Tag Archives: Auction

Whoops!

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On Friday Hot Air reported that the auction for leases for the development of wind and solar farms in the western United States did not go as planned.

The article reports:

The nation’s first federally run auction for a chance to develop solar power projects on public lands was a bust.

No bidders showed up for the auction by the federal Bureau of Land Management, which was held Thursday in Lakewood.

“We did not have any bidders come to the sale and we did not receive any sealed bids on the sale,” BLM spokeswoman Vanessa Lacayo said. …

“The BLM had received interest in developing the sites, that’s why we moved forward,” she said. “It’s hard to say why we didn’t have any bidders.” …

“We will evaluate today’s auction as we look at future opportunities to offer lands in Solar Energy Zones for development, both in Colorado and other Western states,” the statement said.

Maybe there were no bidders because at the present time the technology for both wind and solar has not proven to be economically profitable. The sad part of this is that at the same time the government is holding these auctions with no takers they are blocking oil leases on government land. The oil boom in the west is almost entirely on private land–the government is not allowing the leases on government land. So what we have is the government selling leases of questionable value on government land while blocking the leases that might actually help the economy and lower unemployment. In what universe does that make sense?

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Why Would Anyone Trust This Man?

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The U. S. Marshals Service posted an announcement on Friday that reads:

For Immediate Release Contact:
September 20, 2013 Lynzey Donahue, U.S. Marshals Service (202) 307-9075
U.S. Marshals Service Cancels Current Auction of Jesse Jackson, Jr., Assets
Washington – The U.S. Marshals Service today cancelled the auction of forfeited assets from the Jesse Jackson, Jr., case before the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. After receiving legitimate concerns about the authenticity of the guitar purportedly signed by Michael Jackson and Eddie Van Halen and out of an abundance of caution, the Marshals Service will conduct a secondary review of all the assets. Once the review is complete, a decision will be made whether to repost any assets for sale by auction. “The Marshals Service takes its responsibility to fulfill the asset forfeiture mission very seriously,” said Kim Beal, acting assistant director for the Asset Forfeiture Division of the U.S. Marshals Service. “Because new information has come to light, we are taking additional steps to review all the items. It is our practice to be diligent about all matters relating to the management and sale of assets.”Jackson pleaded guilty in February to conspiring to commit mail and wire fraud and to making false statements. He admitted that he defrauded his re-election campaigns of about $750,000 in funds that were used to pay for personal items and expenses. Net proceeds from the sale of the auctioned assets were to be used to help satisfy the $750,000 money judgment imposed by the court as part of Jackson’s sentence.

More information on the case:
http://www.fbi.gov/washingtondc/press-releases/2013/former-congressman-jesse-l.-jackson-jr.-sentenced-to-30-months-in-prison-for-conspiring-to-defraud-campaign

The U.S. Marshals Service is responsible for managing and selling seized and forfeited properties acquired by federal criminals through illegal activities. Proceeds generated from asset sales are used to compensate victims, supplement funding for law enforcement initiatives and support community programs. As part of the Department of Justice’s Asset Forfeiture Program, the Marshals currently manage more than 23,000 assets with a value of $2.4 billion.

Additional information about the U.S. Marshals Service can be found at http://www.usmarshals.gov.

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