This is Dianne Feinstein's new house in Pacific Heights

And no, this has nothing to do with John Edwards...



This little cottage cost a cool $16.5 million dollars. Nothing like austerity during wartime!

Granted she and her husband were wealthy before the war, but the WOT has been good to the Blum family.

Richard Blum owns a 75% voting share of Perini, a civil infrastructure company. Since 2003, this company has been awarded contracts totalling over one billion dollars for projects in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Blum owns 111,000 shares of stock in URS Corporation and sits on their board of directors. URS bought EG&G, a war contractor, from the Carlyle Group and since that time URS stock has tripled after EG&G received over $600M in Iraq contracts. Blum cashed in over $2 million on that venture alone and another $100 million bucks for his investment firm.

Should Feinstein have recused herself from voting a further $96B dollars to the war efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan? Do we have any assurances at all that none of those funds will end up in her checking account? We call Cheney on his Halliburton ties constantly, why does DiFi get a pass?

I'll just add that during the (very brief) "debate" on the IWR I wrote Feinstein - then my senator - begging her to vote no. After her Aye vote I received a condescending, terse reply that repeated the WMD lies and assured me that Dianne Knows Best. It was the most dense response I've ever gotten from an elected official and I've gotten a ton from Sam Brownback so that says a lot.

:shrug:

Repukes believe in living rich lives at the expense of the rest of the world. To them, living in a grotesque heap of shit is a matter of pride. To us, it should be a deep source of shame.

Look. There's really no other way to put this. If a democrat lives in one of these excessive palaces, they're an asshole. I don't give a shit what they do for this social program or that. It's probably just politics and I doubt the legitimacy of their real motivation. Sure, many of them get a lot of good legislation passed and do their part for poor people, but when they live in disgusting piece of shit houses, I'm pretty sure that no matter how well they mouth their convictions, they don't really believe in them way down inside.

I may be an atheist, but I do remember what Christ said to the rich person. Sell it all and follow me.

You are seriously misguided.

but he was also born into disgusting privilege.

the incarceration of hundreds of thousands of totally innocent Japanese-Americans. And you he think he was the 'greatest president'? In fact, FDR's shameful, inexcusable treatment of Japanese-Americans may well be the greatest single criminal act against American citizens of any president. Even Nixon never 'jailed' hundreds of thousands of innocent American citizens.

in politicians is rarely a wise choice.

Seriously--where is it OK for a rich politician to live? Or are you seriously suggesting all Dems take a vow of poverty?

NT

are you saying that in the US one can either live in a mega mansions or a cardboard boxe under a viaduct? Wow. Which one do you live in?

Should I sell it and move into a cardboard box to prove my political bona-fides?

jam Econo.

Hell, I live in a half million dollar house in CT.

We're talking mega homes here. Stay on point.

Why can't they reap the rewards in life that the repukes can for the same amount of talent, skill and hard work? (or the same rich parents).

It's the repukes who claim to be Christian, too, that's the irony in that. So it seems they should be excoriated by their fellow repukes for the same thing. But that never happens. They do stick together and keep their eye on the prize. That's why they're so successul - being a minority in this country yet getting it run on their terms.

They don't waste time on this stuff. Have to say that for them.

Well, you might also want to remember that DF is JEWISH. FWIW. Expecting her to "follow Christ" is somewhat inappropriate, culturally.

Oh, wait... Never mind.

Overpriced.

...and Pac Heights is ritzy even for SF.


The row house I used to live in (I rented the basement for $1300/mo.) was valued at 1.2 million. It had a postage-stamp yard and had about 2000 square feet in the 2 upper floors, a garage, and about 700 sq feet of basement that was converted into an apartment. It was built in 1912.


In my hometown El Paso, a brand new 2000 sq. ft house with a nice size yard in a nice neighborhood is still usually less than $100K.

Location makes all the difference. SF is a great city to live in.

:hi:

If I could afford it, I'd have one just like it.

(I'd suggest you split your discussion of her politics from this kind of silly bullshit.)

Verboten? Not Germane? Silly Bullshit? Freeper talk?

If you're trying to make some link between her votes and the beauty of where she lives, that reflects on you not her.

But no one is stopping you. Please carry on.

