Review of `William Lloyd Garrison and The Humanitarian Reformers'--Part 3

(Following book review first appeared in the November 9, 1994 issue of the Lower East Side alternative weekly, Downtown. See below for parts 1 and 2.)

Although Garrison was white, William Lloyd Garrison and The Humanitarian Reformers author Russel Nye points out that “from the beginning the free Negro formed the core of the Liberator’s financial support, and until the day of his death its editor remained a Negro idol, nearly an object of worship.” The few hundred free African-Americans who subscribed to the Liberator in the early part of 1831 were apparently attracted by Garrison’s editorial support for the immediate, not the gradual, abolition of slavery and Garrison’s opposition to those abolitionists who believed that following their emancipation the ex-slaves of the South should be sent back to Africa to establish colonies like Liberia—instead of being integrated into U.S. society as equals. Yet, despite the support of predominantly African-American subscribers in Boston, Philadelphia and New York, “the early issues of the Liberator caused no great stir in Boston, or elsewhere” and “`his paper was received,’ Garrison said, with `suspicion and apathy,’ and he found it hard to pay rent…”

What enabled Garrison to turn the Liberator into a financially viable, although still low-circulation, weekly--and transformed both Garrison and his newspaper into nationally prominent symbols of militant abolitionism—was the August 1831 slave revolt which Nat Turner led—in which 52 whites were killed. Following the suppression of Nat Turner’s slave rebellion and the post-revolt lynching of over 120 slaves by the Southern planters, Garrison and his newspaper—which had only started publishing less than nine months before the rebellion—were apparently blamed by the Southern press for this 1831 slave revolt. As Nye notes:

“Turner was led, wrote the Tarborough, North Carolina Free Press, by `an incendiary paper, the Liberator, published in either Boston or Philadelphia by a white man, with the avowed purpose of exciting rebellion in the South.’ One by one Southern newspapers picked up the charge until the South was filled with clamor against Garrison.”

Paradoxically, as Nye also notes, “Garrison, by his own admission, had not a single subscriber south of the Potomac,’ and no Southern agents.”

Yet, because Garrison “did exchange with some 100 Southern editors, following contemporary journalist practice” and “Garrison’s prose lent itself admirably to juicy quotations,” the Southern press conveyed “the impression that Garrison represented a far larger influence in Northern antislavery circles than he did” and “the obscure reformer, toiling in a barren Boston loft, suddenly emerged as arch-symbol of antislavery extremism.”

As a result, “invitations to lecture” for Garrison “came in” from throughout the North, “particularly from Negro groups, and the Liberator’s fortunes improved” because “the attacks emanating from the South,” made Garrison appear to be “the outstanding figure in New England antislavery circles.” Ironically, despite his notorious media image in the South as being “the abolitionist who instigated the Nat Turner revolt,” Nye observes that “the fact was that Garrison was a nonresistant pacifist, opposed to violence in any form” who “had publicly censured David Walker’s incendiary pamphlet, An Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the World,” in 1829. (end of part 3)

(Downtown 11/9/94)

Update on Military Coup In Honduras

Following is text of the update alert on what's been happening in Honduras that was posted on the www.rightsaction.org site on June 28, 2009 at 6 p.m.:

( For more information, CONTACT: In Guatemala, Annie Bird (Rights Action co-director), annie@rightsaction.org, 011-502-5005-1530; in North America, Grahame Russell (Rights Action co-director), 1-860-751-4285, info@rightsaction.org]

DESPITE THE MILITARY COUP
THE HONDURAN PEOPLE ARE DEFENDING THEIR DEMOCRACY
THE CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM POLL CONTINUES

Democracy in Honduras was violated by a military coup this morning, but the people of Honduras have come to the defense constitutional order and democracy in Honduras.
Though the President was forced into exile in Costa Rica, the goal of stopping the public opinion poll has not been successful.

