Good morning.
Here are a few Washington events of note for Friday, September 21, 2007 as collected by the Associated Press.
Sept. 21 - 22. CANDIDATES-NRA — The National Rifle Association holds the Celebration of American Values conference.
9 a.m. Sen. John Thune.
9:30 a.m. Sen. John McCain.
10 a.m. Sen. Mitch McConnell.
10:30 a.m. Fred Thompson
11 a.m. Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour.
11:25 a.m. Rep. Duncan Hunter (taped).
11:30 a.m. Rudy Giuliani
12 p.m. Former Attorney General John Ashcroft
12:30 p.m. News conference.
1:20 p.m. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson (taped).
1:30 p.m. Rep. John Dingell.
2 p.m. Former Ark. Gov. Mike Huckabee.
3 p.m. Rep. Harold Ford, Jr.
3:30 p.m. Sen. John Barrasso.
4 p.m. Newt Gingrich
Location: Capital Hilton, 16th and K Sts. NW.
10:30 a.m. INTELLIGENCE HISTORY — The national security advisors to Presidents Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush and Gerald Ford will discuss the history of modern intelligence, focusing on the dramatic changes that have occurred since the end of the Cold War and the rise of the international struggle against terrorism. Participants: Brent Scowcroft, Tony Lake and Sandy Berger.
Location: ICC Auditorium, Georgetown University, 37th and O Streets NW.
Sept. 19 - 21. FRENCH FOREIGN AFFAIRS MINISTER BERNARD KOUCHNER
10 a.m. Meets with National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley.
11:15 a.m. Meets with Secretary of State Rice. State Department.
11:30 a.m. Lunch with Rice. State Department.
12:30 p.m. News availability. Benjamin Franklin Room, State Department.
1:30 p.m. Departs for New York.
Sept. 18 - 21. FACIAL PLASTIC AND RECONSTRUCTIVE SURGEONS’ MEETING — The American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery holds their Annual Fall Meeting to discuss the latest advances, procedures, and techniques in the field. Workshops on rhinoplasty, face lifts, dermabrasion, lesion removal, trauma repair, facial defects, hair restoration and other topics.
Location: Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Sept. 20 - 21. COUNTIES-CLIMATE CHANGE — The National Association of Counties holds a conference on climate protection.
Location: Omni Shoreham Hotel, 2500 Calvert St. NW
Sept. 20 - 21. FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS-FORUM — American University Washington College of Law, American University Law Review, and the ACLU hold two-day symposium called “Left Out in the Cold? The Chilling of Speech, Association, and the Press in Post-9/11 America.”
10:15 a.m. Panel discussion on the role of whistleblowers, with FBI General Counsel Valerie Caproni, former FBI whitstleblower Coleen Rowley, others.
Location: Room 603, AU Washington College of Law, 4801 Massachusetts Ave.
8:30 a.m. KOREA — The North Korea International History Project and the Asia Program at the Wilson International Center for Scholars hold a conference on the foreign relations of North and South Korea.
Location: Wilson Center, Reagan Trade Building.
9 a.m. - 1:45 p.m. HIGHER EDUCATION — The American Enterprise Institute hosts a discussion, “Higher Education Accreditation: Evaluating the System and Possible Alternatives.”
9:30 a.m. Panel I: The College Accreditation System: An Assessment. Panelists: Judith Eaton, Council on Higher Education Accreditation; Sara Martinez Tucker, U.S. Department of Education; Arthur Rothkopf, U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Lafayette College. Moderator: Richard Vedder, AEI and CCAP.
10:45 a.m. Panel II: Alternatives to Traditional Accreditation. Panelists: William Henderson, Indiana University Law School; Anne D. Neal, American Council of Trustees and Alumni; Jeff Sandefer, The Acton MBA in Entrepreneurship. Moderator: Candace de Russy, State University of New York.
12 p.m. Luncheon Keynote Address: Charles Miller, Spellings Commission on the Future of Higher Education.
Location: Wohlstetter Conference Center, 12th Floor, AEI 1150 17th St. NW.
Sept. 20 - 21. 9 a.m. CHINA — The Center for American Progress holds a discussion with Reps. Mark Kirk and Rick Larsen on U.S. policy toward China.
