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Dennis Hastert
John Dennis Hastert (; born January 2, 1942) is an American former politician and convicted felon who represented from 1987 to 2007 and served as the 51st speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1999 to 2007. The longest-serving Republican Speaker of the House in history, Hastert resigned and began work as a lobbyist after the Democrats gained a majority in the chamber in 2007. From 1965 to 1981, Hastert was a high school teacher and coach at Yorkville High School in Yorkville, Illinois. He lost a 1980 bid for the Illinois House of Representatives, but ran again and won a seat in 1981. He was first elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1986, and was re-elected every two years until he retired in 2007. Hastert rose through the Republican ranks in the House, becoming chief deputy whip in 1995 and Speaker in 1999. As Speaker of the House, Hastert supported the George W. Bush administration's foreign and domestic policies. After Democrat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Speaker Of The United States House Of Representatives
The speaker of the United States House of Representatives, commonly known as the speaker of the House, is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives. The office was established in 1789 by Article I, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution. The speaker is the political and parliamentary leader of the House and is simultaneously its presiding officer, ''de facto'' leader of the body's majority party, and the institution's administrative head. Speakers also perform various other administrative and procedural functions. Given these several roles and responsibilities, the speaker usually does not personally preside over debates. That duty is instead delegated to members of the House from the majority party. Nor does the speaker regularly participate in floor debates. The Constitution does not require the speaker to be an incumbent member of the House of Representatives, although every speaker thus far has been. The speaker is second in the United States presid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Master Of Science
A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medicine and is usually for programs that are more focused on scientific and mathematical subjects; however, different universities have different conventions and may also offer the degree for fields typically considered within the humanities and social sciences. While it ultimately depends upon the specific program, earning a Master of Science degree typically includes writing a thesis. The Master of Science degree was first introduced at the University of Michigan in 1858. One of the first recipients of the degree was De Volson Wood, who was conferred a Master of Science degree at the University of Michigan in 1859. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plea Agreement
A plea bargain (also plea agreement or plea deal) is an agreement in criminal law proceedings, whereby the prosecutor provides a concession to the defendant in exchange for a plea of guilt or '' nolo contendere.'' This may mean that the defendant will plead guilty to a less serious charge, or to one of the several charges, in return for the dismissal of other charges; or it may mean that the defendant will plead guilty to the original criminal charge in return for a more lenient sentence. A plea bargain allows both parties to avoid a lengthy criminal trial and may allow criminal defendants to avoid the risk of conviction at trial on a more serious charge. For example, in the legal system of the United States, a criminal defendant charged with a felony theft charge, the conviction of which would require imprisonment in state prison, may be offered the opportunity to plead guilty to a misdemeanor theft charge, which may not carry a custodial sentence. In cases such as an automob ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hush Money
Hush money is a term for an arrangement in which one person or party offers another an attractive sum of money or other enticement, in exchange for remaining silent about some illegal, stigmatized, or shameful behavior, action, or other fact about the person or party who has made the offer. Alternatively it can be money paid to placate a disgruntled adversary who may disclose embarrassing information, even if untrue. This is to save the intended person the harm and hassle of dealing with defamation. The person or party who presents the hush money may be attempting to avoid criminal prosecution, a lawsuit (as sometimes in the case of an out-of-court settlement), a leak of information to the news media, or silence about a stigmatized issue within one's own community. The information being covered up may include illegal activity, such as drug dealing, or some personal secret, such as an extramarital affair. In some cases, a government agency may be involved in the offer of hush mon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Making False Statements
Making false statements () is the common name for the United States federal process crime laid out in Section 1001 of Title 18 of the United States Code, which generally prohibits knowingly and willfully making false or fraudulent statements, or concealing information, in "any matter within the jurisdiction" of the federal government of the United States, even by merely denying guilt when asked by a federal agent.Lauren C. HennesseyNo Exception for No: Rejection of the Exculpatory No Doctrine ''Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology'', Vol. 89 (spring 1998). A number of notable people have been convicted under the section, including Martha Stewart, Rod Blagojevich, Michael T. Flynn, Rick Gates, Scooter Libby, Bernard Madoff, and Jeffrey Skilling. This statute is used in many contexts. Most commonly, prosecutors use this statute to reach cover-up crimes such as perjury, false declarations, and obstruction of justice and government fraud cases. Its earliest progenitor was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Currency Transaction Report
