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Re: ANCA and FRA
Originally posted by armenianweb View Post
Hmm ... that document at first sight might alarm, and in a way it could be nice to see the ANCA hoisted by their own pomposity, but on closer reading the complaint does look spurious.
The alarm mostly results from the first impression - of seeing, in a sea of drivel produced by Armenians, Azeris and Turks, a properly-worded, well presented document (though their citation of Wikipedia lets their side down somewhat
).
Plenipotentiary meow! -
Re: ANCA and FRA
Hurriyet has picked up on it.
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Hurriyet Daily News: ANCA may face investigation
24.02.2009 00:38 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Washington based ethics monitor, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, or CREW, has filed complaints with federal agencies against the Armenian National Committee of America, or ANCA, for various lobbying and campaign violations, Hurriyet Daily News reports.
Accordiong to Turkish newspaper “CREW submitted voluminous materials to the U.S. Department of Justice, Internal Revenue Service, Secretary of the Senate and Clerk of the House on Thursday that complained ANCA, the largest U.S. Armenian group had engaged in prohibited activity as a charitable organization, violated the Foreign Agents Registration Act and also skirted the Lobbying Disclosure Act.”
As it is mentioned in the article “the letters of complaint said ANCA had violated restrictions on charitable organizations "by participating or intervening in any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office." It said the organization illegally participated in the endorsement of Barack Obama for U.S. President and Joseph Biden for Vice-President, as well as some 15 U.S. Senate candidates and 211 U.S. House candidates.”
Moreover ANCA executives "have lobbied Congress and the executive branch heavily with regard to perennial congressional Armenian genocide resolutions and other legislation bearing on U.S.-Armenia, U.S.-Turkey or U.S.-Azerbaijani relations without even registering with the Secretary of the Senate or Clerk of the House."
Azerbaboon: 9.000 Google hits and counting!Comment
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Re: ANCA and FRA
ANCA Accused of Lobbying Violations
By Michael Doyle
Fresno Bee
WASHINGTON - A high-profile ethics organization on Wednesday asked federal
agencies to investigate the Armenian National Committee of America for alleged
campaign finance and lobbying violations.
In a seven-page complaint, the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in
Washington . .. asserts the Armenian-American group failed to register either as a
domestic lobbying group or as a foreign agent despite its political work and
its close ties to an Armenian political party.
The Armenian National Committee of America is one of the country's most
prominent ethnic organizations, and has worked closely with San Joaquin Valley
lawmakers on Armenian genocide commemorative resolutions.
"We're not saying they should be out of business," said Melanie Sloan, a
former federal prosecutor who heads the private Citizens for Responsibilityand
Ethics in Washington . "We're saying there are laws, and they should be
following them."
Sloan attached 161 pages of exhibits in support of the allegations.
Armenian National Committee of America officials denounced the charges as
unfounded.
"We've taken a preliminary look at [the] allegations, and they are without
merit and full of inaccuracies and misrepresentations," ANCA Communications
Director Elizabeth Chouldjian said.
Chouldjian declined to undertake a point-by-point rebuttal of the complaint,
but she said "the real story is why this is being brought up now." She noted
the complaint was filed about two months before the annual April 24 Armenian
genocide commemoration; she did not elaborate on a potential motive for the
complaint's timing.
The Armenian National Committee of America describes itself on its web site
as "the largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots political
organization." It is active in regions with large Armenian-American populations,
including New Jersey, Florida and California.
Currently, Rep. George Radanovich, R-Mariposa, and other ANCA allies are
rallying renewed support for an Armenian genocide resolution that collapsedlast
Congress. Under presidents of both parties, the Pentagon and State Department
have opposed the resolution as an insult to Turkey, which denies that mass
deaths between 1915 and 1923 amounted to a genocide.
"Circumstantial evidence indicates that ANCA and its current or former
executive directors have lobbied Congress and the executive branch heavily with
regard to perennial congressional Armenian genocide resolutions," the complaint
states.
The complaint cites interviews and press releases, in which ANCA leaders tout
their efforts to sway Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., among others.
The Armenian National Committee of America has not registered as a lobbyist
with either the House or Senate. Failure to register can be a felony offense,
though Sloan said potential problems are often resolved simply by registering
after the fact.
The Armenian Assembly of America, the nation's other prominent
Armenian-American organization, is registered and reported spending $182,000 on lobbying
last year.
"These are the rules, and everybody has to follow them," Sloan said.
The complaint asks the Internal Revenue Service to review potential tax
violations and the Justice Department to open a criminal probe. The complaint also
asks the House and Senate to open "companion inquiries" into the lobbying
allegations.
Citing press accounts, a U.S. embassy study and the research of Heather
Gregg, a professor at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, the complaint
contends ANCA is "an arm" of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation. The latter is
a political party that is part of Armenia 's ruling coalition.
Agents of foreign political parties are required to register with the Justice
Department. ANCA can endorse political candidates, as a group organized under
section 501 © (4) of the federal tax code. The affiliated ANCA-Western
Region, based in Glendale, cannot because it is a 501 © (3) organization.The
complaint alleges the Western Region office nonetheless participated in the
national organization's candidate endorsements, in part by sharing a Web site.