Civil society leaders report that more then 25,000 Honduras are protesting in front of the National Palace in support of the president, despite reports that the entry and exits to some towns have been blocked by the military to prevent public protests.
Though it is reported that in some areas the ballot boxes have been captured by the military, promoters of the poll have establish mobile polling stations to defend the ballot boxes. The military has not been able to occupy all of the country, and some towns have declared that they will not recognize the authority of the military imposed government.

Though the President of the Congress, Roberto Michelletti, read a letter of resignation allegedly signed by President Zelaya and his cabinet, Zelaya from Costa Rica has denied signing the letter, as have his cabinet members.
The Congress the proceeded to name Roberto Michelletti, a strong opponent of Zelaya, as president de facto.

Governments around the world, particularly in Latin America, have declared that they will not recognize any not elected by the population of Honduras.

The Chancellor of Honduras, Patricia Rodas, has been kidnapped by the military, in front of member of the diplomatic corps, and the ambassadors of Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua were kidnapped with her but later released. The whereabouts of Patricia Rodas are unknown.

* * *
CONTACT YOUR OWN MEDIA, MEMBERS OF CONGRESS, SENATORS, MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT, TO DEMAND:

•a return of the constitutional government

•no recognition, whatsoever, of this military coup and the Congressional appointed ‘de facto’ government of Roberto Michelletti

•respect for safety and human rights of all Hondurans

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Please re-distribute this info all around.

Review of `William Lloyd Garrison and The Humanitarian Reformers'--Part 2

(Following book review first appeared in the November 9, 1994 issue of the Lower East Side alternative weekly, Downtown. See below for part 1.)

The son of a sailing master, Garrison was born in 1805. In 1808, however, his father, Abijah Garrison, deserted Garrison’s family and his mother, Frances Lloyd Garrison, was compelled to work as a domestic while Garrison was sometimes sent out to beg on the streets. The local Baptist Church deacon, however, later arranged for the Newburyport Herald semi-weekly newspaper publisher to take the 10-year-old Garrison on as a printer’s apprentice for seven years; and it was there that Garrison learned the technical skills required to later put out the Liberator and became acquainted with the world of books and ideas. During his long apprenticeship, however, Garrison continued to spend his spare time in the church, not in the saloon, and Nye notes that “perhaps the only trait that set young Garrison apart from his fellow apprentices was his piety.”

At the age of 17, Garrison started writing essays, under a pen name, for the Newburyport Herald, where he continued to work after his apprenticeship. During the five years between the time Garrison stopped working for the Newburyport Herald and the time he started editing and publishing the Liberator, Garrison borrowed money from the Newburyport Herald and attempted to publish his own newspaper, moved to Boston in 1827 to work as a printer when this first publishing venture failed, and also edited a number of reform publications.

But Nye notes that the turning point in Garrison’s life came in March 1828, when the then-23-year-old printer-editor met Benjamin Lundy, the antislavery reformer, who took rooms for a few nights at the same Collier’s boarding house in Boston in which Garrison lived. As a result of his acquaintance with Lundy, Garrison became more deeply involved in the abolitionist cause and made the initial contacts which enabled him to fund the first issue of the Liberator, which began publication on Jan. 1, 1831. (end of part 2)

(Downtown 11/9/94)

Review of `William Lloyd Garrison and The Humanitarian Reformers'--Part 1

(Following book review first appeared in the November 9, 1994 issue of the Lower East Side alternative weekly, Downtown.)

In pre-Civil War journalism history, William Lloyd Garrison’s weekly abolitionist newspaper, The Liberator, played a significant role. Penny press newspapers like James Gordon Bennett’s New York Herald, had much larger circulations than Garrison’s Liberator, yet because Garrison utilized his newspaper and his journalistic skills to confront the nation’s greatest pre-Civil War moral issue—the continued enslavement of African-American people—his ultimate positive historical impact probably proved to be greater than Bennett’s.

