Botts, Hanna, Robinson funnel another $ 111,500 into Banning Cultural Alliance

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6/25/10 – No, this is not a misprint – just further evidence that the Banning City Council is completely out of control : Mayor Bob Botts as well as Council members Barbara Hanna and Don “taxdodger” Robinson, forming a majority, just voted to give yet another $ 111,500  of your tax money to the unaccountable, scandal ridden Banning Cultural Alliance.

A recent Grand Jury report (view) called for a substantial repayment  ($ 162,000)  – not more funding.  The report also recommended  an unequivocal “cease and desist” of any further dealings with the Cultural Alliance. Despite these recommendations, the Council members continued massive funding of the Cultural Alliance, a move that must now be considered nothing short of a conspiracy to steal public funds. (Click here for the session video, the session starts at the 48 min mark, the vote is taken at the 1h :38 min mark).

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BANNING CULTURAL ALLIANCE – A CAN FULL OF WORMS

The Banning Cultural Alliance has A LONG HISTORY OF UNACCOUNTABILITY, FAILURE,  SECRET PROCEEDINGS AND EVEN OUTRIGHT DECEPTION

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• UNACCOUNTABILITY : With this most recent funding, the Banning Cultural Alliance has received a total of $ 918,003.08 in cash from the city of Banning ( See pg. 3 of  Grand Jury’s  finding – $ 806,503.08 – plus latest funding of $ 111,500.00 = $ 918,003.08). Out of this amount of money, the Cultural Alliance has accounted for only $ 228,052.00 (see their only audit report). This  leaves $ 689,951.08 unaudited and therefore unaccounted for.  These taxpayer dollars seem to just disappear in a “black hole” which raises the question if the Banning Cultural Alliance is in reality a convenient money laundering operation for certain individuals. This suspicion is further supported by their only available audit report : When one examines that report one notices an unspecified position for $ 126,658.00 for “contractors and staff” (page 4). There is no disclosure of who those contractors are – could they be Bob Botts, Barbara Hanna and Don Robinson or their respective family members or spouses?  Why are those three always so eager to provide more funding for the Cultural Alliance ? Why are both Bob Botts’ as well as Don Robinson’s wives both active board members of the Alliance ( view Alliance board ) ? Again, taxpayer dollars given to the Alliance seem to disappear in a “black hole”, and that in itself is an outrage. Should such an unaccountable organization be rewarded more tax dollars ? Apparently Botts, Hanna and Robinson seem to think so.

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• FAILURE :  The Grand Jury has determined that Banning Cultural Alliance has failed to  live up to their contractual obligations in the past. They were paid to advertise the City with Billboard ads, Infomercials, Radio and TV ads and inflight publications yet did not do any of the above, (article). That is why the Grand Jury found that the Cultural Alliance should be asked to repay the City $ 162,000.  Mayor Botts and Councilmembers Barbara Hanna, Don Robinson and John Machisic blocked enforcement of the Grand Jury recommendation on   May 11, 2010. The bottom line is that an independent body has found that the Cultural Alliance is a failed city contractor. Should the Cultural Alliance’ failure to perform under previous contracts now be rewarded with yet another $ 111,500.00 contract ?  Apparently Bob Botts, Barbara Hanna and Don Robinson seem to think so.

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• SECRET PROCEEDINGS : The Banning Cultural Alliance has been previously identified to have engaged in secret proceedings during which they excluded members of the public from participation, (see our previous article). City policy was being developed during those meetings. The Record Gazette has reported that Bob Botts, Barbara Hanna and Don Robinson have frequented those meetings. Should a taxpayer funded organization hold secret meetings with our elected representatives in attendance ?  Doing so presumably constitutes a violation of the Ralph M. Brown Act. Should such a secretive organization be funded with taxpayer money ? Apparently Botts, Hanna and Robinson seem to think so.

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• OUTRIGHT DECEPTION : The Executive Director of the Banning Cultural Alliance recently engaged in outright deception when she lied to the public about how the Alliance used taxpayer money in regards to a controversial politically motivated event, (view story here). If they lie about the use of taxpayer money, what does this tell us about the Banning Cultural Alliance ? Should these liars be given even one more dime of our hard earned tax dollars ? Apparently Botts, Hanna and Robinson seem to think so.

