The Steady Drip – by Sam Sewell
Going Postal
http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/blum.asp
The husband of Senator Dianne Feinstein chairs a company that brokers sales of USPS facilities.
It was recently learned that the United States has entered into a contract with one firm to sell 56 buildings that currently house U.S. Post Offices. The government has decided that it no longer needs these buildings (many of which are located on prime land in towns and cities across the country).
The sale of these properties will bring in billions of dollars and, with that, millions of dollars in commissions for the one Company that is in charge of handling the sale and negotiation of the new leases.
What makes this such a matter of concern is that the company that the Government has contracted with to conduct the sales (and the corresponding leases for the new locations of the displaced post offices) is owned by Richard Blum.
Does that name mean anything to you? Maybe it should re-phrased and say that the person who owns the company that is solely in charge of this multi-million-dollar transaction is Richard Blum the husband of Senator Dianne Feinstein.
Origins: Facing a deficit of billions of dollars in recent years, theUnited States Postal Service (USPS) has floated a number of number of proposals to reduce that deficit, including selling off hundreds of post office properties in order to gain cash flow and reduce expenses. According to the Postal Service’s 2012 report to Congress, more than 600 buildings nationwide have been “earmarked for disposal,” and the “USPS Properties for Sale” web site currently lists 40 buildings and land parcels for sale across the U.S.
In 2011, the CB Richard Ellis Group (now CBRE Group, Inc.), the world’s largest commercial real estate services firm, was awarded an exclusive contract to market USPS facilities which provides CBRE with a commission of 2 to 6 percent on the sale of those properties. This award has been the subject of some controversy, as CBRE’s Chairman of the Board is Richard C. Blum, the husband of Senator Dianne Feinstein, who represents the state of California in the U.S. Senate.
It isn’t accurate to say that Richard Blum is “solely in charge” of CBRE or that he “owns” the company, as CBRE is headed by President and Chief Executive Officer Robert E. Sulentic is a public company whose shares are owned by many different individuals and institutional stockholders. However, it is indeed true that Richard Blum is both CBRE’s chairman and the husband of a U.S. senator, and that Blum Capital, a private equity firm founded by Richard Blum, is one of CBRE’s larger institutional stockholders.
Writing in the San Francisco Chronicle, columnist Andrew S. Ross quoted a representative of Senator Feinstein as asserting that she was not involved in her husband’s business dealings, and that the contract between the USPS and CBRE was not initiated or influenced by Congress:
As for accusations of a conflict of interest and suspicions that Feinstein may have influenced the awarding of the contract to her husband’s firm, Feinstein’s office strongly denies the charges.
“Sen. Feinstein is not involved with and does not discuss any of her husband’s business decisions with him. Her husband’s holdings are his separate personal property. Sen. Feinstein’s assets are held in a blind trust. That arrangement has been in place since before she came to the Senate in 1992,” said Brian Weiss, Feinstein’s communications director.
In 2012, Feinstein voted for an amendment to a postal reform bill that would have temporarily halted post office closings. The amendment was defeated in the House.
Both the Postal Service and CBRE insisted the 2011 contract was competitively bid. The Postal Service is an independent agency that reports to Congress, but there is no indication Congress plays any role in the awarding of contracts.
While CBRE handles the transactions, it does not advise the Postal Service which facilities to put on the market, I was told by both sides.
In June 2013 the USPS’ Office of Inspector General issued an audit report which noted that “outsourcing real estate management services to one supplier is a fundamental change from how the Postal Service previously managed its real estate portfolio” and was critical of several aspects of the contract between USPS and CBRE, but Richard Blum’s marital relationship with Senator Feinstein was not among the conflict of interest issues cited in that report:
Specifically, there are conflict of interest concerns and no maximum contract value. In addition, the contracting officer did not properly approve contract payments, appoint contracting officer’s representatives to monitor contract performance, or ensure services were provided. As a result, it is difficult for the Postal Service to determine whether the outsourcing effort has been or will be effective in reducing costs.
Conflict of interest concerns exist because the contractor provides a range of property values to negotiate a lease and receives a commission from the lessor based on the property value negotiated. Further, the contractor acts on behalf of the Postal Service in negotiating leases and the contractor can also represent the lessor. The Postal Service established a targeted incentive for reduced lease rates but in the first year of the contract did not meet the target. In addition, Facilities officials did not establish a maximum contract amount, which poses the risk of escalating contract costs. Officials increased contract funding from $2 million to $6 million and, as of February 2013, contract payments exceeded $3 million.
Lastly, in fiscal year 2012, employees not appointed contracting officer’s representatives certified $1.7 million for invoices, including $1.1 million for services requested and certified by the same individual, which presents an increased risk of fraud. Ineffective contract oversight poses an increased risk to the Postal Service’s finances, brand, and reputation.