William Lloyd Garrison and the Humanitarian Reformers by Russel B. Nye (Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1955) describes the life of the militant abolitionist, from his economically humble beginnings in Newburyport, Massachusetts, through his early life in poverty, his work as a printer’s apprentice as a teenager and his pre-Liberator journalistic activity, on to the post-1831 years, when his editorship of the Liberator made him a prominent national figure.

Nye sees Garrison’s life and his Liberator newspaper as one more reflection of the spirit of humanitarian reform which attempted to perfect U.S. society, which Nye feels was a major characteristic of many of the people who lived in the United States during the 19th Century. In Nye’s view, the humanitarian reform impulse, which led Garrison to devote most of his life to the cause of abolitionism, as well as other human rights issues, flowed out of his strong religious faith:

“The central fact of Garrison’s life was his religious faith. The Bible was the only book he ever really read and his abolitionism itself spread directly from his belief that slavery violated God’s law.” (end of part 1)

(Downtown 11/9/94)

Time For A Federal Rent Regulation Law?

Nearly six months after the inauguration of Democratic President Obama, many working-class tenants in the United States still can’t afford to enter many U.S. retail stores and buy many consumer goods anymore because they’re paying over 30 percent of their monthly family incomes to parasitic U.S. landlords. But the Democratic Obama Administration still hasn’t enacted any kind of federal rent regulation law to provide more affordable rents for tenants in all localities within the United States.

Yet by the late 1970s at least 169 other localities in the United States had joined New York City in reintroducing rent regulation laws to protect local tenants from excessive rent increases. And as recently as July 2003, 166 communities in the United States still had rent regulation of some form, despite the continued failure of the Democratic Party to push the U.S. Congress to enact a federal rent regulation law.

In the early part of the 20th century, working-class tenants generally paid landlords between 15 percent and 25 percent of the wages they earned each month. But in the early part of the 21st century, most working-class tenants in the United Sates now pay their landlords over 25 percent of the wages they earn each month; and, in many cities, far more.

Yet even in those communities that have some form of rent regulation, the local real estate industry, landlords, and other special real estate interests are working to limit and weaken tenant protections.

Local real estate boards in coordination with national professional and lobbying associations including the National Association of Realtors, the National Council of the Multi-Housing Industry, and the National Apartment Association, lobby politicians—whose campaigns they bankroll—to bore loopholes into existing regulations. For example, many New York landlords obtained permanent “major capital improvement” rent increases in their rent-stabilized apartments in the 1980s and 1990s just for replacing old windows, thanks to a legal loophole that resulted from lobbyist pressure on the state legislature.

According to a 1997 report, “Rent Deregulation in California and Massachusetts,” by political scientist and urban policy scholar Peter Dreier, California apartment owners and other real estate interests “invested millions in campaign contributions to support anti-rent control legislation,” spending “an estimated $50 million to fight rent control” between 1985 and 1997.

On the national level, the National Association of Realtors contributed over $4 million to fund the electoral campaigns of Democratic and Republican Party candidates for federal office in 2002.

As Dreier puts it:

“It is difficult to exaggerate the political influence of the real estate industry. For years, the various components of the industry—apartment owners, developers, realtors, managers and lenders—worked together to oppose rent control and other tenant protections. This persistence and unity eventually paid off…Industry organizations and their staffs developed close ties to legislators at the state and local levels over the course of several decades.”

(Dollars & Sense magazine 7/03)

Citigroup's Lobbyists Revisited

One reason Citigroup executives seem to have so much special influence over the political and economic decisions made by the Democratic Obama Administration is that former Citigroup executives like Louis “The Vacuum Cleaner” Susman will now be occupying official U.S. government positions like the U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom post.

Another reason Citigroup executives may have so much special influence over the U.S. government these days is that former staff members of some politically powerful U.S. Senators and Congressional Representatives, U.S. federal agencies or the White House are employed as Washington, D.C. lobbyists for Citigroup’s special interests.

