Frist's "Blind Trust"
I've discussed before the question of whether Bill Frist's so-called blind trust (which he claimed shielded him from any knowledge of what stocks he owned) could see. From an article in today's Washington Post, it's beginning to appear that not only was the trust not blind, it probably had close to 20/20 vision.
The Post has discovered that the trustees of Frist's trust wrote to him 15 times since 2001, "detailing the sale of assets from or the contribution of assets to trusts of Frist and his family. The letters included notice of the addition of HCA shares worth $500,000 to $1 million in 2001 and HCA stock worth $750,000 to $1.5 million in 2002."
Ridiculous. I don't know how all of the investigations into Frist's stock sales will end up playing out, but this looks more than slimy to me.
posted by JBD @ 7:59 AM
3 comments
3 Comments:
I don't know if any of it was intended to be slimy. It just sounds like someone who thought the rules didn't apply to them. I'd like to make some comment about that's how this administration is or something, but I am afraid it's just human nature. We all want to be exceptions because we always think of ourselves as the good guy.
Jeremy, the thing that makes this so abhorrent is that Frist asked his Trustees to sell his stock exactly 1 month before the company, which his family owns, reported seconded quarter profit would miss earnings estimates. I have examined the stock charts on this and it smells as bad as any of the insider trading scandals I have seen including Martha Stewart's who went to jail but Frist's trading seems signifanctly more improper than Stewarts indiscretions. I wrote a piece on this as well.
If this is the sort of stuff Martha Stewart got jail time for, I say what's good for the goose is good for the gander. Frist should be charged and face the courts on this one.
Greed. Greed is the enemy here, be it Frist or DeLay or Abramoff or Halliburton or BushCheneyCo. or any of them. Is there any doubt now why Greed is listed among the Deadly Sins?
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