IS IT TRUE NOVEMBER 27, 2018

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We hope that today’s “IS IT TRUE” will provoke honest and open dialogue concerning issues that we, as responsible citizens of this community, need to address in a rational and responsible way?

IS IT TRUE at last night Evansville City Council meeting a vote of 7-2 was cast in favor of releasing several hundreds of thousands of dollars of Federal funds to ECHO Housing Corp.without restrictions? …last nights decision was made despite an ongoing investigation by the EPD concerning the past financial activities of ECHO Housing? …the City-County Observer have been saying for over two months that the Forensic Audit of ECHO Housing has been completed and at last nights meeting it was confirmed that our statement was correct?

IS IT TRUE that Finance Chair Jonathan Weaver, D-At-Large, and Councilman Justin Elpers, R-5th Ward wisely voted to not to release the Federal funds to ECHO Housing Corp. until the results of the EPD criminal investigation and Forensic Audit findings were made public?

IS IT TRUE if you were a lending institution would you lend any non-profit organization money if they were going through a criminal investigation and a Forensic Audit? …if you were a major Corporation would you consider donating money to a non-profit that is going through a criminal investigation and a Forensic Audit?  …if you were a responsible elected public official would you approve giving Federal Funds to a non-profit agency if they were going through a criminal investigation and a Forensic Audit?

IS IT TRUE the 2019 ECHO Housing Board of Directors are: Dane Chandler, President, Banterra Bank, Tom Moore, Vice President, Vectren, Rev. Gerald Arnold, Treasurer, NAACP, Jason Fisher, Old National Bank, Lisa Barnett, Community Representative, and Sheryl Hoosier, Community Representative?  …we find it extremely interesting that several of the above board members are holdovers from the last ECHO Housing Board of Directors during the same time that a large sum of money was discovered missing?

IS IT TRUE that the ECHO Housing Corp. Forensic Audit has been completed but the Evansville Police Department will not release this audit until the criminal investigation is complete?  …this investigations have been going on for the last eight months and its time that the results to be made public?

IS IT TRUE we commend the At-Large and Finance Chairman Jonathan Weaver (D) and 5th Ward Councilman Justin Elpers (R) for voting to withhold several hundreds of thousands of dollars of federal funds from ECHO Housing Corp. until the results of the EPD criminal investigation and Forensic Audit are made public?  …we can guarantee that the seven (7) City Council members who voted to release the Federal Funds to ECHO Housing Corp. without seeing the results of the EPD criminal investigation and the Forensic Audit better get ready to defend this vote if they decide to run for re-election?

IS IT TRUE we wonder how do members of the Vanderburgh County Council and the EVSC  school board feel about the practice of nepotism in the public sector?

IS IT TRUE we are told that an anti-Winnecke for Mayor coalition may be planning a strategy to enlist individuals that he worked against when they ran for public office? …we hear that this coalition is planning to recruit businesses people who weren’t awarded contracts because of political patronage, individuals that are displeased with the excessive spending habits of the Winnecke Administration, and past and current office holders who are displeased with the Mayor’s style of governing?

IS IT TRUE that the McCurdy one million dollars plus water bill issue will be out of the news for a long time? …that the lawsuit between the City and the Kunkel Group won’t be coming to trial until January 2020? …the McCurdy is a classic example of how bad things can get when politics get in the way of business?…between the City paying $600,000 for a parking lot, providing a $900,000 incentive to a political buddy of a former Mayor and the City building inspectors seemly falling asleep at the wheel during the refurbishment project of this historic building? …if City departments would have done their due diligence by inspecting the installing of the water/sewer service open loop geothermal system at the time it was installed it would have been discovered and corrected?

IS IT TRUE we are wondering if the Vanderburgh County Prosecutor Nick Hermann is going to put out the financially lucrative “Drug Testing and Tracking” contract out to a public bid in 2019?

IS IT TRUE we are really pleased with the way the Vanderburgh County Treasurer Susan Kirk runs her office?  … Ms. Kirk is well respected among other county officials, the public and her employees alike?  …if you see Ms. Kirk at the Civic Civic Center tell what a great job she is doing?

