Author Topic: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending  (Read 28159 times)

oldtoyota

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3179
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #50 on: July 13, 2013, 09:17:37 AM »
And this proves what?  Would anyone pay a dime to listen to him if he wasn't an ex-President?  Magically remove him from the sphere of politics, and he'd be reduced to looking for a job as a sax player.
I know you're choosing to ignore this because it's inconvenient, but he's a goddamn Rhodes Scholar. That opens a lot of doors for careers other than busking.

I also think C's ability to work a room can't be undervalued. Obama could use some of that to be honest.


oldtoyota

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3179
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #51 on: July 13, 2013, 09:20:27 AM »
Oh, I am not saying all politicians are useless. However, some of them do go astray when they gain power. IMO, a lot of the fraud and greed could be controlled somewhat by restricting every campaign to a $20 budget or no budget. Since campaign costs are so high, politicians are in more need of money. Because they are in need of money, they are more likely to strike back room deals with corporations and also with each other.
I think members of Congress make a lot more money off of cushy jobs when they leave office and the immunity to insider trading laws that they get than from campaign contributions.

Quote
I am only semi-kidding about the $20 budget. I think the budget (cap, whatever one wants to call it) needs to be greatly reduced for all political campaigns.
All I can see that doing is permanently driving all campaign funding underground, into PACs and the like, and making it impossible to regulate. I think the goal is good, but there's no way it could be implemented.

Sure. Congress people--if they do leave office, haha--would be likely to make a lot outside of politics. My point was that those who need money to win a campaign are likely to be successfully courted by, say, a Monsanto than someone who doesn't need the money.

To your point, I think campaign funding HAS been driven underground. By "underground," I mean it is now more difficult to track due to recent laws. Yeah, you're right it would not really work. It'd be cool if it could though.




Jamesqf

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4038
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #52 on: July 13, 2013, 10:39:15 PM »
That's like saying that because I devote considerable time & attention to my garden, I must therefore be a professional gardener. 

Was it one of your primary ways of making an earned income for years at a time?

If it was, I'd say yes, you were a professional gardener.

Quite the opposite: I have at various times spent quite a bit of money (sometimes several $K/yr, much more if you count the cost of land) on the garden.  I think you could say the same of Franklin and many of the other founding fathers.  They did not make their livings from their revolutionary/political activities.  Most probably spent quite a bit of their own money on them.

And this proves what?  Would anyone pay a dime to listen to him if he wasn't an ex-President?  Magically remove him from the sphere of politics, and he'd be reduced to looking for a job as a sax player.
I know you're choosing to ignore this because it's inconvenient, but he's a goddamn Rhodes Scholar. That opens a lot of doors for careers other than busking.

Probably so, right after you graduate, but few people get very far trading on old collegiate successes.  Most employers want to know what you can do for them today: the fact that you won an impressive scholarship 40-odd years ago isn't going to count for a heck of a lot.  I'm sure no employer of mine ever asked or cared about the fact that I scored in the upper-90th percentiles on SAT & GRE, for instance; they were interested in the fact that I had demonstrated that I could do the jobs they wanted done.

matchewed

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4422
  • Location: CT
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #53 on: July 14, 2013, 04:53:32 AM »
http://www.fi.edu/franklin/family/lastwill.html

Just do a search within that page for salary. He'll mention which salary he was talking about (there's a couple). So he earned money from politics and was therefore a politician regardless of his spending.

sol

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 8433
  • Age: 47
  • Location: Pacific Northwest
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #54 on: July 14, 2013, 05:20:25 PM »
but few people get very far trading on old collegiate successes.

This is purely anecdotal, but in my case my academic success (graduated 13 years ago) has been the primary driver of my professional career arc.  I still get offered jobs on a semi-regular basis because of things that happened long before I ever had a real job.

Quote
no employer of mine ever asked or cared about the fact that I scored in the upper-90th percentiles on SAT & GRE, for instance

And I wouldn't expect them to.  Also note that significantly less than a single digit percentage of the US student population are Rhodes Scholars.