And yes, it's a beautiful house in a beautiful neighborhood.

The point is === it was bought during wartime with funds gained by a war profiteer enabled by her many votes to start/continue/fund the war. I don't think it's silly bullshit - but we all have differing viewpoints on this, I suppose.

1. It's pure innuendo. Wealthy people are bound to have eventual ties to the war machine. It's nearly inevitable. In this case, the tie appears to be direct to Feinsteins's husband (if we assume the smear in the OP is 100% accurate). However, assuming that Feinstein's vote authorization aggression against Iraq was somehow tied to the eventual awarding of contracts is an enormous leap. As you say, you're willing to take that leap, and I am not.

2. This has been bouncing around Freeperville, Limbaugh, and the gang for quite some time. Funny how this now is being endorsed by some DUers who just happen to be really pissed off about this week's turn of events.

Blum's war profiteering has been extensively reported in the San Francisco Chronicle. This isn't something that was cooked up in Freeperville, it's a simple fact that he's racked up huge profits from the wars in both Iraq and Afghanistan.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/04/22/MN310531.DTL

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/05/11/BU18813.DTL

Is it a jump to claim that she consistently votes pro-war to enrich herself? Maybe. But her family wealth has been enriched, and that's reason enough to recuse herself from voting on war funding bills.

This has also been an issue on the left, but I suppose it's easy to dismiss anything you don't like as being sourced from FR.

Prove it, charge her, try her, convict her, and put her in jail.

Carrying on like this on a bulletin board is, well, silly bullshit.

the crimes of bush and cheney.

If I were her, I would recuse myself from every vote that impacts war spending. It isn't right that she has a say in funding that eventually ends up in her husband's pocket, imho.

We have to hold our democratic leaders to the same standards that we hold the republican leaders.

She has been a loud opponent of the war (as much as most Dems, and sometimes more). Do you feel she's being disingenuous?

I became skeptical of these charges in the OP when we start out looking at a picture of a nice house -- as if it's against progressive values to live within your means. And this comes on the heels of all the hysteria over Congress caving on the war funding. Couple this with the fact that, previous to today, I've seen this crap ONLY on knuckledragger sites, and I wave this off as pure silliness.

corporation then she should recuse herself. It's really that simple.

What vote did she caste for the war funding bill?

Who are wolves in sheep's clothing, does not mean we should only post our thoughts on Repuke
web sites.

I grew up in Richard Daley the First's machine reign in Chicago. Hated machine politics. Hated that "Daley I" was a big part in causing the riots at the 1968 Democratic convention. Realized at an early age that I could not stand any politician of any party profiting from war.

Am not fond of the Feinstein, Pelosi hold on the politics of the SF Bay region. I am very sure that Feinstein knew before she voted for the Iraq war resolution that her husband would profit. I mean if you were reading the paper, it was fr*&#n' outlined in the paper as to what we would do militarily - that being covered in paragraph six and seven, and then paragraph eight and nine would discuss what companies would be given what contracts. (Example: the communication towers that allow for cell phone communication will be knocked out during the initial invasion phsase. A few paragraphs later: Motorola will be given all contracts pertinent toestablishing new cell phone service in Iraq.)

This contract business was one of the most transparent things I have ever witnessed in my 55 years on earth. I knew of similiar things back in the late sixties - but only because during my senior year of high school a file clerk at a major Chicago bank, so I saw the contracts and filed the paperwork etc. But I could not believe that this stuff pertaining to Iraq was just reported so openly and callously.

And fifty years ago people in government had to recuse themselves from voting on things in which they would profit!

I realize, that yes, there certainly are many Repukes who also have benefitted. But that doesn't mean I am not gonna scream to the high heavens when a Democrat does it!

Why do so many people here hold such a grudge against the rich?

It's no leap of faith either.

You wouldn't be calling it a leap of faith if this was a Repugnican would you?

It's no leap of faith either.

You wouldn't be calling it a leap of faith if this was a Repugnican would you?

You're right, though. It is a matter of his war profiteering. There's nothing wrong with living in a nice house, if you can afford it, and if you've earned the money appropriately. But making money off of shame and sorrow is wrong; just plain wrong.

What will become of my Reputation if I don't stand up for DIFI's new mansion bought with War Profits?! O The Shame, the Horror. :rofl:

Go team plutocrat!

