Bush takes one more step toward outright fascism.

How can conservatives continue to defend this president.

No idea what you're talking about. Since when is it illegal for a US VP to enter a Buddhist temple?

I guess it would be, if you had provided any of that. Can you do so now?

I found there was only one conviction related to Democrat fund-raising, not many as randman had claimed.

I suggest you read the entire article and do some research. Here is one part you should pay attention to. 1996 United States campaign finance controversy - WikipediaIn case you didn't realize it, advanced guidance systems and missile technology is a military secret. Thanks to Bill and his friends, China can now hit any target in the US they want to.You may want to consider this as well. How much more do you need?

Notes and references
^ Miller, Alan C., "Democrats Return Illegal Contribution", Los Angeles Times, Sept. 21, 1996
^ Woodward, Bob and Duffy, Brian, "Chinese Embassy Role In Contributions Probed", Washington Post, Feb. 13, 1997
^ a b c d e Investigation of Illegal or Improper Activities in Connection with 1996 Federal Election Campaigns, Minority Report, Chapter 2, U.S. Senate, Retrieved: April 14, 2006
^ Weeks, Jennifer, "Sino-U.S. Nuclear Cooperation at a Crossroads", Arms Control Association, June/July 1997, Retrieved: April 14, 2006
^ Judis, John B., "China Town", The New Republic, March 10, 1997
^ All currency figures are in United States dollars.
^ Dryfuss, Robert, "The New China Lobby", The American Prospect, Vol. 8, Iss. 30, Jan. 1, 1997 - Feb. 1, 1997
^ Sciolino, Elaine, "Angered Over Taiwan, China Recalls Its Ambassador in U.S.", New York Times, June 17, 1995
^ Nuclear Threat Initiative, Retrieved: April 14, 2006
^ Report of the Select Committee on U.S. National Security and Military/Commercial Concerns with the People's Republic of China, Chapter 2, The "Walk-In", U.S. House of Representatives, Retrieved: April 14, 2006. See Cox Report for more information.
^ Ross, Robert S.,"The 1995-1996 Taiwan Strait Confrontation: Coercion, Credibility, and Use of Force", International Security, 25:2, pp.87-123, Fall 2000, Retrieved: April 14, 2006 (PDF file)
^ Pomfret, John, "China Denies Contribution Charges", Washington Post, May 20, 1998
^ "The Exploits of Charlie Trie", Editorial, Washington Post, Aug. 3, 1997
^ a b 1997 Special Investigation in Connection with 1996 Federal Election Campaigns: Section 3, pp. 11-14, U.S. Senate, Retrieved: April 14, 2006 (PDF file)
^ 1997 Special Investigation in Connection with 1996 Federal Election Campaigns: Section 20, page 13, U.S. Senate, Retrieved: April 14, 2006 (PDF file)
^ "Fund-raiser Charlie Trie pleads guilty under plea agreement", CNN.com, May 21, 1999
^ Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), Retrieved: Feb. 10, 2006
^ Russell, Richard L., "China's WMD Foot in the Greater Middle East's Door", The Middle East Review of International Affairs, Vol. 9, No. 3, Article 6, Sep. 2005, Retrieved: June 8, 2006
^ Jackson, Brooks, "Clinton's Re-election Road Paved With Money", CNN.com, Feb. 24, 1997
^ a b "Highlights of U.S. report on alleged China spying", CNN.com, May 25, 1999
^ "Campaign Finance Key Player: Wang Jun", Washington Post, July 27, 1997
^ Duffy, Michael, "How Huang Makes Two Nominations Harder", TIME, Feb. 3, 1997
^ Yost, Pete, "Clinton calls arms dealer's White House visit inappropriate", Associated Press, Dec. 20, 1996
^ Daly, Michael, "This Prez Donor a Real Pistol", New York Daily News, March 26, 1997
^ Hedges, Michael, "Shipment of Chinese Arms Linked to White House Visit", Scripps-Howard News Service, Rocky Mountain News, March 14, 1997
^ Mufson, Steven, "Chinese Denies Seeking White House Visit", Washington Post, March 16, 1997
^ Frieden, Terry, "Ex-Ron Brown Partner Claims Clintons Backed 'Sale' Of Trade Seats", CNN.com, March 23, 1998
^ Memorandum Opinion Judicial Watch vs. Department of Commerce, page 14, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Retrieved: April 14, 2006 (PDF file)
^ "Justice May Probe Links Between China Policy, Campaign Cash", CNN.com, May 17, 1998
^ Mintz, John, "2 U.S. space giants accused of aiding China Hughes, Boeing allegedly gave away missile technology illegally", Washington Post, Jan. 1, 2003
^ "Clinton Defends China Satellite Waiver", CNN.com, May 22, 1998
^ Frieden, Terry, "Independent Counsel: No Conclusions On Brown Probe", CNN.com, Nov. 14, 1996
