News Americas, New YORK, NY, Fri. Mar. 16, 2018: This episode is about NOT draining the swamp ….
Search the Internet as much as you like and all the huge number of articles about Elizabeth Holmes appearing right now and you will not find even one thing like this episode of Trump’s America.
I have a perfect Tweet for President Trump ….
“Why isn’t Elizabeth Holmes going to jail? Something is very wrong here. Jeff Sessions are you reading this? Prosecute her for fraud and now.”
Don’t wait for that Tweet from Trump; it is not happening.
If you are unfamiliar, Elizabeth Holmes was the darling of Wall Street and Silicon Valley for a number of years; running a “con” game raising $700 million from some of the best known and “savviest” investors and selling investments in a product that was a complete fraud. And she knew it.
Her so-called punishment was just announced by Trump’s Securities & Exchange Commission. She has been fined $500,000 and she can’t be an officer of another company for 10 years. Wow. For a $700 Million fraud!
This matter goes to the heart of institutional corruption in America.
What would Jeff Sessions and the Justice Department do if she had been caught selling pound of marijuana? A minimum of 2-3 years in federal prison.
And get this … in the so-called settlement, Holmes does not even admit to any guilt. In other words, legally the SEC agrees she did nothing very wrong!
Nothing criminal, running a worthless scam that raised $700 Million?
Here is what the SEC complaint charges Holmes with ….
1) Holmes & Theranos Represented Theranos’ Proprietary Analyzer Was Capable of Conducting the Full Range of Testing It Could Not;
2) Holmes and Theranos Stated That Theranos Manufactured All of Its Own Analyzers When It Actually Used Third-Party Analyzers to Run the Majority of Its Test;
3) Holmes and Theranos Made False or Misleading Statements About Theranos’ Historical Contracts with the Dept. of Defense;
4) Holmes and Theranos Told Investors Theranos’ Relationships with Pharmacy A and Grocery A Were Thriving When They Were Stalled;
5) Holmes Claimed That Theranos Was Not Required to Seek FDA Approval Despite Repeatedly Being Told That Approval Was Necessary for Its Analyzers and Tests;
6) Holmes Told Investors That Theranos Had Generated or Would Generate Over $100 Million in Revenues in 2014 and That It Was On Track to Make $1 Billion in Revenues in 2015, But This Information Had No Basis;
7) Theranos Exited the Commercial Laboratory Business in 2016, and by the End of 2017, Was On the Verge of Bankruptcy.
These offenses are detailed in 94 separate points in the 24-page SEC complaint filed in Court all of which together allowed Elizabeth Holmes to raise $700 Million and created a so-called company worth $9 Billion.
I’m writing this episode because this is a classic example of the Haves and the Have Nots, otherwise known as savage inequality in America.
I’m going to turn to new media partner, Business Insider, from all the way back on December 19, 2015 titled …
“Blood testing billionaire Elizabeth Holmes ‘had an ace up her sleeve.’”
The ace she had up her sleeve was the world she lived, in which her well connected wealthy parents raised her, that provided her easy access to the rich and the powerful, including former Secretary of State George Schultz, who joined the Thermos board of directors, and generated interest from the likes of Henry Kissinger and retired U.S. Navy Admiral Gary Roughhead, and others, who have said they made no attempt to confirm Holmes’ claims.
Guess who also was on the Board of Holmes company? Current Secretary of Defense, James Mattis. Mattis did not resign from the board of Theranos even as it fell apart, until he was nominated by Trump to be Sec. of Defense.
General Mattis first became involved with Holmes and her make believe company while he was still one of the highest ranking generals in the U.S. military. In his role as head of Central Command, he tried to convince the Defense Dept. to buy Theranos’ phony equipment for use in Afghanistan, without having to go through the procurement review it would have failed.
In reference to General Mattis, WSJ reported this comment: “We had a leader that asked us to do something that wasn’t in our research plans. It was out of the ordinary,” a senior civilian official at Fort Detrick at the time said. But he said: “We did commit to take a look at it.” because Mattis insisted.
WSJ also reports: “Another U.S. Army contracting unit awarded a no-bid contract worth up to $75,702 to Theranos in April 2012 for a “Field Stable Lab Set – Lab Report,” federal procurement records show. The Natick, Mass.-based unit obligated only about $30,000 of that amount, and most of that obligation appeared to have been withdrawn the next year, records show.”
General Mattis joined the Thermos board one month after retiring.