1. Shanti Ochs Stanton http://www.opensecrets.org/revolving/rev_summary.php?id=26402

A former aide to Democratic Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi named Shanti Ochs Stanton, for example, was employed as a lobbyist in 2008 for Citigroup’s Citigroup Management Corporation lobbying firm. Before working as Speaker of the House Pelosi’s aide and then being hired to lobby for Citigroup, Ochs-Stanton was also a Floor Assistant to the former Democratic House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt. During the first half of 2008 alone, the Citigroup Management Corporation for which Pelosi’s former aide worked spent $2.8 million on lobbying the U.S. government for special favors and privileges.

2. Robert E. Barnett/Barnett, Sivon & Natter http://bsnlawfirm.com/bio_bob.htm

Citigroup’s special interests in 2008 were also represented by the lobbying firm of former Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation [FDIC] Chairman Robert E. Barnett, who was the FDIC chairman between 1976 and 1978, during the Democratic Carter Administration. Former FDIC Chairman Barnett’s lobbying firm—Barnett, Sivon & Natter P.C.— has received a lobbying income of $640,000 since 2007 from its Citigroup client.

3. Charles “Chuck” Brain/ Capitol Hill Strategies http://www.caphillstrat.com/charlesmbrain.html

The Capitol Hill Strategies lobbying firm of Charles “Chuck” Brain, the former Director of Legislative Affairs in the Executive Office of the President (when U.S. Secretary of State Clinton’s husband was President in the 1990s), also represented the special interests of Citigroup in 2008. Since 2007, former Democratic Clinton White House Director of Legislative Affairs Brain’s firm has received a lobbying income of $540,000 from its Citigroup client.

Before working in the Clinton White House and, subsequently, becoming the president of the Capitol Hill Strategies lobbying firm, Brain was a legislative aide to Democratic Rep. James Shannon of Massachusetts between 1979 and 1981 and an Assistant Staff Director of the House Ways & Means Committee between 1987 and 1994.

4. Alex Sternhell/Cypress Advocacy LLC
http://www.opensecrets.org/revolving/rev_summary.php?id=70545
http://www.cypressgroupdc.com/advocacy/clients.html

A former Deputy Staff Director of the U.S. Senate Banking Committee and former aide to Democratic Senator Christopher Dodd of Connecticut named Alex Sternhell, of the Cypress Advocacy LLC lobbying firm, also was a lobbyist for Citigroup in 2008. Besides lobbying for Citigroup’s special interests, Sternhell also was a lobbyist for the American Insurance Association corporate pressure group in 2008. Citigroup lobbyist Sternhell also was a former aide of Democratic Rep. Jim Bacchus of Florida and Democratic Rep. Marion Berry of Arkansas before he joined the Cypress Advocacy LLC lobbying firm.

5. Patrick Cave/Cypress Advocacy LLC
http://www.cypressgroupdc.com/advocacy/about_cave.html

6. Ben Dupuy/Cypress Advocacy LLC
http://www.cypressgroupdc.com/advocacy/about_dupuy.html

Other members of the Cypress Advocacy LLC firm who lobbied on behalf of its Citigroup client in 2008 were a former Acting Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Treasury Department and former senior advisor to Republican Rep. Richard Baker of Louisiana named Patrick Cave and a former Deputy Press Secretary of Republican Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama named Ben Dupuy. Since 2007, the Cypress Advocacy LLC firm has received a lobbying income of $370,000 from its Citigroup client.

7. G.Stewart Hall/ Ogilvy Government Relations
http://www.ogilvygr.com/who/hall.cfm

8. Dean Aguillen/Ogilvy Government Relations
http://www.ogilvygr.com/who/aguillen.cfm

9. Jimmy Williams
http://www.opensecrets.org/revolving/rev_summary.php?id=70476

Citigroup’s special interests were also represented in 2008 by the lobbying firm of Ogilvy Government Relations, whose managing director, G. Stewart Hall, was the legislative director for Republican Senator Richard Shelby between 1994 and 1996. In addition, a former advisor to Speaker of the House Pelosi named Dean Aguillen was a senior vice-president of the Ogilvy Government Relations firm in 2008, as was a former advisor to Vice President Joe Biden and a former staff director of the U.S. Senate’s Bank Subcommittee on Economic Policy named Jimmy Williams.

