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Thursday, July 16, 2009 | 2 a.m.
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Doug Hampton interview, part 2 - July 2009
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Exclusive Interview pt. 2, ...
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Doug Hampton interview - July 2009
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Exclusive Interview, seg. 2
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Parental Payments
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Sun Archives
- In D.C., some worry Ensign saga is not over (7-15-2009)
- Ensign gives first Senate speech since acknowledging affair (7-15-2009)
- Ensign to stay in Senate, seek reelection (7-14-2009)
- Silence, not calls for Ensign to quit (7-12-2009)
- If shockers done, Ensign could stay in office, many say (7-11-2009)
- GOP support for Ensign dwindles as new details of affair emerge (7-10-2009)
- Ensign's parents gave Hampton family $96,000 (7-9-2009)
- Hampton portrays Ensign as relentless (7-9-2009)
- Ensign’s pal lacked usual qualifications for top job (7-5-2009)
- Handling the public display of contrition (6-27-2009)
- Off the cuff, Ensign guarded but genial (6-26-2009)
- Fox News had Hampton’s letter earlier than it said (6-24-2009)
- For Ensign, a new lot in Congress (6-24-2009)
- Ensign apologizes during lunch with GOP senators (6-23-2009)
- Back in Washington, Ensign received warmly (6-23-2009)
- Ensign back in D.C.; group plans ethics complaint (6-22-2009)
- In state GOP, Ensign finds few defenders (6-21-09)
For tax accountants, the $96,000 payment Republican Sen. John Ensign’s parents made to the family of the woman with whom he was having an affair is a tantalizing puzzle.
The situation is this: Was the payment to Cynthia Hampton’s family a “gift” as the senator maintains, or was it a severance payment around the time she and her husband left the senator’s employment, as the husband claims?
The answer could have grave ramifications, financial and otherwise, for all parties involved.
This is how the puzzle unfolds.
If Ensigns’ parents structured the payment in eight gifts of the legally allowed limit of $12,000 each to Cynthia Hampton, her husband, Doug Hampton, and two of their three children, as the senator claims, then why was it apparently made in one lump-sum check?
And if the April 2008 payments were “made as gifts, accepted as gifts,” as Ensign’s attorney claims, then why didn’t Doug Hampton check the box as required on his Senate disclosure form that asks whether he or his family had received any gifts?
The box clearly asks, “Did you, your spouse or dependent child receive any reportable gift in the reporting period (i.e. aggregating more than $335 and not otherwise exempt)?”
Doug Hampton, on the final form he filed, checked “no.”
The details are critical because if the payment was a severance, as Doug Hampton claims, Ensign could face felony criminal charges for failing to report the transfer on campaign disclosure forms as would be required.
And if the payment was purposely arranged to avoid taxes, it could be a criminal form of money laundering known as structuring, said Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.
For the Hamptons, the answer is equally critical for their financial situation.
If the payment was a severance, the family would likely owe taxes on the $96,000 — although it is entirely possible that the Hamptons have paid them. The taxes could be up to one-third of the total.
CREW has called for investigations by the Federal Election Commission, Senate Ethics Committee and Justice Department.
Ensign’s office and his attorney declined to respond Wednesday to requests for more information. The Las Vegas Sun sought copies of the canceled check or checks, gift tax forms or agreements between the parties that may explain the situation.
Robert Willens, a tax consultant in New York and adjunct professor in finance at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business, said the Ensign saga is guaranteed to be written about in the tax journals. He doubted the Internal Revenue Service would let it pass without review at this point.
“Obviously it’s not something that’s going to go under the radar now that everyone knows about it,” Willens said. “There will be scholarly articles, I guarantee you.”
The senator disclosed last month that he had engaged in an affair with Cynthia Hampton, who was his campaign treasurer at the time, from December 2007 to August 2008.
Her husband was one of the senator’s top aides.
Doug Hampton claimed in a televised interview last week with Las Vegas Sun columnist Jon Ralston that his wife was given a severance in excess of $25,000.
