Tornado Alley (PROG)

[fuagf]

With Berlusconi so many scandals it's 'hard to know where to start'

Apart from blatant conflicts of interest, there were also pervasive efforts by others to curry favor with Mr. Berlusconi by steering business to his companies, according to Oreste Pollicino, a professor of constitutional law at Bocconi University in Milan. Professor Pollicino pointed to a study by the National Bureau of Economic Research, which found that between 1994 and 2009, businesses seeking influence with Mr. Berlusconi shifted more than 1 billion euros in advertising to his television channels. The pattern was especially pronounced for companies operating in more regulated sectors.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/01/business/trumps-potential-conflicts-have-a-precedent-berlusconis-italy.html

reminded me of this

But Mr. Fuchs, who helped oversee United States relations with the Philippines as the deputy assistant secretary of state until early this year .. https://www.americanprogress.org/press/release/2016/01/20/129095/release-former-deputy-assistant-secretary-of-state-michael-fuchs-joins-cap-as-senior-fellow/ , said he was deeply troubled by Mr. Trump’s overlapping priorities, particularly given the long list of globally significant issues in play with the Philippines. These include planned joint military exercises in the South China Sea, the fight against militant Islamic groups .. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/31/world/asia/philippines-abu-sayyaf-jolo.html .. based in the country’s southern islands, and the human rights abuses taking place.

“What we already have is a blurring of the lines between official and business activities,” Mr. Fuchs said. “The biggest gray area may not be a President Trump himself advocating for favors for the Trump Organization. It’s the diplomats and career officers who will feel the need to perhaps not do things that will harm the Trump Organization’s interests. It is seriously disturbing.
.. toward the bottom, just above the big Scotland picture here .. http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=126828034