back without even cashing it.

“We didn’t want to be involved if it was dirty money,” Scherber said at the time.

Bachmann eventually found a willing taker for her tainted Vennes money when she donated it to R3, a collaborative of Christian recovery groups that happens to include Minnesota Teen Challenge.

Some background... from the Strib :

Frank Vennes Jr., a Shoreview businessman who recruited investors for Tom Petters, learned that the operation might be a fraud scheme in December 2007

Instead of reporting his suspicions to authorities, Frank Vennes told only his lawyer Craig Howse. Even though he had suspicions that the money he received from Petters was tainted, he donated thousands of the tainted dollars to Bachmann's campaign and continued to serve on the board of Minnesota Teen Challenge where Bachmann later donated the tainted $$$.

The same month Frank Vennes is reported to have learned he was involved in a massive Ponzi scheme, Bachmann wrote a letter (dated December 10, 2007) to George Bush requesting a pardon for Frank Vennes.

According to this Strib article on Frank Vennes, Vennes made a lot of money working for Petters:

According to a federal search warrant affidavit, Vennes was a facilitator who persuaded five major investors to invest $1.2 billion in companies controlled by Petters. The document says Vennes collected more than $28 million in commissions for his work.

From another Strib article about Tom Petter's complicated philanthropy:

In 2006, a company called Metro Gem, run by Shorewood businessman Frank Vennes Jr., donated $60,000. That same year, the foundation gave $275,000 to Minnesota Teen Challenge, an investor in Petters Co. Inc. that runs one of the state's largest drug and alcohol recovery programs. Vennes sat on the Teen Challenge board for seven years until he resigned Oct. 2.

Vennes has not been charged in the fraud case, but court documents say he made nearly all of his substantial income by brokering investments for Petters' companies.

Karl Bremer in MnIndy:

Following his and his wife’s initial $4,200 contribution to Bachmann in 2005, Vennes — who does not live in Bachmann’s congressional district — dumped another $10,000 into her campaign coffers in 2006. In December 2007, Bachmann used the power of her office to write a recommendation for a presidential pardon of Vennes.

“As a U.S. Representative, I am confident of Mr. Vennes’ successful rehabilitation and that a pardon will be good for the neediest of society,” Bachmann wrote to the U.S. Office of Pardon Attorney. “Mr. Vennes is seeking a pardon so that he may be further used to help others. As I know from personal experience, Mr. Vennes has used his business position and success to fund hundreds of nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping the neediest in our society.”

In addition, Bachmann noted that Vennes needed a pardon because he “still encounters the barriers of his past and especially in the area of finance loan documents.” Bachmann has refused to further explain the nature of her “personal experience” with Vennes or clarification of the finance loan documents to which she refers in her letter.

On June 30, 2008 — six months after Bachmann wrote her pardon recommendation for Vennes — he and his wife gave another $9,200 to Bachmann’s campaign.

Then, on Sept. 24, federal agents raided Vennes’ $5 million Shorewood home on Lake Minnetonka in connection with the Petters investigation and seized “boxes and buckets of silver and gold coins, trays of jewelry, five stacks of $100 bills, boxes of gem stones, silver plates and Rolex watches,” along with diamond rings and artwork. His $6 million oceanfront home in Jupiter, Fla., was raided also and among the items seized was a briefcase containing “256 $20 gold pieces dated 1904, and eight uncirculated one-half dollar pieces.”

See Vennes 2008 campaign contributions to Bachmann at Newsmeat.



What Bachmann should have known about Frank Vennes Jr - Was Frank Vennes Jr. a Wolf in Sheeps Clothing?

Recent news: Bankruptcy trustee Doug Kelley seeks $2.7 billion from Petters associate Frank Vennes Jr.

Bachmann's Pardon Pal Frank Vennes Jr. Back in the News

PiPress article about a clawback suit related to tthe Petters Ponzi scheme mentions Frank Vennes Jr.

Tuesday's lawsuit says that Fry started investing in Petters' notes as early as 1996 through Metro Gem Inc., a firm operated by Frank Vennes.

Vennes — who at one time lived in Shorewood — brought investors to Petters, court documents say.

Soon after the Petters scheme was uncovered in 2008, all of Vennes' assets were put into receivership, but Vennes has never been charged with any crime. Fry is not facing criminal charges, either.

Bachmann wrote a letter in support of a pardon for Frank Vennes Jr., a major donor to her campaign.

Bachmann and Pals Trading Cards - #4 Frank Vennes Jr.

