"Randy" Tobias, Madame Palfrey and a whiff of Hypocrisy drifts across the White House

Randall "Randy" Tobias previously served as vice chairman of AT&T and CEO of AT&T International before taking over in 1993 as chairman and CEO at Indianapolis based pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly. After stepping down from his post at Lilly at the end of 1998, he focused his attention on a number of business, community and philanthropic interests and on teaching and writing. His book on leadership lessons learned, Put The Moose On The Table, written with his son, Todd Tobias, was published in early 2003. Among his many public offices he has for 13 years been a trustee of Duke University, including 3 years as chair of the board.

Bush selected him in January 2006 as the director of U.S. Foreign Assistance and administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, the main agency overseeing economic and humanitarian assistance globally. He held the rank of deputy secretary of state.

Ambassador Tobias is was responsible for overseeing all U.S. international HIV/AIDS assistance and coordinating the efforts of the various agencies and departments of the United States Government that deliver it, and reports ed directly to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. They have a budget of US$15 Bn. over 5 years years to fight AIDS abroad. "Millions of lives depend on the success of this effort and we are determined to succeed." said the President at the time.

Faith based groups however have a slightly skewed agenda and they have forced an abstinence clause and USAID therefore required groups to sign an anti-prostitution pledge despite concerns over its constitutionality. The pledge required all organizations receiving USAID money overseas to renounce prostitution, which some groups interpreted as abandoning efforts to prevent prostitutes from spreading AIDS.

The Brazilian government, which has had success in decreasing AIDS by working with prostitutes, refused to sign the pledge and lost a US$40 million grant.

Under a bill approved by Congress and signed by Bush, one third of the administration's US$3 billion international AIDS prevention budget must be spent on programs promoting "abstinence until marriage." At the same time, the administration was buying hundreds of millions of condoms for distribution overseas.

This policy of abstention was championed by James Dobson’s organization, Focus on the Family, who have played a major role in presidential politics, sending out 5 million letters, postcards, and e-mails just before the 2004 election. He is close to Bush and White House adviser Karl Rove . Dobson believes in smacking kids and also that the roles in marriage require the wife to submit to her husband's authority, deferring to his decision in matters of conflict.

The daily radio program Focus on the Family, which is broadcast in more than a dozen languages and on over 6,000 stations worldwide, and heard daily by more than 200 million people in 164 countries. Focus on the Family is put out by over TV networks every day.

Tobias attended two functions at the White House this week, both times earning praise in the president's public remarks. On Monday, the Indiana native attended a reception for the Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts, and on Wednesday he attended a ceremony marking Malaria Awareness Day when the resident remarked of Ambassador Randy Tobias. "He now runs USAID. Prior to this job, he led America's monumental effort to confront and deal with the HIV/AIDS epidemic on the continent of Africa. Thank you for your leadership."...and then went off to score some crazy pics at the photo op, dancin' 'n' drummin with some crazy Tanzanians.

Thursday, "Randy" told his boss Secretary of State Condileeza Rice that he was going to quit as of Thursday stating "personal reasons" .

He had however admitted to ABC News that he had taken the opportunityt to use the services of Pamela Martin and Associates and had them send young ladies (Central American if possible) over to his ritzy condo to give him a massage.

ABC came by the copies of Washington whoremonger Jane Palfrey from her Attorney and although the US Washington District court under Judge Gladys Kessler has issued a gag order this only refers to the original documents.

ABC claim they will be aring a special report on these billing documents next week.

These phone records are playing a very important part of Palfrey's court battle with charges of a multiple-count federal racketeering and money-laundering indictment pending. She wants to have the records available for her defense, while the prosecutors would rather they be kept under tight lock and key.... probably for "personal reasons" as well.

Prosecutors, claim Palfrey's business, which operated as Pamela Martin and Associates, was actually a prostitution ring. Prior to prosecution, the business enjoyed thirteen years of success, service and satsifaction in the Washington D.C. area with dames who did a fine massage bu never, ever put out. Palfrey denies that her business provided sexual services to its clients.

Don't look for his "Randy's" biog. on the USAID site - he is like fellow client Harlan Ullman an "unperson" and you will just get a 404 Error message if you look for it.

This NYT piece is useful as a biog and it handles his first wife's suicide through carbon monoxide poisoning after years of depression. It doesn't mention the two condos he had in Indy one for him and one for his cats.