It doesn't work.

reply. I find it laughable that I should worry about my reputation, because I agree that DIFI is a war profiteer. Is she one of your senators? Would you like more sand to bury your head in?

Until today, I never heard of you.

I doubt I'll remember your nickname tomorrow.

Your reputation is not at stake because it doesn't exist.

Regarding your puzzlement over my use of the word "reputation":
Buzz Click typed words into the aether upthread: "that reflects on you not her"

And I'll remember what a rude dismissive jerk you are for weeks, in fact you've been on my ignore list more than once. So go figure. :wtf:

God knows you aren't contributing much to this board beyond smearing a powerful and incredibly important member of the Democratic caucus. And, I find it interesting how you've managed to morph our little chat from a discussion of Feinstein to your fragile reputation.

This gets clearer by the moment.

Oozing from your keyboard.

I'll do us both a favor....

LOL I really enjoyed your post.

If Dianne and her husband were to remove their investments from all war profiteers, they might have to take some reduction in their return on investments, because under the Bush administration particularly the way to make money seems to be off the bloodshed in Iraq.

Our whole economy seems built on a pile of bones.

Allowing innocent people and children to be murdered, raped, tortured for profit is beautiful?

I don't think you'd believe it were quite so beautiful if it were you family and friends being murdered.

I don't think you'd find it so beautiful if you lived with raw sewage on the streets, no running water, the smell of burning, rotting flesh in the air, rotting food, troops and tanks blowing up your streets and houses, and oh yeah no electricity so when they take you father and brother and rape your sister at night, well, damn, there's just no light to turn on .

But you don't think it could ever happen to you.

LOL. Just keep ignoring the signs and wait and see.

What is most disappointing to me is, apparently individuals like Diane Feinstein and friends don't give a damn about how they are earning such incredible riches off of the backs of other people. They simply dont care about "those people" any more than the Bushes do frankly.

Is there really any difference in the parties anymore?

I don't see it.

Red herring.

Sorry, but I won't play.

There's nothing 'playful' about it.

Your manipulation of facts, twisting of words, and changing subjects are highly transparent. You can do that all you want, but we you pull it on me, I'll call you on it.

And yet you still fail to see the damage you do by blaming everyone else for your own words and actions.

No one -- NO ONE -- but you made the comment that "llowing innocent people and children to be murdered, raped, tortured for profit is beautiful". Just you.

So, if you're not playing a game, why did you inject this utter nonsense?

But now enough to cancel my ignore list LOL!

You are a Wise One Blue Bear...

I made that mistake, (see posts upthread) lol.

...that's of equal horror. If they had any sense of perspective, they'd head for Vegas and hide out
with one of their kind.

I am profiting from the killing of others. It is called my conscience, and I follow it. It speaks to her character, IMO. Doesn't matter if it partly comes from her husband's business, she is part of it. She supports it. She lives it. She is equally responsible in my book. That is my opinion and I stand by it.

If only she were a repuke, well, then she'd be the wife.

This stuff is not fair to female politicians, to go into what their husbands do. Look at all the political wives. Do you expect a woman to find a husband to take that role? Husbands are men, they're going to do their thing in the world for sure.

When are we going to see men attacked over what their wives do? Oh, yeah, we did have that for Bill Clinton. He married a "career woman." Then there is Pickles and her drunk driving.

Still it tends to be used against women a lot more. And the spouse is someone else who has some independent existence. I really doubt Dianne is in the Senate just to increase her husband's consequence. That would take the term "dutiful, supportive, Christian wife" to such absurd heights and definitely could not be done from San Francisco.

Last summer when Feinstein was moving in, and all the social circle columns were ooh-ing and aahing over the view from her new digs,
the San Francisco Chronicle ran an article with a headline, AT SIXTEEN MILLION DOLLARS, A VIEW TO DIE FOR!"

Well ya know something, it was a view that over 3,000 service people have died for.

Feinstein's husband received 27 MILLION dollars in contracts related to Iraq just days or weeks after Feinstein voted for the war.

In the old days, a civil servant would have recused themselves from such a vote. But that was back when Congresspersons were ethical.

She hobnobs with some of Reagan's top Iran Contra people. They do the ballet, the opera, the social affairs.

