Thank you, Mr. Clinton. (Photo: thefrisky.com)

Not that Hillary couldn’t have gotten the job done. She’s more than capable. But Bill had already established a relationship with the North Korean government; they’ve even requested to meet with him specifically a few times over the past 15 years.

What job am I talking about? After “exhaustive conversation” with Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang, North Korea, Bill Clinton has managed to secure amnesty for American journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee. Ling and Lee had been detained in North Korea since March. The women allegedly crossed the China-North Korea border inadvertently, but in crossing without authorization, they violated North Korean law. Their sentence was 12 years of “reform through labor.”

For amnesty, a special pardon

Heejin Koo reports for Bloomberg that not only did Mr. Clinton’s negotiations with Kim Jong Il secure the freedom of the American journalists, but it may have made headway toward deescalation of North Korea’s growing nuclear weapons program. Despite the fact that negotiating terms of amnesty constitutes an acknowledgment that Ling and Lee violated North Korean law, the results will no doubt be more than satisfactory for their friends, family and anyone else concerned with freedom from oppression.

Yu Ho Yeol of Korea University in Seoul said that Bill Clinton’s successful exchange with Kim Jong Il “will certainly serve as a turning point in the U.S.-North Korean dialogue.” I’d like to suggest that they import cash advances and payday loans with no faxing, but one thing at a time. If you want them, however, apply right here:

What made the difference?

It is true that Bill Clinton is an excellent speaker and negotiator. His previous exchanges with North Korea may have made the difference, but there is a rumor circulated by North Korean Central News Agency that Clinton had been empowered to deliver a “special message” from President Obama. However, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs denied this.

This is not the first successful visit a former U.S. head of state has made to North Korea, however. In 1994, former President Jimmy Carter met with Kim Jong Il and was able to negotiate a freeze of the country’s nuclear activity at the time. This was followed up by visits from President Clinton in 2000 and then Secretary of State Madeline Albright, both of which were for the same purpose as Carter’s visit. However, it was revealed in 2002 that North Korea had resumed their nuclear program in secret, and testing commenced by 2006. The testing culminated in at least a dozen missiles being tested this year, despite international pressure against such action. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton obtained U.N. sanctions against North Korea as a result.

Calling the “New York channel”

Bill and Il (Photo: Bloomberg.com)

Kim Jong Il and North Korea had stated openly that they would not return to the table for nuclear talks with the U.S., China, Russia, South Korea and Japan. But just last week, they expressed interest in negotiations involving Bill Clinton or “a high-ranking Obama administration official,” according to South Korea’s Yonhap News.

Apparently much like the Bat Phone, Kim Jong Il’s administration had a kind of hotline that may have been established through Bill Clinton.  They used it to contact Congressman Bill Richardson on multiple occasions. Richardson had previously been President Clinton’s contact at the United Nations, and he was able to negotiate the release of an American pilot who’d been shot down, as well as the release of a U.S. citizen who’d been accused of crossing into North Korea in 1996. Much like Laura Ling and Euna Lee, this citizen had been accused of spying.

Does Bill Clinton have the magic touch when it comes to amnesty? Depending upon who you ask, he definitely has something that’s magical…

Related Video:

Even as he leaves office as one of the most unpopular presidents in American history, George W. Bush won’t be needing payday loans, or really anything else for that matter. The 43rd President of the United States leaves office for his ranch in Crawford, Texas, and will be soon moving into a large home outside of Dallas in an elite neighborhood called Preston Hollow. Preston Hollow is one of the most affluent neighborhoods around Dallas, and most homes there go for over $1 million very easily. Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban will be a few streets down.

He may not be President anymore – but we still foot the bill

In the late 50s, the idea that former US Presidents still needed to draw some sort of a paycheck was on then President Dwight Eisenhower’s mind. His predecessor, and former boss, Harry Truman was running out of funds keeping an office open, and it was thought to be a great injustice. Though the issue had come up as early as 1912, it was decided by Congress that it was a good time to do something about it, and they passed the Former President’s Act. The Act entitled all former Presidents at the time and all who followed after to an annual pension, free medical care at any military hospital, and an allowance for staffers and assistants.

They also receive a fund for travel and any other office leaving expenses available for seven months after the date of leaving office, and with it they may travel to wherever they are going, and obtain office space, equipment, and any printing or postage associated with leaving office. The going rate for a former chief executive is about $191,300 per annum, and it is indeed taxable, so they won’t need payday loans again, for life.

A pension plan has never been refused

It is noteworthy that some Presidents didn’t really need any money going into office, as some presidents, such as Kennedy and Washington, outright refused to be paid, Washington asking only for living expenses getting covered.  That being said, no president has ever refused the pension upon leaving office, and former presidents can earn millions publishing memoirs and going on speaking tours.

Other benefits include up to ten years of Secret Service security detail, and a pension for former First Ladies upon the death of their husbands of $20,000 per annum, along with a Secret Service detail for ten year’s upon leaving office. The law previously was that outgoing Presidents received lifetime details, but it was changed during the later period of the Clinton administration. Bill Clinton is the last president to receive a lifetime detail. It should be noted that only one former president has refused secret service protection, though he maybe needed it due to his unpopularity – Richard Nixon, who discharged his detail in 1985.

A pension in hand is worth a lot to Bush

Say what you want about him, the office has taken a toll.  One year in office extracts about two to four years of ordinary wear and tear on a person, and analysts have said that his administration has put about sixteen years of strain in eight on him at least.  However, his benefits package is so good that he won’t be needing payday loans ever again.