Besides Citigroup, other clients for which the Ogilvy Government Relations firm (that employed former advisors to Speaker of the House Pelosi and Vice President Biden) lobbied for in 2008 included Chevron, Credit Suisse Securities, Visa, Carlyle Group and Motorola; and since 2007, Ogilvy Government Relations has has received a lobbying income of $640,000 million for representing the special interests of its Citigroup client in Washington, D.C..

10. Steven Elmendorf/ Elmendorf Strategies

11. Rob Cogorno/Elmendorf Strategies

12. Kristi Kennedy/Elmendorf Strategies

http://www.elmendorfstrategies.com/professionals.php

The Elmendorf Strategies lobbying firm of Steven Elmendorf, the former Chief of Staff to the former Democratic House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, also represented the special interests of Citigroup in 2008. Since 2007, Elmendorf Strategies has received a lobbying income of $180,000 from representing its Citigroup/Citigroup Management Corporation client.

Former Democratic House Minority Leader Gephardt’s former Chief of Staff’s lobbying firm also employed a former aide to Gephart and a former aide to Democratic Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland named Rob Cogorno. In addition, the former Counsel and Legislative Director for Democratic Senator Paul Sarbanes of Maryland between 1999 and 2006, Kristi Kennedy, was employed by Elmendorf Strategies in 2008 to lobby on behalf of the special corporate interests of its Citigroup Management Corporation client.

Speaking of Elmendorf Strategies lobbyist for Citigroup Management Corporation Kennedy, a former Counsel to Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts named Anthony Podesta was a lobbyist for the undemocratic Egyptian government of Hosni Mubarak in 2008. Podesta’s PLM Group LLC lobbying firm

http://www.livingstongroupdc.com/PLM.html

—whose chairman is a former Democratic Congressional representative named Toby Moffett Jr.—received a lobbying income from clients like the undemocratic Egyptian government of $220,000 in 2007. The other lobbying firm that Senator Ted Kennedy’s former Counsel operated (and chaired himself), The Podesta Group,

http://www.podesta.com/biopages/TonyPodesta.htm

received a lobbying income of $10.9 million in 2007 from representing the special corporate interests of clients such as Wal-Mart, General Dynamics, Lockheed Martin, the Corrections Corporation of America, Boeing, NPR and the Washington Post Company.

At least two lobbyists for the undemocratic Israeli government in 2008—Paul S. Berger

http://www.arnoldandporter.com/professionals.cfm?u=BergerPaulS&action=view&id=559
and Lawrence A. Schneider

http://www.arnoldandporter.com/professionals.cfm?u=SchneiderLawrenceA&action=view&id=102


—were employed, incidentally, by the lobbying firm of Arnold & Porter LLP, whose lobbying income from representing the special interest of clients like the undemocratic Israeli government in 2007 was $4.98 million.

Given the number of former U.S. government officials who now operate or work for operate lobbying firms that have received a lot of money from Citigroup executives in recent years (or from undemocratic governments like the Egyptian and Israeli governments), it’s not surprising that—despite the Obama campaign’s lofty rhetoric of “change” in 2008—in 2009 Citigroup seems to still have so much special influence over the U.S. government’s political and economic agenda. But under the current undemocratic U.S. political system of “Plutocratic Minority Rule” and “Corporate Lobbyocracy,” it’s logical that people in the United State still remain under the Iron Heel of Wall Street bankers nearly 6 months after Obama’s inauguration.