From now until the election, Dump Bachmann will be presenting a series of trading cards called "Bachmann and Pals" featuring some of Bachmann's associates. Click on the trading card to make it bigger for downloading:



Here's a good summary of Bachmann's connection to convicted felon Frank Vennes Jr. by Karl Bremer:

In 2008, it was revealed that Bachmann had received tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from Frank Vennes Jr. and his family. Vennes is a convicted money-launderer/cocaine runner/gun runner for whom Bachmann had requested a presidential pardon in 2007.

When Vennes became implicated—but never charged—in the Tom Petters multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme in 2008, it didn’t take long for Bachmann to abandon her principled “innocent until proven guilty” stance. She quickly rescinded her pardon request for her close personal friend, and then tried to further save face by giving away a portion of the money she had taken from Vennes and family—although it was only $9,200 of the $27,400 she had hauled in from the Vennes family from 2005-2008.

Bachmann first tried to give the money to Minnesota Teen Challenge, a favorite evangelical charity of Bachmann’s that once had very close ties to Vennes. He is a former board member of the organization. However, Minnesota Teen Challenge allegedly lost $5.7 million in investments in Petters companies that were made through one of Vennes’ companies.

Rich Scherber, executive director of Minnesota Teen Challenge, said his organization sent Bachmann’s $9,200 check back without even cashing it.

“We didn’t want to be involved if it was dirty money,” Scherber said at the time.

Bachmann eventually found a willing taker for her tainted Vennes money when she donated it to R3, a collaborative of Christian recovery groups that happens to include Minnesota Teen Challenge.

Deanna Coleman Sentencing Tomorrow

Deanna Coleman, the government witness who blew the whistle on the $3.6 million Ponzi scheme is scheduled for sentencing tomorrow at 9:00 AM. Deanna Coleman was the source for some interesting information about Frank Vennes Jr. (for more about Bachmann's close ties to Mr. Vennes, see yesterday's post about Michele Bachmann and crime).

Here's a screenshot from the FBI affidavit (PDF) that includes allegations about Frank Vennes Jr.:



Here's Bachmann's letter asking former President George Bush to pardon Frank Vennes Jr. for previous convictions for money laundering, drug and gun trafficking:

Michele Bachmann And Crime

Bachmann's accusations that Democrats are using teachers to launder money, that the President is running a Ponzi scheme, that the Obama administration is "a gangster government" etc. makes me suspect that this is the Rovian tactic of attacking others on stuff which she is vulnerable.



Michele Bachmann has been connected to several criminals and crimes, solved and unsolved.



There's her connection to the U.S. Navy Veterans Association scam:

The USNVA ran largely under the radar in Minnesota until a Dump Bachmann investigation discovered that Thompson, the group’s founder and national commander, had donated $10,000 to Rep. Michele Bachmann at an April 7 Minneapolis fundraiser featuring former half-term Gov. Sarah Palin.



Thompson disappeared soon after the St. Petersburg Times began its lengthy investigation into him and his organization. He’s been missing ever since and is wanted in several states for questioning about the USNVA’s activities and finances. The Bachmann fundraiser is the last known location Thompson has been reported to have been at.

Bachmann's lobbyist pal Ed Cain was a lobbyist for the U.S. Navy Veterans Association. The USNVA fraudster who assumed the name "Bobby Thompson" is still at large.



There's also the unsolved vandalism of the Congress members' homes in 2008:

You can see pictures of the vandalism at Minnesota Democrats Exposed. Here are the other messages:



"Resign Now!"



"(arrow) Still a TARGET" (last word underlined twice)



"PSALM 2"



The biblical reference to Psalm 2 which appeared at the other crime scenes suggests that the perpetrator was religious - that's a clue that also rules out a lot of people. Psalm 2 does not offer much in the way of clues except the person who quoted it is an extremely angry individual who is invoking God's wrath.



The second message, however is very interesting. It is unlikely that the message is using the word "target" as a threat of violence. If the perpetrator intended to threaten to make a member of Congress a "target" of an assassination, I doubt that the investigation and the reporting on the investigation would have faded so quickly. In fact, WCCO reported that it was not a Federal crime.



However, if the word "target" was used in the legal sense, as in "target of an investigation", that may explain the motive of the perpetrator(s). The graffiti at Norm Coleman's residence used the word "criminal".



Now, take a look at the most baffling aspect of the crime - that Minnesota's two senators and four of its House members from both parties, right-wingers, moderates, liberals were victims of the faith-based vandalism.



Was there something else going on at the time that mixed religion, politics and a possible criminal investigation?



Something that Bachmann shared with Klobuchar, Ellison, Coleman, Ramstad and possibly Kline? It's a good clue because there's very little these victims have in common that would piss off a religiously-minded person.