She is good on the environment, I'll grant you, but there has to be a special circle in hell for someone who has pulled off the type of corporate pleasuring that this woman has.

Yes, they are related

;-)

She votes for every war, every "defense" appropriations bill that comes along, and her hubby profits from her war investments.

Get it?

It used to be called "conflict of interest" but apparently even a lot of progressives are okay with that now.

That issue and this one shows her imperious "Do as I say, not as I do" attitude.

or are you saving that for another thread?

Di Fi Mansion, $16M

Conflating the two? Priceless.

Welcome to DU, where Freepers are banned instantly. We don't want them smearing the Dems in Congress because that's our job.

There is a word for that.

I didn't know that. However, I'm glad that you pointed that out for me.

Nor do we hear about their hair care costs.

n/t

These war profiters pretending to care are the most disgusting.

I wish there were a hell so that I could damn them to rot there

:argh: :hurts: :spank:

I'd like to see these fuckers swinging from a rope.

as we struggle with no jobs or multiple shitty jobs, no health care, dying friends and family members in the illiegal occupation of Iraq, a bankrupt economy, an environment melting down around us . . .

We need a season of barricades and guillotines in this country

And I can sleep like a baby at night.

With dreams of the money the war is making her and hubby.

It's those of us like you and me (who have consciences) that can't count enough sheep to fall into restful repose

<Betting I speak for a lot of other boomers>
I couldn't sleep during Vietnam and I sure can't sleep now.

:evilgrin:

we must go to war." What a crock.

The style of the house doesn't suit me, but I'd like to poke around in the garden and see what plants we're used.

You know in between all the murders of their family members, the accumulating rotting carnage, the raw sewage problems, the lack of running water and you know, just stuff.

They're also painting murals on the blast barrier walls. It's all a part of the beautification of Iraq to the American people program.

But that shrubbery's gotta go.

==================
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This week is our second quarter 2007 fund drive. Democratic
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It's not how rich one is, but the way they treat their fellow human being that matters.

I can say without any doubt that anyone who voted for this war in any way is not caring for their fellow human.

There are poor people who think we should have nuked Iraq. They are scum of the earth. And rich people who are the kindest people on earth.

It's not what is in the bank, but in the heart.

Anyone who makes money off of war is the lowest of the low. Rich or not rich.

FYI, her Senate salary won't even cover the property tax on that place. It's assessed at $12,484,800, and the tax bill for last year was $141,756.68.

Other facts about the property from the San Francisco County Assessor and Recorder:

The house was built in 1917
The lot is only 7,222 square feet, about 1/6 acre
The house is 9,504 square feet, 3 stories, with 19 rooms. There are nine bathrooms.

Perhaps a little strangely, her husband, Richard C. Blum, is listed as the lender on a February 1, 2007 refinance or equity loan for $9,700,000 with Senator Feinstein as the sole borrower. The property is recorded as jointly owned by Richard C. Blum and the Richard C. Blum & Feinstein Trust.

Is there some tax advantage to essentially loaning yourself ten million dollars?

She treats everyone like a nasty little prole...thank god for Boxer.

That would not be unusual, OTOH there is a concept called "seller carryback" in which the person who sells a property to another carries the note. I can't say why a husband and wife would do that, but there may be some kind of tax hook.

I'll see if I can get a copy of some documents for that transaction.

I'm not going to pay a bunch of money for a copy directly from the county.

Will check this one again in a few months. The images should be available by then.

You are exactly right about the transaction being structured to greatly reduce the tax burden.

MY tax dollars helped to fund that thing, directly, because MY tax dollars are going into the pockets of the profiteers. Feinstein is no longer my senator, but I'm still paying the piper so to speak.

This isn't a class issue - it's an issue of rank profiteering at public expense.

Almost anyone who works in the military related industry. Anyone who works for the government.

But I do know where you're coming from. If she was a flagrant beneficiary of the war, then it's pretty damn sick.

:argh:

Eat the rich!
Eat the rich!
Don'tcha know!
Life is a bitch!
Eat the rich!
Eat the rich!
Out of the palace,
and into the ditch!