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NO ENFORCEMENT OF GRAND JURY RECOMMENDATIONS

Under California law a civil Grand Jury has no enforcement powers, which is why Botts, Hanna and Robinson move so boldly against their recommendations. However, there comes a point when further abuses may enter the criminal arena. We may have crossed this threshold :  the defiant actions of these City Council members may constitute a conspiracy to steal public funds. The District Attorney as well as the California Attorney General will have to take a close look at those recent actions. There is also the possibility of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development reviewing the City’s actions and as a result ask for a refund or possibly even cut off the City of Banning from all redevelopment funding.

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BOTTS, HANNA, ROBINSON “IN BED” WITH CULTURAL ALLIANCE

The trio is known to be deeply imbedded with leading Cultural Alliance Members. For example, Cultural Alliance members threw a big fundraiser for Barbara Hanna during her 2008 reelection campaign at Banning’s “White House”. At this event the partner of  Alliance Director Carol Newkirk, Beverly Rashid, provided live musical entertainment. Tickets were $ 100 a person. Other than being Newkirk’s partner, Rashid is also an acting board member of the Alliance.

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Bob Botts has been a former Vice President of the Alliance and his wife’s membership on the Alliance’ board (view) speaks volumes about what side of the fence Botts is on. Most importantly, a total of 7 executive members of the Alliance are also listed as endorsing Bob Botts for reelection in 2010 (click on list on right side). The 7 are NOT general Alliance members but operate on the executive level of the Alliance (view).  Botts’ endorsement list raises suspicion that he is giving taxpayer dollars to the Cultural Alliance in exchange for their political endorsements. This also shows  that the Cultural Alliance is truly a special interest group. Without the awareness of its many members, the Alliance has been turned into a political organization by its core leadership and is being used to keep not only Botts but also Hanna and Robinson in office – at taxpayer’s expense.

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Intimate ties with the Cultural Alliance also hold true for Don Robinson who in 2009 had a voting record on the City Council that was 100% identical to that of Botts’. That makes him Botts’ “Yes Man” , or if you like Austin Powers, Botts takes the role of “Dr. Evil” while Robinson is his “Mini Me” (view our previous story). It should come as no surprise that Don Robinson’s wife Katryn is a Board member of the Alliance.

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BOB BOTTS, BARBARA HANNA AND DON ROBINSON – MORALLY  BANKRUPT

It could not be more clear : Bob Botts, Barbara Hanna and Don Robinson do not mind engaging in  “politically incorrect” conduct ; after all, the public was just  made aware by an independent body ( Grand Jury) that the Banning Cultural Alliance is essentially of no value to the public.

Botts, Hanna and Robinson must have known that they will lose support with the voters of Banning if they went head on against any and all recommendations of the Riverside Grand Jury. But they funded the Alliance anyway.

So why on earth would any politician in the right mind consider such a self destructive move ?  Politics is all about survival – you’ve got to play it safe. Why is it “ worth it “  for these three to risk outrage from the public ? Why “rock the boat” and invite political defeat in the next election? Why do such a thing that is truly unpopular and also politically incorrect ? Why such in-your-face defiance ?

There is only one possible answer and it is not “stupidity” on the part of this trio : There must be something in it for them in order to take such a huge risk. There just is no other way.

This bold move may suggest that Botts, Hanna and Robinson are trying to fund the Banning Cultural Alliance because they want to siphon off as much taxpayer money as possible before being finally thrown out of office for good.

Let’s not forget that there is over $ 689,000 that went to the Cultural Alliance  that was never audited by anyone. Not by the City and certainly not by the Alliance. In absence of an audit and in light of yet another round of funding madness we have no choice but to assume that something is in it for whoever votes for this funding.

Botts, Hanna and Robinson must be suspected of having a hidden agenda when it comes to funding the Banning Cultural – nothing else makes sense.

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DISSENTING VOTES BY FRANKLIN AND MACHISIC

Council members Debbie Franklin and John Machisic voted against the funding measure. Franklin stated that the Grand Jury’s findings do not allow further funding of the Banning Cultural Alliance. While John Machisic needs to be commended for voting “NO” as well, he did so for the wrong reasons : he was more concerned about “budget” issues and suggested funding the Alliance with “only” $ 91,000 instead. The Grand Jury’s recommendations did no seem to be of concern to him. This makes you wonder : Did Machisic even read the Grand Jury report ?

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In the meantime, Banning’s decline into total corruption continues. Only the voting public can put an end to this demise !