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17 COMMENTS

  1. Tax Return Indicates Trump Foundation Did Not Donate Last Year

    President Donald Trump’s charitable foundation made no donations last year, a sharp break from the 2016 election year when it gave away millions of dollars and drew a lawsuit alleging the charity was acting as a quasi-political group.

    The Donald J. Trump Foundation took in no new money from outside groups last year, according to a 2017 tax return posted online Monday.

    Trump and other directors of his foundation are being sued by New York’s Attorney General for allegedly using its money to settle business disputes, help with his presidential campaign and pay for personal items. The suit argues that the foundation should be dissolved only under court supervision.

    The suit seeks $2.8 million in restitution plus penalties, the foundation’s disbandment and a 10-year ban on Trump running any charities.

    The New York attorney general’s suit alleges the foundation was tapped for $258,000 to help settle lawsuits involving the president’s properties in Florida and New York and to pay for a 6-foot (1.8-meter) painting of Trump. The suit also alleges that the foundation coordinated with Trump’s campaign staff to make big donations on the eve of the 2016 Iowa caucuses — Trump presented giant checks at political rallies there — to help boost his political fortunes.

    Charities are prohibited by law from giving money to political campaigns.

    https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/trump-foundation-no-donations-2017

  2. I watched city council meeting last night and what they kept mentioning was the city money,or federal money,I hadn’t realized the city and feds had a business where they could make money.
    In the past ,present and future I will continue to call it TAXPAYERS MONEY ,,,the speedy talking
    guy with Echo claimed Echo was the real victim,he was just plain wrong,,,
    I remember when the old safe house was transformed into apartments for the homeless it cost the TAXPAYERS a whopping 237.5 THOUSAND DOLLARS Per unit ,,,if my recollection is correct total bill was over 17 MILLION DOLLARS again paid by the CITY ,FEDERAL TAXPAYERS
    sounds like our taxpayers money is being wasted big time or it’s being handled by crooks
    WAKE UP CITY COUNCIL

  3. Great Is It True today. Can anyone answer the question if the McCurdy is paying for their current water and sewer bill after the improper open loop geothermal system was discovered and fixed? Or, is it possible the City continues to provide the services without payment and the potential liability in the law case continues to grow??

    • Maybe we should focus on the fake in the White House and how much real Americans think his job ratings suck

      “Six-in-10 Americans Disapprove Of The Job Donald Trump Is Doing As President, According To A Gallup Poll Out Monday”

      The president’s disapproval rating has mostly been in the mid-50 percent range in the weekly survey; the latest finding marks the fourth time it’s hit 60 percent

      The dip in his approval comes during the same week the president announced there’d be no additional punishment for Saudi Arabia or Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over the death of Saudi critic and journalist Jamal Khashoggi; his clash with Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts; and his administration’s issuance of a dire climate change assessment.

      https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/26/politics/trump-approval-gallup/index.html

    • The caravan is in Tijuana because the Mexican government did not defend their own border. Now the Mexican people are getting frustrated with having 5,000 illegals in their city. If the Mexican government did their job like the USA government is, they could have avoided this. Perhaps they took the easy way out and allowed them to pass through Mexico expecting the USA to roll over and play dead.

  5. FAKE: CNN Reporters Share Photoshopped Image of ‘Tunisian Protests’

    “The [sic] IS the shot of the day as Tunisians, who managed to preserve their revolution against tyranny, protest the upcoming visit of #Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. #Khashggi #Tunisia” CNN war correspondent Ben Wedeman said, sharing a photo of Tunisian man holding a chainsaw in a crowd of protestors.

    Turns out, this was actually the photo of seven years ago – not the “photo of the day,” as Wedeman claimed. The Tunisian in the original photo appears to be holding a bird house. Hat tip to Fox’s Stephen Miller, who compiled the three images in a Tweet.

    CNN really wanted to forward the narrative that Americans should be outraged over the death of a Muslim Brotherhood operative, and that we, too, should demand action against Saudi Arabia. Successfully conveying that narrative would make President Donald J. Trump, who has refused to go to war with Saudi Arabia over a the death of a terrorist. Jamal Khashoggi, a known Muslim Brotherhood-linked Washington Post columnist was murdered by the Saudi Arabian government.