I found this on the Petters-Fraud website:



"Meanwhile the Graffiti of a Politicians home has remained unsolved..."



I'd like to see this crime solved, wouldn't you?

Speaking of Tom Petters, there's Bachmann's connection to convicted felon Frank Vennes Jr.:

In 2008, it was revealed that Bachmann had received tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from Frank Vennes Jr. and his family. Vennes is a convicted money-launderer/cocaine runner/gun runner for whom Bachmann had requested a presidential pardon in 2007.



When Vennes became implicated—but never charged—in the Tom Petters multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme in 2008, it didn’t take long for Bachmann to abandon her principled “innocent until proven guilty” stance. She quickly rescinded her pardon request for her close personal friend, and then tried to further save face by giving away a portion of the money she had taken from Vennes and family—although it was only $9,200 of the $27,400 she had hauled in from the Vennes family from 2005-2008.



Bachmann first tried to give the money to Minnesota Teen Challenge, a favorite evangelical charity of Bachmann’s that once had very close ties to Vennes. He is a former board member of the organization. However, Minnesota Teen Challenge allegedly lost $5.7 million in investments in Petters companies that were made through one of Vennes’ companies.



Rich Scherber, executive director of Minnesota Teen Challenge, said his organization sent Bachmann’s $9,200 check back without even cashing it.



“We didn’t want to be involved if it was dirty money,” Scherber said at the time.



Bachmann eventually found a willing taker for her tainted Vennes money when she donated it to R3, a collaborative of Christian recovery groups that happens to include Minnesota Teen Challenge.

And there's Bathroomgate:

Senator Bachmann retired to the restroom and residents began moving toward the exit. Less than a moment later, piercing screams were heard from the ladies' washroom. "Help!!!! HEEEELLLLLLPPPPPP!!!!!" With everyone's attention riveted

on the door, Senator Bachmann emerged in a crouching run, crying, "I was being held against my will!" Two women were seen standing behind her, one tall and elderly, the other young and petite, both unassuming and bewildered.



The women reported afterward they had followed the senator into the restroom to continue to question her about

education. One had her hand on the door handle, ready to open it, which she immediately did when Senator Bachmann

became frightened and began screaming.

Bachmann alleged she was the victim of a crime in that bathroom:

Michele Bachmann's report to the Washington County Sheriff's Office (WCSO) of being "prevented from leaving the bathroom" after a town meeting in Scandia differs considerably from accounts of the story that she's given to the media, and even from Bachmann's own version of events as reported to the sheriff in a follow-up interview. That leads us at Dump Bachmann wondering what other "facts" may have been misconstrued--or misreported--by Bachmann in this bizarre tale.



According to Bachmann's initial report to WCSO, Bachmann "was preparing to leave near 1100 hours" and "used the rest room." But in her follow-up interview, Bachmann claimed she continued arguing with others for "an additional 15 minutes" after the meeting was over and "then walked out of the main room and into the bathroom in an effort to get away from the groups of people so they would leave the area." And in media reports,. Bachmann said she ended the meeting when "tensions elevated beyond reasonable levels."



Bachmann also reported that the women who "held her against her will" were "with the GLBT group, which is a gay and lesbian activist group," when in fact, they both were constituents of hers from Scandia, and she knew that.



So which is it, Senator? Did the meeting end at 11 a.m. as scheduled, and you merely "used the bathroom," as you state in your initial complaint? Or did you try to end the meeting 15 minutes early, and then run in the bathroom to hide from your constituents when they wanted the meeting to continue to its alloted time, as you admitted in your second interview?

Then there's this unsolved vandalism from 2006:

Vandalism and Theft of Lawnsigns at Forest Lake Senate District 52 Convention



Some time between 1:30 am and 7:00 am Saturday morning an individual or individuals decided to commit campaign terrorism at Forest Lake High School before the Republican Senate District 52 convention. It is our understanding volunteers for the Rep. Phil Krinkie (R-53A, Lexington) and Rep. Jim Knoblach (R-16A, St. Cloud) for Congress campaigns completed their campaign signs placement in the early morning hours and left only to return the next day to find all of their work gone and even some damage to the auditorium ceiling. In the place of the Krinkie and Knoblach signs was Bachmann ones.



A police report was filed and we understand the police are reviewing a video surveillance tape that shows the perpetrator or perpetrators. This is Sen. Michele Bachmann's (R-52, Stillwater) home district and early speculation is some of her zealous supporters may have been involved. We are not sure if the Bachmann campaign is involved, but it is just curious that the Krinkie and Knoblach signage was removed and replaced by Bachmann's it could be an indicator of the person’s preferences in this race. The Jay Esme campaign placed their signs before the start of the convention.