I asked WHY she voted for the war. her assistant said she couldn't say why, but would relay my thoughts. I said there are THOUSANDS of us and we are furious. If she voted for the war for her husband's business that is not a good reason. There is NO reason good enough to vote as she did.

I wonder if it is.

2005 San Francisco Designer Showcase project. He may have owned other Pacific Heights properties, but I suspect he didn't get to live in them long, what with his many divorces, and all. ;)

The house I am thinking of went to his fourth (I think) wife.

;)

This is a ghastly mansion bought with blood money. Feinstein was an evil mayor who became an evil senator. I'm glad half of the senators from my state are real Democrats...

Specific Whites. I know that house. Always thought it was an embassy. I guess it kind of is. I don't consider the war profiteers to be American, after all.

:spray:

Feinstein Resigns

Senator exits MILCON following Metro exposé, vet-care scandal

By Peter Byrne

SEN. Dianne Feinstein has resigned from the Military Construction Appropriations subcommittee. As previously and extensively reviewed in these pages, Feinstein was chairperson and ranking member of MILCON for six years, during which time she had a conflict of interest due to her husband Richard C. Blum's ownership of two major defense contractors, who were awarded billions of dollars for military construction projects approved by Feinstein.

As MILCON leader, Feinstein relished the details of military construction, even micromanaging one project at the level of its sewer design. She regularly took junkets to military bases around the world to inspect construction projects, some of which were contracted to her husband's companies, Perini Corp. and URS Corp.
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Perhaps she resigned from MILCON because she could not take the heat generated by Metro's expose of her ethics (which was partially funded by the Investigative Fund of the Nation Institute). Or was her work on the subcommittee finished because Blum divested ownership of his military construction and advanced weapons manufacturing firms in late 2005?

The MILCON subcommittee is not only in charge of supervising military construction, it also oversees "quality of life" issues for veterans, which includes building housing for military families and operating hospitals and clinics for wounded soldiers. Perhaps Feinstein is trying to disassociate herself from MILCON's incredible failure to provide decent medical care for wounded soldiers.

Two years ago, before the Washington Post became belatedly involved, the online magazine Salon.com exposed the horrors of deficient medical care for Iraq war veterans. While leading MILCON, Feinstein had ample warning of the medical-care meltdown. But she was not proactive on veteran's affairs.

Feinstein abandoned MILCON as her ethical problems were surfacing in the media, and as it was becoming clear that her subcommittee left grievously wounded veterans to rot while her family was profiting from the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan. It turns out that Blum also holds large investments in companies that were selling medical equipment and supplies and real estate leases—often without the benefit of competitive bidding—to the Department of Veterans Affairs, even as the system of medical care for veterans collapsed on his wife's watch.

As of December 2006, according to SEC filings and www.fedspending.org, three corporations in which Blum's financial entities own a total of $1 billion in stock won considerable favor from the budgets of the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs:

# Boston Scientific Corporation: $17.8 million for medical equipment and supplies; 85 percent of contracts awarded without benefit of competition.

# Kinetic Concepts Inc.: $12 million, medical equipment and supplies; 28 percent noncompetitively awarded.

# CB Richard Ellis: The Blum-controlled international real estate firm holds congressionally funded contracts to lease office space to the Department of Veterans Affairs. It also is involved in redeveloping military bases turned over to the private sector.

You would think that, considering all the money Feinstein's family has pocketed by waging global warfare while ignoring the plight of wounded American soldiers, she would show a smidgeon of shame and resign from the entire Senate, not just a subcommittee. Conversely, you'd think she might stick around MILCON to try and fix the medical-care disaster she helped to engineer for the vets who were suckered into fighting her and Bush's panoply of unjust wars.

Here's the link:
http://www.metroactive.com/metro/03.21.07/dianne-feinstein-resigns-0712.html

and here's the date: March 21, 2007.

So Feinstein resigned from the committee two months ago, but we still have to put up with this OP? Incredible.

At a March 30, 2004, MILCON hearing, Feinstein grilled Maj. Gen. Dean Fox about whether or not the Pentagon intended to prioritize funding the construction of "beddown" maintenance facilities for its new airlifter, the C-17 Globemaster. After being reassured by Fox that these funds would soon be flowing, Feinstein said, "Good, that's what I really wanted to hear. Thank you very much. Appreciate it very much, General." Two years later, URS announced a $42 million award to build a beddown maintenance facility for the C-17 at Hickam Air Base in Hawaii as part of a multibillion dollar contract with the Air Force. Under Feinstein's leadership, MILCON approved the Hickam project.