CREW responded to the statement by reiterating that such a payment should have been recorded on campaign disclosure forms.
Ensign then disclosed that his father, a wealthy former casino owner, and mother gave the family $96,000 in April 2008, around the time the Hamptons left the senator’s employment.
The payment was structured in a way that shielded his parents from gift tax liability. An unlimited number of $12,000 gifts could be made in the 2008 tax year, experts have said.
Yet questions remain around the definition of a gift.
A landmark 1960 Supreme Court case said that for a recipient to avoid paying taxes on a gift, the donation had to be made out of “detached, disinterested generosity.”
If the Hamptons successfully argue the payment wasn’t made with detached, disinterested generosity but was a severance, they probably will have to pay income taxes on the payment, if they haven’t.
For the Ensigns, the question is whether one $96,000 check can be counted as eight $12,000 gifts.
“If you were in the position of Senator Ensign, you’d want to make the form look just as good as possible and that means it would be preferable, only for cosmetic reasons, to make out separate $12,000 checks to everyone involved,” said Steve Johnson, a professor at UNLV’s Boyd School of Law.
Johnson said that combining the payments into a single check is not a deal-breaker. But the Ensign family would be in a stronger position if it had contemporaneous evidence — either a written or verbal agreement, or third party notification.
Without it, Johnson said, “that’s not as good.”
The parents could still avoid taxes through another mechanism in the tax law, but for the senator, the difference between gift and severance remains critical for campaign law purposes.
Still unknown is why the Ensign parents gave money to just two of the three Hampton children. Experts could not see a tax reason for excluding one of the children, even an adult child. The Hamptons’ oldest son was about to graduate from high school at the time.
And lastly, what would be the violation for Doug Hampton if he considered the payments gifts but failed to disclose them as such on his Senate form? Sloan, of CREW, said it is unlikely Hampton would be investigated for the failure to disclose because he no longer works for the Senate.
“People are talking in two totally different ways that don’t make sense,” she said. “Which all points to why you need an investigation.”
A "no-strings-attached" gift? Come on, does anyone believe that?!
John Ensign
definition: an amoral core - (incapable of conscience - incapable of remorse) - wrapped in a "religious right" facade;
Here's a strange fact about lies and about the telling of false stories that you may not be aware of. The quote from Adolph Hitler, "Tell a lie often enough, loud enough, and long enough, and people will believe you." applies to the liar as well as to his intended target.
There's a part of the human psyche that tends to accept that which is repeatedly put into the mind. As a result, the peddler of lies very often reaches a point where he/she believes that his/her lies are actually the truth. Very frequently, loving well-meaning people get caught in these false stories and perpetuate them.
There isn't one "resonably prudent person" in America today that truly believes that Ensign's parents gave the $96,000 as a gift instead of hush money. But still - the lie persists - and the "Moral Majority" "Religious Right" "Republican Party" back him. Why? There are many reasons - but none of these people actually believe him - yet ...
"He may be a liar - but he's our liar"!!!!!
Hint: he doesn't need to stay in office until 2012 - we can recall him
The Hamptons could have told the parents "thanks, but no thanks".
What happened? They took the money, and then wanted to extort more from Ensign himself. What's the point? Ensign showed the stuff he was made of, he went public with his misdeed, and we ought to be glad we have a senator with guts. He'll win easily in 2012.
"...Nobody... truly believes that Ensign's parents gave the $96,000 as a gift instead of hush money."
Regardless if it was a gift of kindess or a Gift of hush money Hampton lied on the disclosure form.
If it was servence it would show up as servernce on the books and would get put on the W-2
Lets see Hampton tax return to see how he report it. Or did Hampton not report it?
Seems to me Ensign is a real pig.
Sleeping with an employees wife, who is also an employee, and co-mingling the families is about as low as it gets.
Whatever one may think on the Hamptons they accepted employment with him and have wrapped up their careers with a sleezebag who destroyed them and shamed their familes.