There were so many others of the rich or powerful who jumped on board Elizabeth Holmes bandwagon without any evaluation of the company or the product which was a complete sham, that allowed her to raise $700 Million without any difficulty between 2013 and 2015. Raising its value to $9 Billion.
Back to Theranos board of directors in addition to Mattis, it included former secretaries of State Henry Kissinger and George Shultz, former senators Sam Nunn and Bill Frist and former secretary of Defense William Perry.
Other very notables who have served on the Theranos board of directors included: Riley Bechtel, former CEO, Bechtel Group, David Boies, very prominent powerful attorney, William Foegem former boss of the U.S. Center for Disease Control & prevention., Richard Kovacevich, former Wells Fargo CEO & Chairman, Fabrizio Bonanni, former senior Amgen executive.
Collectively a very first class ‘Who’s Who’ of power & influence in America. Don’t forget to include in the group, Kissinger, Schultz and Mattis.
Even though the board of director is legally responsible and liable for the company, none of them have been questioned, let alone included, in the SEC investigation, even though Elizabeth Holmes never would have been “successful” in her scam without a 4 star board like this to impress all those investor with the outstanding “quality” of her technology and products.
Some very clueless reporters are suggesting today that Elizabeth Holmes might face jail time. PLANET EARTH TO THE CLUELESS …
Yes, indeed guaranteed Holmes would face major jail time IF she were prosecuted by the Justice Dept. I will accept any and all bets that she will NOT. Expect to learn later if it is not kept secret, part of her deal for a slap on the wrist was that the government will take no further action against her.
This is America, where Justice is certainly NOT blind! It works real hard for the rich and the powerful, aka Elizabeth Holmes’ “clan.” If not, the SEC would have coordinated its decision with the Justice Department prosecuting her.
Excuse me, I think they did coordinate. NO further action against Holmes.
Of course President Trump could prove me wrong with one tweet, telling DOJ go after her. One tweet Trump will never send. Holmes is too much like his owe children, the children of PRIVILEGE. American privilege!
There is no doubt whatsoever that Holmes should be criminally prosecuted for one of the biggest scams in American history. And it’s not just $700 Million worth of fraud. The Feds could and should hit here with all kinds of other indictments, including conspiracy, influence peddling, attempting to undermine national security selling the Defense Dept. equipment that does not work, endangering the lives of numerous individuals who made medical decisions based on bogus results from her equipment, and more.
Holmes could probably be charged with a laundry list of crimes and if convicted, could add up to 50 or more years in prison – and this would be an easy matter to sell a jury. Pretty young rich girl stealing $700 Million and doing so endangering the lives of thousands selling medical equipment that does not work and provides bogus results. An open and shut case. Any sane lawyer would tell Holmes to plead guilty to a deal to significantly reduce her jail time.
Another reason, if indicted Elizabeth Holmes would plead guilty and seek leniency, is because if this went to trial think of the witnesses the prosecution would call: Henry Kissinger, George Schultz, James Mattis, and all the other rich & powerful who served on Holmes board of directors.
Could you imagine the media circus at such a trial and watching these Sacred Cows on the witness stand being grilled by prosecutors about what they knew and did not know and should have known and why they agreed to join Elizabeth Holmes’ board of directors, refusing to answer most questions? What do you think would happen to Defense Sec. Mattis and his job? Gone.
All this is pure fantasy of course, because here in the Very Real World, Elizabeth Holmes will NEVER ever be indicted for criminal fraud or anything else. Justice lives in a very special place among the Elite in America.
All Elizabeth Holmes is going to pay is $500,000, which is meaningless to her and her rich family. And in return, Holms gets her get out of jail FREE, card punched. Still a celebrity with lots of high profile friends to comfort her.
America is very much like China in one very important way.
In China there are what are called princes and princelings the children of the Chinese elites who control the so called Communist Party and the government and everything else. These Chinese golden kids are treated very differently than the vast majority of the 1 Billion + Chinese. Dictator Xi was once one.
There is an American version. Elizabeth Holmes is clearly a member.
Imagine if Holmes was poor and destitute and went into a bank without any weapon at all and simply gave a note to a teller that stated: “Give me $100 or else.” A minimum of 20 years in prison for Elizabeth Holmes.
Rather, in the Land of the Privileged, she stole $700 Million and was scolded by the SEC; did not have to admit guilt and was told: ‘Please Elizabeth don’t do it again.’
Please don’t wait for President Trump to tweet about all this.
The new Trump swamp is just like the old swamp.
Both swamps smell horribly of rotting equality!
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(This entire series is dedicated in honor of the late Liu Xiaobo)