For example, every year a handful of bright folks get perfect SAT score.  Those folks, like Fullbrights and Rhodes and MacArthur recipients, have to fuck up pretty hard to not sail through the rest of their lives.  Trust me, brilliance counts for something.

Jamesqf

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4038
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #55 on: July 14, 2013, 06:35:40 PM »
And I wouldn't expect them to.  Also note that significantly less than a single digit percentage of the US student population are Rhodes Scholars.

Sure, but you should also note that the Rhodes Scholarships are pretty exclusive in ways that have nothing to do with one's academic ability.  For instance the upper age limit of 24, which makes it just about impossible to qualify if you've done a stint in the military.

Quote
Those folks, like Fullbrights and Rhodes and MacArthur recipients, have to fuck up pretty hard to not sail through the rest of their lives.  Trust me, brilliance counts for something.

Sure, brilliance counts.  The question is whether it is a necessary prerequisite for the Rhodes Scholarship.  Now the only Rhodes Scholar mentioned here - Bill Clinton - sure didn't display much in the way of brilliance leading to actual achievement.  The problem, common to many professional politicians, is that his skills were limited to getting elected, rather than doing anything sensible once in office.

skyrefuge

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1015
  • Location: Suburban Chicago, IL
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #56 on: July 15, 2013, 01:47:26 PM »
I think we can all admit how useful the following phrases are -
All politicians are unskilled and have to make their money off of other people's work.
All corporations are evil.
All government workers are lazy.

As in not useful at all because miss the nuance of reality.

Au contraire! Such statements are actually quite useful, for their use efficiently indicates a writer who is unlikely to provide much value to me. I bet reading this off-topic tangent actually increased my long-term MMM Forum Signal-to-Noise ratio!

DoubleDown

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2075
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #57 on: July 15, 2013, 03:13:43 PM »
I sure hope I never win that fucking Rhodes Scholarship or get a law degree, because then all I could do to earn a living is be a politician or play saxophone.

Honest Abe

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 379
  • Emancipate Yourself from Mental Slavery
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #58 on: July 15, 2013, 05:49:19 PM »
I sure hope I never win that fucking Rhodes Scholarship or get a law degree, because then all I could do to earn a living is be a politician or play saxophone.

And you can't really make a living playing the saxophone so that only leaves one option. :)

TrulyStashin

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1024
  • Location: Mid-Sized Southern City
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #59 on: July 17, 2013, 01:29:27 PM »
Update -- Governor rents house he can't afford to an employee who serves at the Governor's discretion.  No kidding.

http://www.timesdispatch.com/news/latest-news/mcdonnell-rents-henrico-house-to-state-health-commissioner/article_6848ad36-ef01-11e2-8988-001a4bcf6878.html

What a fine example of how an Antimustachian life can lead to downfall.

hybrid

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1688
  • Age: 57
  • Location: Richmond, Virginia
  • A hybrid of MMM and thoughtful consumer.
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #60 on: July 17, 2013, 01:50:41 PM »
Update -- Governor rents house he can't afford to an employee who serves at the Governor's discretion.  No kidding.

http://www.timesdispatch.com/news/latest-news/mcdonnell-rents-henrico-house-to-state-health-commissioner/article_6848ad36-ef01-11e2-8988-001a4bcf6878.html

What a fine example of how an Antimustachian life can lead to downfall.

I just saw this and had started another thread.  Whats' worse than buying a home at the top of the market?  Buying four of them!  Ouch.....  That's OK though, guys like McDonnell always land on their feet.  There will be some golden parachute for him when he is done.

TrulyStashin

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1024
  • Location: Mid-Sized Southern City
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #61 on: July 17, 2013, 01:53:02 PM »
Update -- Governor rents house he can't afford to an employee who serves at the Governor's discretion.  No kidding.

http://www.timesdispatch.com/news/latest-news/mcdonnell-rents-henrico-house-to-state-health-commissioner/article_6848ad36-ef01-11e2-8988-001a4bcf6878.html

What a fine example of how an Antimustachian life can lead to downfall.

What's worse??? Buying ANY house at ANY time without a careful number-crunching party to determine whether you can actually make money.........  I'm guessing none of these houses would have withstood any scrutiny on the Real Estate board here.