This is not about the Hamptons, this is about abuse of power, and a U.S. Senator with no morality and probably a crybaby wimp who needs his family to bail him out of his despicable behavior.
In Nevada this what we call leadership.
"they wrapped up their careers with a sleezebag who destroyed them"
Let's not forget sleezebag Cindy who betrayed her best friend since High School by sleeping with her husband. Also, don't you think perhaps they would have never acheived their success if not for working with Ensign?
Even after the affair, Doug Hampton wants John Ensign to "make him whole again." Is that not the funniest thing you ever heard someone say about their wife's lover? John Ensign even found them both jobs, and Hampton was still more than willing to follow John's direction. Ensign gave him one job with a counseling firm, and when Hampton couldn't make any money Ensign got him another job with Allegiant.
Why didn't he go find his own job? My guess is that he couldn't.
What a total loser. I have one thing more to say about Doug Hampton, after watching him on Jon Ralston's show, I don't think there is any way that he is straight. I know I get criticized by some for making that statement but I can't help it. Watch the interview.
Hmmm...it seems like Mr Hampton obviously feels that he received a gift as well. Is it possible that some are just trying to make something out of nothing here? Hmmmm, for political reasons???
Where is the line to get my $100,000+ tax-free payoff from Senator Ensign's parents?
Ensign's lawyers said his parents are always giving away free money like this and I'm down with that just so long as there's no "touching" involved!
John Ralston needs to get interviews with the two women involved. So far it's been men only and I think that's not the whole story.
Jon Ralston put words in Hampton's mouth and basically spoke for him at certain points in the interview. How about having a real journalist interview this guy and asking real questions. If I wanted to watch softball I'd watch the sports channel.
"I have one thing more to say about Doug Hampton, after watching him on Jon Ralston's show, I don't think there is any way that he is straight. "
Tell us more about the tingling feelings you get when you watch Doug Hampton hnederson.
Cynthia and Douglas Hampton are "Promise Keepers" too, just like Ensign, Sanford and Coburn. What do you expect?
Bribery, lying, extortion, hypocrisy and adultery... gotta love them "family values!"
"Robert Willens, a tax consultant in New York and adjunct professor in finance at Columbia University's Graduate School of Business, said .......There will be scholarly articles, I guarantee you."
Willens is an idiot. If there were be no scholarly articles written other by himself or someone that he requests to then he should resign his position at Columbia for making such a stupid remark.
Everyone should notice that the Sun (Nevada's offical Democratic progranda machine) did not quote one tax expert who stated that money transfer was income as oppose to a gift.
Under IRS rules, income has to be related to services rendered or goods sold.
The Hamptons sold no goods or rendered any services to the Ensign's parents in return for the money received.
This is such a silly little story about whether it was a gift vs income.
Also, notice how they left out the part that Mr. Hampton has been lying to the newspapers about receiving any money for $96,000. I guess old Ralston forget to challenge him on that point.
The Sun is again proving it is a hack of a newspaper and is really just a Nevada Democratic talking point print out.
SgtRock sez: "Willens is an idiot. If there were be no scholarly articles written other by himself or someone that he requests to then he should resign his position at Columbia for making such a stupid remark."
Right, it's Willens who should resign and Ensign should continue with business as usual, humpin and bribing?
What will we tell the children?
edgewise,
While it's very ignorant of you to assume I'm a male,
I appreciate your lame attempt at humor. Thank you for your contribution to the dialogue.
"While it's very ignorant of you to assume I'm a male" Wait, so you mean it's not possible for women to get tingly feelings when they see Doug Hampton? That's very ignorant. I never assumed you were a man.
I can't understand why some people would defend Ensign. He has brought little home to Nevada. If it wasn't for his non-aggression pact with Reid, he'd be an even lowlier back-bencher.
In addition, Ensign demonstrates that he is not serving the will of Nevadans by being a part of "The Family", a secretive organization in Washington. He is obviously serving the will of this organization. They counsel him to break off the affair and he does. They counsel him to pay off the people involved and he does. They counsel him not to resign because he's a rising Republican star and he obeys.