^ a b Jackson, David and Sun, Lena H., "Liu's Deals With Chung: An Intercontinental Puzzle", Washington Post, May 24, 1998
^ Isikoff, Michael, "Cash and Kerry", Newsweek, Feb. 9, 2004
^ Gen. Ji was sentenced to death by PRC President Jiang Zemin in mid-2000 after being implicated in a smuggling scandal in China shortly after Chung testified before the U.S. Congress in 1999. A compromise sentence of 20 years in jail was eventually reached. Source: Wo-Lap Lam, Willy, "How China retreats to attack", CNN.com, May 15, 2001
^ Johnston, David, "Committee Told Of Beijing Cash For Democrats ", New York Times, May 12, 1999
^ "Chinese Aerospace Official Denies Giving To Dems", CNN.com, May 21, 1998
^ a b c "James Riady Pleads Guilty", Department of Justice, press release, Jan. 11, 2001, Retrieved: April 14, 2006
^ a b "Campaign Finance Key Player: John Huang", Washington Post, July 27, 1997
^ "The Democratic Fund-Raising Flap: Timeline", CNN.com, July 1, 1997
^ "The Democratic Fund-Raising Flap: Cast of Characters", CNN.com, July 1, 1997
^ "Former Democratic fund-raiser John Huang pleads guilty", CNN.com, Aug. 12, 1999
^ "Clinton Donor Pleads Guilty", CBSNews.com, March 20, 2001, Retrieved: April 14, 2006
^ Woodward, Bob, "Findings Link Clinton Allies to Chinese Intelligence", Washington Post, Feb. 10, 1998
^ a b Suro, Roberto, "Gore's Ties to Hsia Cast Shadow on 2000 Race", Washington Post, Feb. 23, 1998
^ Eskenazi, Michael, "For both Gore and GOP, a guilty verdict to watch", CNN.com, March 3, 2000
^ a b Abse, Nathan, "A Look at the 94 Who Aren't Talking", Washington Post, June 9, 1998
^ "Gore Admits Temple Fund-Raiser Was A 'Mistake'", CNN.com, Jan. 24, 1997
^ a b "Senate Governmental Affairs Committee's Majority Report Executive Summary", Washington Post, March 8, 1998
^ Huang, John, "Memo for Kim Tilley", April 11, 1996
^ China Connection: Summary of Committee's Findings Relating to Efforts of PRC to Influence U.S. Policies and Elections, page 9, U.S. Senate, Retrieved: April 14, 2006 (PDF file)
^ 1997 Special Investigation in Connection with 1996 Federal Election Campaigns (Minority Report): Volume 4, part 1.7, U.S. Senate, Retrieved: April 14, 2006
^ Woodward, Bob and Duffy, Brian "Senate Panel Is Briefed on China Probe Figure", Washington Post, Sept. 12,1997
^ "Justice To Expand Inquiry To Clinton's Legal Fund", CNN.com, Dec. 19, 1997
^ "Clinton Wants Probe Of Possible Chinese Involvement", CNN.com, Feb. 13, 1997
^ a b c Harris, John F., "White House Unswayed By China Allegations", Washington Post, July 20, 1997
^ Lewis, Neil A., "Freeh Says Reno Clearly Misread Prosecutor Law", New York Times, June 16, 1998
^ Thomas, Pierre, "Reno Aide Recommends Independent Campaign Finance Probe", CNN.com, July 23, 1998
^ Politics and Prosecution Discussion, NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, transcript, PBS, Aug. 4, 1998, Retrieved: April 14, 2006
^ La Bella, Charles,La Bella Memo, Introduction, page 51, July 16, 1998, Retrieved: April 19, 2006
^ La Bella, Charles, La Bella Memo, Introduction, page 14, July 16, 1998, Retrieved: April 19, 2006
^ Fund-raising Investigation Discussion, NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, transcript, PBS, June 23, 2000, Retrieved: April 14, 2006
^ "Reno Defends Independent Counsel Decision", CNN.com, December 4, 1997
^ Baker, Peter, et al., "Clinton Accused of Urging Aide to Lie", Washington Post, Jan. 21, 1998
^ Krauthammer, Charles, "Reno's Humiliation" (Opinion), Washington Post, Oct. 10, 1997
^ Kondracke, Morton, "GOP must launch new probe of Chinagate" (Opinion), Jewish World Review, Aug. 9, 1999
^ "FBI agents criticize Justice Department", Associated Press, Sept. 22, 1999
^ Ernest G. Green Pleads Guilty to Tax Violations, Department of Justice, press release, Dec. 21, 2001, Retrieved: April 14, 2006
^ "Torricelli drops out of N.J. race", CNN.com, Oct. 1, 2002
^ "DNC fined for illegal 1996 fund raising", CNN.com, Sept. 23, 2002
^ a b NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, transcript, PBS, July 8, 1997, Retrieved: April 14, 2006
^ Cost of Congressional Campaign Finance Investigations to the U.S. Taxpayer, Minority Report: page 8, U.S. House of Representatives, Retrieved: April 14, 2006
^ Lacey, Marc, "House Probe of Campaign Fund-Raising Uncovers Little, Piles Up Partisan Ill Will", Los Angeles Times, May 2, 1998
^ Editorial, New York Times, March 20, 1997
^ Editorial, Washington Post, April 12, 1997