In addition to this we understand as the delegate slates for the Congressional convention were advanced the Bachmann failed to include loyal supporter Rep. Matt Dean (R-52B, Stillwater) on their slate. This was a great surprise to the delegates and a delegate who was offended by the result stepped down to make sure Dean had a spot.

Since former Bachmann staffer Luke Hellier has called on reporters to scrutinize candidates more closely, I hope reporters ask Bachmann about her connections to crimes.

Bachmann Asked Bush to Pardon a Convicted Money Launderer Now Accuses Teachers of Money Laundering

As I pointed out in an earlier post:

Is Bachmann choice of words; "Ponzi" and "laundering" a symptom of a guilty conscience? It's a fact that Bachmann's campaign accepted laundered Ponzi money and it may even have been crucial to her nomination to run for Congress in 2006.

Tarryl Clark's Communications Director Carrie Lucking has a post on Daily Kos about Bachmann's claim that teachers are money launderers:

I'm Carrie Lucking, Communications Director for Tarryl Clark's campaign for Congress. Before I started working for Tarryl Clark, I was a proud, passionate, and effective high school teacher.

As you read this, Michele Bachmann is spending $80,000 on radio ads equating hard-working teachers to money launderers. In the ads, she calls the recently passed state aid bill that puts nearly 3,000 teachers back to work in Minnesota classrooms an "outlandish spending bill to pay off (Nancy Pelosi's) political friends just before the upcoming election" and says that teachers "in turn will work to reelect her liberal majority" which she calls "outrageous!"

I am outraged that Bachmann accused teachers of being "money launderers" on FOX news and on the airwaves across Minnesota - and so are my colleagues. See for yourself in our latest video:

FORMER HOUSE MINORITY LEADER MARTY SEIFERT BECOMES ENTANGLED IN THE BOBBY THOMPSON-U.S. NAVY VETS MYSTERY

Seifert took a questionable $500 donation from someone alleged to be connected to the shady veterans group under investigation in several states.

By Karl Bremer © Copyright 2010

Former House Minority Leader and Gubernatorial Candidate Marty Seifert is the latest Minnesota Republican to become ensnared in the tangled web of Bobby Thompson and the U.S. Navy Veterans Association (USNVA). This time, it may involve an illegal campaign contribution.

As exclusively reported at Dump Bachmann earlier, Seifert received a $500 donation from Bobby Thompson —the highest allowed by law in a non-election year. The contribution was made to his Seifert for Governor Committee on July 10, 2009. Thompson listed the USNVA as his employer and his address was the same UPS drop box used by the Minnesota Chapter of the USNVA: 1043 Grand Ave. #555, St. Paul, MN 55105.

On the same date, the Seifert campaign received another $500 donation from 1043 Grand Ave. #555 in St. Paul, this one from “Maria D’Annuzio,” who also listed the USNVA as her employer.

In an exhaustive examination of the USNVA Minnesota Chapter’s records filed with the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office, the name Maria D’Annuzio, or anything remotely similar, has never been found associated with the group as an employee, volunteer, officer or any other capacity. Nor has it ever surfaced in the year-long investigation of the organization by the St. Petersburg Times, according to one source close to the investigation. A Google search of the name comes up empty, and nothing remotely related comes up in various name spelling variations.

CIRCUMVENTING CAMPAIGN LAWS A GROSS MISDEMEANOR

Minnesota state law requires that campaigns collect the name, address and employer of all contributors of more than $100 in aggregate per year. “Contributions from the same contributor must be listed under the same name,” the statute notes.

“An individual or association that attempts to circumvent this chapter by redirecting a contribution through, or making a contribution on behalf of, another individual or association is guilty of a gross misdemeanor and subject to a civil penalty imposed by the board of up to $3,000,” the statute states.

When the mysterious circumstances surrounding the Bobby Thompson and Maria D’Annuzio donations were explained to Seifert Campaign Treasurer Diane Johnson of Cambridge, she promised to look into the matter, as well as a request for cancelled checks or other proof of payment for the donations, as soon as possible.

Campaigns are required by law to retain for four years “records on the matters required to be reported, including vouchers, canceled checks, bills, invoices, worksheets, and receipts, that will provide in sufficient detail the necessary information from which the filed reports and statements may be verified, explained, clarified, and checked for accuracy and completeness.”

The USNVA ran largely under the radar in Minnesota until a DumpBachmann investigation discovered that Thompson, the group’s founder and national commander, had donated $10,000 to Rep. Michele Bachmann at an April 7 Minneapolis fundraiser featuring former halftime Gov. Sarah Palin.

