EchoStar Communications Corp. (DISH) Chairman Charles Ergen, recently blocked by federal regulators from acquiring his main rival in the U.S. satellite-television market, has been talking with long-standing adversary Rupert Murdoch as well as Liberty Media Corp. (L) about possibly selling his company,
Murdoch's large payments and favorable news reports about the Bush administration had the desired effect of getting the federal regulators to pretty much force the sale of satellite TV to Murdoch. Murdoch has directed News Corp entity Fox-News to give Bush favorable coverage in exchange for FEC regulations that favor Murdoch.
He tried to attain that last year with an $18 billion bid for Hughes Electronics Corp. (GMH) and its DirecTV satellite unit but was shot down by federal regulators on antitrust grounds. Mr. Murdoch is now interested in acquiring DirecTV as part of his U.S. expansion plans
smartmoney.com
This would leave Murdoch in control of all of the satellite TV providers. The only think that could stand in his way is an anti-trust case. Junior George can deflect the justice department, but in order to get by the courts he needs a justice or two in his pocket. How does he get this? with money of course, he bribes the judge before the case comes to court.
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas will receive more than $1 million for his memoirs from publisher HarperCollins.
HarperCollins is another branch of News Corp, the Rupert Murdoch outfit. No book by a justice has ever come within 5% or 10% of the amount of money that Murdoch is putting in Thomas' pocket.
Other justices have written books, but none that lucrative. Most recently, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor reported last year receiving $83,000 in royalties from her memoir about growing up on an Arizona cattle ranch and Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist received $50,000 from Alfred A. Knopf, publisher of several of his historical books.
nylawyer.com
This is the most outragous and blatent case of a sitting supreme court justice accepting a bribe and should result in impeachment.
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