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Conspiracy Nation -- Vol. 8 Num. 50

("Quid coniuratio est?")

THE FOSTERGATE STORY: PRO & CON

There is ongoing debate regarding the so-called "Fostergate" story, a complex and widespread series of allegations regarding the late Vince Foster, the National Security Agency, and bank transactions spying. Is the story true, or is it a CIA disinformation piece? Attempting as much as possible to remain neutral in the matter, I now offer some of what has been said, pro and con, to date.

-+- PRO -+-

1. Those reporting this story, persons such as James Norman and Orlin Grabbe, have impressive professional backgrounds. Would they casually risk their good reputations on a hoax?
2. Predictions have been made, subsequently proven true, that unprecedented numbers of "congress critters" would be suddenly and unexpectedly retiring from high office, in the midst of powerful careers.
3. This story is corroborated by Gary Null: see CN 7.98, for example, where Null (a veteran journalist whose work is regularly featured in Penthouse magazine and who recently was the guest on the PBS program, Tony Brown's Journal) states:

So, I contacted James Norman, went over his information. But because it's not a single story -- it is a story with so many tentacles, it's like an octopus. And I thought, "Well, some of these stories are plausible. Some are not." And I said, "James, you're going to have to supply me with documentation." And I said, "Even with the best of intents, you may have been conned by some people." (Where you take a good part of the story, that you can hold your own on, and next thing you know is, they've discredited you on another; they've planted some misinformation.)

So anyhow, back and forth, over a long period of time, I've met with James Norman; he supplied me with documents. And finally, he supplied me with one of his primary sources. I spent some time interviewing this primary source.

And so I just want our audience to know that I am satisfied that many of the statements that you're about to hear can be corroborated.

4) Much of this story is corroborated by Sherman Skolnick, the independent investigator from Chicago. In fact, much of the Fostergate story was first reported by Skolnick. See, for example CN 5.09 and CN 5.10, first published in early June of 1995, where Skolnick writes,

BCCI wanted to penetrate the American banking scene in a big way. They did a thing natural to cynical big business: they bought Congress. The details were too shocking for the major news group. So a brave journalist turned over the details to this writer and his associates who further verified the details and wrote exclusive stories in 1991.

[...]

The strange death of Vincent Foster, Jr., Clinton White House aide, is bound up with activities of Foster and Hillary to assist BCCI to penetrate American business.

[...]

The press and Congress have omitted some key details about Iraq and BNL Atlanta. The deal was arranged and strategized by Hillary Rodham Clinton in conjunction with her law partner at the Rose Law Firm in Little Rock, namely, [Vince] Foster. Part of the Iraqi weapons money reportedly was washed through the banks of Clinton's cronies, Jackson Stephens and the Worthen Banking Group.

Almost all in the press ignored the story that the Federal Reserve was investigating Hillary and Foster in respect to money laundering [of] illicit funds through foreign bank arrangements.

[...]

Other senior federal sources contend part of the 50 million dollars was funneled to the Grand Cayman Islands, with the reported help of Fuji Bank, and then, on to Switzerland. A Swiss bank reportedly has part of the money, mixed in with other illicit funds gathered for Clinton, part of it reportedly dope loot, under the code name "Chelsea Jefferson" -- "Chelsea" being the name of Clinton's daughter, and "Jefferson" being Bill's middle name.

(And note especially that Skolnick's story of BCCI having bribed members of Congress, progenitor of later elements of the Norman/Grabbe Fostergate story, was published so far back as Autumn of 1991.)

-+- CON -+-

1. The Fostergate story relies on Chuck Hayes for much of its material. Chuck Hayes has been a CIA "contract agent." He says he is now retired from CIA activities, but does one ever really retire from CIA?

   Given the unsavoury history of CIA, how much can one trust a story linked to that Agency?

2. According to the Fostergate story, rogue CIA hackers, known as the "Fifth Column," cleaned out the secret Swiss bank accounts of bribed U.S. government officials and transferred the money to a U.S. Treasury holding account. Supposedly, that money will be released to CIA pending that Agency having cleaned up its own alleged internal corruption.

   Yet ex-NYPD detective James Rothstein and others have questioned an aspect of this story: Are Hayes and associates really that noble a crew? Wouldn't they have channeled the money raided from Swiss accounts to their own personal benefit, rather than to have transferred all those millions of dollars to a U.S. Treasury holding account?

3. Some say, due to changes in the congressional pension set-up, that it just so happens that right now works out to be a good time to retire. In other words, the wave of congressional retirements are said to be only coincident with changes in how the congressional pensions are implemented; that these sudden mass retirements are not motivated by any mysterious, hidden skullduggery but by mundane causes.
4. In an interview with Chuck Hayes, apparently conducted by Lawrence W. Myers and said to be soon published in the August 1996 issue of Media Bypass magazine (1-800-4BYPASS), Hayes makes the startling claim that Sherman Skolnick and others have been running "disinformation campaigns" against the Fostergate story. Yet see number 4, above, in the "Pro" section: Skolnick's work tends to corroborate the Fostergate story. Clearly Hayes is in error when he claims Mr. Skolnick is working against his claims. What is more, Skolnick's work actually pre-dates portions of the Norman/Grabbe thesis.

   Contacted by Conspiracy Nation, Mr. Skolnick offered the following, impromptu response to Mr. Hayes:

My opinion is that the "Angel of Death" [Fostergate] stories by Jim Norman and Chuck Hayes are watered-down versions of my October 1991 story in Spotlight [1-800-522-6292], which told about the Bank of Credit and Commerce International [BCCI] and how they bribed 25 percent of both Houses of Congress: 108 congressmen and 28 U.S. senators.

Spotlight decided not to run the actual names, although I sent them a list of the names. But once I sent them the names, obviously it could be circulated through channels and sent to people like Jim Norman (who is not an espionage expert, as far as I know.)

As far as Chuck Hayes: he alleges that he retired from the CIA. But since he has condemned me as a "nut" [CN: see Hayes interview, presumed to be appearing in August 1996 Media Bypass], when my stories about Foster and Whitewater were broader and more comprehensive, I have to assume that Hayes is still with CIA. And since I believe that Lawrence W. Myers reportedly still is a government counter-intelligence agent, and now has joined forces with Hayes, I have to assume that the story instigated by Hayes -- the "Angel of Death" thing -- is a melodramatic, watered-down version of my original story.

-+- YOU DECIDE -+-

I may do an update on the "Pro & Con" story, as further information and arguments may warrant. For now, I do not wish to be drawn into any possible feuds that may be sizzling. Remember: "Divide and Conquer." There are some persons who would like nothing better than for us to be arguing amongst ourselves, especially now, with the political situation heating up.

You may have noticed I did not include mention of J. Orlin Grabbe's essay, "An Apology and Good-Bye" (CN 8.28), in the "Con" section of this article. Although some would say that, "Ah hah! Grabbe has admitted to a hoax!", it seems pretty clear that Grabbe was writing satirically. However I do wish to apologize for my impatience with persons who took "An Apology and Good-Bye" quite literally. It may be that, just as some can wiggle their ears and some can't, some are "satire endowed" and some aren't. This is not to dismiss the overall intelligence of the "satire challenged": people differ; they vary as to their skills in different areas.

So is the Fostergate story true? You decide. Surely there are enough intelligent readers of CN, be they "satire savvy" or not, that we, by putting our brains together, can get to the truth.

       Views expressed do not necessarily  reflect  those
       of Conspiracy Nation, nor of its Editor in Chief.
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