Thompson disappeared soon after the St. Petersburg Times began its lengthy investigation into him and his organization. He’s been missing ever since and is wanted in several states for questioning about the USNVA’s activities and finances. The Bachmann fundraiser is the last known location Thompson has been reported to have been at.

Bobby Thompson has contributed heavily to other Minnesota Republicans and GOP party units. Besides his $10,000 donation to Bachmann and the $500 Seifert donation attributed to him on campaign finance reports, Thompson has donated:

$21,500 to Republican Norm Coleman’s Senate re-election campaign from 2006-2008
$7,000 to the Minnesota House Republican Campaign Committee in 2008-2009
$10,400 to the Republican Party of Minnesota from 2008-2010
$500 to Republican David J. Carlson’s Citizens for David Carlson committee in House District 67B in 2008. On that donation, Thompson listed his occupation as “Director Developement (sic) US Navy.”

David J. Carlson has other connections to Thompson and the USNVA as well.

Stillwater lobbyist Ed Cain, who was hired as a consultant by the U.S. Navy Veterans Association to lobby in Virginia earlier this year, and a Mary Cain from the same address, also a lobbyist, donated $500 each to Carlson on the same day as Thompson’s donation was recorded. Thompson and the Cains represented three of the top six individual donors to Carlson’s campaign that year.

Political candidates in other states who took donations from Thompson—with the exception of Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, a Republican who took $55,500 from Thompson in 2009—have contributed them to other charitable organizations.

Bachmann, however, is not returning the suspicious $10,000 donation she received from Thompson, her donor-on-the-lam. Instead, campaign spokester Gina Countryman told the St. Paul Pioneer Press that the Republican congresswoman has merely “frozen” the funds in her campaign treasury until the investigation into Thompson’s affairs is complete.

This isn’t the first time Michele Bachmann has been caught taking large campaign contributions from questionable sources.

In 2008, it was revealed that Bachmann had received tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from Frank Vennes Jr. and his family. Vennes is a convicted money-launderer/cocaine runner/gun runner for whom Bachmann had requested a presidential pardon in 2007.

When Vennes became implicated—but never charged—in the Tom Petters multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme in 2008, Bachmann quickly rescinded her pardon request for her close personal friend, and then tried to further save face by giving away a portion of the money she had taken from Vennes and family—although it was only $9,200 of the $27,400 she had hauled in from the Vennes family from 2005-2008.

The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office has refused to confirm or deny whether an investigation is underway into the USNVA Minnesota Chapter, even though the organization’s chapters have been ordered to cease fundraising and/or are under investigation in Ohio, Virginia, Florida, Hawaii, New Mexico, Missouri, Oregon and New Hampshire.

Karl Bremer is a freelance writer in Stillwater, MN. He can be reached at saintcroix [at] aol.com.

BOBBY THOMPSON’S U.S. NAVY VETERANS ASSOCIATION OPERATED ILLEGALLY IN MINNESOTA FOR FIVE YEARS WHILE HAULING IN $1.54 MILLION

Thompson disappears after dropping $10K at Bachmann-Palin fundraiser; Michele Bachmann campaign refuses to comment on missing $10,000 donor

By Karl Bremer © Copyright 2010

How can an allegedly fraudulent Minnesota charitable organization take in more than $1.5 million over a five-year period and operate in clear violation of the law with nothing more than a UPS drop box for an address? That's what the Minnesota Chapter of the U.S. Navy Veterans Association did under the not-so-watchful eye of the Minnesota Attorney General's Office from 2005-2009.

State law requires charitable organizations like the USNVA to register with the Attorney General's Office and file annual reports listing both a “mailing address” and a “"physical address.” Yet since it started soliciting funds in Minnesota in 2005, the USNVA has never registered any physical address at all with the Attorney General's Office or the IRS—a clear violation of that requirement. Every address listed in the group's state or federal filings leads to drop boxes at UPS stores in St. Paul, Washington, DC, and Tampa, FL--a fact that can be confirmed with a simple Google search.

Even though the Minnesota Chapter of the USNVA was dissolved at the end of 2009, its St. Paul-area phone number listed with the Attorney General’s Charities Division still carries a message that says “we’re away from our desk” and suggests the group is still operating here.

As a result of a year-long investigation by the St. Petersburg (FL) Times, the USNVA and its founder, Bobby Thompson, has come under investigation for alleged fraudulent activities in several states, including Hawaii, New Mexico, Oregon, Missouri, Ohio, Virginia and Florida. Attorneys general in several states have shut their operations down and in Ohio, a judge has frozen the organization’s bank accounts.

