Privacy

Governor takes to campaign trail after election compromise fails

August 19, 2005  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Associated Press</p> <p>"Massachusetts consumers are being squeezed out of the concert so Schwarzenegger can raise millions of dollars to push his big-industry donors' agenda in California," said Doug Heller, executive director of the Santa Monica-based consumer group, which has been one of the governor's most vocal critics.</p>

Caught between rock and The Governator

August 19, 2005  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The Boston Herald</p> <p>Court said Ahhhhnold's event, which is raising money for Schwarzenegger's ballot initiatives, violates Massachusetts scalping laws because he is charging above face value for the Stones seats. The group, in conjunction with local consumers, plans to file a complaint.</p>

Hypocrisy in the Sponsoring of The Rolling Stones Tour by AmeriQuest

August 19, 2005  ·  Jamie Court

<p> The Rolling Stones kick off their 25-city North American tour in Boston's Fenway Park this Sunday. Even California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is going. You can join him there in a luxury box for $100,000. Seats in the governor's box and the whole tour are being sponsored by the lending giant AmeriQuest. Commentator Jamie Court says being that kind of publicity is the way AmeriQuest gets what it wants. </p>

Enquiring Minds Need to Know

August 15, 2005  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<font face="verdana,sans-serif" size="2">Arnold's past caught up with him last week when the LA Times revealed that the gov's business partners at American Media, Inc (AMI) had paid Arnold's alleged former mistress, Gigi Goyette,...</font>

ETHICAL BUMP OR JUST A POTHOLE?;

August 7, 2005  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Governor's photo op raises debate about nonprofit, San Jose paying road-show tab</h3><p class="source">The San Francisco Chronicle</p> <p>"What they're doing is promoting the politician... and they should be registered as a (campaign) committee," said Doug Heller with FTCR. "You can't raise money for a nonprofit and then use that nonprofit to serve your political ends. ... That's a laundry."</p>

Governor’s finances remain a closed book for now

August 7, 2005  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The Daily News of Los Angeles</p> <p>"This guy (Arnold) is not just a capitalist, he's an opportunist," said Jamie Court, president of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights. "If he's got opportunities to make money, he'll do it."</p>

Heels put boot into ‘Imelda’ Schwarzenegger

August 7, 2005  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Sunday Times (London, UK)</p> <p>Jamie Court, of the non-partisan Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, said his poll ratings had slipped from a 61% approval rating to 31%, in part because he had taken so much money from big business.</p>

Measure B tug-of-war looming

August 6, 2005  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Pasadena Star-News</p> <p>Backers say that's necessary to eliminate the appearance [and the reality] of corruption. "This is very narrowly tailored to precisely the problem the voters wanted to get at," said Fred Woocher, an attorney for the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights.</p>

Pasadena Ethics Law is Misdirected

August 5, 2005  ·  Jamie Court

<p class="source">KPCC 89.3FM (Pasadena, CA)</p> <p>For four years, politicians from Pasadena and Santa Monica fought the Taxpayer Protection Act in court. They lost the battle in April, and this week Pasadena's city council finally moved to implement the law. Only there's a big catch - The City Council voted to have the taxpayers pick up the legal bills for officials who break the law. That's a lot like forcing an adulterer's spouse to wash the sheets. </p>

Governor retuns big contribution from Indian gambling group

August 4, 2005  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Associated Press</p> <p>"It just shows that the governor's fundraising is on automatic pilot," said Jamie Court, president of Santa Monica-based Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights. "Only when there's a spotlight cast on his activities will he ever think about returning the money."</p>

Supporters ante up big bucks for ballot;

August 2, 2005  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Over $23 million spent so far to back governor's measures</h3><p class="source">The San Francisco Chronicle</p> <p>Doug Heller, who heads Arnold Watch, a project of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, said the governor's latest financial statements reveal not only a fund-raising flurry, but also "a striking expenditure of money in the off season" unparalleled in state political history.</p>

Council agrees to track measure

August 2, 2005  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Pasadena Star-News</p> <p>"It is a misuse of public funds. No city has the right to pay the criminal fees of a politician," said Carmen Balber, a consumer advocate with the Santa Monica-based Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, the group that wrote the initiative.</p>