In mid-2005, MILCON approved a Pentagon proposal to fund "overhead coverage force protection" in Iraq that would reinforce the roofs of U.S. Army barracks to better withstand mortar rounds. On Oct. 13, 2005, Perini announced the award of a $185 million contract to provide overhead coverage force protection to the Army in Iraq.


In the 2005 MILCON hearings, Feinstein earmarked MILCON legislation with $25 million to increase environmental remediation at closed military bases. Year after year, Feinstein has closely overseen the environmental cleanup and redevelopment of McClellan Air Force Base near Sacramento, frequently requesting that officials add tens of millions of dollars to that project. URS and its joint ventures have earned tens of millions of dollars cleaning up McClellan. And CB Richard Ellis, a real estate company headed by Feinstein's husband Richard Blum, is involved in redeveloping McClellan for the private sector.

This is a long article but well worth reading:

http://www.bohemian.com/metro/01.24.07/dianne-feinstein-0704.html

Senators getting killed every day, we would have been out of there yesterday.

Sick of the excuses.:eyes:

I'm jealous :cry:

He isn't as patronizing as Feinstein, but his "who's your daddy?" kind of crap is every bit as infuriating. Not worth the paper it's printed on.

I guess our leaders like to live big, even during wartime

It makes me sick :(

But I don't think that we should scrutinize politicians, on either side, for the houses they live in or for their grooming habits. Most politicians are rich, that's just the way it is. I don't care what kind of houses they live in or how much they spend on a haircut. Money allows them to run for office, it's been this way for years and years.

Let me ask you one question
Is your money that good
Will it buy you forgiveness
Do you think that it could
I think you will find
When your death takes its toll
All the money you made
Will never buy back your soul

I got one, too. Ughhhhh...

I care? Last I checked Dianne wasn't running for Prez.

I want a pic of Romney's house, and Giuliani's house, and McCain's but the only reason I want them is becasue they ARE running for Prez and they sure jumped on Edwards for his housem and I want to be able to show everyone that this whole thing is just a pot calling the kettles black!

As a (shallow) aside what a hideous, garish, vulgar house. I swear these people have taste that is as poor as their judgment. These are the kind of people that would use 5 sticks of butter in a recipe that called for 2 Tbsp.

These are the kind of people that would use 5 sticks of butter in a recipe that called for 2 Tbsp.

:rofl: -maybe she can invite Paula Dean over to make some nice fried butter....

Pacific Heights is a beautiful neighborhood.

one, but I do not believe that she should not have it. She deserves such a pleasant residence; she is after all a representative for the country who could obviously be jetsetting instead.

I am fairly confident that Feinstein was already wealthy enough to purchase said house and even if she were not, I am even more confident that she did not vote for the war on the off chance that her husband might just make more money. Please can we go after the real criminals instead of wasting DU space disparaging the dems? What of Cheney and Bush and the neo-con cabal? They exhibit enough criminal behavior to keep DUers busy night and day.

What is a member of the American Independent Party doing posting here?

Sorry, it's a pet peeve of mine when people say the are registered Independents.

I'm "no party," which seems to be how everybody else feels on this newsgroup, even if they're registered Democrats.

So true. Lately, I've been feeling that way too.

Blum no longer is on the Board of Directors for URS. He resigned in 2005.

"The authorization was sought by President George W. Bush. Introduced as H.J.Res. 114, it passed the House on October 10, 2002 by a vote of 296-133, and the Senate on October 11 by a vote of 77-23."
http://tinyurl.com/8tu25

I swear to god, this is sounding more and more like some sort of GOP raping.

What the HELL is the point of dredging up this stuff now? Blum is no longer on the board, and Feinstein is no longer on the committee? What is this?

why didn't we have a primary challenge: we could've run Gus Hall and got a 6-point lead!

For about 50 times less she could have bought a quaint Craftsman bungalow that would be a lot nicer than that imposing castle.

:D

For $16.5 million she could have designed and built something MUCH better.