Thompson, the only officer among dozens listed for the organization whose existence has been confirmed, went on the lam since the investigations began and is wanted for questioning in most of them. He appears to have some kind of Minnesota connections.

Thompson’s last known appearance was at a Minneapolis fundraiser for Republican Congresswoman Michele Bachmann on April 7, 2010. Thompson donated $10,000 to Bachmann’s campaign that day in order to have his picture taken with Bachmann and former halftime Gov. Sarah Palin.

Thompson, who lived in Ybor City, Florida, for more than a decade before his disappearance, was listed on tax forms as the CFO of the Minnesota Chapter of the USNVA from 2005-2008. He has donated heavily to Minnesota Republican candidates and political organizations. Besides his $10,000 donation to Bachmann, he’s given:

• $21,500 to Republican Norm Coleman’s Senate re-election campaign from 2006-2008

• $7,000 to the Minnesota House Republican Campaign Committee in 2008-2009

• $10,400 to the Republican Party of Minnesota from 2008-2010

• $500 to Republican Marty Seifert’s Seifert for Governor committee in 2009

• $500 to Republican David J. Carlson’s Citizens for David Carlson committee in House District 67B in 2008

Ben Wogsland, spokesperson for Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson, says his office is aware of media reports about investigations into the Navy Vets group, but he insisted that under state law, “We can’t confirm or deny an investigation” into the USNVA is underway or has been completed in Minnesota.

Other states have been very public about their investigations into the allegedly fraudulent Navy Vets group. Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray held a press conference about his office’s hunt for Thompson in June.

Unlike Minnesota, Wogsland insisted, attorneys general in some states “actually have the ability to publicize investigations once they begin.”

However, Minnesota statutes state that with regard to investigations into charitable organizations, Minnesota is no different:

“The attorney general: (a) may make public or private investigations within or outside the state as deemed necessary by the attorney general to determine whether any person has violated or is about to violate any provision of sections 309.50 to 309.61 or any rule or order thereunder, or to aid in the enforcement of sections 309.50 to 309.61.”

Section 309.50 references statutes governing charitable organizations who solicit money.

Additionally, the Minnesota Data Practices Act states that “Inactive civil investigative data are public, unless the release of the data would jeopardize another pending civil legal action.”

The USNVA record of giving has come under scrutiny in other states. In Minnesota, its state filings claim that the group took in $1.54 million from 2005-2009 and gave away $1.12 million during that same period on such things as:

“psychological comfort and counseling … to comfort the survivors of veterans.”

“official representation” at Veterans Day and Memorial Day events in Minnesota and Washington, DC.

“promoted specific legislative and executive government action … to expand and enhance domestic security in the War on Terror.”

“aggressively promote the cause of the United States, and of the American value of Freedom, in the world.”

In 2009, the USNVA Minnesota Chapter claimed to have given away $22,666 in “direct cash assistance” to “indigents, indigent families, U.S. Armed Forces Service members or service member families from Minnesota.”

None of the directors listed for the Minnesota chapter of the USNVA have ever been located. The owner of the St. Paul phone number listed for the organization with the attorney general’s office is registered to “Voice American.” Curiously, Thompson was no longer named as CFO of the Minnesota Chapter in the group’s 2009 tax filing received at the IRS April 15—a week after he appeared at the Bachmann-Palin fundraiser. “John Markman,” who also is listed as Commander of the New York Chapter of the USNVA, is now listed as the Minnesota Chapter’s CFO, using the same Washington, DC, UPS drop box for an address as Bobby Thompson used.

The inability of other state authorities to locate directors of USNVA state chapters, or physical addresses other than UPS drop boxes, has led to cease-and-desist orders in Ohio and New Mexico. Other action is certain to follow in more states as the burgeoning nationwide investigation into the U.S. Navy Veterans Association and Bobby Thompson widens.

The Navy Vets’ Ohio counsel recently withdrew from its representation of the group because all its directors have quit or disappeared, the St. Petersburg Times reported last week. The Navy Vets’ chief telemarketing firm, Associated Community Services of Southfield, MI, also has deserted the group, the Times reports.

Other action is certain to follow in more states as the burgeoning nationwide investigation into the U.S. Navy Veterans Association and Bobby Thompson widens.

It is not known whether the Bachmann for Congress campaign has been contacted by investigators in search of Bobby Thompson. Nor is it known whether Bachmann will return Thompson’s tainted $10,000 donation or donate it to charity as she was forced to do with some of the “dirty money” she received from convicted money-launderer and Tom Petters associate Frank Vennes Jr.

Bachmann Campaign Manager Gina Countryman has not responded to this writer’s inquiries about Bobby Thompson.