Blagojevich impeached by Illinois Senate

The Illinois House of Representatives voted yesterday to impeach Blagojevich, and the measure passed 114 – 1.  Typically, impeachment proceedings against governors, or presidents for that matter, are typically incredibly close, within a few votes of passing or failing.  Illinois has never before impeached a governor, but this one has been by virtual unanimity.  The Illinois House requires only 60 votes – clear majority – for an impeachment, but this one cleared that hurdle with impunity.  He may not even be able to apply for payday loans if he needs one, because he won’t have a payday in any sense of the word if he gets removed from office – which seems likely at this point.

Gov. Blagojevich has barely responded to the charges at all, only making statements that he is innocent, and has not made a statement about the impeachment.  Instead, he stated to reporters that he will “see you at 2,” indicating that he will be issuing a statement at 2 p.m. (central time) Then he went for a jog.  House Representatives have been increasingly frustrated with the governor on both sides of the aisle, and after an inquiry committee voted unanimously that impeachment was the best course of action, the House put the motion before the floor for a vote.

The Impeachment History of United States

Impeachment is a measure of last resort in any US legislative body to curb the activities of an obviously unhinged official – it has been employed only 18 times in United States history at both state and federal levels.  The last was Bill Clinton, in 1998, and Blagojevich has the dubious honor of being the first governor impeached in the United States.

These are his odds:
Of all impeached officials, 7 have been removed from office.  (7/18 = 39% chance of removal.)
7 have been acquitted, one after resigning.  (39% chance of acquittal.)
3 have resigned, and of all officials impeached, only 1 impeachment was dismissed; source here.
(1/18 = 12.5% chance of dismissal of charges.)

Worse than Nixon

Illinois lawmakers have voiced their disgust and outrage in the news repeatedly, voicing their distaste for both his actions and reaction to what is easily one of the biggest political scandals since Watergate, saying that his arrest and then lack of reaction to it are making the government of Illinois into a joke, laughing stock of the world.  House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie said that “his silence in this great matter is deafening.”  His credibility is virtually nonexistent, and there is no one who wishes for Rod Blagojevich to remain in office except Mr. Blagojevich himself.   If your budget has come under impeachment by a sudden expense, get the counsel of payday loans to censure the offending shortfall.

Payday loans are still a hot topic in Arizona, where the pain of Proposition 200 is still felt. In a recent “Letters to the Editor” in the Arizona Republic, those in favor of banning lenders from operating in the state past 2010 are out in full force because legislators may just be recognizing the true needs of their constituency-at-large, those who may not have been represented in the voting process.

Reader Dave Hall from Sun City West points out with clenched teeth that the “sharks” spent $14 million to lobby the voters in support of keeping payday loans available in Arizona. Yet at the same time, perhaps banks and credit unions spent just as much (or more) to mobilize their own support against Prop 200? It isn’t far-fetched at all.

Welcome to the world of lobbying

This is how American government works. Per Wikipedia, “Lobbying includes all attempts to influence legislators and officials, whether by other legislators, constituents or organized groups. Governments often define and regulate organized group lobbying.” There are always multiple sides to an issue, so lobbyists acting on behalf of their interest group come from all sides.

Economist Thomas Sowell in his book “Knowledge and Decisions” defends the type of corporate lobbying that goes on with payday loans or any other lobby. He says it is “simply an example of a group having better knowledge of its interests than the people at large do of theirs.”

A fresh serving of perspective

On an even larger scale, the case for lobbying has legal precedence and is an accepted part of politics. The U.S. Supreme Court does not support those who have tried to regulate grassroots-style lobbying, as the Constitution does not suggest such censure:

It is said that indirect lobbying by the pressure of public opinion on the Congress is an evil and a danger. That is not an evil; it is a good, the healthy essence of the democratic process.

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton paints a clear picture of the place lobbyist have in American politics. He said this is regards to wife Hillary’s receipt of lobbyist money for her recent presidential campaign:

Lobbyists are registered, they register with the federal government and can give the same amount of money anybody else can. It’s all the people they represent. So all these people who don’t take money from lobbyists, they take money from the lobbyists’ spouses, their children, their brothers, their sisters, from all the people they represent. It’s a distinction without a difference, I think. There’s no significant financial gain, because there’s not that many lobbyists. If we’re going to take money from the guys who pay the lobbyists, why treat them [the lobbyists] as less than full citizens?

Here’s the uncut interview with Bill Clinton:

Were all Arizona voices on payday loans heard?

Lobbyists are a necessary part of lawmaking, as they help to inform lawmakers who may be removed from the problem to see viewpoints clearly. In the case of the industry responsible for payday loans, legislators are not a part of the same socioeconomic group as many short-term loan customers are. It helps to have added perspective when making decisions. The issue of Proposition 200 could be revisited with fresh perspective from both sides, not just the lobbyists on the side of the banks.

Senate-elect Russell Pearce, a Republican out of Mesa, Arizona, has decided he will push to extend the licensing for payday loan businesses, as some added perspective has apparently enabled him to see that payday loans are not the trap that destroys credit ratings, just as a cheeseburger does not condemn someone to a life of obesity. Individual restraint and responsibility will always be paramount.

You have the freedom to read on… PART II of this post is here. There may be payday loans in Arizona past 2010 yet.