(source: Washington Representatives 2008 Fall issue)

Obama's Ambassador to UK & Citigroup's Israeli Business Connections

As the Center for Responsive Politics’ web site recently noted, the Democratic Obama Administration’s Ambassador to the UK-Designate Louis Susman--a recently retired Vice Chairman of Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking and Citigroup International Advisory Board member—“has reportedly earned the nickname the `vacuum cleaner’ and `big bundler’ for his prowess as a bundler of campaign cash.”

According to Public Citizen, for example, Susman bundled at least $100,000 for Obama’s presidential campaign and at least $300,000 for Obama’s inauguration—with $50,000 of this money coming from the recently bailed-out Citigroup executive’s personal funds. In addition, the former Citigroup executive and his wife “contributed at least $581,400 to federal candidates, committees and parties, with 99 percent of the sum going to Democrats, including at least $12,800 to Obama,” according to the Center for Responsive Politics’ web site.

While the Obama White House press release of May 27, 2009, which announced Susman’s nomination to be its Ambassador to the UK, indicated that he used to be the Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking Vice Chairman, was a member of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team’s board of directors from 1975 to 1989, worked for Salomon Brothers and “was appointed by President Ronald Reagan to the U.S. Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy,” it failed to mention some other interesting recent business affiliations of Louis “The Vacuum Cleaner” Susman.

According to a November 15, 2000 Business Wire article, Susman has also been a member of the corporate boards of D & K Healthcare Resources, Inc., the U.S. Can Corporation, Drury Inns and Knightsbridge Solutions LLC in recent years. The same article also revealed that at Salomon Brothers, Susman “provided leadership for major merger transactions, representing Dayton Hudson in the purchase of Marshall Field’s, General Dynamics in the sale of Cessna Corporation, and LG Electronics in the purchase of Zenith Electronics Corporation.”

U.S. Ambassador to the UK-Designate Susman apparently has a lot more experience working as a Citigroup investment banking and collecting campaign contributions for some of the U.S. politicians who recently authorized the use of public funds to bail out Citigroup’s executives than diplomatic experience. But the Citigroup firm he worked for apparently has had a lot of experience doing business in Israel in recent years, despite international calls for an economic boycott of Israel until it finally ends its violation of Palestinian national self-determination rights.

As a November 1, 1999 article in the Jerusalem Post observed:

“Citibank, a subsidiary of Citigroup, has been operating in Israel since February 1996, when it became the first major international bank to open a representative office. Citibank now is expected to be the first major international bank to open a full-service branch in Israel. Another Citigroup subsidiary, the Salomon Smith Barney investment bank, has been active in Israel for many years, serving Israeli clients out of New York, London and a representative office in Tel Aviv.

“Today's announcement was made by Citigroup's chairman and co-chief executive officer, Sanford I. Weill, at a meeting with the Governor of the Bank of Israel, Jacob Frenkel. Also attending were William R. Rhodes, Vice Chairman of Citigroup and Citibank; Ron Braverman, Country Corporate Officer for Citigroup in Israel; and Dr. Itzhak Tal, Supervisor of Banks - Bank of Israel.

“Mr. Weill said: `Citibank's decision to open a full-service banking business in Israel reflects Israel's continuing macroeconomic progress and our confidence in the future growth of trade and commercial flows to and from Israel and other parts of the Middle East.’

“Mr. Rhodes said: `Our Israel branch is part of our strategy to serve our customers globally and represents our vote of confidence in the Israeli economy. We see major opportunities here and look forward to introducing advanced technology and international banking skills while building new relationships with the Israeli corporate community.’…”

And according to the Citibank website:

“Citi has been actively serving Israeli clients since the late 1980's through its Markets & Banking business…

“With more than 140 employees in Israel, we proudly provide clients with a wide range of corporate, investment and private banking products and services.

“Our Markets & Banking business provides services to leading Israeli companies, financial institutions and public sector organizations, as well as global companies active in the Israeli market….

“Our investment bank is a leading underwriter for Israeli companies seeking to issue equity and debt securities in the global markets…

“Our Global Wealth Management business includes our private banking services, which operate in Israel through a team of private banking professionals working to service the personal needs of our high net worth client base….