Karl Bremer is a freelance writer in Stillwater, MN. He can be reached at saintcroix [at] aol.com.



Screenshot of AG registration form (click to enlarge)

DB Posts about Bachmann & the U.S. Navy Veterans Association
7/6/10 - CHARITABLE VETERANS GROUP FOUNDED BY MAJOR MICHELE BACHMANN CONTRIBUTOR IS UNDER INVESTIGATION NATIONWIDE (Karl Bremer)

7/6/10 - Bachmann's Pal Pod Lobbyist Edwin Cain Lobbied for Shady Veterans Charity

7/7/10 - IS MICHELE BACHMANN’S $10,000 DONOR IN MINNESOTA LAYING LOW FROM THE LAW AND THE IRS? (Karl Bremer)

7/8/10 - Will Bachmann Give up the $10K She Got From Snarky Navy Vets Charity?


7/12/10 - Video: Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray Press Conference About U.S. Navy Veterans Assn.

7/15/10 - MICHELE BACHMANN CAMPAIGN PAC TERMINATED AFTER DUMP BACHMANN INVESTIGATION INTO ITS MISSING $10,000 DONOR (Karl Bremer)

More About U.S. Navy Veterans Assoc. and Bobby Thompson

Complaints about U.S. Navy Vets Assn. phone calls.

Ohio AG page about U.S. Navy Vets Assn.

Another Ponzi Plume Discovered in Minnesota? - When Will Bachmann Do Something About It?

The Strib reports on ANOTHER alleged Ponzi scheme surfacing in Minnesota. This one seems to have drifted into Minnesota from Colorado, adding to the existing plumes of toxic, financial fraud such as the Petters Ponzi Plume that threaten the business environment here in Minnesota.

Bachmann serves on the House Financial Services committee... why isn't she doing something to plug the hole that's spewing these toxic plumes of Ponzi?

Instead, Bachmann is making a fool out of herself about something that's happening in other states:

A full two months after the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the still unplugged gusher continues to poison the environment and the economy. But the politics of the ongoing disaster may have shifted some this week after the White House inked a deal with BP that will create an escrow fund of $20 billion to cover claims arising from the oil catastrophe.

Conservatives immediately pounced: Apparently, in trying to hold BP accountable, that socialist Barack Obama was overreaching yet again. Michele Bachmann called the fund "a redistribution of wealth," while Rush Limbaugh attacked the agreement as "extortion."

Well Congresswoman, right here in Minnesota and elsewhere there is a massive "redistribution of wealth" funneling money from investors to financial fraudsters. There are real victims of these financial frauds.

Bachmann needs to do something about these gushing plumes of Ponzi schemes washing up on the shores of Lake Wobegon... what's stopping her?

Did Ponzi $$$ Help Bachmann Get the GOP Endorsement in 2006?

This is a piece of Bachmann lit I picked up the 2006 6CD convention:



It boasts that Bachmann was the top GOP fundraiser in the last quarter of 2006.

But, she wasn't always doing so well raking in the campaign cash.

In this October 20, 2005 Dump Bachmann post, Eva reported that Bachmann was falling behind in fundraising:

Michele Bachmann's report is here.

Phil Krinkie is leading the fundraising race - having raised 142K for the reporting period ending September 30. He has 225K cash on hand. Michele Bachmann is trailing in this area having raised 85K with 166K on hand.

The question is whether Michele's ability to mobilize her base will outhustle Phil Krinkie's fundraising.

The other question is whether Michele plans to fall back on her senate seat if she doesn't think she can win party endorsement.

In 2008, Karl Bremer reported in the Minnesota Independent that Bachmann got some substantial $$$ from Petters associate Frank Vennes, his family and pals:

Bachmann wrote a letter of recommendation in December 2007 for a presidential pardon of Vennes for federal money laundering, cocaine distribution and illegal firearms sales convictions. Vennes pleaded guilty and no contest to the charges in 1987 and was sentenced to five years in prison, which he served in Sandstone Federal Correctional Facility in Sandstone, MN.

Six months after Bachmann recommended Vennes for a pardon, Vennes and his wife, Kimberly, who are not constituents of Bachmann’s, dumped $9,200 into Bachmann’s re-election campaign. The Venneses already were among Bachmann’s top individual campaign contributors when Bachmann solicited the pardon, having contributed $18,200 to her campaign committees between 2005-2007. Vennes’ brother and his wife, Greg and Stephanie Vennes, have contributed an additional $8,400 to Bachmann since 2005. And Vennes’ personal attorney, C. Craig Howse, has donated $5,000 to Bachmann’s campaign funds since 2007.

