Wealthy couple finance super PAC for Gingrich

(CBS News) 

A political action committee backing Newt Gingrich made an enormous advertising buy Wednesday in Florida -- $6 million. It's one of those cases of the unlimited money that can now be donated to a so-called super PAC.

Sheldon and Miriam Adelson are among the richest couples in the world with a fortune Forbes estimated at $23 billion, and they're bankrolling the super PAC that supports Gingrich.

Adelson owns a global network of hotels and casinos, his wife is an Israeli-born physician. Their combined gift of $10 million to the super PAC supporting Gingrich is keeping his anti-Romney message on TV in Florida.

Adelson made billions on his risky decision to implode the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas and replace it with the state-of-the-art Venetian Casino and Convention Center. He has used his fortune to benefit several hospitals, charities and politicians in Israel. The Adelsons gave a record $25 million to the Yad Vashem Holocaust Center in Jerusalem, and are long-time supporters of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

In 1995, friends say Adelson and then-House Speaker Gingrich first bonded over their shared view of Israel. Adelson was asking Congress to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem - a move considered highly inflammatory by Palestinians, who also claim the holy city as their capital, and Arabs worldwide. Three presidents have called the move harmful for peace prospects, but it's the first thing Gingrich says he'd do as president.

"There will be an executive order about two hours after the inaugural address. We will send the Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem as of that day," he once said.

Gingrich has also played down the Palestinian claim to statehood by dismissing their legitimacy as a people.

"We've had an invented Palestinian people who are in fact Arabs," he said on the Jewish Channel.

A close friend of Adelson's told CBS News that the billionaire "loved" Gingrich's remark.

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But is his $10 million gift a form of payment for Gingrich's world view? Adelson declined CBS News' request for an interview. But in a statement, he described his motivation as loyalty, saying he and his wife "hold our friendship with (Gingrich) very dear and are doing what we can as private citizens to support his candidacy."

George Harris, a former employee of Adelson's who is now a Gingrich finance director, said Adelson donates his money with no strings attached.

"I can promise you something: Mr. Adelson doesn't ask anybody for anything," he said. "I don't believe there's any quid pro quo for this money at all."

But critics and public interest groups argue that $10 million buys you influence, period. The Adelsons' gift, for example, has already purchased seven times more ad time in Florida than the entire Gingrich campaign. This is the leading example of how these unrestricted super PACs are changing the race for the White House.

[RobertBeyers]

Americans are getting exactly the results of what they have created and Canada is succumbing to the same problem. About 29 Jews control American media and many politicians, enough at least to highly influence policy especially foreign policy. Zionism is designed to control the governments of the world (and don't call me anti-Semitic because many non Jews are Zionists and many Jews are not Zionists) I believe most if not all neoconservatives are Zionists or at the very least they agree with the policy of Zionism. The Zionists are now starting to buy Liberal politicians. The Zionists have created an environment in the USA wherein it is sinful and even hostile to be anti Israeli. Why? What makes Israel so special that most Americans are willing to spend all their money and sacrifice their children for this rouge country? Zionists are so blind that with ambition they can not see the reality of what is happening in the world. China, Russia, India, Pakistan, Iran, the Arab community, (and that includes Turkey) are not going to let it happen. The Zionists believe that because they have control of American might they can achieve their goal. They can't. These Zionists are going to bring guerilla warriors to American soil, the Zionists will call them terrorists and the guerillas will call themselves freedom fighters. (something like what has been going on in Israel and Palestine for the past 60 years)
The question now is, what to do about it? I don't know. It is going to take someone a whole lot smarter than me to carry that ball. Here are some of the clues that I recognize. Zionists will topple the unions. They will discredit social programs such as pensions and healthcare, they will do what they can to diminish the middle class and have us all working for Mexican wages. We will be living in a dictatorship with the upper 1% will be the dictators and the rest of us will be the serfs.
Just saying!

[smehgol]

American democracy is broken. The irrefutable evidence is our not only allowing, but actually financing Israel's ongoing cruel and illegal Mideast aggression. Israel has usurped control by corrupting our politicians and entire electoral system. All our Mideast wars have been against our interests, yet successfully advocated by Israel. Again against our interests, Israel has involved us in increasingly overt operations against Iran. Spies and American military drones in Iranian airspace are the most recent revelations. Since before 9/11, American soldiers have been dying for the Jewish state. We are at war. Those that did this to us are the lobbyists, organizers, columnists, financiers, AIPAC and other traitorous Israel Firsters. Justice and the future of America demand they be prosecuted and punished.

[smehgol]

Multibillionaire casino gambling tycoon Sheldon Adelson and his wife have given Newt Gingrich $10 million which is less than .05% of their estimated $21.5 billion worth and pledged more. Looks like they intend to buy Newt Gingrich the United States presidency so he can serve Bibi Netanyahu and Israel. That is, sacrifice way more American lives and money on Israel's Mideast wars that are wholly against the interests of America and all humanity. Limiting political donations is limiting free speech according to the Supreme Court. So what are our influence, our votes, worth vs. Sheldon Adelson's? Way less than three fifths; actually close to nothing at all. Whatever has become of our American Democracy?

