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STATE TO HEAR SCHMIDT 'BLOOD MONEY' CASE
By Quan Truong, [email protected]
Cincinnati.com
http://news.c incinnati.com/article/20090902/NEWS0108/909030313/ State+to+hear+Schmidt++blood+money++case
Sept 2 2009
The denial of genocide. Allegations of "blood money." Celebrity
lawyers fighting against accusations of campaign libel.
Political battles can get ugly but few have touched on such
controversial and far-reaching matters as Thursday's hearing on
U.S. Rep Jean Schmidt's complaint against congressional opponent
David Krikorian.
The Ohio Elections Commission will hear evidence on whether Krikorian,
an Armenian-American, wrongfully accused the congresswoman of taking
$30,000 in "blood money to deny the genocide of Christian Armenians
by Muslim Turks" during World War I.
Krikorian ran as an independent against Schmidt for the 2nd
Congressional District in 2008 and plans to try again next year as
a Democratic candidate.
He printed the accusation on fliers and placed them on the windshields
of cars the weekend before last year's election, said Schmidt's
spokesman, Bruce Pfaff, calling it a "desperation tactic."
"When you make a false accusation against someone, you better have
the facts to back it up and he doesn't," he said. "It's ridiculous
what he did and how he did it. It was dirty and certainly underhanded."
Krikorian said he stands behind how he ran his campaign, calling
Schmidt a "dirty politician who has a reckless disregard for the
truth."
"I think Mrs. Schmidt is being used, perhaps unknowingly, by the
Turkish government to further their interests in the U.S.," he
said. "There are no Turkish interests in this area. Why would they
have showered her with these contributions?...The issue is that
we have a representative on the taking and bought off by a special
interest group."
Schmidt's campaign last year raised nearly $20,000 from Turkish donors
in one full swoop during a lunch in Newport. She is also part of the
caucus on U.S.-Turkey relations and has opposed a House resolution to
recognize the Armenian genocide. A fuming Krikorian shot off public
statements when Schmidt attended a Memorial Day conference in the
country paid for by the Turkish Coalition of America.
During a deposition on Aug. 24, attorneys grilled Schmidt about her
knowledge of the events of 1915, when a large number of Armenians
- some say up to 1.5 million - died under the rule of the Ottoman
Empire. Whether the massacre should be labeled as genocide remains
disputed.
At one point, Schmidt said she believes the deaths in Turkey were
never proven to be government-sponsored, which is required to label
what happened as genocide. She insisted contributions were offered
for no reason other than they believed she was the better candidate.
The hearing is expected to include testimony from Sibel Edmonds, a
former FBI translator turned whistleblower, about illegal political
influences between the Turkish and American governments. Her deposition
was the first time she spoke publicly, breaking a long-standing gag
order issued after she was fired.
Krikorian has recruited Armenian-American Mark Geragos, a celebrity
lawyer and frequent talk show guest, to help with his case. Geragos
is well-known for representing late pop star Michael Jackson and the
family of David Carradine, an American actor found dead in Thailand
earlier this year.
He is expected to be at the hearing, Krikorian said.
Coverage of the case has splashed over blogs and even reached Turkish
and Armenian media outlets.
"We're not the ones who created this circus sideshow act," Pfaff
said. "We're fully confident they will find these are false charges
against the congresswoman and we have full faith that she'll be
proven truthful."
Decisions are typically made the day of the hearing but on occasion
have been dragged out for months, depending on the load of evidence.
The commission could dismiss Schmidt's complaints or recommend a
penalty that could include fines against Krikorian for making false
statements.
"I'll be happy when it's over," Krikorian said. "She's spending
all this time pursing what I believe is a frivolous case instead of
focusing on health care. The people of the district would be much
better served if we focused on the issues of today."
By Quan Truong, [email protected]
Cincinnati.com
http://news.c incinnati.com/article/20090902/NEWS0108/909030313/ State+to+hear+Schmidt++blood+money++case
Sept 2 2009
The denial of genocide. Allegations of "blood money." Celebrity
lawyers fighting against accusations of campaign libel.
Political battles can get ugly but few have touched on such
controversial and far-reaching matters as Thursday's hearing on
U.S. Rep Jean Schmidt's complaint against congressional opponent
David Krikorian.
The Ohio Elections Commission will hear evidence on whether Krikorian,
an Armenian-American, wrongfully accused the congresswoman of taking
$30,000 in "blood money to deny the genocide of Christian Armenians
by Muslim Turks" during World War I.
Krikorian ran as an independent against Schmidt for the 2nd
Congressional District in 2008 and plans to try again next year as
a Democratic candidate.
He printed the accusation on fliers and placed them on the windshields
of cars the weekend before last year's election, said Schmidt's
spokesman, Bruce Pfaff, calling it a "desperation tactic."
"When you make a false accusation against someone, you better have
the facts to back it up and he doesn't," he said. "It's ridiculous
what he did and how he did it. It was dirty and certainly underhanded."
Krikorian said he stands behind how he ran his campaign, calling
Schmidt a "dirty politician who has a reckless disregard for the
truth."
"I think Mrs. Schmidt is being used, perhaps unknowingly, by the
Turkish government to further their interests in the U.S.," he
said. "There are no Turkish interests in this area. Why would they
have showered her with these contributions?...The issue is that
we have a representative on the taking and bought off by a special
interest group."
Schmidt's campaign last year raised nearly $20,000 from Turkish donors
in one full swoop during a lunch in Newport. She is also part of the
caucus on U.S.-Turkey relations and has opposed a House resolution to
recognize the Armenian genocide. A fuming Krikorian shot off public
statements when Schmidt attended a Memorial Day conference in the
country paid for by the Turkish Coalition of America.
During a deposition on Aug. 24, attorneys grilled Schmidt about her
knowledge of the events of 1915, when a large number of Armenians
- some say up to 1.5 million - died under the rule of the Ottoman
Empire. Whether the massacre should be labeled as genocide remains
disputed.
At one point, Schmidt said she believes the deaths in Turkey were
never proven to be government-sponsored, which is required to label
what happened as genocide. She insisted contributions were offered
for no reason other than they believed she was the better candidate.
The hearing is expected to include testimony from Sibel Edmonds, a
former FBI translator turned whistleblower, about illegal political
influences between the Turkish and American governments. Her deposition
was the first time she spoke publicly, breaking a long-standing gag
order issued after she was fired.
Krikorian has recruited Armenian-American Mark Geragos, a celebrity
lawyer and frequent talk show guest, to help with his case. Geragos
is well-known for representing late pop star Michael Jackson and the
family of David Carradine, an American actor found dead in Thailand
earlier this year.
He is expected to be at the hearing, Krikorian said.
Coverage of the case has splashed over blogs and even reached Turkish
and Armenian media outlets.
"We're not the ones who created this circus sideshow act," Pfaff
said. "We're fully confident they will find these are false charges
against the congresswoman and we have full faith that she'll be
proven truthful."
Decisions are typically made the day of the hearing but on occasion
have been dragged out for months, depending on the load of evidence.
The commission could dismiss Schmidt's complaints or recommend a
penalty that could include fines against Krikorian for making false
statements.
"I'll be happy when it's over," Krikorian said. "She's spending
all this time pursing what I believe is a frivolous case instead of
focusing on health care. The people of the district would be much
better served if we focused on the issues of today."