President Clinton's FBI Director Louis Freeh wrote in a 22-page memorandum to then Attorney General Janet Reno in November 1997 that "It is difficult to imagine a more compelling situation for appointing an independent counsel."[57]
In July 1998, the Justice Department's campaign finance task force head, Charles La Bella, sent a report to Janet Reno also recommending she seek an independent counsel to investigate alleged fund-raising abuses by Democratic party officials.[58] The media reported that LaBella believed there was clearly an appearance of a conflict of interest by Reno.[59] In his report to Reno he wrote: " [A] pattern [of events] suggests a level of knowledge within the White House”including the President's and First Lady's offices”concerning the injection of foreign funds into the reelection effort."[60] Additionally, La Bella stated: "If these allegations involved anyone other than the president, vice president, senior White House or DNC and Clinton-Gore '96 officials, an appropriate investigation would have commenced months ago without hesitation."[61]Robert Conrad, Jr., who later became head of the task force, called on Reno in Spring 2000 to appoint an independent counsel to look into the fund-raising practices of Vice President Gore.[62]Janet Reno rejected all of these requests:I try to do one thing: what's right. I am trying to follow the independent counsel statute as it has been framed by Congress. If you had a lower threshold, then any time somebody said 'boo' about a covered person, you'd trigger the independent counsel statute ” Janet Reno, December 4, 1997.[63]Six weeks after this statement, Attorney General Reno agreed to Whitewater independent counsel Kenneth Starr's request to look into allegations that President Clinton had committed perjury and obstruction of justice relating to the sexual harassment lawsuit brought against him by Paula Jones (a former Arkansas state employee during Clinton's governorship there).[64]Critics such as columnists Charles Krauthammer and Morton Kondracke, as well as a number of FBI agents, suggested that the investigations into the improper fund-raising allegations were impeded as part of a cover-up.[65][66][67]

Seventeen people were eventually convicted for fraud or for funneling Asian funds into the United States elections. A number of the convictions came against longtime Clinton-Gore friends and political appointees.

At the request of Congress, the Justice Department is looking at waivers Clinton granted to two companies in 1996 -- Loral Space and Communications and Hughes Electronic Corp. -- that allowed them to export the technology. Loral's chairman, Bernard Schwartz, donated more than $600,000 to the Democratic Party.Both Loral, based in New York, and Hughes, a Los Angeles-based subsidiary of General Motors Corp., have denied wrongdoing.In a related matter, The New York Times reported Sunday that in March 1996, Clinton overruled both the State Department and the Pentagon -- which wanted to keep sharp limits on China's ability to launch American-made satellites using Chinese rockets -- and turned oversight of granting permission for such launches to the Commerce Department, which was in favor of permitting them.At the time, the Commerce Department was headed by the late Ron Brown, who was previously chairman of the Democratic National Committee.One of the beneficiaries of that decision, according to the Times, was China Aerospace, a state-run Chinese company that employed Liu Chao-ying as an executive. CNN has previously learned that one-time Democratic fund-raiser Johnny Chung has told Justice Department investigators that he funneled $100,000 in cash from Liu to the Democratic National Committee during the 1996 presidential campaign.Liu is a lieutenant colonel in the Chinese army, and the daughter of a top Chinese government official.