A currency transaction report (CTR) is a report that U.S. financial institutions are required to file with FinCEN for each deposit, withdrawal, exchange of currency, or other payment or transfer, by, through, or to the financial institution which involves a transaction in currency of more than $10,000. Used in this context, currency means the coin and/or paper money of any country that is designated as legal tender by the country of issuance. Currency also includes U.S. silver certificates, U.S. notes, Federal Reserve notes, and official foreign bank notes. History When the first version of the CTR was introduced, the only way a suspicious transaction less than $10,000 was reported to the government was if a bank teller called law enforcement. This was primarily due to the financial industry's concern about the right to financial privacy. The Bank Secrecy Act The Bank Secrecy Act of 1970 (BSA), also known as the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act, is a U.S. law r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Structuring
Structuring, also known as smurfing in banking jargon, is the practice of executing financial transactions such as making bank deposits in a specific pattern, calculated to avoid triggering financial institutions to file reports required by law, such as the United States' Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and Internal Revenue Code section 6050I (relating to the requirement to file Form 8300). Structuring may be done in the context of money laundering, fraud, and other financial crimes. Legal restrictions on structuring are concerned with limiting the size of domestic transactions for individuals. Definition Structuring is the act of parceling what would otherwise be a large financial transaction into a series of smaller transactions to avoid scrutiny by regulators and law enforcement. Typically each of the smaller transactions is executed in an amount below some statutory limit that normally does not require a financial institution to file a report with a government agency. Criminal e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dickstein Shapiro
Dickstein Shapiro LLP (formerly Dickstein, Shapiro, Morin & Oshinsky) was a large U.S. law firm and lobbying group based in Washington, D.C., with five offices across the United States. According to the National Law Journal's 2012 rankings, it was the 128th largest law firm in the United States. The firm also ranked 75th in profit per attorney on the 2012 AmLaw 200 survey. Practice areas The firm was divided into six practice groups, each of which handle various aspects of their respective specialties: Complex Dispute resolution, Corporate & Finance, Government Law & Strategy (includes lobbying, political law, regulatory law and government contracts), Insurance coverage, Intellectual property, and Litigation. Pro Bono Dickstein Shapiro was recognized by the DC Bar for its leadership in pro bono representation. It was one of the law firms representing the detainees at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. History Dickstein Shapiro was founded by Sidney Dickstein an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2006 United States House Of Representatives Elections
The 2006 United States House of Representatives elections were held on November 7, 2006, to elect members to the United States House of Representatives. It took place in the middle of President George W. Bush's second term in office. All 435 seats of the House were up for election. Those elected served in the 110th United States Congress from January 3, 2007, until January 3, 2009. The incumbent majority party, the Republicans, had won majorities in the House consecutively since 1994, and were defeated by the Democrats who won a majority in the chamber, ending 12 years of Republican control in the House. The Republicans had won a 232-seat majority in 2004. By the time of the 2006 election, they held 229 seats, while the Democrats held 201, plus 1 Independent who caucused with the Democrats. There were also four vacancies. Republicans held a 28-seat advantage, and Democrats needed to pick up 15 seats to take control of the House, which had had a Republican majority since Janua ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George W
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he previously served as the 46th governor of Texas from 1995 to 2000. While in his twenties, Bush flew warplanes in the Texas Air National Guard. After graduating from Harvard Business School in 1975, he worked in the oil industry. In 1978, Bush unsuccessfully ran for the House of Representatives. He later co-owned the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball before he was elected governor of Texas in 1994. As governor, Bush successfully sponsored legislation for tort reform, increased education funding, set higher standards for schools, and reformed the criminal justice system. He also helped make Texas the leading producer of wind powered electricity in the nation. In the 2000 presidential election, Bush defeated Democratic incum ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. This means ensuring that members of the party vote according to the party platform, rather than according to their own individual ideology or the will of their donors or constituents. Whips are the party's "enforcers". They try to ensure that their fellow political party legislators attend voting sessions and vote according to their party's official policy. Members who vote against party policy may "lose the whip", being effectively expelled from the party. The term is taken from the " whipper-in" during a hunt, who tries to prevent hounds from wandering away from a hunting pack. Additionally, the term "whip" may mean the voting instructions issued to legislators, or the status of a certain legislator in their party's parliamentary grouping. Etymology The expression ''whip'' in its parliamentary context, derived from its origins in hunting terminology. The ''Oxford Engl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Illinois House Of Representatives
The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 representatives elected from individual legislative districts for two-year terms with no limits; redistricted every 10 years, based on the 2010 U.S. census each representative represents approximately 108,734 people. The house has the power to pass bills and impeach Illinois officeholders. Lawmakers must be at least 21 years of age and a resident of the district in which they serve for at least two years. President Abraham Lincoln began his career in politics in the Illinois House of Representatives. History The Illinois General Assembly was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The candidates for office split into political parties in the 1830s, initially as the Democratic and Whig parties, until the Whig candidate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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