SOTN Editor’s Note:
This story about Dennis Hastert is much bigger than the MSM is reporting.
It is directly related to the recent resignation of Speaker John Boehner.
It is also related to the scuttling of Kevin McCarthy’s candidacy for the House Speakership. Likewise, Hastert’s ignominious downfall is affecting Paul Ryan’s consideration of the Speaker position.
Most importantly, Hastert’s conviction is overshadowing the upcoming election to replace John Boehner. Here’s why:
The Speaker of the House is third in the line of succession to the U.S. Presidency. The House of Representatives is the largest and most representative organ of the U.S. Federal Government. It possesses the greatest amount of legislative authority and has the power over the public purse. As such, a strong case can be made that the Speaker is, in some ways, even more powerful than the President and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
In light of this political reality, it can be said that the House Speaker is one of the most powerful positions in the world. As a consequence, it is necessary for the World Shadow Government to completely control it. Hence, all Speakers have found themselves controlled and manipulated to an inordinate degree. John Boehner was no exception and was chosen because of the ease of controlling his every move.
One need look no further than the recent very public and highly unusual prosecution of former House Speaker Dennis Hastert. This blatantly political prosecution was undertaken with the explicit purpose of sending a clear and loud message to John Boehner. Don’t deviate from your orders or there will be similar consequences in the near future.
(Source: The Back Story Behind John Boehner’s Forced Resignation)
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Former House Speaker Hastert to Plead Guilty in Hush Money Scandal
REUTERS
Former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert has reached a deal with prosecutors and is expected to plead guilty to wrongdoing in a hush-money case, his lawyers told a federal judge in Chicago on Thursday.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys did not say to which charge he would plead, or whether Hastert, the Republican speaker from 1999 to 2007, would serve time in prison.
He was charged in May with trying to hide large cash transactions as part of a hush-money scheme and with lying about it to the FBI.
The agreement is expected to be submitted to U.S. District Judge Thomas Durkin on Monday, attorneys for Hastert said during a brief court appearance.
Hastert, 73, who is free on bond, was not required to attend Thursday’s hearing and was not in court. He pleaded not guilty in June to the two charges.
Hastert has not spoken publicly since his indictment. He is scheduled to plead guilty on Oct. 28.
Hastert was the longest-serving Republican speaker leading the House for eight years before leaving Congress in 2007 and becoming a powerful lobbyist.
After his indictment, Hastert resigned from the Dickstein Shapiro lobbying firm in Washington and from the boards of exchange operator CME Group Inc and REX American Resources Corp.
His alma mater, Wheaton College in suburban Chicago, removed his name from a policy center.
Federal prosecutors allege he promised to pay $3.5 million to an unnamed individual from his hometown of Yorkville, Illinois, to conceal past misconduct.
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The individual who was allegedly receiving hush money from Hastert has not surfaced publicly. But anonymous law enforcement officials have told several media outlets that Hastert was trying to cover up sexual abuse of a male decades ago when he worked as a high school teacher and wrestling coach.
Hastert has not been charged with any past misconduct. He was a teacher at Yorkville High School in the 1960s and 1970s.
Lawyers for both sides said in September they were negotiating a plea deal to keep the case from going to trial. Durkin had asked both sides to bring him an agreement this week, or he would set a trial date.
According to the indictment, Hastert withdrew $1.7 million in cash from his bank accounts from 2010 to 2014. He is charged with “structuring” $952,000 of the withdrawals, taking the funds out in increments of under $10,000 to evade a requirement that banks report large cash transactions.
Hastert then told the FBI he was keeping the cash for himself, which the indictment said was a false statement.
Each of the charges carries a possible maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Former House Speaker Jim Wright, a Democrat from Texas, became the target of an inquiry by the House Ethics Committee over alleged financial improprieties and resigned as speaker in 1989 over the controversy. Wright died earlier this year.
© 2015 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.
http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/US-Dennis-Hastert-Indictment/2015/10/15/id/696371/#ixzz3ogBmk2VX