Scumbag representing other scumbags:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
Former Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.), who has criticized the judgment of his Senate opponents, may face questions about his own.
Executives at a Florida firm with substantial ties to Brown were sued in 2012 for allegedly committing securities fraud in a "pump and dump" case involving a separate company.
Brown, who is attempting to unseat Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), joined the West Palm Beach-based Global Digital Solutions Inc.'s advisory board in September. The Boston Globe reported Sunday that he received $1.3 million worth of stock in exchange. The firm, which purports to be a firearms manufacturer, does not yet seem to do much other than seek investors.
GDSI CEO Richard Sullivan and CFO David Loppert were among those accused two years ago of defrauding the shareholders and creditors of a marketing technology company, Argo Digital Solutions, by transferring its assets to a shell company they controlled, rVue Holdings.
The plaintiff settled with GDSI's executives for an undisclosed sum last month. According to court documents, Sullivan and Loppert were accused of boosting Argo's shares from 25 million to 250 million -- claiming that there would be a $100 million initial public offering -- and then moving the new shares to rVue, leaving Argo to fold. - Huffington Post, 6/3/14
Here's some more info:
http://www.msnbc.com/...
At a distance, Global Digital Solutions Inc. seems like an unusual company. GDSI was reportedly founded as a beauty supply company in New Jersey, before moving to South Florida and marketing itself as a firearms manufacturer.
But that’s not the unusual part. As the Boston Globe’s Noah Bierman and Todd Wallack reported, this firearms manufacturer does not actually make or sell firearms, at least not yet. Global Digital Solutions Inc. has “no revenue, no patents, no trademarks, no manufacturing facilities, and no experience developing weapons.”
But that’s not the unusual part, either. Rather, what seems odd about GDSI’s enterprise is the fact that it’s partnered with former Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.), currently running for the Senate in his new home state of New Hampshire.
An obscure company in West Palm Beach that markets itself as a firearms manufacturer made a splashy announcement last summer: It was appointing Scott Brown, the former Massachusetts senator, to its advisory board.
Not revealed at the time was what Brown received in exchange for lending his name to the venture. But a report the company made to the Securities and Exchange Commission last month, which has not been previously made public, shows that Brown received stock that was worth $1.3 million at the time. Its value has declined considerably since then, as the stock price has fallen by half. - MSNBC, 6/2/14
And here's what you need to know:
http://www.bostonglobe.com/...
It was founded as a beauty supply company in New Jersey — selling hair spray, conditioners, and shampoos, before reinventing itself as a wireless data firm from California and then again last year as a South Florida-based firearms maker and gun technology innovator.
It is the kind of company, with scant assets and a shifting business model, that some financial professionals warn investors to steer away from.
The company, instead of selling firearms, has churned out press releases to attract small investors, including the one about Brown joining the firm, and issued millions of shares of stock to fund its operations. Shares closed at 46 cents on the OTCQB Marketplace on Friday.
During a brief encounter after a campaign event in Hopkinton, N.H., on Saturday, Brown declined to answer questions about his involvement with the company or the level of scrutiny he applied to its business methods before agreeing to associate himself with it. He referred to a campaign statement given to the Globe Friday.
“GDSI is a start-up company that does not have significant operations at this point,” his communications director Elizabeth Guyton said in an e-mail. “Scott Brown has an advisory role but he is not involved in the day to day management or decisions of the company.”
Accountants said in interviews that Global Digital’s filings raise a number of warning signs for investors, including its varying business model and lack of actual products. The firm reported it has four employees, $271,776 in cash and had $19.7 million in losses as of March 31.
“Is it a real company with customers?” said Howard M. Schilit, author of the book “Financial Shenanigans: How to Detect Accounting Gimmicks & Fraud in Financial Reports.” “This is a very, very risky company for anybody to invest.”
Barry R. Goldsmith, a former lead lawyer for the SEC and chief of enforcement for the National Association of Securities Dealers, said the company’s actions raise a number of issues “that I think a regulator would look at,” including its bold press releases and the company’s quick transitions in its business model. - Boston Globe, 6/1/14
Since Brown has connections to a shady gun manufacturing company, that might explain this:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/...
Scott Brown, who is running for Senate in New Hampshire, the other day found himself under fire from a roomful of conservative activists — and sought to win them over by taking a surprising position: He suggested he has “no problem” with the idea of abolishing gun-free zones, a longtime priority of gun rights activists.
That’s way to the right of his previous rhetoric on guns — after the Newtown shooting, he supported an assault weapons ban — and it’s another sign of the sort of conservative stand GOP candidates must take to get through primaries.
The key moment comes at around the 12 minute mark on a video of an event last Tuesday with gun rights activists that was obtained by the Boston Globe. In its write-up, the Globe stresses that Brown was on the “defensive,” noting that Brown, who is now embroiled in a primary, tried to appear tougher on gun rights than he had in Massachusetts, where he supported an assault weapons ban as Senator before getting ousted by Elizabeth Warren.
The newsworthy part came when a gun rights advocate confronted Brown with the following: “Stop gun free zones — what do you think about that? Gun-free zones kill people. You wanna stop a bad guy with a gun? Get a good guy with a gun.”
“I have no problem — ” Brown said, before returning to the assault ban. He then added: “On gun free zones, I don’t disagree with you. I think that people should have the ability to carry their guns.” - Washington Post, 5/27/14
Yeah, Brown really should've just stayed with his shady investor friends then try and unseat Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D. NH). Of course the Kochs will spend big to defeat her. If you want to donate and get involved with Shaheen's campaign, you can do so here:
http://jeanneshaheen.org/