I just saw this and had started another thread.  Whats' worse than buying a home at the top of the market?  Buying four of them!  Ouch.....  That's OK though, guys like McDonnell always land on their feet.  There will be some golden parachute for him when he is done.

Dr.Vibrissae

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 364
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #62 on: July 18, 2013, 10:41:13 AM »
Now the only Rhodes Scholar mentioned here - Bill Clinton - sure didn't display much in the way of brilliance leading to actual achievement.  The problem, common to many professional politicians, is that his skills were limited to getting elected, rather than doing anything sensible once in office.

Yes I'm sure the committee is still sorely disappointed with that selection.  I mean they really expect people to go on and DO stuff with their lives.  And not silly stuff like going to Yale law school, serving as state attorney general, becoming Governor, and certainly not the triviality of  President of the Unitied States.  They expect you to do important stuff.  JamesFQ knows it when he sees it. 

Seriously, though, you may not like him or be impressed by any of that, but it's clear to me that he's clever enough to have thought of something, should politics have been denied.

Also, (and I don't feel like searching for this quote), buying rental properties you can't afford is no more mustachian than buying anything else you can't afford.

hybrid

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1688
  • Age: 57
  • Location: Richmond, Virginia
  • A hybrid of MMM and thoughtful consumer.
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #63 on: July 18, 2013, 12:45:54 PM »
Bards will write children's songs one day....

Old McDonnell had a foreclosure.
E - I - E - I - Ouch.

(Unless of course he lands some comfy corner office at a Big Law like Hunton Williams or McGuire Woods, which he probably will.....)

TrulyStashin

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1024
  • Location: Mid-Sized Southern City
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #64 on: July 29, 2014, 02:43:06 PM »
Time for an update.  Our former Guv's trial began today and the defense strategy raises interesting questions on how much humiliation one individual is willing to suffer to avoid prison time. 

http://www.timesdispatch.com/news/latest-news/defense-attorney-maureen-mcdonnell-had-crush-on-williams/article_847bdaaa-173c-11e4-806c-0017a43b2370.html

Edited for grammar.

pipercat

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 282
  • Location: Central VA
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #65 on: July 29, 2014, 07:33:32 PM »
Yes, apparently the Missus was smitten.

hybrid

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1688
  • Age: 57
  • Location: Richmond, Virginia
  • A hybrid of MMM and thoughtful consumer.
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #66 on: July 30, 2014, 08:06:19 AM »
Smitten indeed. Mrshybrid never refers to me as her favorite playmate....  I still say there will be a lot of shaming in the press followed by a slap of the wrist when the sentencing comes.

I found it funny how many Republicans would not vote for McAuliffe because he was so sleazy (and, well, he certainly was) but have turned something of a blind eye to their anointed one. First Gilmore and his budget wrecking ways, then McDonnell. With Republicans like these, hardly any wonder Virginia has changed from red to purple over time.

DoubleDown

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2075
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #67 on: August 01, 2014, 08:46:30 PM »
I'm not buying the defense story of the McDonnell's marriage being a wreck, them barely speaking, and Mrs. Governor being smitten and therefore receiving all the bribes unbeknownst to the Gov. Besides being a humiliating story, I'm not even sure it's a decent defense strategy. So far the prosecution seems to be doing a good job at shooting down this charade (i.e., the Gov. was not in the dark, he was very much aware of everything).

It's particularly ridiculous how the loving, committed couple showed up in court in the early days in solidarity, holding hands, and denying everything (which already contradicts the "their marriage was a shambles" story). Now that their defense has crafted this story they make a point of showing up separately, completely avoiding each other, and not even looking at one another.

jprince7827

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 148
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #68 on: August 06, 2014, 02:14:32 PM »
Smitten indeed. Mrshybrid never refers to me as her favorite playmate....  I still say there will be a lot of shaming in the press followed by a slap of the wrist when the sentencing comes.

I found it funny how many Republicans would not vote for McAuliffe because he was so sleazy (and, well, he certainly was) but have turned something of a blind eye to their anointed one. First Gilmore and his budget wrecking ways, then McDonnell. With Republicans like these, hardly any wonder Virginia has changed from red to purple over time.