Location: 10th floor, 1333 H St. NW.
8 a.m. PEACE EVENT — The Globalfamily Congressional District Program holds an international peace event with Rep. Dennis Kucinich, Ghanan Ambassador Kwame Bawuah-Edusei, Rep. John Conyers, others.
Location: National Press Club.
9 a.m. WEARABLE POWER — The Defense Department holds a forum on the first public competition to design better portable electrical power supplies for solidiers in the field. Winner receives at $1 million prize.
Location: Suite 200, Federal Gateway Conferfence Center, 1100 New Jersey AVe. NW.
9:30 a.m. CLIMATE CHANGE — Brookings Institution holds a forum to discuss next week’s climate change meetings, with James Connaughton, chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality; Yvo de Boer, executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change; and David Sandalow, Brookings senior fellow and chair of the Energy & Climate Working Group at the Clinton Global Initiative.
Location: Hilton Embassy Row Hotel, 2015 Massachusetts Ave. NW.
10 a.m. CLIMATE CHANGE — The Environmental and Energy Study Institute holds a briefing with Sir Nicholas Stern a year after the release of the Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change.
Location: Room 1334, Longworth.
10 a.m. IRAQI REFUGEES — State Department holds a press briefing on technical issues related to Iraqi refugee assistance and resettlement.
Location: Room 2208, State Department.
10 a.m. SUDAN-ENVIRONMENT — First U.S. presentation of a new report report examining the enviornmental links to peace and conflict in Sudan, presented by th UN Enviornment Programme.
Location: 6th floor Flom Auditorium, Wilson International Center for Scholars, Reagan Trade Building.
10:15 a.m. IRAQ — Army Maj. Gen. Joseph F. Fil, Jr., commanding general of Multi-National Division Baghdad and First Cavalry Division, holds a briefing live from Iraq to provide an update on ongoing security operations in Iraq.
Location: Pentagon briefing room.
10:30 a.m. INTELLIGENCE HISTORY — The national security advisors to Presidents Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush and Gerald Ford will discuss the history of modern intelligence, focusing on the dramatic changes that have occurred since the end of the Cold War and the rise of the international struggle against terrorism. Participants: Brent Scowcroft, Tony Lake and Sandy Berger.
Location: ICC Auditorium, Georgetown University, 37th and O Streets NW.
10:30 a.m. IRAQ — The Senate Democratic Policy Committee holds a hearing on abuses in Iraq security and reconstruction contracting. Kathryn Helvenston-Wettengel, mother of a former Blackwater employee who was killed in Iraq; Bunnatine Greenhouse, formerly the highest-ranking civilian contracting official at the Army Corps of Engineers; Donald Vance, former employee of Shield Group Security Company; Robert Isakson, co-plaintiff in the lawsuit against Custer Battles; Stephen Kohn, Executive Director of the National Whistleblower Center; Alan Grayson, an attorney who represents whistleblowers.
Location: Room 226, Dirksen.
11 a.m. FIRST RESPONDERS — Policymakers, first responders and national supporting organizations mark the inaugural National First Responder Appreciation Day. Participants include Reps. Steve Cohen, International Association of Black Professional Firefighters President Johnny Brewington; others.
Location: Room 2226, Rayburn.
11 a.m. POW/MIA — The Pentagon holds its annual National POW/MIA Recognition Day event.
Location: Pentagon Mall Entrance Parade Field.
11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. IRAQ WITHDRAWAL — The Independent Institute hosts a discussion, “Troop Withdrawal: Looking Beyond Iraq.” Participants: Ivan Eland, Senior Fellow, the Independent Institute; author, “The Empire Has No Clothes: U.S. Foreign Policy Exposed;” Leon T. Hadar, Research Fellow at the Independent Institute and author of “Sandstorm: Policy Failure in the Middle East;” and David R. Henderson, Research Fellow at the Independent Institute and Hoover Institution; author of the new Independent Policy Report, “Do We Need to Go to War for Oil?;” Associate Professor of Economics, Naval Postgraduate School.
Location: Independent Institute, 1319 18th St. NW.
11:45 a.m. STUDENTS-FARM BILL — About 80 students from about 25 states hold a news conference, as part of a National Student Day of Action for an equitable farm bill.