Redstone

Now THAT, would be justice.
Fucking war mongers.
BHN

owning over 20% of the stock

from the URS 2003 Proxy, statement to shareholders ~ how can one seriously oppose Bu$hCo and the BFEE as a business partner of Poppy Bu$h's Carlyle Group?

Blum Capital Partners, L.P.
7,701,544 23.70 %
909 Montgomery Street, , Suite 400
San Francisco, CA 94133(3)

FMR Corp.
2,250,326 6.93 %
82 Devonshire Street
Boston, MA 02109-3614

TCG Holdings, L.L.C.
7,064,033 21.74 %
c/o The Carlyle Group
1001 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, D.C. 20004(4)

Kent P. Ainsworth(5)
387,681 1.18 %

Richard C. Blum(6)
7,813,413 24.04 %

http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/102379/000095014903000399/f87695def14a.htm#007


"I consider myself a friend of Dr. Rice's." Feinstein's remarks at Rice's confirmation hearing
http://feinstein.senate.gov/05speeches/cr-condirice.htm

On Medicare Rx:

Supporters of the bill -- including some Democrats who, like Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, said it was better than no bill at all -- hailed the vote as a victory for senior citizens.
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/11/25/elec04.medicare/index.html

in support of the 2001 Tax Cut (the kick-off, ribbon-cutting bill for the Bu$h agenda)
http://feinstein.senate.gov/releases01/tax_cut_reconciliation.html

Feinstein in support of repealing the Estate tax
http://feinstein.senate.gov/releases00/estate_taxes.html

She was rebuffed.

That is just the cover story and the narrative put forward as the myth necessary to launch unprovoked and now seemingly unending war in the Middle East, apparently to corner the global hydrocarbon energy market.

So, what message was Feinstein attempting to get through to the significantly disinterested Vice President? What did she know and how did she know it? Was she just covering her butt or was she staking her claim?

As to the reaason, IMO, it was a BFEE Op for the reasons you stated.

Feinstein had heard through the grapevine -- her hubby's also connected through his lobbying work -- that something bad was afoot. Even though she's rich, I believe she is good people. If she was in on things, she wouldn't dare risk exposing the operation by going public.

It was just a matter of acting on information -- it's called leadership. Everybody in Washington had connected the dots.



Well, except one fellah:



Plot to assassinate Bush – reports

Ashcroft Flying High

Genoa braces for G8 summit

Why would Osama bin Laden want to kill Dubya, his former business partner?

I wish I'd read this before torching her.


But I still hate that ugly embassy-row looking house. It looks as if it should have guards and flags around it.

Grab before it's gone...





I think Cheney is an evil mastermind...



... not quite on the level of Emilio Largo,
but he does like to play with nukes.

I ain't voting for her.

the world will be a better place when she finally leaves us

Too big, too cold.

Fuck Feinstein and her blood money.

Some yrs. ago when I worked for a stock broker, I learned early on that when this country was going to war, one should invest in Halliburton. (Btw, I hate stock brokers and their 'let's use 'em' world; all the brokers I knew were liars.) I KNEW that the US was going into Iraq before we did. My hubby and I could be a hundred thousand+ $$$ richer today if we'd invested in HAL. BUT my conscience would not let me.

A few weeks ago I was given investment advice by a close friend who calls himself a dem. I told him that I wouldn't invest in any mutual fund that held Halliburton and that I did not respect ANYONE getting rich on blood money. He got my point.

This same point applies to Feinstein and her husband.

She should not be voting.




............p.s. John Edwards did not make his money on a damn war.

too bad it's her politics that occasionally piss me off.

smart observation!

Where should she live that would make you feel better?

Yeah, I kget it about her war-profiteering husband and she's is hardly one of my favorite Democrats. She'll still have all that money regardless of where she lives.

I don't get this argument one little bit unless the arguer (not just the OP) is calling for some or all Dems to make a vow of poverty.

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was once considered treason. The Blum's are criminal as well as shameless. DiFi made big profits from shady real estate deals in S.F. with her connections as Mayor, long before she was U. S. Senator, so don't accuse people who are outraged at she and her husband's war profiteering as envy or irresponsible talk. Remember when she put her arms around Condiliar at her Senate hearing for Sec'y of State and told the Senate panel that she was a great admirer of Condi's and that she would make a great Sec'y of State? One of the bigger stomach turning moments from one of the Democratic Bush panderers.

