Excerpts:
1) Brigadier General (Retired) David "Bull" Baker is a Senior Vice President of the Stanford Washington Research Group, "which provides political, economic and industry research for institutional and corporate investors." Baker provides "analysis on several segments of the market." [1]
Baker was previously Managing Director of the Schwab Washington Research Group. [2]
2) This morning I received a request to help investigate another death. Brig Gen David "Bud" Baker died in late January, 2009. Bud had worked for the Stanford Group almost exactly the same time frame that Shelley had been employed. Look at this profile on Bud Baker from Sourcewatch. Why would an International Bank want someone with this level of skills? How could he afford him? Maybe he was on loan from our own CIA. In the one death notice from the Washington Post, it notes that he died from congestive heart failure on January 29th.
In an excellent diary that I first read this morning by Josh Orton, I read the following:
Unlike lobbyists, political intelligence outfits are not required to disclose their clients or annual revenues, masking the size of this very quiet business. One veteran estimates there are more than a half-dozen contenders collectively raking in $30 million to $40 million a year. Prominent players include the Washington research shops of Prudential (), Lehman Brothers (), and Stanford Washington Research Group, owned by Stanford Financial Group of Houston.In 2006, more than 3 years ago Josh Orton spoke about the tenacles of "political intelligence' that the Stanford Group wielded. You can read more about
Political Intelligence again at Sourcewatch.
http://www.af.mil/information/bios/bio.asp?bioID=4585
Excerpt:
BRIGADIER GENERAL DAVID E. BAKER
Retired Oct. 1, 1997. Died Jan. 29, 2009
http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/debaker.htm
Excerpt:
He is survived by his wife Carol, his sons David Jr. and Christopher, and a twin brother, retired Rear Admiral Stephen Baker.
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2007/08/drugs-r-us/
Excerpt:
Since the 2003 National Research Council (NRC) report confirming renewed US Military research on incapacitating agents there has been no further openly available information on the programme, due to likely classification of the ongoing work….It is unclear whether these types of chemical weapons can now be accessed for US military operations. Two unconfirmed reports in 2003 quoted Rear Admiral Stephen Baker, the Navy’s former Chief of Operational Testing and Evaluation, as saying that US Special Forces had “knock-out” gases available for use in Iraq.
By a bizarre coincidence, the report comes outjust as we’re getting stories of campers being rendered unconscious by thieves using some sort of gas, but that’s probably just a silly season story. Any such gas is probably in (fairly) safe hands. Stay calm….but don’t overdo it.
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Stanford_Washington_Research_Group
Excerpt:
Stanford Washington Research Group
From SourceWatch
The Stanford Washington Research Group (Stanford WRG) is the renamed Washington Research Group -- "the foremost policy research organization based in the nation's capital" -- which was acquired March 3, 2005, by the Stanford Group Company. [1]In May 2005, Stanford WRG "[brought] together all of its highly regarded annual sector conferences -- Healthcare, Telecom/Media, Defense/IT, and the annual symposium -- for a multi-track conference: the 2005 Institutional Policy Conference, for clients and invited guests of the Stanford Group." [2]
Contents[hide] |
Political Intelligence
The Stanford WRG was named in the December 26, 2005, Business Week article on "political intelligence" as one of a "small group of firms" that "mine" the Nation's Capital "for information and translate Washington wonkspeak into trading tips."About
The Stanford Washington Research Group is a subsidiary of the Stanford Group Company owned by Stanford Financial Group of Houston, Texas."The Stanford Washington Research Group delivers timely, investment-relevant insights into Washington decision-making, which, paired with Stanford Group's fundamental equity research, provides clients with a truly unique research offering." --Business Wire, April 18, 2005.