Location: Upper Senate Park.
12 p.m. CLIMATE — The Center for American Progress holds a panel discussion on the president’s summit, climate change possibilities and the costs of inaction, with Rep. Edward Markey, center CEO John Podesta, others.
Location: 10th floor, 1333 H St. NW.
12 p.m. HOUSING — The National Housing Conference holds a discussion on international housing with Robert Dubinsky of the International Housing Coalition, others.
Location: Suite M-100, 1801 K St. NW.
12 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. INTERNATIONAL HOUSING — The National Housing Conference hosts a discussion on “International Housing: The Vital Link.” Speakers include: Robert Dubinsky, CEO, International Housing Coalition; Otto Hetzel, attorney and professor emeritus, Wayne State University Law School; Shekar Narasimhan, managing partner, Beekman Advisors, Inc.; and Kent Watkins, CEO, International Housing Innovations, Inc., and China Matters Initiative.
Location: Suite M-100, National Housing Conference, 1801 K St. NW.
12 p.m. - 2 p.m. INTERNATIONAL PEACE DAY — Alfredo Sfeir-Younis , economist and former senior advisor at The World Bank, will be joined by spiritual leaders from various countries and traditions to lead a Silent Peace Meditation, on International Peace Day.
Location: Jefferson Memorial Building.
12:15 p.m. HEALTH CARE — The Alliance for Health Reform and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation hold a briefing on employer-based health insurance coverage, with Paul Fronstin of EBRI, Robert Galvin of General Electric; Len Nichols of the New America Foundation and Gerry Shea of AFL-CIO.
Location: Room 325, Russell.
12:30 p.m. POLIO — The School of Advanced International Studies holds a program with Bruce Aylward, director of the WHO Global Polio Eradication Initiative.
Location: Room 200, 1619 Massachusetts Ave. NW.
12:30 p.m. SAMPER — Acting Smithsonian Secretary Cristian Samper speaks at a National Pres Club Newsmaker luncheon on the future of the organization.
Location: National Press Club.
3 p.m. EDUCATION — The Lexington Institute holds a briefing to discuss education policy issues, trends and development related to NCLB and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
Location: Room 2261, Rayburn.
All times local in Washington.
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Web page: http://www.maine.gov/tools/whatsnew/index.php?topic=SEC-LegalDocs&id=27515&v=Default
State of Maine
Office of Securities
21 State House Station
Augusta, Maine 04333-0121
IN RE: NOTICE OF INTENT
06-073
JAMES L. CLIFFORD
ALLEGATIONS
1. James L. Clifford (“Clifford”) (CRD # 1419478) is an individual who has been licensed in Maine as a sales representative or agent since at least 1985. His last known address is 955 Eastern Avenue, Holden, Maine 04429.
2. From December 4, 1997, to the present, Clifford has worked as a sales representative or agent at the Brewer, Maine, branch office of Investors Capital Corp. (“ICC”).
3. Pearl P. Schoppe (“Ms. Schoppe”) was a life-long resident of Orono, Maine, and the valedictorian of the 1936 graduating class of Husson College in Bangor, Maine.
4. In May of 1996 Ms. Schoppe established a living trust (the “Schoppe Trust”) with herself as trustee and with two of her relatives designated as trustees upon her death. The original trust document directed that upon Ms. Schoppe’s death, after payment of any of Ms. Schoppe’s debts, expenses and taxes, and certain distributions, the remainder of the trust property was to be held in trust for Husson College with income distributions to fund a scholarship program.
5. Ms. Schoppe was conservative with her investments. She essentially bought only certificates of deposits and fixed annuities.
6. In October of 1998, Ms. Schoppe, then age 80, amended the trust document to, among other things, change the trustee upon her death to Clifford. The amendment also changed the provision regarding the distribution of the remainder of her trust property. As amended, instead of the property being held in trust for Husson, the trust instrument dictated that the property was to be “distributed to the National Heritage Foundation F.B.O. Pearl P. Schoppe Foundation.”
7. The charitable purpose stated by Ms. Schoppe on the National Heritage Foundation application was “Assist students of the Greater Bangor/Brewer, Orono/Old Town, ME area who need financial aid to attend Husson College. To be paid out interest only 80% of interest to go to students, 20% of the interest to go back into the Foundation so foundation will continue to grow.”