In July 1998, the Justice Department's campaign finance task force head, Charles La Bella, sent a report to Janet Reno also recommending she seek an independent counsel to investigate alleged fund-raising abuses by Democratic party officials.[58] The media reported that LaBella believed there was clearly an appearance of a conflict of interest by Reno.[59] In his report to Reno he wrote: " [A] pattern [of events] suggests a level of knowledge within the White House”including the President's and First Lady's offices”concerning the injection of foreign funds into the reelection effort."[60] Additionally, La Bella stated: "If these allegations involved anyone other than the president, vice president, senior White House or DNC and Clinton-Gore '96 officials, an appropriate investigation would have commenced months ago without hesitation."[61].....
Critics such as columnists Charles Krauthammer and Morton Kondracke, as well as a number of FBI agents, suggested that the investigations into the improper fund-raising allegations were impeded as part of a cover-up.[65][66][67][edit]
Notable convictions secured
Even without an appointment of an independent counsel, the Justice Department's internal investigation was fruitful. The task force created to investigate campaign fund-raising irregularities during the 1996 U.S. elections secured criminal convictions against 17 people by 2001.In addition to the convictions against John Huang, Johnny Chung, Charlie Trie, Maria Hsia, and James Riady (who was fined $8.6 million - the largest fine ever levied against an individual), Clinton friend Ernest Green, a former member of the Little Rock Nine, pleaded guilty in 2001 to failure to declare and pay taxes on $30,000 in income which he received in 1995 from Charlie Trie for a planned business venture between the two.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - James Tjahaja Riady will pay a record $8.6 million in criminal fines and plead guilty to a felony charge of conspiring to defraud the United States by unlawfully reimbursing campaign donors with foreign corporate funds in violation of federal election law, the Justice Department's Campaign Financing Task Force and the United States Attorney in Los Angeles announced today.In addition, LippoBank California, a California state-chartered bank affiliated with Lippo Group, will plead guilty to 86 misdemeanor counts charging its agents, Riady and John Huang, with making illegal foreign campaign contributions from 1988 through 1994.Riady is one of 26 people and two corporations charged by the Campaign Financing Task Force, which was established four years ago by Attorney General Janet Reno to investigate allegations of campaign financing abuses in the 1996 election cycle.Under the terms of the plea agreement, filed today in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, Riady, a citizen of the Republic of Indonesia, will surrender himself to the jurisdiction of the court, despite the lack of an extradition treaty between the United States and Indonesia. Once he surrenders himself, Riady will then plead guilty to the felony charge contained within the information, enter a plea on behalf of LippoBank to the 86 misdemeanor charges contained within the information, pay $8,610,000 in fines levied against himself and LippoBank, and cooperate with the government's investigation.The $8.6 million fine represents the largest sanction imposed in a campaign finance matter in the history of the United States....In addition to Riady and LippoBank California, the Task Force has prosecuted 25 individuals and one corporation for offenses relating to violations of the campaign financing laws.On June 21, 2000, Pornipol "Pauline" Kanchanalak pled guilty to conspiracy to cause false statements to be made to the FEC and to causing a foreign corporation to make an illegal contribution. On that same day, codefendant Duagnet Kronenberg pled guilty to violating campaign finance laws.On June 2, 2000, David Chang, a member of the 1996 Robert G. Torricelli Campaign Finance Committee, pled guilty to violating federal election law by making illegal contributions to the 1996 campaign of Senator Robert Torricelli. He also pled guilty to witness tampering in connection with the campaign financing task force investigation. On June 6, 2000, Chang's codefendant, Audrey Yu, pled guilty to obstruction of justice under the same superseding indictment.On June 1, 2000, Cha-Kuek Koo, a New Jersey businessman, pled guilty to violating federal election law by making illegal contributions to the Senator Robert G. Torricelli Campaign. Koo admitted to assisting David Chang in making conduit contributions using Koo's employees at LG Group, Executive Office of the Americas. Koo's sentencing has been set for September 7, 2000.On April 5, 2000, a federal grand jury indicted two Buddhist nuns, Venerables Yi Chu and Man Ho, with contempt of court for failing to appear as witnesses in the government's criminal trial against Maria Hsia. Yi Chu and Man Ho remain fugitives.On March 2, 2000, Maria Hsia was convicted in D.C. on charges of causing false statements to be submitted to the FEC. The trial had been postponed pending an appeal of a ruling