Personnel
- Brig. Gen. (Ret.) David "Bull" Baker, Senior Vice President
- Debra G. Coy, Water Industry Analyst
- Paul Gallant, Vice President and Senior Media Analyst
- Paul Glenchur, Senior Vice President and Media/Telecom Analyst
- Lyle Gramley, Senior Economic Advisor
- Anne N. Mathias, CFA, Senior Vice President and Director of Research
- Mark McMinimy, Senior Vice President and Food/Agribusiness Analyst
- Eric Obleter
- Jaret Seiberg, Financial Analyst
- Christine Tezak, Senior Vice President and Electricity, Natural Gas and Environmental Policy/Regulatory Analyst
- Greg Valliere, Chief Strategist
- Rick Weissenstein, Healthcare Analyst
Contact Information
1055 Thomas Jefferson Street, NWSuite 450
Washington, DC 20007
Phone: 202 298-6226
Fax: 202 298-6146
Website: http://www.stanfordgroup.com/displayContent.asp?categoryID=249
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Political_intelligence
Excerpt:
Political intelligence is carried out by a "small group of firms" that "mine" the Nation's Capital "for information and translate Washington wonkspeak into trading tips," Business Week reported December 26, 2005. "Unlike lobbyists, political intelligence outfits are not required to disclose their clients or annual revenues, masking the size of this very quiet business. One veteran estimates there are more than a half-dozen contenders collectively raking in $30 million to $40 million a year. Prominent players include the Washington research shops" of Prudential Financial Inc.[1], Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.[2], and Stanford Washington Research Group, a subsidiary of the Stanford Group Company owned by Stanford Financial Group of Houston.
Contents[hide] |
Study: U.S. Senate Stock Investments 1993-1998
"The actions of the federal government can have a profound impact on financial markets. As prominent participants in the government decision making process, U.S. Senators are likely to have knowledge of forthcoming government actions before the information becomes public. This could provide them with an informational advantage over other investors. We test for abnormal returns from the common stock investments of members of the U.S. Senate during the period 1993--1998. We document that a portfolio that mimics the purchases of U.S. Senators beats the market by 85 basis points per month, while a portfolio that mimics the sales of Senators lags the market by 12 basis points per month. The large difference in the returns of stocks bought and sold (nearly one percentage point per month) is economically large and reliably positive." --Alan J. Ziobrowski, Ping Cheng, James W. Boyd, and Brigitte J. Ziobrowski, "Abnormal Returns from the Common Stock Investments of the U.S. Senate," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, December 2004."The study suggests senators have an advantage over other investors because of information made available to them due to their position in the U.S. Senate." [3]
SourceWatch Resources
External links
2004
- Steve Chio, "Study finds senators profit from privileged information," Signal (Georgia State University), March 30, 2004.
- Stephen Bainbridge, "Senate Stock Trading," ProfessorBainbridge.com, October 26, 2004.
2005
- Jim Snyder, "K Street phones Wall Street," The Hill, February 15, 2005.
- "Hedge Funds Hire Lobbyists for Inside Tips on U.S. Legislation," Bloomberg News, March 18, 2005: "Former U.S. Senator John Breaux [(D-Louisiana)], who retired in January, is still walking the halls of Congress. Instead of brokering deals with lawmakers, he's serving as a pipeline for a New York hedge fund."
- "Stanford Group Company Expands in Dallas, Offering Wealth Management and Financial Services to Both Private Clients and Institutions," Business Wire (FindArticles.com), April 18, 2005. *"Forecasting Tomorrow's Political Headlines Today--Political Intelligence Guides Hedge Funds," Business-Informant.com, December 6, 2005.
- "Rep. Baird Takes On Capitol Hill Insider Trading. Baird, Business Week: Investors Benefiting Before Lawmakers Make Policy Moves," Representative Brian Baird's Official Website, December 16, 2005: "Congressman Brian Baird today announced his intent to rein in Wall Streetâ??s influential connections to Capitol Hill. Congressman Baird, troubled by the growing 'political intelligence' industry in D.C., has asked the House Ethics Committee to clarify whether or not lawmakers and staffers can share profitable, nonpublic information that has the potential to move financial markets."
- Don Jenkins, "Baird pushes for investment ethics," The Daily News (Longview, Washington), December 16, 2005.
- Kathie Durbin, "Baird: Curb 'political intelligence' gathering," The Columbian (Washington), December 25, 2005.
- "Washington Whispers To Wall Street. Low-profile firms enjoy a lucrative business selling 'political intelligence'," Business Week, December 26, 2005.
2006
- John Byrne, "Democrats want ethics committee to probe 'day trading' allegations," The Raw Story, January 19, 2006: "After a comment by Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY) on Air America's Majority Report Wednesday evening, RAW STORY has learned that House Democrats are pushing the ethics committee to investigate allegations of congressional offices providing privleged information to Wall Street investors."
- Josh Orton, "Insider Trading in Frist and Delay's Office: Story Growing," Daily Kos, January 19, 2006. re Bill Frist and Thomas D. DeLay
- "Oil, War and Political Intelligence," PRWEB, January 19, 2006.