Here is a VERY interesting news story from sunny California. with LOTS more detail about La palfrey and her website is available here with the phone records she submitted to the court that she claims prove Harlan Ullman was a customer.

More about Palfrey and her home town of Charleroi in alengthy local newspaper with interviews of old friends.

Methamphetamine improves gay sex - apparently

Rev. Ted Haggard, Leader of the 30 million-member National Association of Evangelicals resigned on Thursday . He also stepped down from the 14,000-member New Life Church, based in Colorado Springs which he founded in 1985, seven years after graduating from the massive Christian Oral Roberts University in Tulsa OK. founded eponymously by the TV evangelist Oral Roberts in 1963.

A highly vocal opponent of gay marriage, married with five children, he resigned after being accused by Mike Jones of Denver on KHOW-AM radio, who claimed that Haggard paid him for sex about once a month for three years. Jones also said Haggard snorted methamphetamine before their sexual encounters - to heighten his experience.

Jane Little of the BBC in the US says Haggard - also known as Pastor Ted - is one of America's most influential and politically well-connected religious leaders, with strong White House links.

NOTE

Ned Flanders the irritating Christian in the Simpsons also went to Oral Roberts U. Said to be named after Northeast Flanders St. in Portland, Oregon, the hometown of Simpsons creator Matt Groening. The street sign, NE Flanders St., is often defaced to read NED Flanders St. Apparently.

Ned owns the Leftorium a shop stocking items solely for left handed people. A sincere BIble believing Christian , jogger who wears flip flops but won't run in them ... there is no evidence that he snorts anything prior to any form of sexual congress - if homosexual he has, so far, (like Pastor Ted) managed to conceal it.... although looking at this pic .......

UPDATE Midnight UK.

This story is hitting the headlines on every BBC Radio news headlines.

Washington Post reports ..."Rev. Ted Haggard, said today he bought methamphetamine and received a massage from a self-described male escort. But Haggard denied allegations by the man that he ever used the drug or had sex with him." Yeah whatever.

Local Radio in Florida is said to be reporting Charlie Crist, flag wrapped, anti gay marriage Christian Floridan Re Pub up for re-election is getting out of the closet. Bruce Carlton Jordan tells Dee Dee Hall (Broward - Palm Beach New Times) in video testimony about his alleged sexual relationship with Republican gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist.See also Proud of who we are and letter to Crist from founder of Florida chapter de Vries

Curious priorities

On the BBC Radio 4 program "Any Questions?" the panel addressed, at great length ,the dilemma facing PC Alexander Omar Basha and his employers, the Metropolitan Police about his request to be moved to other duties than patrolling to protect the Israeli Embassy in Kensington.

PC Basha has never been allocated to this task but sought to be excused such duties because his wife is Lebanese and he has relatives there, and feared for his personal security.

PC Basha expressed concern (according to press reports) that he might be the focus of groups such as al-Muhajiroun and al-Ghurabaa (both now proscribed groups) - which has happened to some Muslim POLice officers, according to Superintendent Dal Babu, of the Association of Muslim Police Officers.

The decision by the Metropolitan Police to excuse him from one particular protection responsibility provoked controversy about whether police officers should be allowed to "pick and choose" their duties for moral reasons. Hazel Blears, the Labour party chairman, is reported to have said that Police officers should not be able to "pick and choose" their assignments: "I do not think it's right that the police should pick and choose."

Apparently "a risk assessment" was carried out when PC Basha raised the matter at the time of the of the invasion of Lebanon by Israel, and as a result of this, and "not because of the officer's personal views, whatever they might have been", it was decided not to deploy him to the embassy at that time.

There was much discussion by the Any Questions panel of personal beliefs, rights, duties, principles, managerial responsibility etc.,

Not a single person mentioned the fact that the reason the Israeli Embassy is in need of such protection , is because of the malignant internal and foreign policies their successive governments have undertaken, result widespread and well deserved contempt and hatred - which might be expressed by shows of dissent outside their leafy seclusion.

The avoidable deaths of women, mothers, the elderly, children, the new born, the still born in Gaza, the devastation and economic destruction of Lebanon was left untouched.