Are we now a sectarian marxist-leninist holier than thou cult that denounces politicians for their "bourgeois lifestyle"?

I had enough of that crap from sectarian leftists in my youth. I knew a couple who threw out a visiting Salvadoran leftist for drinking good wine - they figured he was obviously a fraud who could not possibly represent "the people". Never mind that the Salvadoran death squads would have shot him without a moments notice.

I am absolutely sick of people tearing down democrats because they don't live lives of proletarian simplicity.

You guys should get off DU and spend your time hawking the Revolutionary Worker.

Vital Fluids!!

What she does with a Senate, does.

us could never aspire to, please keep in mind that the location is just outside San Francisco, one of the most expensive real estate markets on earth. It probably sits on a relatively small lot by most people's standards. I'm not excusing her and I am very angry at her vote on the bill last week, but I think that a similar house would sell for much less elsewhere. Also, I would like to see the houses of some of th others, especially repugs.

Some don't. So far I've been accused of being some kind of communist, of disparaging wealth, of dredging up old information, of classism.

My point was - TWO DAYS AGO Feinstein voted for an additional $96B for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, just as she's voted yes on every previous war funding bill. It's beyond dispute that her husband has received, as a war contractor/profiteer (and he still is - he may have divested from URS but he still has his interest in Perini and has his mitts in many other war-related industries) monies from those previous appropriations. How much will he benefit financially from Feinstein's vote on Thursday? The photo of the house is to illustrate the shamelessness of a war profiteer and his Senator wife buying such a pile in the middle of a war. It's thumbing their noses at you, and at I, and at every family that has a loved one serving in Iraq.

But I guess because she's a Democrat she gets a free pass despite the many flagrant conflicts of interest that Feinstein has been and continues to be involved in. This is about war profiteering and the house is a symbol of it - that was my point.

PUBLIC PARK during renovation (without permission from ANYBODY)




Sen. Dianne Feinstein and her mega-millionaire husband, Dick Blum, have a bit of fence mending to do with their soon-to-be neighbors in San Francisco’s Gold Coast.

It seems that workers remodeling the Pacific Heights mansion that the couple just bought leveled all the green in the adjoining public garden — without the city’s approval.

And not just any green — we’re talking about a Tivoli-style garden just off the front entrance of the couple’s $16.5 million abode, which sits at the foot of Vallejo Street, between the Presidio and some of the city’s most posh residences.

The garden is actually part of the city-owned Lyon Street steps — a favorite of joggers, walkers and tourists looking for a picture-postcard view, and even for teenagers looking to sneak a late-night drink or two. “

http://sfluxe.com/category/pacific-heights/

He earned his money honestly and I don't care what he does with it. I didn't participate in any of the Edwards house threads because I thought it was crap and I still do. This thread is about blood money - period.

it does`t matter if a person is a democrat or republican it`s wrong

You said Fein$tein used to be your senator. She's never been your senator, or mine, or any other voter's. DiFi is all about DiFi.

http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:XflNCZHktGs2fM:

This is a picture, while not of my own home, one very similar to most of the places I've lived in my lifetime, in the neighborhood I lived in for 30 years before my last move:



My current home is a rundown mobile home needing more repair than I can afford to give it.

I have never aspired to live in a fashionable, showcase home, or an "estate." I'd like, at this point, something affordable, sturdy, in good repair, energy efficient and functional.

I'd like all those people who have less than I do to have the assurance of the same.

Also, Richard Blum has ties to Bechtel Corporation, which is affiliated with Halliburton. Makes you wonder why she voted for the IWR. Did Mrs. Blum stand to benefit from war through her husband?

That's why she voted for IWR.

looks like a prison.

I know Pacific Heights is ultra high end cost so location is probably a big part of this run of the mill mansion.

I don't care how much a Dem pays for their home or fixes it up to their heart's content BUT I do care about WAR PROFITEERING and it looks like feinstein has had some explaining to do but no one has made her accountable.

If she votes the right way, I don't care about her house.

If she votes the wrong way, we should be talking about that instead of her house.

Get it?! Do you understand what matters?!

it appears he does.