[dxsmith2]

Adjusted for inflation this is Newt's thirty pieces of silver. Newt would start an unnecessary war with Iran just to please the Likuds who are foaming at the mouth for the US to fight another proxy war for Israel. At least Obama got us out of Iraq and is getting us out of Afghanistan. Newt has promised you he will "Engage" Iran if all else fails...and with a Sec. of State Bolton...all else would fail quickly.

[RobertBeyers]

I am a Canadian. We have a neocon Prime Minister. The reason we have a neocon Prime Minister is because we were too lazy to go door to door and argue against him and his policies. We didn't take of the internet to push back against his Zionist ideology. We like you allowed AIPAC to buy influence in our government. WE DIDN'T BELIEVE THAT WE COULD POSSIBLY ELECT A PRIME MINISTER WHO WOULD PUT A FORIEGN COUNTRY AHEAD OF CANADA. Something else you Americans should realize, your conservatives are fighting real hard so you get proper healthcare, while at the same time they make you pay for free healthcare in Israel. You people have 10 months to organize and fight back. Zionism is the greatest threat to America and the free world

[PetJake2]

Wyatt, you are leaving out most of the story! No, no mention whatsoever of the $6 billion spent by Romney or the $5 billion spent by his Willie Horton Pac who have run the dame false ads avout gingrich every five minutes?

The report never mentioned Romney's ads or his sources of funding, and never mentioned George Soros-backed ads that Obama has also been running from a $1 billion war chest.



Are we supposed to believe that Romney's attack ads are altruistic??

Note also how the CBS story focused on Israel giving the viewer the unbelievably dishonest impression that the money is a payoff for whatever pro-Israel favor the Occutard news reporter can think up?

"But critics and public interest groups argue that $10 million buys you influence"

How about the $ONE BILLION DOLLARS that Obama gets to spend on his pathetic re-election? HOW IS THAT FOR ONE BIG-ASS PERIOD?

The writer also made zero mention of Obama's war chest and the horrific ads that he plans on running?

Of course not. Your anti-Israel, anti-Jewish, anti-Gingrich, pro-Palestinian, pro-Muslim Brotherhood President would need several months to calculate all those #250 contributions bundled by bedoins that will pour into Obama's campaign finances as they did last year.

If Romney is so freaking great, then why does he need the GDP equivalent of 24 countries to prove it?

Meanwhile, Michele Obama has already outspend Gingrinch on her separate joint vacaton to Hawaii.

Nobody, though, will ever match the Air Force One expenses of Queen Nancy Pelosi.

Either way, this country cannot take four more years of Obama and maybe it's time for Mittens to spend a little time and more money on how he is going to beat all of their liberal lunatic friends and funders?

Wyatt - Earp, you're not

PS to the Israel-lobby occutards. The influece that the Suadi lobby holds over the US makes isreal look like the chump change you find in the gutter. Obamba did not kiss Bibi's ass. The Brazilian lobby is also doing far better than AIPRAC.

Israel has to buy 75% of American products. They mkust use the rest on infrastructure that the last ass Arabs won't do. Saudis get $120 biullionin f-35's as a gift and do ot have to do a thing. So what if all their textbooks teach kids that non-Westermers must be killed, staerting witrh the Jews descended fron apes and then Christiands who were descended from Donkeys.

[karlimhof]

Son, you gotta get off the meds, and to a doctor. You are so far from the truth, you're already sitting on newts moon base!!!

[nearl451]

So in the "Citizens United" SCOTUS ruling, where in the winning argument was the weighing of this single couples freedom of speech weighed against the remainder of the free country?

Stupid rulinghas back-fired on the Justicial(as opposed to judicial) activists, it seems.

[MarkMinter]

Keck, if I was billionaire and he would cut my taxes to pennies, I would support him also. All the rich boys will love Newt. Take the CEO of Bank of America. He made 900,000 in salary and 9 million dollars in Taxes. Under the Bush Tax cuts extended for this year, he will pay about 1.66 million dollars on 9.9 million dollars in income about 16.6%. Already low. Under Newt, he would pay only 15% on his salary or 900,000 *.15= 135,000 about 1.35%. All of the money in the country will get hoovered up into the super wealthy class with one big final whoosh. So then when he dies, under the Newt plan, his descendents get every bit of it and pay no taxes on it forever because all returns will be from capital gains when they sell stock or investments, and it will just grow and grow. And we will finally have your American aristocratic class, endowed with wealth and luxury by birth and not by merit.

You tell me whose boy Newt is then, the populist of the people, or the benefactor to the super wealthy.

[thatchmo62]

A republican version of George Soros. I think he's wasting his money though.

[retm-w]

Sure he wouldn't be looking for favors if newt won. He would have newt in his pocket.

[goptarded]

If Gingrich should win the nomination this guy has the 'where-with-all' to pump a billion dollars into the election... and Obama would still win by a very wide margin.