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Conspiracy Nation Vol. 08 Num. 50
Conspiracy Nation -- Vol. 8 Num. 50
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("Quid coniuratio est?")
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THE FOSTERGATE STORY: PRO & CON
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There is ongoing debate regarding the so-called "Fostergate"
story, a complex and widespread series of allegations regarding
the late Vince Foster, the National Security Agency, and bank
transactions spying. Is the story true, or is it a CIA
disinformation piece? Attempting as much as possible to remain
neutral in the matter, I now offer some of what has been said,
pro and con, to date.
-+- PRO -+-
1) Those reporting this story, persons such as James Norman and
Orlin Grabbe, have impressive professional backgrounds. Would
they casually risk their good reputations on a hoax?
2) Predictions have been made, subsequently proven true, that
unprecedented numbers of "congress critters" would be suddenly
and unexpectedly retiring from high office, in the midst of
powerful careers.
3) This story is corroborated by Gary Null: see CN 7.98, for
example, where Null (a veteran journalist whose work is regularly
featured in Penthouse magazine and who recently was the guest on
the PBS program, Tony Brown's Journal) states:
So, I contacted James Norman, went over his information.
But because it's not a single story -- it is a story with
so many tentacles, it's like an octopus. And I thought,
"Well, some of these stories are plausible. Some are not."
And I said, "James, you're going to have to supply me with
documentation." And I said, "Even with the best of
intents, you may have been conned by some people." (Where
you take a good part of the story, that you can hold your
own on, and next thing you know is, they've discredited you
on another; they've planted some misinformation.)
So anyhow, back and forth, over a long period of time, I've
met with James Norman; he supplied me with documents. And
finally, he supplied me with one of his primary sources. I
spent some time interviewing this primary source.
And so I just want our audience to know that I am satisfied
that many of the statements that you're about to hear *can*
be corroborated.
4) Much of this story is corroborated by Sherman Skolnick, the
independent investigator from Chicago. In fact, much of the
Fostergate story was *first* reported by Skolnick. See, for
example CN 5.09 and CN 5.10, first published in early June of
1995, where Skolnick writes,
BCCI wanted to penetrate the American banking scene in a
big way. They did a thing natural to cynical big business:
they bought Congress. The details were too shocking for
the major news group. So a brave journalist turned over
the details to this writer and his associates who further
verified the details and wrote exclusive stories in 1991.
[...]
The strange death of Vincent Foster, Jr., Clinton White
House aide, is bound up with activities of Foster and
Hillary to assist BCCI to penetrate American business.
[...]
The press and Congress have omitted some key details about
Iraq and BNL Atlanta. The deal was arranged and
strategized by Hillary Rodham Clinton in conjunction with
her law partner at the Rose Law Firm in Little Rock,
namely, [Vince] Foster. Part of the Iraqi weapons money
reportedly was washed through the banks of Clinton's
cronies, Jackson Stephens and the Worthen Banking Group.
Almost all in the press ignored the story that the Federal
Reserve was investigating Hillary and Foster in respect to
money laundering [of] illicit funds through foreign bank
arrangements.
[...]
Other senior federal sources contend part of the 50 million
dollars was funneled to the Grand Cayman Islands, with the
reported help of Fuji Bank, and then, on to Switzerland. A
Swiss bank reportedly has part of the money, mixed in with
other illicit funds gathered for Clinton, part of it
reportedly dope loot, under the code name "Chelsea
Jefferson" -- "Chelsea" being the name of Clinton's
daughter, and "Jefferson" being Bill's middle name.
(And note especially that Skolnick's story of BCCI having bribed
members of Congress, progenitor of later elements of the
Norman/Grabbe Fostergate story, was published so far back as
Autumn of 1991.)
-+- CON -+-
1) The Fostergate story relies on Chuck Hayes for much of its
material. Chuck Hayes has been a CIA "contract agent." He says
he is now retired from CIA activities, but does one ever really
retire from CIA?
