Air America Living Off Little Kids

This story has been rattling around the blogosphere for 10 days or so, but I hadn't commented on it because I hadn't found a good description of the problem. Today Political Diary has a nice, succinct description of how Air America has been living off funds intended for a children's charity:

Al Franken steals money from needy New York City kids. OK, that's not the story exactly, but hold off calling us a lying big, fat idiot liar, or whatever, because there are financial shenanigans afoot at Mr. Franken's employer, the Air America radio network.

When Air America was trolling for startup capital in 2004, they found an investor in the form of the Gloria Wise Boys & Girls Club, a Bronx-based nonprofit that aims to keep kids out of trouble. The club says it serves 15,000 kids every year and ran an Air America-branded summer camp in upstate New York that's since closed. What appears to have made the organization a likely investor was the fact that Air America's chairman, Evan Cohen, was also a development executive at Gloria Wise. The club loaned Air America a half-million dollars and loaned Mr. Cohen another $300,000. Problem is, the club's president claims not to have been fully informed about the transaction and the loans were never repaid.

Gloria Wise receives $10 million in grants from New York City. That's now in jeopardy as investigators try to unravel the mess. Air America's current owner, Piquant LLC, denies involvement and says it's upset because the loan wasn't on the books when they bought the network. They plan on repaying the loan. The company was formed by a core group of investors that did not include Mr. Cohen.

Next time Mr. Franken makes note of a Halliburton accounting irregularity, he might also consider the accounting irregularities behind his own paycheck and ask how many poor city kids might miss out on camp because of Air America's curious financial dealings. Quick, someone call Al Sharpton. He works nearby and knows how to handle companies that scam poor kids.

Some of my SCBA brethren have been discussing this issue and the lack of attention it's gotten from the LA & NY Times. Given all the attention given to Karl Rove and the Plameaquiddick non-story, you'd think they'd be interested in covering a real scandal. But of course, this involves a liberal organization, and in the minds of both Times they can do no wrong.

We'll see if pressure from the blogosphere, and now the Wall Street Journal, can stir the slumbering Times.