San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper.
Note: Chronicle Publishing Company
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronicle_Publishing_Company
The Chronicle Publishing Company was a print and broadcast media corporation headquartered in San Francisco, California that was in operation from 1865 until 2000. Owned for the whole of its existence by the de Young family, it was most notable for owning the namesake San Francisco Chroniclenewspaper and KRON-TV, the longtime NBC affiliate in the market.
Demise
San Francisco Chronicle: Hearst Corporation (longtime owners the Examiner which was divested upon the purchase of the Chronicle amid protests that San Francisco would be left with one newspaper.)
Alan D. Mutter was the managing editor for the San Francisco Chronicle, and the COO & founding partner for InterMedia Partners LP.
Leo J. Hindery Jr. is a managing partner for InterMedia Partners LP, the founder of InterMedia Advisors, LLP, a donor for Media Matters, was a director at the Millennium Promise, and the chief officer for planning & finance for theChronicle Publishing Company.
Gary L. Wilson is a director at the Millennium Promise, and a director at the CBRE Group, Inc.
Tom Daschle is a consultant for the InterMedia Advisors, LLP, a director at the Center for American Progress, was a director at the CBRE Group, Inc., and a 2008 Bilderbergconference participant (think tank).
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Media Matters, the Millennium Promise, the Center for American Progress, the Brookings Institution (think tank), and the Aspen Institute (think tank).
George Soros is the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society, and was a supporter for the Center for American Progress.
Laura D’Andrea Tyson is a fellow at the Center for American Progress, a director at the CBRE Group, Inc., and was a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).
Andrew H. Tisch is a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), and his father was Laurence A. Tisch.
Laurence A. Tisch was Andrew H. Tisch’s father, and PrestonR. Tisch’s brother.
Preston R. Tisch was Laurence A. Tisch’s brother, and the postmaster general for the U.S. Postal Service.
D. Michael Bennett is a member nominee for the U.S. Postal Service, and the SVP for BAE Systems Inc.
Lee H. Hamilton is a director at BAE Systems Inc., and an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank), and the Aspen Institute (think tank).
William H. Gates III is a co-chair for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and a co-founder & chairman for the Microsoft Corporation.
Joanne K. Bradford was a VP for the Microsoft Corporation, and is the president of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Joanne R. Harrell is the senior director, e-government programs for the Microsoft Corporation, and a member of the Belizean Grove.
Kimberly Till was a VP for the Microsoft Corporation, and is a member of the Belizean Grove.
Mary Agnes Wilderotter was the SVP for the Microsoft Corporation, and is a member of the Belizean Grove.
Belizean_Grove is the equivalent to the male-only social group, the Bohemian Club.
Henry A. Kissinger is a member of the Bohemian Club, a director at the American Friends of Bilderberg (think tank), and a 2008 Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).
George H.W. Bush is a member of the Bohemian Club.
Walter L. Cronkite was a member of the Bohemian Club.
George H.W. Bush talks about the NWO and Walter Cronkite said he is glad to sit at the Right Hand of Satan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dd2M4S5D1uc
Dark Secrets inside Bohemian Grove
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtSVBTne-KY
Bohemian Club
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bohemian_Club
Weaving Spiders Come Not Here
The Bavarian Order of the Illuminati Owl of Wisdom
William Randolph Hearst was a member of the Bohemian Club, and his grandson is William R. Hearst III.
William R. Hearst III is William Randolph Hearst’s grandson, and a director at the Hearst Corporation.
Hearst Newspapers is a division of the Hearst Corporation.
San Francisco Chronicle is a publication for Hearst Newspapers.
Joanne K. Bradford is the president of the San Francisco Chronicle, and was a VP for the Microsoft Corporation.
William H. Gates III is a co-founder & chairman for theMicrosoft Corporation, and a co-chair for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank), and the Aspen Institute (think tank).
Richard C. Blum is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), the chairman for the CBRE Group, Inc., and married to Senator Dianne Feinstein.
Dianne Feinstein is married to Richard C. Blum, a U.S. Senatesenator, and a member of the Alfalfa Club.
Frederic V. Malek is a member of the Alfalfa Club, a director at the CBRE Group, Inc., and a trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank).
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Hang the sunma b!tch3s.
Anyway we can start a fundraiser to buy a hemp rope for dianne and send it to her? $1 donations going to buying dianne a hemp rope necklace. Now that would raise more money faster than anything else I can think of. We could expand it to include bloomenberg and obama. just go right down the tenure list. what is it 585 people in congress? They all get their hemp rope lecklaces on the same day signed by the people.
I’m CERTAIN everything is copacetic and above board.
BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
NOT!!!