Bachmann was highly complimentary of Vennes in her letter of recommendation, which referred to her “personal” relationship with him but not her financial one:

“As a U.S. Representative, I am confident of Mr. Vennes’ successful rehabilitation and that a pardon will be good for the neediest of society,” Bachmann wrote to the U.S. Office of Pardon Attorney. “Mr. Vennes is seeking a pardon so that he may be further used to help others. As I know from personal experience, Mr. Vennes has used his business position and success to fund hundreds of nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping the neediest in our society.”

In addition, Bachmann noted that Vennes needed a pardon because he “still encounters the barriers of his past and especially in the area of finance loan documents.”

Bachmann has refused to explain what the finance loan documents of Vennes’ were that she referred to in her letter.

Meanwhile, the Bureau of Prisons inmate locator says Tom Petters is still "in transit". The attorney for Tom Petters says Petters is cooling his heels in the Sherburne County jail in Elk River.

Here's some audio from the wire of Deanna Coleman. Tom Petters, Bruce Prevost and Frank Vennes Jr. at a meeting 9/9/08 talking about religion:





More audio of Frank Vennes talking about God and money here.

Hope Commons Property Taxes in Arrears

Last week, Karl Bremer broke the news on Dump Bachmann about Michele Bachmann not paying her property taxes (the Bachmanns are all paid up). Now, it seems the property once owned by a top donor who Bachmann wrote a letter recommending a pardon is also in arrears.

Hope Commons is in receivership allegedly because it was purchased with money obtained illegally through the Petters Ponzi fraud. Frank Vennes Jr. has not been indicted for his role in the Tom Petters fraud. For background on the sorry saga of Hope Commons read this DB post and this update with a video about Hope Commons.

According to the Hennepin County property records, the Hope Commons property at 2300 Chicago Avenue was purchasedfor $3,000,000 in 2006, the owner listed is Hope Commons LLC, a company that was registered in Florida by Frank Vennes Jr., with a mailing address in Plymouth, Minnesota.

The overdue 2010 2009 taxes for the Hope Commons property are $6,733.84 with a penalty of $269.35:



Another former Vennes property, 3515 2nd Avenue South in Minneapolis is in receivership is listed as "forfeited" with no tax due.



DB will have updates on this story as it develops.

UPDATE:: The Receiver, has this correction:

This property has not been part of the Receivership. Hope Commons LLC transferred ownership to Fidelis in, I believe, 2007, before the Receivership was formed. I have not taken any action to challenge that transaction.

Interesting.

The Feds say Vennes knew something about the scheme right about the time that Bachmann wrote the pardon letter (December 2007). Vennes was the registered agent list in this PDF from the Florida SOS. In this 2008 doc, (PDF), the manager of Fidelis is Joseph L. Smith.

Michele Bachmann lauded the Fidelis Foundation in her pardon request for Frank Vennes Jr.:

Bachmann wrote:

“As a U.S. Representative, I am confident of Mr. Vennes’ successful rehabilitation and that a pardon will be good for the neediest of society. Mr. Vennes is seeking a pardon so that he may be further used to help others. As I know from personal experience, Mr. Vennes has used his business position and success to fund hundreds of nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping the neediest in our society. The Fidelis Foundation, backed by Mr. Vennes, has directed over $10.7 million in total gifts in the last three years, and the Fidelis Foundation has ranked #6, #9 and #7 as the largest grant-making foundation in Minnesota over the past three years.”

The Fidelis Foundation is a Plymouth, Minn.-based nonprofit organization “organized to assist Christians in discerning, clarifying and implementing God’s call and direction in their life,” according to the group’s tax filings. Its chairman is G. Craig Howse, Vennes’ lawyer, and the organization leases office space from Howse for $1,300 a month.

Howse has donated $5,000 to Bachmann’s campaign committee since 2007.

The Petters-Fraud website has the superseding indictment of Tom Petters (PDF).

A list of wire communications are presented as evidence. Among them this mention of a wire transfer of $4,060,000 from the Fidelis Foundation to "PCI's account". PCI is Petters Company Incorporated.

Pardongate Update: Hope Commons Video Removed From You Tube

This is the description of the Hope Commons You Tube video uploaded June 23, 2008 by EasyStreetVideo (also no longer on You Tube) used to say:

Video with interviews describing the Hope Commons building project in Minneapolis, by the Fidelis Foundation. Includes interviews with Fidelis Foundation, Minnesota Teen Challenge, The Bethlehem Institute, Hope Academy, and Desiring God

But you can watch it here:



Hope Commons LLC was registered in Florida:



Note the address: 400 Ocean Trail Way.

This is what what the address looks like.

Nice beach.



Read more about the sorry saga of Hope Commons.