Bank closures of Arab-Americans at issue in Detroit trial

Growing number of bank closures of Arab-Americans has concerned civil rights advocates as a Southfield charity battles Bank of America in court

Founded in 1992 by Iraqi-American Muslims, the Southfield-based charity Life for Relief and Development says it has donated more than $300 million in relief aid around the world, especially in Arab- and Muslim-majority countries.

But in 2012, Talmer Bancorp of Michigan and Bank of America suddenly closed its  accounts, not giving any reason. Attorneys for the charity then sued the banks, saying they were discriminated against because of their Arab ancestry and Islamic faith.

The case with Talmer Bancorp was resolved and now, the case with Bank of America is on trial, with closing arguments expected Monday in U.S. District Court in Detroit. On Friday, officials with Bank of America testified that their decision to shut down the account of Life for Relief and Development was not based on the ancestry of its leaders.

Read on.

Congressman-car dealer refuses to cooperate with investigators

House Ethics Committee to extend investigation into alleged conflict of interest

U.S. Rep. Roger Williams’ financial interest in his auto dealership may have “influenced his performance of official duties,” and the House Ethics Committee will extend its investigation into the Texas congressman’s conduct.

The determination was made by the Office of Congressional Ethics, which advises the House Ethics Committee, in a report issued Thursday. Investigators noted the Republican congressman did not cooperate with the probe and recommended the House Ethics Committee issue subpoenas to Williams and his dealership to obtain information on its rental practices.

It was a serious setback for the representative, who in a 12-page statementsays he has done nothing improper.

The Center for Public Integrity was first to report accusations against the congressman in a report last November. The story drew a request for a reviewby the Campaign Legal Center, a Washington, D.C. legal watchdog.

Read on.

WordPress blocked hacker Guccifer 2.0 Friday article exposing DCCC documents

Looks like hacker Guccifer 2.0 article on Friday has been blocked by WordPress:

GUCCIFER 2.0 HACKED DCCC

Some content on this page was disabled on August 13, 2016 upon receipt of a valid complaint regarding the publication of private information. You can read more about WordPress.com’s private information policy here:

http://en.support.wordpress.com/private-information/

And I just learned that the hacker’s Twitter has been suspended completely….Hacker Guccifer2.0 had hacked into confidential information, passwords, etc of DCCC. As far as the DNC information that was exposed in June, that information is still posted on  Guccifer2.0 website.

JPMorgan’s $4.5B RMBS Investors Deal Gets Judge’s Nod

Law360, Los Angeles (August 12, 2016, 10:12 PM ET) — A New York state judge on Friday granted approval of a $4.5 billion settlement to resolve institutional investors’ claims that JPMorgan & Chase Co. misled consumers into buying risky residential mortgage-backed securities in the lead-up to the financial crisis in 2007, saying a lone objector’s argument lacked merit.

New York Supreme Court Judge Marcy S. Friedman found that the 2013 deal to resolve claims brought by holders of the securities backed by subprime mortgages that went bust during the financial crisis was negotiated in good faith…

Source: Law360

Tim Kaine: Here’s how Hillary Clinton will ensure fair housing for all

In Kaine’s own words:

But I could never shake the impact Lorraine’s case had on me. She and I were about the same age. We were both starting the first chapter of our lives in the real world. And yet, simply because of our different skin color, we had radically different experiences finding a place to begin those lives.

A house is more than just a place to sleep. It’s part of the foundation on which a family can build a life. Where you live determines the jobs you can find, the schools your children can attend, the air you breathe and the opportunities you have. And when you are blocked from living where you want, it cuts to the core of who you are.

A little noticed website called DCLeaks published emails from hundreds of Republican politicos

Democrats are not the only ones who have been hacked. So has the GOP. And this has gotten little notice. We have a cybersecurity problem…

Daily Beast:

But Republicans have reason to worry, too. Computer security researchers are linking one of the Russian groups that stole emails from the Democratic National Committee to a campaign that hacked the staff of at least three GOP lawmakers, as well as state-level party officials across the country.

