Democrat Kingpin Norman Hsu Update

Classical Values has a longish piece called "My Name is Hsu, How Do You Do?" after the famous Johnny Cash song.

Here is the now-infamous house of the mail carrier, Mr. Paw, and his family who contributed over $200,000 to various Democrats since 2005. Fat cats these people are not.

Kent Cooper, a former disclosure official with the Federal Election Commission, said the two-year pattern of donations justifies a probe of possible violations of campaign-finance law, which forbid one person from reimbursing another to make contributions.
"There are red lights all over this one," Mr. Cooper said.
There is no public record or indication Mr. Hsu reimbursed the Paw family for their political contributions.

I can think of no one who is not paid to say so (like the Paw family lawyer) who believes that this family has the independent ability to make that contribution.

Clayton Cramer also doubts the Paw family came up with the money from saving their pennies (or from a son's fortunate investments):

DALY CITY, Calif. -- One of the biggest sources of political donations to Hillary Rodham Clinton is a tiny, lime-green bungalow that lies under the flight path from San Francisco International Airport.

Six members of the Paw family, each listing the house at 41 Shelbourne Ave. as their residence, have donated a combined $45,000 to the Democratic senator from New York since 2005, for her presidential campaign, her Senate re-election last year and her political action committee. In all, the six Paws have donated a total of $200,000 to Democratic candidates since 2005, election records show.

...


It isn't obvious how the Paw family is able to afford such political largess. Records show they own a gift shop and live in a 1,280-square-foot house that they recently refinanced for $270,000. William Paw, the 64-year-old head of the household, is a mail carrier with the U.S. Postal Service who earns about $49,000 a year, according to a union representative. Alice Paw, also 64, is a homemaker. The couple's grown children have jobs ranging from account manager at a software company to "attendance liaison" at a local public high school. One is listed on campaign records as an executive at a mutual fund.

The Paws' political donations closely track donations made by Norman Hsu, a wealthy New York businessman in the apparel industry who once listed the Paw home as his address, according to public records. Mr. Hsu is one of the top fund-raisers for Mrs. Clinton's presidential campaign. He has hosted or co-hosted some of her most prominent money-raising events.

People who answered the phone and the door at the Paws' residence declined requests for comment last week. In an email last night, one of the Paws' sons, Winkle, said he had sometimes been asked by Mr. Hsu to make contributions, and sometimes he himself had asked family members to donate. But he added: "I have been fortunate in my investments and all of my contributions have been my money."

Does this remind anyone of what happened when a bunch of Buddhist nuns gave big contributions to the Clinton/Gore campaign--and then admitted that it wasn't their money?

As people who know Mr. Hsu and invested money with him are coming forward, it appears that he is a serial fraudster. From Power Line:

It turns out that several people I know put money into a factoring company run by, I am told, Mr. Hsu. My friends and I all know the New York-based businessman who was Mr. Hsu's counterpart in New York through a club we belong to (for what it is worth, the New York guy is not Chinese). The company was established to factor clothing made in China which was then sent back to the US. The New York-based principal of this business established himself in previous years as an entertainment promoter of some note.

Over the course of the past few years, these friends of mine have placed many hundreds of thousands of dollars each into the fund -- egged on by documents reporting outsized returns. Over the past few months or so, each of the investors was pressured to contribute to HRC's campaign, as "appreciation" for the profits they were alleged to be making. Now they are told that the company is most likely wiped out -- the information is sketchy on account of the fact that the New York principal has "lawyered up" on them.

There is no question that Norman Hsu is a crook. The only question is whether he is also an agent of a foreign power. The more information comes out about fraud and Ponzi schemes, I have to ask about his connection to the Chinese government. Do foreign agents defraud investors to raise money to buy up Democrats? On the other hand, the frauds could be pin money that allowed Hsu to live large while the "buying the Democrats" money came from the Chinese.