Given the unsavoury history of CIA, how much can one trust a
story linked to that Agency?
2) According to the Fostergate story, rogue CIA hackers, known as
the "Fifth Column," cleaned out the secret Swiss bank accounts of
bribed U.S. government officials and transferred the money to a
U.S. Treasury holding account. Supposedly, that money will be
released to CIA pending that Agency having cleaned up its own
alleged internal corruption.
Yet ex-NYPD detective James Rothstein and others have
questioned an aspect of this story: Are Hayes and associates
really that noble a crew? Wouldn't they have channeled the money
raided from Swiss accounts to their own personal benefit, rather
than to have transferred all those millions of dollars to a U.S.
Treasury holding account?
3) Some say, due to changes in the congressional pension set-up,
that it just so happens that right now works out to be a good
time to retire. In other words, the wave of congressional
retirements are said to be only coincident with changes in how
the congressional pensions are implemented; that these sudden
mass retirements are not motivated by any mysterious, hidden
skullduggery but by mundane causes.
4) In an interview with Chuck Hayes, apparently conducted by
Lawrence W. Myers and said to be soon published in the August
1996 issue of Media Bypass magazine (1-800-4BYPASS), Hayes makes
the startling claim that Sherman Skolnick and others have been
running "disinformation campaigns" against the Fostergate story.
Yet see number 4, above, in the "Pro" section: Skolnick's work
tends to corroborate the Fostergate story. Clearly Hayes is in
error when he claims Mr. Skolnick is working against his claims.
What is more, Skolnick's work actually pre-dates portions of the
Norman/Grabbe thesis.
Contacted by Conspiracy Nation, Mr. Skolnick offered the
following, impromptu response to Mr. Hayes:
My opinion is that the "Angel of Death" [Fostergate]
stories by Jim Norman and Chuck Hayes are watered-down
versions of my October 1991 story in Spotlight
[1-800-522-6292], which told about the Bank of Credit and
Commerce International [BCCI] and how they bribed 25
percent of both Houses of Congress: 108 congressmen and 28
U.S. senators.
Spotlight decided not to run the actual names, although I
sent them a list of the names. But once I sent them the
names, obviously it could be circulated through channels
and sent to people like Jim Norman (who is not an espionage
expert, as far as I know.)
As far as Chuck Hayes: he alleges that he retired from the
CIA. But since he has condemned me as a "nut" [CN: see
Hayes interview, presumed to be appearing in August 1996
Media Bypass], when my stories about Foster and Whitewater
were broader and more comprehensive, I have to assume that
Hayes is still with CIA. And since I believe that Lawrence
W. Myers reportedly still is a government
counter-intelligence agent, and now has joined forces with
Hayes, I have to assume that the story instigated by Hayes
-- the "Angel of Death" thing -- is a melodramatic,
watered-down version of my original story.
-+- YOU DECIDE -+-
I may do an update on the "Pro & Con" story, as further
information and arguments may warrant. For now, I do not wish to
be drawn into any possible feuds that may be sizzling. Remember:
"Divide and Conquer." There are some persons who would like
nothing better than for us to be arguing amongst ourselves,
especially now, with the political situation heating up.
You may have noticed I did not include mention of J. Orlin
Grabbe's essay, "An Apology and Good-Bye" (CN 8.28), in the "Con"
section of this article. Although some would say that, "Ah hah!
Grabbe has admitted to a hoax!", it seems pretty clear that
Grabbe was writing satirically. However I do wish to apologize
for my impatience with persons who took "An Apology and Good-Bye"
quite literally. It may be that, just as some can wiggle their
ears and some can't, some are "satire endowed" and some aren't.
This is not to dismiss the overall intelligence of the "satire
challenged": people differ; they vary as to their skills in
different areas.
So is the Fostergate story true? You decide. Surely there are
enough intelligent readers of CN, be they "satire savvy" or not,
that we, by putting our brains together, can get to the truth.
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Aperi os tuum, decerne quod justum est, et judica inopem et
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