Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Does CNN Know Google?- Regarding Huckabee and the Cayman Islands

I just saw the most funny thing on CNN. The political roundtable on CNN was shocked that Huckabee was giving a paid speech in the Cayman Islands. For the record this is the Governors sources of income right now. He has bills too.

Anyway they were going WE DON"T WHO THIS IS , WHAT IS GOING ON. Well gosh CNN use Google. Opinionated Catholic reports you decide. More to the point let the Cayman Compass:

Today’s Editorial January 21:
Huckabee vs. offshore investing
EditorSunday 20th January, 2008 Posted: 12:09 CIT (17:09 GMT)

The Cayman Islands is scheduled to host Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee next month when he will be the keynote speaker at the Young Caymanian Leadership Awards banquet.

The former Arkansas governor and winner of the recent Iowa caucus has been here before, speaking previously at a Young Caymanian Leadership Award event. This time, however, he is a far more prominent figure and his recent comments about the Cayman Islands and offshore tax havens as a burden on the American economy promise to make his visit very interesting.

During a recent appearance on NBC’s Today Show, Mr. Huckabee made a point to stress that he is “not the guy hiding money in the Cayman Islands”. This was interpreted by media analysts to be a swipe at his Republican rival Mitt Romney. Romney, who has a personal fortune estimated at more than $200 million, reportedly has substantial investments registered in the Cayman Islands.Of more direct concern to us, however, is Mr. Huckabee’s stated desire to see the literal end of the flow of US money coming to the Cayman Islands and other offshore financial centers. He says he wants to see that money returned to America and invested there.

On CNN he speculated that it would be a significant boost to the American economy, saying “that $10 trillion of capital that’s now sitting offshore, American money that has been moved offshore to protect it from our tax system, comes back. What would happen if $10 trillion of capital poured back into the economy?”Mr. Huckabee may like the Cayman Islands but he clearly doesn’t like us having so much American money here and wants to change the rules to bring it home.To be clear, this is not about tax evasion or money laundering. The issue Mr. Huckabee is raising is about legal tax avoidance, a phenomenon that has been successfully exploited by wealthy American individuals and corporations. He wants the rules changed because it will help Americans, he says.The problem for us, however, is that such a change is likely to hurt Caymanians.

The offshore business is a vital component of our country’s economy. The overnight disappearance of “trillions of dollars” from offshore accounts during a possible Mr. Huckabee presidency would mean rough seas for the Cayman Islands financial industry.Let’s hope that Mr. Huckabee offers more details about his views on offshore banking while visiting next month.

What is this organization:

Well lets go to their Web site

What is YCLA? Young Caymanian Leadership Foundation has created, Young Caymanian Leadership Awards Programme (YCLA), to identify and establish role models for the youth of Cayman. The Programme provides a platform designed to inspire, motivate and empower young people to achieve their best. The YCLA recognises outstanding young Caymanians who are making a significant contribution to society and who, through their achievements and actions, serve as positive role models for the youth of Cayman. Candidates and winners of the YCLA Award are honoured at the Annual Awards Celebration, a televised, black tie event. This gala evening, which serves as a fund-raising initiative, also recognises the efforts and support of the Sponsors and Patrons of the YCLA. The Programme is managed through the young Caymanian Leadership Foundation, a non-profit organisation whose goal is to raise funds to support community based initiatives that target the young people of the Cayman Islands. The Foundation is responsible for the fund management and administration of the organisation. The YCLA's Honorary Board assists with the administration and development of the Awards Programme.

Horrors!!! Needless to say I doubt the good Governor is raking it in at this speech.

BY the way the busy campaign schedule continues. IT is not like Huckabee is going to be chilling at the beach over the weekend. He will stump in Wisconsin on Thursday and Friday and return for campaign events on Sunday and Monday ahead of Tuesday’s primary, and then start campaigning in Texas, which votes on March 4.

Anyway perhaps I should apply at CNN 's research department

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