Power Line also reminds us that the Hsu scandal is eerily reminiscent of the previous Clinton administration:

The Hsu story recalls the Clinton campaign scandals of 1996, but who can really recall them, and what were they all about? They dissolve into the Great Cloud of Unknowing whipped up by the Clinton scandal management machine. How little we remember the cast of characters: Charlie Trie, James Riady, John Huang, Maria Hsia, Ted Sioeng, Johnny Chung, Np Lap Seng et al. To paraphrase "American Pie," do you recall what was revealed the day the Clinton campaign scandals died? In Legacy: Paying the Price for the Clinton Years, Rich Lowry cuts to the chase:

[I]t is an indisputable fact that the president's fund-raising operation was infiltrated by Chinese agents, many of whom were warmly welcomed as valued contributors and given intimate audiences with the president and other senior administration officials.

But why does memory fail us on this shocking episode? Lowry writes:

The fund-raising scandal fizzled politically because most of the major witnesses cut and ran. As many as 120 individuals took the Fifth or fled the country to escape the various investigations.

Bill Clinton responded to the campaign finance scandals arising from his 1996 reelection campaign with the resourcefulness for which he had by that time become renowned. First, he categorically denied wrongdoing. Then he asserted that if he had made mistakes, Republicans had done so first. Finally he proclaimed that whatever he had done was for the good of the country. Sensing that he had not been entirely persuasive in these assertions, Clinton resorted to the favorite stratagem of presidents in need of political cover: the announcement of a bipartisan commission.

Let's see: cut and run to avoid arrest or prosecution; virtual complete memory loss; expressions of surprise and outrage. The only thing missing is the claim that Hillary made a fortune in cattle futures by reading the Wall Street Journal. I don't want to relive that sordid time, and I don't think the American people do either.

Suitably Flip does some shoe leather detective work and writes: Knock, Knock, Knockin' On Norman's Door...

On the off-chance that Hsu was still stuffing clothes in a duffle bag, I took a subway ride down to SoHo this evening and headed toward 160 Wooster Street, the address listed most frequently on the campaign disclosures documenting Hsu's bountiful political contributions over the last few years.

The blinds were closed behind all 10 sets of windows at Hsu's third floor loft (pictured) and the lights didn't seem to be on. Still, having made the trek, I strolled up and hit the buzzer for Hsu's unit. After a couple of fruitless buzzings, I went into the lobby and exchanged pleasantries with the doorman behind the desk.

"I'm trying to get in touch with Norman Hsu in 3C," I said. "Do you know if he's available?"

Only mildly less pleasantly, he responded, "You're going to need to step outside now."

He was perfectly polite about it, but unmistakably resolute, and I couldn't help but wonder whether my doorman would have my back if ever had to lam it. I'll bet Hsu is a better Christmas tipper than I...

In a more recent Classical Values commentary:

Unnatural twins, the two [Hsu and Larry Craig] nevertheless were treated as the "scandals of the week," and while Craig's got the lion's share of media attention by far, it shouldn't have. The difference is that the Hsu money not only involves a presidential election scandal, it typifies the Clintons. I was immediately reminded of the unresolved Peter Paul case, but if we think back further, there's Johnny Huang, Charlie Trie, Moktar Riaddy. The Craig scandal is pathetically simple, even sad by comparison, does not involve the presidential election, nor money corruption, and probably wouldn't be much of a scandal if it involved the Democrats. That the public perception would be that "both parties have scandals" shows only how easily manipulated the public can be.

Interestingly, before either of these stories broke, Michael Vick was the hottest news going. Anyone remember him now? Craig bumped him off the front pages, but would Hsu have? I wonder.

I think the Hsu case is bigger than Vick and Craig combined. It has a creepy, tip-of-the-iceberg feel to it, and it's a perfect reminder (as if anyone needed a reminder) of the deep, hard-core corruption which has long characterized Bill and Hillary Clinton. (I don't believe they have changed at all.) What sickens me more than seeing this corruption resurface is to see so many naive people behaving as if they're shocked and surprised. (And what will sicken me more than that, I'm sure, is the speed at which they'll forget.)

No wonder she started her campaign so early.

Yes, there will be more Hsus to tap.

According to the AP, Patrick Kennedy will keep his contribution from Norman Hsu.