The lasting and abiding legacy of one million lethal cluster bombs deliberately despatched by the Israeli Defence (?) Forces in the dying hours of their occupation , as world opinion , resisted at every stage by the UK Government, (of which panel member and wannabe Deputy Prime Minister Peter Hain was a member) George Bush, Condoleezza Rice and the huge Zionist Lobby (which doesn't exist) finally forged a half hearted resolution at the UN.

That the personal concerns of PC Basha, whom we have trained , and for which he has volunteered, to patrol our streets, with a lethal weapon ready to kill on request and instruction of his officers - as we know happens from the events at Stockwell Tube station on 22nd July 2006.... are of legitiamate concern, but there are larger and more serious matters for discussion.

Those with a modestly good memory might recall Jack Straw , when Foreign Secretary in April 2002 called in Israeli Ambassador Zvi Shtauber (see Pic)to explain how "disturbed he was" by reports of hundreds of deaths and casualties in the Jenin refugee camp at the hands of the Israeli Defence Force....Britain's ambassador in Tel Aviv, at the time, Sherard Cowper-Coles, expressed similar concerns to Israeli officials.

Rep. Foley causes problems in Florida

Gay, Roman Catholic, and pro choice, Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL) who represented plush Palm Beach had exchanges of "inappropriate emails" (raunchy electronic messages AP) with a 16 year old former House male page, about a year ago. Pages are high school students who attend classes under congressional supervision and work as messengers. Texts of the messages are available here

Majority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) and Reps. Rodney Alexander (R-LA) (rep of the boys parents), John Shimkus (R-IL) and Tom Reynolds (R-NY) all claimed that they knew about this at the time but failed to take action because the boy’s parents did not want to pursue the matter.

Rep. Shimkus is the chairman of the House page board and at the time accepted Rep. Foley’s explanation that he was merely mentoring the boy (WTF?). Shimkus also withheld the information from the only Democrat ( and Knight of Colombus) on the 3 person page committee, Dale Kildee.

Foley was a leading opponents of child pornography, and had served as chairman of the House Caucus on Missing and Exploited Children. Foley introduced a bill in 2002 to outlaw websites featuring sexually suggestive images of preteen children, saying that "these websites are nothing more than a fix for pedophiles." Badly written and without support this got nowehere but upset a lot of people who legitimately trade in photographic images on the web - news agencies etc.,

BUFF DIVING

In June 2003 he wrote letters to the governor (Jeb Bush) and attorney general of Florida, asking them to review the legality of a program for teenagers of a Lake Como nudist resort in Land O'Lakes, Florida. ""It's putting matches a little too close to gasoline," he was reported saying inthe local press...where the camp operators claimed they were "nude not lewd".

At the time Foley, was running for the U.S. Senate seat held by Bob Graham and vacant due to his retirement. Amid press claims that he was gay, he dropped out of the race saying his sexual orientation was unimportant - although it was to some.

STABLE DOORS FIRMLY SHUT

Tim Mahoney, who is running against Foley in the November elections has (natch) called for an investigation.

Foley resigned on September 29th and issued a statement, saying "I am deeply sorry and I apologize for letting down my family and the people of Florida I have had the privilege to represent."

The FBI have opened an investigation and abc report the curious twist that Foley could be prosecuted under laws that he helped enact. Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert , 64 year old Methodist, and wrestling coach, has asked the Attorney General to investigate.... one year after he knew about the problem.

Whilst a lot of people on the Hill are blowing hard, don't expect much more, as there are many and varied skeletons in a variety of closets that no-one is anxious to have discovered. As someone said of House manouevres to block Ethics Committee investigations of Foleys extraordinary correspondence, "That's to protect a member, not to protect a child."

Update 2/10/2006 Foley, told a Florida TV station by Fax from Clearwater, that he was in an alcoholic treatment facility.

KNIGHTS OF COLOMBUS

Named in honour of Christopher Colombus it is the world's largest fraternal service organisation, founded in 1882. Pope Benedict XVI has referred to the Knights of Columbus as the "strong right arm of the church".

PRESIDENTIAL LINE OF SUCCESSION

Under the terms of the 25th amendment, Cheney follows Bush and Hastert follows Cheney should they die , resign or be unable to discharge the powers and duties of the office of President. (see pic of Cheney and Hastert stand to welcome Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh of India before Dr. Singh addresses a Joint Meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol Tuesday, July 19, 2005.)