“We are also a member of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and one of the primary dealers in the government bond market….Citibank is one of the leading and largest Primary Dealers in the Israeli government bond market….

“Among the significant transactions arranged by Citibank in Israel were the privatization of Oil Refineries, the Cellcom international syndicated loan transaction and the Israel Electric marine natural gas pipeline system project financing transaction….

“The Investment Bank is a leading underwriter for Israeli companies seeking to issue equity and debt securities in the global markets, and a leader in mergers and acquisitions advisory. Israeli entities have greatly benefited from Citi’s ability to channel its significant global expertise across a broad range of products and services in key industry segments including technology, healthcare, energy, real estate, financial services, telecom and other segments. The development of the Israeli client relationships across Citi enables Israeli entities to benefit from the valuable introduction to leading global opportunities and world class execution and advice.

“Among innovative and significant deals completed by Citi Investment Bank was successfully advising on the sale of M-Systems, PowerDsine and Actimize; advising Spansion on the acquisition of Saifun; public equity offerings for Cellcom and Delek US; and acquisition financing for Alony-Hetz’s purchase of shares in PSP Switzerland…

“Citibank International Personal Bank in EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) provides Israeli clients with a personalized banking and investment service to help them manage and grow their wealth. Each client is assigned an experienced Hebrew Relationship Manager and has access to financial solutions to suit the client’s needs…. Clients typically have a minimum of US$100,000 or currency equivalent to invest in London, or US$50,000 to domicile in Jersey.”

A September 27, 2006 article that was posted on the Dun & Bradstreet web site at www.duns100.com provided some more detail about the business links between the investment bank that U.S. Ambassador to the UK-Designate Susman recently vice-chaired and the Israeli banking system and Tel Aviv Stock Exchange:

“Global Transaction Services, a business of Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking, and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) today announced that Citigroup Israel would provide direct custody and clearing (DCC) services to clients through the TASE Clearing House, making Citigroup the first foreign bank in Israel to offer DCC services to a large international client base. Citibank N.A. was recently approved as a member of TASE and the TASE Clearing House, enabling the bank to offer securities clearing and settlement services in Israel…

“Andrew Gelb, Global Head of Direct Custody and Clearing for Citigroup’s Global Transaction Services business said, `We are extremely excited to provide clients with a wide range of DCC services on-the-ground in Israel. We are in a unique position to leverage our global network and experience in growth markets worldwide to the benefit of our clients and the market.'

“Ralph Shaaya, Citigroup’s Country Officer for Israel, added, `This once again affirms our commitment to the Israeli marketplace through the introduction of a new value-added service to the international institutions investing in Israel.'

“Ester Levanon, CEO of TASE, said, `The joining of Citigroup as a member of TASE’s Clearing House is a continuation of the trend of extending the activity of international entities in the Israeli capital market. This is an important expression of trust of a leading financial group, that will strengthen the Stock Exchange and the Israeli market.'

“TASE and Citigroup have been working together for several years. In 2001 the TASE Clearing House developed the Galaxy System in collaboration with Citigroup. Galaxy allows members to effectively manage, reconcile and standardize clearing and settlement processes and minimize risk. The system integrates between the high professional standard of the Clearing House in Israel and the high standard financial credibility of Citigroup in the world. Galaxy services currently cater to the US market and will soon be launched in Europe and other global markets. The system provides services to four of the leading banks in Israel.”

And, according a March 11, 2009 Globes-McClatcy-Tribune Information Service article, the Citi Israel Ltd. division of the investment banking firm in which Susman was an executive has also “led deals for Tower Semiconductor Ltd., Gazit Inc. and the most recent overseas bond offering by Israel Electric Corporation.”

So don’t expect the Obama Administration’s new Ambassador to the United Kingdom to be eager to invite many Palestinian solidarity activists in the UK who have been involved in the recent “Boycott Israel” street protests in London to party with him much at the U.S. Embassy there.