    “Deleted tweet about Tunis protest,” Wedeman later Tweeted. “Turns out it was fake.”

    https://bigleaguepolitics.com/fake-cnn-reporters-share-photoshopped-image-of-tunisian-protests/

    • Apparently, you only read the headlines, since the article YOU shared CLEARLY states:

      Wedeman later Tweeted: “Deleted tweet about Tunis protest. Turns out it was fake”

      That is the difference between CNN and the right-wing nuts online. If a mistake is found, they admit it and resolve it. Unlike the mouth-breathers at FauxNoise, who refuse to update things when the LIE repeatedly

      • Oh the humanity!
        ……………………….

        Federal agents used tear gas on the U.S.-Mexico border dozens of times during the Obama administration, data from the Department of Homeland Security shows, despite growing outrage at the Trump administration from Democrats for using the substance against migrant caravan members over the weekend.

        According to DHS data obtained by Fox News, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency has used 2-chlorobenzylidene malononitrile, commonly known as tear gas, 126 times since 2010.

        During the Obama administration, tear gas was used on the border 26 times in 2012, 27 times in 2013, 15 times in 2014, eight times in 2015, and three times in 2016.

        • What is your point? Condemning the use is not limited to whoever is in the White House.

          For example, in fiscal years 2012 and 2013 under former President Barack Obama, CBP used the substance 26 times in fiscal year 2012 and 27 times in fiscal year 2013.

          CBP’s use of tear gas declined in the following years, with 15 uses in fiscal year 2014, eight in fiscal year 2015 and even fewer in fiscal year 2016, with three recorded instances.

          As Trump took office, the numbers began to rise again in fiscal year 2017, climbing to 18 deployments of tear gas, before reaching fiscal year 2018’s record high of 29 uses (a seven-year record high)

          Finally, the MAJOR difference is that Trump and his mouth-breathers have WEAPONIZED border control. He sent TROOPS to the border and has authorized “lethal force” and keep illegally and un-constitutionally saying he will “close the border” if he cannot get his infantile way

        • Before I forget, everyone would do better if Trump did not LIE everytime he talks about the situation.

          ………………………

          Fact Check: 7 Things Trump Got Wrong About The Border And Immigration

          After defending the use of tear gas against migrants, Trump inflated statistics about crimes committed by undocumented immigrants

          Trumpy claims there are “serious criminals” in the caravan, but has NEVER given the data to prove his mouthing off

          Trumpy claimed three border agents were “badly injured” over the weekend, but the Department of Homeland Security and CBP have BOTH said that there were NO injuries

          Trumpy laughably said “his wall” stopped the migrants. Really? Congress has NEVER given him money for the boondoggle wall, and NO “new” section has been built while he is in office

          Trumpy says “fake news” ignores crimes by migrants, yet there is NO evidence foreign nationals or immigrants commit more crimes than Americans. Crime data proves the exact opposite, that immigrants have LESS crime data that American citizens

          Finally, the biggest Trumpy lie is that “President Obama separated families at the border.” FALSE and a LIE. The Obama administration attempted to detain families together. It did not have a policy of family separation

          https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/fact-check-7-things-trump-got-wrong-about-border-immigration-n940516

  6. Just like his promises of charity giving, Trump fails all levels of government by stiffing an airport

    Arizona Airport Going After Trump For Emergency Funds They Were Forced To Use On Rally For Losing GOP Candidate McSally

    Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, which was the site of one of President Donald Trump’s pre-midterm election rallies in October, is attempting to recoup the emergency funds it had to pay for extra lighting after the campaign FAILED to make good on providing it for the safety of rally-goers.

    According to AZCentral, the October rally was part of an effort by Trump to boost the candidacy of FAILED Republican U.S. Senate candidate Martha McSally who LOST the previously GOP-held seat to Democrat Kyrsten Sinema.

    The report states Airport Executive Director Brian O’Neill informed the airport authority about the emergency expense saying the airport and city of Mesa was forced to use emergency funds when Trump’s people DID NOT follow through on their promises related to the rally held in a private hangar for the GOP candidate.

    https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/mesa/2018/11/27/trump-campaign-owes-mesa-gateway-airport-13-k-october-rally/2070311002/

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