Excerpt:
Thu Jan 19, 2006 at 02:04 PM PST
Insider Trading in Frist and Delay's Office: Story Growing
In an exclusive last night on Air America Radio's The Majority Report, Rep. Louise Slaughter alleged that day-traders had been operating inside the offices of Senator Frist and Congressman Delay. Telling us that her source was "as good as gold," Rep. Slaughter promised to investigate further and get back to us. Audio available via AMERICAblog here.
http://www.vanityfair.com/online/daily/2009/06/allen-stanford
Excerpt:
Stanford’s Aggressive Defense
• Stanford curried favor with politicians—both Antiguan and American—and hired a top security firm, Kroll, to fight back against anyone who questioned his integrity. “Stanford was spending millions of dollars a year trying to figure out who was looking at him, and aggressively combating whoever it was,” says the former F.B.I. agent Burrough spoke with. “Kroll was essentially running a propaganda campaign in defense of Stanford’s good name. They beat on me many times: ‘Hey, you got this guy all wrong, he’s not a money launderer, he’s a great guy, leave him alone.’
http://www.law.com/jsp/law/LawArticleFriendly.jsp?id=1202464984579&slreturn=1
Excerpt:
Kroll attorney Andrew Tretter of Quarles & Brady in Naples and Kroll's Miami office did not return calls for comment by deadline.
The two contractor groups hired Kroll in 2007 to vet Antigua-based Stanford International Bank. The association ended up losing all of its $2.5 million investment for an employee benefit plan while the foundation lost $6.4 million.
The lawsuit filed in May claimed Kroll should never have agreed to research Stanford's bank because it had a conflict of interest. Stanford had hired Kroll executive and former Drug Enforcement Administration agent Tom Cash in 1999 for consulting work, and Cash signed the $15,000 contract for Kroll's work for Electri. Cash left the company in July.
http://911review.org/Sept11Wiki/KrollAssociates,Inc.shtml
Excerpt:
Kroll Associates, a security consultant firm, which was renamed to Kroll Inc. in August 2001, started in New York City in 1972. In December 1997, Kroll merged with armored car manufacturer O'Gara-Hess & Eisenhardt to form The Kroll-O'Gara Company.
http://www.krollworldwide.com/
O'Gara is responsible for the security of all US-Presidents since 1945. However the background of Kroll is very interesting, too:
In 1993, Maurice Greenberg's American International Group (AIG ->), became co-owner of the "private spy agency",
Kroll Associates, as a result of rescuing Kroll from bankruptcy with a cash infusion.
http://www.vanityfair.com/online/daily/2009/06/allen-stanford
Excerpt:
Stanford’s Aggressive Defense
• Stanford curried favor with politicians—both Antiguan and American—and hired a top security firm, Kroll, to fight back against anyone who questioned his integrity. “Stanford was spending millions of dollars a year trying to figure out who was looking at him, and aggressively combating whoever it was,” says the former F.B.I. agent Burrough spoke with. “Kroll was essentially running a propaganda campaign in defense of Stanford’s good name. They beat on me many times: ‘Hey, you got this guy all wrong, he’s not a money launderer, he’s a great guy, leave him alone.’
http://www.law.com/jsp/law/LawArticleFriendly.jsp?id=1202464984579&slreturn=1
Excerpt:
Kroll attorney Andrew Tretter of Quarles & Brady in Naples and Kroll's Miami office did not return calls for comment by deadline.
The two contractor groups hired Kroll in 2007 to vet Antigua-based Stanford International Bank. The association ended up losing all of its $2.5 million investment for an employee benefit plan while the foundation lost $6.4 million.
The lawsuit filed in May claimed Kroll should never have agreed to research Stanford's bank because it had a conflict of interest. Stanford had hired Kroll executive and former Drug Enforcement Administration agent Tom Cash in 1999 for consulting work, and Cash signed the $15,000 contract for Kroll's work for Electri. Cash left the company in July.
http://911review.org/Sept11Wiki/KrollAssociates,Inc.shtml
Excerpt:
Kroll Associates, a security consultant firm, which was renamed to Kroll Inc. in August 2001, started in New York City in 1972. In December 1997, Kroll merged with armored car manufacturer O'Gara-Hess & Eisenhardt to form The Kroll-O'Gara Company.
http://www.krollworldwide.com/
O'Gara is responsible for the security of all US-Presidents since 1945. However the background of Kroll is very interesting, too:
In 1993, Maurice Greenberg's American International Group (AIG ->), became co-owner of the "private spy agency",
Kroll Associates, as a result of rescuing Kroll from bankruptcy with a cash infusion.
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