Agreed. I am a Republican, originally from Virginia and MD area, and was very disappointed to hear about Cooch and the Gov. Unfortunately McAuliffe's not much better. Sad state of politics these days.

gimp

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2344
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #69 on: August 06, 2014, 02:56:49 PM »
All these motherfuckers are bad at math.

Look: the two of them got their careers ruined, which had massive earnings potential, and fame and power which I'm sure they liked more than even the money. They're gonna have huge fines to pay. And for what? A fucking watch? Some petty cash? Shit that amounts to less than a years' pay?

When someone embezzles $10m at their $50k job, hides it, and goes to prison for four years - that's not bad math. Poor choices, or not, depending on your morals. When someone gets $50k in bribes at their $150k job, that's just idiocy.

austin

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 147
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #70 on: August 06, 2014, 05:41:27 PM »
This guy ran on a platform of fiscal responsibility and family values (i.e. destruction of the safety net and homophobia).

This is delicious. Glad is life his going down the drain.

MoneyCat

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1752
  • Location: New Jersey
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #71 on: August 06, 2014, 09:13:42 PM »
You know what's really Anti-Mustachian?  NJ Gov. Chris Christie expecting to balance the state budget with funds from legalized internet gambling.  He expected $1 billion in revenue and hasn't even gotten a fraction of it because people in NJ aren't stupid enough to lose their rent money playing slot machine games on their iPads.  Of course it probably would have helped if Gov. Christie hadn't also given over $200 million in tax breaks for a new casino in Atlantic City (the Revel) which is now undergoing its second bankruptcy in two years and is scheduled to close at the end of the month if they don't find a new buyer.  Now there's a massive budget shortfall and the state's credit rating got downgraded again.  STUPID!

ctaardvark

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 6
  • Location: New England
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #72 on: August 07, 2014, 12:35:40 PM »
When someone gets $50k in bribes at their $150k job, that's just idiocy.

Yes, I'm never surprised that politicians take bribes.  It just disgusts me how cheap they are.

Michael792

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 221
  • Age: 31
  • Location: US
    • Rising Ascendant
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #73 on: August 07, 2014, 05:44:08 PM »
In other news... Bill Clinton makes $500,000 for a 45 minute speech ($11,100 per minute):

And this proves what?  Would anyone pay a dime to listen to him if he wasn't an ex-President?  Magically remove him from the sphere of politics, and he'd be reduced to looking for a job as a sax player.


The founding fathers absolutely were politicians by your definitions and any reasonable person's definitions, even if they had other jobs as well, and even if they weren't primarily politicians.

 "A person who is professionally involved in politics." - What does professionally involved mean to you?  It was their profession for a time.

That's like saying that because I devote considerable time & attention to my garden, I must therefore be a professional gardener.  Or that Bill Clinton is a professional musician :-)

You seem to think that sax players are all poor and that you're above them.

I sure hope I never win that fucking Rhodes Scholarship or get a law degree, because then all I could do to earn a living is be a politician or play saxophone.

And you can't really make a living playing the saxophone so that only leaves one option. :)

You can make a living playing the saxophone. There's people that make a much nicer living than I ever have doing that.

TrulyStashin

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1024
  • Location: Mid-Sized Southern City
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #74 on: August 11, 2014, 09:31:28 AM »
Somehow I had missed this news -- the whole trial now unfolding was unnecessary.  He could have spared the Commonwealth and his wife by pleading guilty to one felony count for fraud.  The unending hubris of this man just astounds me.

".....authorities proposed that then-Gov. Robert F. McDonnell plead guilty to one felony fraud charge that had nothing to do with corruption in office and his wife would avoid charges altogether. The governor rejected the offer, the people with knowledge of the conversations said.