8. Ms. Schoppe died on January 19, 2000.
9. On March 7, 2000, in Singer Island, Florida, Clifford and John T.”Dock” Houck, II, CEO of National Heritage Foundation, (“NHF”) completed the paperwork for “National Heritage Foundation Inc. FBO Pearl Schoppe FNDTN” to purchase a $150,000 variable annuity from Conseco Variable Annuity Insurance Company through ICC, using funds from the Schoppe Trust.
10. On May 11, 2000, Clifford sent an additional $50,000 from the Schoppe Trust’s checking account to Conseco to add to the variable annuity.
11. The subaccounts chosen by Clifford and Houck were largely more-risky growth funds, when Ms. Schoppe’s stated intent and investment history dictated the use of more conservative income-producing investments.
12. The variable annuity sold by Clifford to the foundation was unsuitable for the charitable purposes expressed by Ms. Schoppe. There was no tax benefit and no value to having a death benefit on the life of Mr. Houck to offset the higher costs and reduced liquidity of the investment.
13. Clifford received $12,600 in commissions on these transactions. In addition, Clifford has paid himself trustee fees exceeding $42,000.00 from the trust assets despite the fact that he appears to have provided little if any valuable services to the trust.
14. Since the purchase of the variable annuity in March of 2000, Husson College has received no scholarship money from the Pearl P. Schoppe Foundation.
15. Under federal law, variable annuities are securities and the offer and sale of variable annuities is regulated by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) under the Securities Act of 1933 and Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
16. The NASD is a national securities association registered with the SEC under §15A and in accordance with the provision of §19(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
17. NASD Rules are filed with the SEC and promulgated under §19(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. NASD rules apply to “all members and persons associated with a member. Persons associated with a member shall have the same duties and obligations as a member” under the association’s rules. NASD Rule 0115.
18. ICC is a member of NASD and Clifford is a person associated with ICC.
19. NASD Rule 2310 requires that a member have reasonable grounds for believing that a recommended purchase is suitable for a customer based on the facts disclosed by the customer including the customer’s investment objectives.
20. By virtue of his training and experience, Clifford knew the requirements of NASD Rule 2310. Through his customer relationship with Ms. Schoppe, Clifford knew her investment objectives and the charitable purpose for which she established the Pearl P. Schoppe Foundation. Thus, Clifford intentionally or knowingly failed to comply with NASD Rule 2310. 32 M.R.S.A. §10313(1)(B).
21. By using funds of the Schoppe Trust to purchase an unsuitable investment, Clifford engaged in unlawful or unethical conduct in the securities business. 32 M.R.S.A. §10313(1)(G).
22. Pursuant to 32 M.R.S.A. §§10313 and 16702, the Securities Administrator may, after notice and opportunity for hearing, issue an order to revoke the license of a licensee or impose a bar on a licensee if the Securities Administrator finds that the order is in the public interest and that the licensee: (1) has engaged in unlawful, unethical or dishonest conduct in the securities business; or (2) has intentionally or knowingly violated or failed to comply with a rule under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
NOTICE
Notice is hereby given that the Securities Administrator intends to issue an Order to Revoke Clifford’s Agent License and Censure Him or Bar Him from Association under 32 M.R.S.A. §§10313(1) and 16702(1).
If Clifford wants to request a hearing in this matter, he must do so in writing within thirty (30) calendar days of the date of this Notice of Intent. 32 M.R.S.A. §§10708, 16702(1).
Date: November 28, 2006 /s/ Michael J. Colleran
` Michael J. Collera
Securities Administrator
Date: November 28, 2006 /s/ Bonnie E. Russell
Bonnie E. Russell
Assistant Securities Administrator
Date: November 28, 2006 /s/ Willis P. Smedberg
Willis P. Smedberg
Investigator/Examiner
Last Updated: December 20, 2006 4:42 PM
Posted by: Eduardo Alarcon
19319 Inverness Dr.
Spicewood, TX 78669
(512) 217-6655
Eduardo.alarcon@sbcglobal.net
Posted by: eduardo Alarcon | December 29, 2007 9:00 PM