Sloan said the complaint arose from a tip received late last year.Plenipotentiary meow!Comment
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Re: ANCA and FRA
OK so what I gather is that they can now register, pay the dues which is I gather it would be approximately a couple of hundred thousand dollars and then it would be alright with the Internal Revenue and etc.Comment
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Plenipotentiary meow!Comment
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Re: ANCA and FRA
Armenian-American group accused of lobbying violations
The Miami Herald
February 19, 2009
By MICHAEL DOYLE
McClatchy Newspapers
WASHINGTON -- A high-profile ethics organization on Wednesday asked
federal agencies to investigate the Armenian National Committee of
America for alleged campaign-finance and lobbying violations.In a
seven-page complaint, the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in
Washington asserts that the Armenian-American group failed to register
either as a domestic lobbying group or as a foreign agent despite its
political work and its close ties to an Armenian political party. The
Armenian National Committee of America is one of the country's most
prominent ethnic organizations and has worked closely with members of
Congress on Armenian genocide commemorative resolutions. "We're not
saying they should be out of business," said Melanie Sloan, a former
federal prosecutor who's now the head of the private Citizens for
Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. "We're saying there are laws
and they should be following them." Sloan attached 161 pages worth of
exhibits in support of the allegations. Armenian National Committee of
America officials denounced the charges as unfounded. "We've taken a
preliminary look at (the) allegations, and they are without merit and
full of inaccuracies and misrepresentations," said Elizabeth
Chouldjian, the Armenian National Committee's communications director.
Chouldjian declined to undertake a point-by-point rebuttal of the
complaint, but she said that "the real story is why this is being
brought up now." She noted that the complaint was filed about two
months before the annual Armenian genocide commemoration on April 24;
she didn't elaborate on a potential motive for the complaint's timing.
The Armenian National Committee of America describes itself on its Web
site as "the largest and most influential Armenian-American
grass-roots political organization." It's active in regions with large
Armenian-American populations, including New Jersey, Florida and
California.
Its allies are rallying renewed support for an Armenian genocide
resolution that collapsed in the last Congress. Under presidents of
both political parties, the Pentagon and State Department have opposed
the resolution as an insult to Turkey, which denies that mass deaths
from 1915 to 1923 amounted to genocide.
The genocide commemoration will pose a dilemma for President Barack
Obama.
As a candidate, he voiced support for the resolution. As president, he
called Turkish President Abdullah Gul on Monday for what the White
House called a "warm and productive" chat. The genocide resolution is
also at the heart of the new complaint. "Circumstantial evidence
indicates that ANCA and its current or former executive directors
... have lobbied Congress and the executive branch heavily with regard
to perennial congressional Armenian genocide resolutions," the
complaint says. The complaint cites interviews and news releases in
which Armenian National Committee of America leaders tout their
efforts to sway Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., among others. The committee
hasn't registered as a lobbyist with either the House of
Representatives or the Senate. Failure to register can be a felony
offense, though Sloan said potential problems often were resolved
simply by registering after the fact. The Armenian Assembly of
America, the nation's other prominent Armenian-American organization,
is registered and reported spending $182,000 on lobbying last year.
"These are the rules, and everybody has to follow them," Sloan said.
The multi-pronged complaint asks the Internal Revenue Service to
review potential tax violations and asks the Justice Department to
open a criminal probe. It also asks the House and Senate to open
"companion inquiries" into the lobbying allegations. Citing news
accounts, a U.S. Embassy study and the research of Heather Gregg, an
assistant professor at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey,
Calif., the complaint contends that the Armenian National Committee of
America is "an arm" of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, a
political party that's part of Armenia's ruling coalition. Agents of
foreign political parties are required to register with the Justice
Department. The Armenian National Committee of America can endorse
political candidates, as a 501(c)(4) organization. The affiliated
Armenian National Committee of America Western Region, based in
Glendale, Calif., cannot because it's a 501(c)(3) organization. The
complaint alleges that the Western office nonetheless participated in
the national organization's candidate endorsements, in part by sharing
a Web site.
Sloan said the complaint arose from "a tip" received late last year.
Sloan's nonprofit, six-year-old ethics group claims no partisan
affiliation, and it previously has filed ethics complaints about
lawmakers of both parties.
ON THE WEB
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington:
Armenian National Committee of America:
Plenipotentiary meow!Comment
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Re: ANCA and FRA
Another tactic to sabatage the genocide resolution. I really dont think we are gona get xxxx out of usa and i will be pleasently surprised if we do. If we are going to get justice and our lands back we are going to have to do it by growing our Armenia, maybe all that money we spent on anca would be better spent in Hayastan. I hope this years resolution passes and is sighned into law but i am not going to bet on it.Hayastan or Bust.Comment
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Re: ANCA and FRA
I wonder if Ms. Sloan is a member of the tribe and whether or not the person(s) who tipped her off were tribe members. There is a prominent Republican J-ewish leader on the left coast named Sloan.
This argument can equally be used against the ADL and AJC who actively lobby on behalf of foreign countries and could be accused of being agents of Israel.
I bet you the Center for Responisibility and Ethics is a right-wing J-ewish spinoff of one of the other non-profit J-ewish sevice organizations. You know a group of these members who are not in the non-profit leadership set up what appears to be a separate entity that is actually doing the dirty work for one of the parent non-profits.
L.A. attorney Sheldon Sloan, a politically well-connected Republican who also is president of the Los Angeles Coliseum Commission.
http://www.j-ewishjournal.com/opinio...erse_20071116/ ("But J-ewish Republican leaders, like former Judge Sheldon Sloan")
Oh well, Ms. Sloan was born in Deleware but she's definitely Republican.
There is another Melanie Sloan out of the Bronx who is actually Scarlet Johansson's mom, that Ms. Sloan is Ashkenazy J-ew.
This Ms. Sloan definitely looks like a heeb.Last edited by freakyfreaky; 02-25-2009, 03:53 PM.Between childhood, boyhood,
adolescence
& manhood (maturity) there
should be sharp lines drawn w/
Tests, deaths, feats, rites
stories, songs & judgements
- Morrison, Jim. Wilderness, vol. 1, p. 22Comment
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