And who did Norman Hsu contribute to? From SourceWatch:

Since 2004, other than Hillary Clinton, Norman Hsu has contributed to or raised funds for the following:[6][9]

Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.)
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)[10]
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio)
Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.)[10]
Sen. Robert Casey (D-Penn.)[10]
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)
Rep. Harold Ford, Jr. (D-Tenn.)[11]
Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.)[11][12]
Sen. Thomas Harkin (D-Iowa)[11]
Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.) Donated $1,000 to charity.[13]
Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.)[10]
Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.)[10]
Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.)[10]
Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.)[11]
Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.)[11]
Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.)[10][14] Donated $7,500 to charity.[15]
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.)[10]
Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.)[10]; HOPEFUND[10]
Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.)[11]
Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.)[11]
Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.)[11]
Rep. Joseph Sestak (D-Penn.)[11] Donated $1,000 to chairty.[16]
Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.)[10][17]
Sen. Mark E. Udall (D-Co.)[11]
Former presidential candidate Tom Vilsack[11]
Gov. Jon Corzine (D-N.J.)
Gov. Edward G. Rendell (D-Penn.)[18]
Gov. Bill Richardson (D-N.M.)[19]
Gov. Eliot Spitzer (D-N.Y.)[20]
Andrew Cuomo for Attorney General (D-N.Y.)[21]
Thomas Allen (D-Me.) for Senate[11]
Al Franken (D-Minn.) for Senate[11] Donated $2,600 to charity.[22]
David Wayne Loebsack (D-Iowa) for Congress[11]
Committee for a Democratic Majority[11]
Democratic Campaign Committee of Philadelphia[23]
Democratic Executive Committee of Florida[10]
Democratic National Committee Services[10]
Democratic Party of Wisconsin[10]
Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee[11][10]
New York State Committee of the Working Families Party[11]
New York State Democratic Committee[24]
New York State Democratic Party[25]
Tennessee Democratic Party[11]
EMILY's List[10]
Preschool for All[26]
Pro-Issue 2 / Ohio Citizen Action / 2006[27]
Searchlight Leadership Fund[11] (operated by Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.))

And now back to Larry Craig all the time.

UPDATE: CathyF comments at the Belmont Club:

From Wednesday's news reports: California Attorney General spokesman Gareth Lacy said Hsu's lawyers told prosecutors Hsu arrived by charter jet at the Oakland airport about 5:30 a.m. PDT Wednesday and then wasn't heard from again.

The train left Emeryville at 7:10 am. It's about a half-hour drive according to rand-macnally, but I'm thinking that has to assume impossibly optimistic traffic for crossing the Bay Area during the beginning of a Wed am rush hour. This was tightly planned -- he had an hour and forty minutes to get out of the airport and completely across town and on the train -- I'm guessing it was a pretty tight connection.

From chartered jet to train. Where was Hsu going?

UPDATE: From the Wall Street Journal:

Mr. Hsu's past, illuminated by documents fished out of storage at various courts and interviews with former partners and friends, is full of failed businesses, a kidnapping, lawsuits and bouts of financial ruin followed by hard-to-explain recovery. He charmed friends, relatives, and college classmates into investing in real estate, restaurant and apparel businesses, many of which failed, stranding investors.

Mr. Hsu hasn't spoken publicly since the spotlight recently fell on his fund-raising and his past. When The Wall Street Journal sought to interview him in August, he responded with an email saying he was "shocked, sad and angry that you have chosen to pick on me for NO reason." He said that he simply wanted to pay back some of the opportunities he received in America, while maintaining a private life.

Politicians and donors describe a pleasant and friendly man, though most are hard-pressed to say what he did for a living. "Everybody loved him, even the staff. He'd take them out to lunch," says Terry McAuliffe, campaign chairman for Hillary Rodham Clinton, one of he biggest recipients of Mr. Hsu's largess. Mr. McAuliffe adds, "He was very hard to understand, to tell you the truth."

Where did he get the money? Where did he get the money to charter a private jet to fly him to California just before he got on the train?

UPDATE: I have been advised by Ohio Citizen Action that:

The committee that Hsu contributed to was Ohioans for a Fair Minimum Wage. Ohio Citizen Action took no position on the minimum wage issue last year.

We take them at their word and are happy to correct the record.