British journalist, Andrew Jennings, has been investigating Sepp Blatter, his cronies, and FIFA for a long time. So he was pleased when the FBI had taken action. “I know that they are criminal scum,” Jennings said, “and I’ve known it for years.”
That’s the storyline from Michael E Miller’s The Washington Post article about Jennings and FIFA (June 3). It’s a great article—an even better story—because it shows the value of investigative reporting.
Courtesy; amazon.com
For years Jennings has been an outspoken critic of FIFA and Blatter. The titles of two books, published nearly a decade apart, scream Jennings’ interpretations: FOUL! The Secret World of FIFA: Bribes, Vote Rigging, and Ticket Scandals (2006) and Omerta: Sepp Blatter’s FIFA Organized Crime Family (2014).
For sure, nobody is sorry for Blatter or FIFA. The underhanded nature of FIFA’s dealings has been known for years. And, even though Blatter hasn’t been indicted (at least not yet), it probably won’t be long before his name is added to the FBI’s list.
If you know anything about Blatter you know he’s an empire-builder. Soccer-crazy while growing up, his father forbid him to sign a pro contract. So, instead, Blatter worked other sides of sport. He labored as a journalist and, later, in sports management, beginning in ice hockey and migrating to soccer—at a time when FIFA was anything but the billion-dollar titan it is today.
Blatter worked his way up the FIFA hierarchy, then took it over, controlling it for decades. He was ready to embark on his 5th term as president. Now he’ll be gone no later than March 2016. (Note: Even though the presidential vote was taken just last week, FIFA bylaws require a 4-month notice of members before holding a vote of this magnitude.)
While the FBI action–at least in one sense–is a classic “bad guys finally get caught” story, there’s another angle to consider. It’s about how we’re doing legal business in America.
Consider these facts. The U.S. isn’t soccer-mad. FIFA isn’t the NFL, MLB, the NBA, or the NHL. Indictments were brought against non-citizens. And the U.S. had to cross international boarders to “get their guys.”
What’s this all about?
Courtesy: Haymarket Books
For answers in a situation like this I always turn to Dave Zirin, columnist for The Nation. Zirin came through again. His May 27 column is a good read: “Down Goes FIFA! Down Goes FIFA!” Zirin also talked about FIFA during a segment of last Friday’s TV news program, Democracy, Now! (You can read the transcript or view it here.)
No doubt the charges the U.S. brought against FIFA cronies are serious and numerous, including wire fraud and racketeering. But how could the U.S. bring those charges legally?
Zirin reports that the Justice Department “used a prosecutorial authority often present in international terror cases.” (The Nation, May 27). That’s new to this country—one of the laws put in place after 9/11—and its purpose was “stretched” in this case, enabling the U.S. to take legal action.
But here’s the thing and it’s political.
Politics #1: FIFA cronies are a popular target. Nobody here gives a rip about those guys. They did wrong–Big Time–and should pay.
Courtesy: nypost.com
Politics #2: There’s a new U.S. Attorney General—Loretta Lynch—who’s looking to make a name for herself, defining her tenure and leadership style. What better way to do it than against FIFA, which has a Mafia-look to it?
Politics #3: The N.Y. branch of the FBI—the branch that took the lead in bringing down the mob—was run by Lynch before she went to DC. She took this portfolio with her. It’s low-hanging fruit.
Politics #4: The Feds get to star in political theatre — with the puffery you’d expect — including the hyperbolic statement: “FIFA is being issued a Red Card.”
Politics #5: The U.S. Government gets a chance–and it doesn’t happen very often–to get applause from both sides of the political spectrum, the Left and Right. Those on the Left applaud serious sports reform. Those on the Right, neocons especially, applaud the U.S. crossing international boundaries to assert authority.
Meanwhile–and this is a critical point–key players in financial institutions who have engaged in corruption–or at least were complicit in illegal actions in the past…no indictments there, at least not yet. Fines, not jail time, have been penalties paid for wrongdoing—billions of dollars in fines.
And these fines are paid by banks, not by the individuals involved. Banks, it seems, are “too big to fail,” but big enough to weather huge fines. And bank executives are too important to indict and jail.
But, as USA Today reported on June 2, the U.S., Justice Department is now studying whether or not executives at three major U.S.-based banks–JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Bank of America—knew they were laundering funds for persons indicted in FIFA-presumed corruption.
Courtesy: republicreport.org
That’s the irony in this matter. The reason the U.S. could take action is this: wrongdoing took place through U.S.-based institutions. So, at issue, is whether the banks knew they were involved in presumed illegal activity. We’ll see.
Just a week earlier USA Today reported that the U.S. had fined multiple banks over $5 billion dollars for engaging in corrupt activities. Citicorp, JPMorgan Chase. Barclays, and the Royal Bank of Scotland routinely and systematically rigged global foreign-exchange markets for the banks’ financial gain.
No indictments were announced. Fines were levied only.
“For those who have concerns about the Justice Department’s attacking FIFA while corrupt bankers go free…. I share those concerns greatly,” Zirin writes in The Nation (May 27). I agree.
I agree because “The Rule of Law” should apply to all people under all circumstances. But that’s not happening. Instead it’s being applied selectively—and has been applied selectively–under the current Administration. It’s as though “The Enron Scandal,” which included imprisoning key executives, took place in another country.
Why don’t we treat bank executives the way we’re now treating FIFA folks? The reason is politics … again.
Politics #1: FIFA has very little political value, and influence, in the U.S.
Politics: #2: Banks have a lot of political value, and influence, in the U.S, including making political contributions.
Politics #3: Very few Americans play important roles in the FIFA management structure. Many key Americans–some of whom migrate between Washington and Wall Street–play important roles in the U.S. banking structure.
Politics #4: The U.S. Government benefits from the cash it gets–billions and billions of dollars–from the fines levied against corrupt financial institutions.
What’s the take-away message? It’s “good politics” to indict FIFA cronies. And it makes “good money” to fine big banks.
FIFA crooks are small enough to indict. Bank crooks are large enough to fine.