On Tuesday, Robert and Maureen McDonnell were jointly charged in a 14-count indictment alleging that they engaged in conspiracy and fraud, trading on his office to provide assistance to the businessman in exchange for more than $165,000 in luxury gifts and loans."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/gov-mcdonnell-rejected-plea-offer-to-face-one-felony-spare-wife-any-charges-avoid-trial/2014/01/23/96b53a62-83bd-11e3-8099-9181471f7aaf_story.html

zhelud

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 243
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #75 on: August 14, 2014, 08:52:05 AM »
The latest- they had $90k in credit card debt.  !!!  How do you get that much credit card debt? The only thing I can think of is having to pay out of pocket for an organ transplant.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/prosecution-outlines-mcdonnells-debts-at-corruption-trial/2014/08/13/7fab480c-2327-11e4-86ca-6f03cbd15c1a_story.html?hpid=z2

hybrid

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1688
  • Age: 57
  • Location: Richmond, Virginia
  • A hybrid of MMM and thoughtful consumer.
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #76 on: September 04, 2014, 02:06:05 PM »
Somehow I had missed this news -- the whole trial now unfolding was unnecessary.  He could have spared the Commonwealth and his wife by pleading guilty to one felony count for fraud.  The unending hubris of this man just astounds me.

".....authorities proposed that then-Gov. Robert F. McDonnell plead guilty to one felony fraud charge that had nothing to do with corruption in office and his wife would avoid charges altogether. The governor rejected the offer, the people with knowledge of the conversations said.

On Tuesday, Robert and Maureen McDonnell were jointly charged in a 14-count indictment alleging that they engaged in conspiracy and fraud, trading on his office to provide assistance to the businessman in exchange for more than $165,000 in luxury gifts and loans."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/gov-mcdonnell-rejected-plea-offer-to-face-one-felony-spare-wife-any-charges-avoid-trial/2014/01/23/96b53a62-83bd-11e3-8099-9181471f7aaf_story.html

Such hubris. How many people walk away from fourteen Federal indictments? Well, the appeals process starts next one would guess, and I still believe his sentencing will be relatively light when all is said and done.

And he could have walked away with just one charge..... Man, talk about rolling the dice when the odds are against you.

frugalnacho

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 5055
  • Age: 41
  • Location: Metro Detroit
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #77 on: September 04, 2014, 02:34:42 PM »
I sure hope I never win that fucking Rhodes Scholarship or get a law degree, because then all I could do to earn a living is be a politician or play saxophone.

And you can't really make a living playing the saxophone so that only leaves one option. :)

This guy disagrees:



austin

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 147
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #79 on: September 04, 2014, 08:49:10 PM »
Hahaha. Sometimes people get exactly what they deserve.

matchewed

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4422
  • Location: CT
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #80 on: September 05, 2014, 05:48:39 AM »
I sure hope I never win that fucking Rhodes Scholarship or get a law degree, because then all I could do to earn a living is be a politician or play saxophone.

And you can't really make a living playing the saxophone so that only leaves one option. :)

This guy disagrees:



I'm just going to leave this right here.

MgoSam

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3684
  • Location: Minnesota
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #81 on: September 05, 2014, 11:59:01 AM »
Hahaha. Sometimes people get exactly what they deserve.

Sadly it often doesn't feel like enough.

austin

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 147
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #82 on: September 08, 2014, 07:31:31 PM »
If, like me, you are a bad person that likes watching a man getting kicked when he's down, here you go. (warning - political talk radio segment)

TrulyStashin

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1024
  • Location: Mid-Sized Southern City
Re: Virginia's Governor -- Antimutachain Disgrace // Downfall pending
« Reply #83 on: September 09, 2014, 07:17:52 AM »
I wonder how long the appeals wil take?
Is the state paying for the governor's defense? His wife's?

It is amazing what folks will risk for so little money.

The state paid for their legal bills while he was in office, last fall.  Fortunately, he left office in January so taxpayers have not been on the hook for their lawyers since then.  However, many state employees were called as witnesses and the state is paying their legal bills -- total, last I knew, was $900k ish.

The appeals will take years.  The big question is whether they'll be serving time while the appeals are pending (I sure hope so).

Now, the commonwealth needs to tighten up its ethics laws.

grantmeaname

  • CM*MW 2023 Attendees
  • Walrus Stache
  • *
  • Posts: 5961
  • Age: 31
  • Location: Middle West
  • Cast me away from yesterday's things