Back in June, a little noticed website called DCLeaks published the emails of various political and military figures. Most public attention focused on emails written by retired Gen. Philip Breedlove, formerly the supreme allied commander of NATO.

But the DCLeaks cache also includedemails from hundreds of Republican politicos, including of campaign staff for Sens. John McCain and Lindsey Graham, who ran for president this year, as well as Republican Michele Bachmann, a former member of Congress who ran for president in 2012. The lawmakers had served on sensitive committees including Armed Services and Intelligence. DCLeaks also published messages from party officials in Wyoming, Illinois, Connecticut, and Texas.

The Daily Beast contacted multiple offices of those implicated in the hack, including McCain and Graham, but received no response.

The published emails are mostly innocuous and mundane. But the hackers also gave no indication of whether they had more information or had compromised the accounts of people whom they didn’t publicly expose.

Who is the DCLeaks?:

DCleaks is a new level project aimed to analyze and publish a large amount of emails from top-ranking officials and their influence agents all over the world.

The project was launched by the American hacktivists who respect and appreciate freedom of speech, human rights and government of the people. We believe that our politicians have forgotten that in a democracy the people are the highest form of political authority so our citizens have the right to participate in governing our nation. The authorities are just lobbying interests of Wall Street fat cats, industrial barons and multinational corporations’ representatives who swallow up all resources and subjugate all markets.

We believe U.S. citizens have the right to know how domestic and foreign policies of the United States are shaped and who the real policy maker is.

Our aim is to find out and tell you the truth about U.S. decision-making process as well as about the key elements of American political life.

There are no borders or censorship for DCleaks. We are open for cooperation and ready to get valuable information, check its validity and to make it available to the public.

Wall Street banks ask Fed for five more years to comply with Volcker rule

Hell no!!!!!

Big Wall Street banks are asking the U.S. Federal Reserve to grant them an additional five-year grace period to comply with a financial reform regulation known as the Volcker rule, people familiar with the matter said.

If the Fed agrees, the extension would give banks more time to exit fund investments that are difficult to sell, but no longer allowed by the law. The added grace period, which follows three one-year extensions, would start next year and run through 2022.

The law on Volcker rule implementation says banks can ask for an extra five-year extension for “illiquid” funds, where banks had contractual commitments to invest.

In deciding whether to grant Wall Street more leeway, the Fed has asked banks to provide details on their specific investments to prove that they fall under the statutory definition of “illiquid,” said the people, who requested anonymity to discuss non-public regulatory discussions.

Those seeking the extension include Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley,JPMorgan Chase and some other banks, the sources said. They are making their push in part through Wall Street lobbying group the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA).

Read on.

FRIDAY NIGHT DUMP: GUCCIFER 2.0 HACKED DCCC

He is back not Wikileaks this time! Guccifer 2.0 obtained documents from hacking the DNCC – which includes the personal cell phone number, physical and email address as well as full personal information for some 200 congressional Democrats.It makes you wonder why FBI is not investigating this hacker and better yet why the media is ignoring reporting this hacker who bravely continues to dump more hacked documents from Congressional Democratic organizations.

On his WordPress blog, Guccifer 2.0 says the following:

Hi all!
It’s time for new revelations now. All of you may have heard about the DCCC hack. As you see I wasn’t wasting my time! It was even easier than in the case of the DNC breach.

As you see the U.S. presidential elections are becoming a farce, a big political performance where the voters are far from playing the leading role. Everything is being settled behind the scenes as it was with Bernie Sanders.

I wonder what happened to the true democracy, to the equal opportunities, the things we love the United States for. The big money bags are fighting for power today. They are lying constantly and don’t keep their word. The MSM are producing tons of propaganda  hiding the real stuff behind it. But I do believe that people have right to know what’s going on inside the election process in fact.

To make a long story short, here are some DCCC docs from their server. Make use of them.