by the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., which had dismissed some of the false statement counts. In May 1999, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C. overturned the ruling and reinstated those counts. The task force dismissed a second indictment on tax charges after a jury in Los Angeles failed to reach a verdict. Hsia awaits sentencing.On December 17, 1999, Yogesh Gandhi was sentenced to one year in prison for mail fraud, tax evasion, and violating federal election laws by aiding and abetting the making of a political campaign contribution by a foreign national.On November 1, 1999, Yah Lin "Charlie" Trie, a Little Rock, Arkansas businessman, was sentenced, after pleading guilty, to a two-count information filed in Little Rock, Arkansas, to three years probation, four months home detention, 200 hours of community service, and a $5,000 fine for violating federal campaign finance laws by making political contributions in someone else's name and by causing a false statement to be made the FEC. Antonio Pan was also indicted with Trie in the District of Columbia, but has not yet been prosecuted because he has remained outside the United States.On September 15, 1999, Lawrence Penna, the former President of a now-defunct New Jersey securities firm, was charged with violating election laws by funneling illegal campaign contributions to the 1996 federal election campaigns of President Clinton and Senator Torricelli. Penna's case was transferred by agreement to the Southern District of New York where charges relating to his violation of United States' securities laws were pending.On August 16, 1999, a federal judge sentenced Robert S. Lee to three years of probation and 250 hours of community service for aiding and abetting the making of an illegal foreign campaign contribution to the Democratic National Committee.On August 12, 1999, former Lippo Executive John Huang pleaded guilty to a felony charge, filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, that he conspired with other employees of the Indonesia-based Lippo Group to make campaign contributions and reimburse employees with corporate funds or with funds from Indonesia. He was sentenced to one year of probation, 500 hours of community service, a $10,000 fine and directed by the judge to continue cooperating with the investigation as a condition of his probation.On May 27, 2000, Berek Don, former GOP party leader in Bergen County, NJ, pleaded guilty to another conduit contribution scheme to the Senator Torricelli Campaign. Don awaits sentencing. On October 13, 2000 Carmine Alampi, a Bergen County New Jersey attorney, pleaded guilty to the same scheme and was fined $5000. He also awaits sentencing.On March 23, 1999, Juan C. Ortiz, the Chief Financial Officer of Future Tech International, Inc., was sentenced to two years probation, $20,000 in fines, and 200 hours in community service for acting as a conduit for an illegal campaign contribution and participating in the reimbursement of eight other conduit contributions.On December 14, 1998, Johnny Chung was sentenced to probation and 3,000 hours of community service for bank fraud, tax evasion and two misdemeanor counts of conspiring to violate election law.On November 24, 1998, Howard Glicken, a fund-raiser for the Democratic party, was sentenced to 18 months probation, an $80,000 fine, and ordered to perform 500 hours of community service for violating campaign finance laws.On November 4, 1998, Franklin Haney was indicted on more than 40 counts, including among others, conspiring with another to defraud the United States by impairing and impeding the FEC and conspiring to violate specific provisions of federal election law. He was acquitted of all charges on June 30, 1999.On September 30, 1998, Democratic fund-raiser Mark B. Jimenez was indicted in Washington, D.C. on 17 counts of organizing, making and concealing illegal conduit contributions to a number of Democratic campaigns, including the Torricelli Campaign. In December 1998, Future Tech International, Jimenez's Miami based computer sales company, pleaded guilty to tax offenses resulting from its illegal deduction of a $100,000 contribution to the DNC and employee campaign contributions reimbursed through the company's payroll. On April, 15, 1999, Jimenez, who is now in the Philippines, was indicted in Miami on additional charges of tax evasion and fraud. The task force is pursuing Jimenez's extradition from the Philippines.In 1997, the Task Force obtained guilty pleas from Democratic fund-raisers Nora and Gene Lum, and their daughter Trisha, and Michael Brown for illegal fund-raising activities after their cases were referred from Independent Counsel Daniel Pearson. In August 1998, Gene Lum pleaded guilty to filing a false 1994 tax return and falsely preparing Nora's 1994 tax return. After cooperating with the government, he was sentenced in June 1999, to two years in prison. Nora was sentenced to 5 months in a halfway house, 5 months in home detention, and ordered to pay a $30,000 fine. Trisha Lum and Michael Brown each received probation, a $5,000 fine, costs of more than $7,000, and were ordered to perform 150 hours of community service.