Ensign, however, should heed the counsel of Nevadans and resign.
Of course you did, but that's okay. And yes, it is not possible for a woman to get tingly feelings over Doug Hampton.
unlv -
He didn't end the affair when they asked him to. According to Doug Hampton (who has no credibility in my book) Coburn told Ensign to give Hampton "millions of dollars." Which I don't believe he did, but that didn't happen either.
More often then not, the IRS will just asses a fine to either party, this retribution will serve as closure for this poorly handled fiasco. That is not to say, there will not be time to serve, as this is a federal statute we are talking about. Depending on mitigation, a slap on the wrist along with a fine may suffice without time to be served.
The issue facing the greater community here is not an impeachment, or a resignation, nor is it a fine, if it comes to that, as none of those actions have any meaningful bearing on the minuscule depiction of the players involved, but, it is the state's political well-being which is in the balance. Players will come and players will go, but the Silver State is forever.
The future of Nevada and the relevance that Sen. Ensign can still wheeled in the halls of congress are at twilight hour, with every tic-tock lost so are the opportunities for the future of the youth, which, the Senator hopes to develop within the Silver State.
Now is not the time for a partisan paragon of infighting within the state, it is a crossroad to allow time to take its course, time is always on the side of truth. Like the mountain bluebird hovering timeless upon the wild wind that blows free, Nevada's golden heart will fly once again shinning in the western sun, timelessly.
The election ballot is the most economic method to displace an unrepresentative Senator, without additional expense to the State. Less we forget the power of the ballot; havoc will plague state government from here on out, reducing any effectiveness remaining with the Senator. On the other hand, Sen. Ensign could try to muster greater value for the state in trying to regain his lost integrity.
"He has brought little home to Nevada"
Don't be so hard on Reid.
Gunslinger-
"Sen. Ensign could try to muster greater value for the state in trying to regain his lost integrity"
I think that ship passed long ago! In fact, I now wonder if he ever had any. If you still think he does, reread this story. Not only is he a "morality" hypocrite, but he may have even violated campaign finance laws.
UNLV-
That's the problem. Ensign doesn't think he needs to listen to us. He believes that his god is greater than us and has hand-picked him to be "great". The C Street Gang is a sick power-hungry cult. The feds really need to investigate all of them!
Clearly Darlene Ensign is a whore with no morals.
John Ensign is a typical christian republican right winger.
He only came out when the letter surfaced. He is scum.
The problem with Ensign is that he has no redeeming attributes that will get him beyond this disasterous sex/money scandal. He is not all that smart and he continually votes against the interests of the average Nevadan. His good looks got him farther along than he should have gotten in the political arena and even those are fading -- age and stress tend to do that. He will probably serve out his term, but I sincerely doubt, no matter what he says now, that he will run for reelection.
Hells bells, don't tell me that another C Street resident was screwing around on his wife!
Seems that former Representative Chip Pickering's (R-MI) soon to be former wife is now suing and divorcing. She claims the Chipster was committing adultery on her while he was living in that very same DC residence as Ensign.
Pretty soon, "Promise Keeper" is going to be synonymous with "Adulterer."
http://www.kansascity.com/437/story/1329...
Thumper writes: "I don't blame Ensign one bit. She made the call. I hit on hot chicks all the time. Sometimes they surprise me and say NO. Cindy didn't say NO."
I personally don't blame Senator Ensign for being morally weak, but I DO fault him for being a flaming "family values" hypocrite.
You've got Ensign, Sanford and now Pickering associated with that same C Street "Christian fellowship group home" in DC, all of them running around on their wives. That must be some "group home!" Plus, they've even got their own in-house OB/GYN, Dr. Senator Deacon Tom Coburn (R-OK)!
Mia-
"I personally don't blame Senator Ensign for being morally weak, but I DO fault him for being a flaming "family values" hypocrite."
Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding! We have a winner!
Thank you for just saying it. It's the hypocrisy of these fundie wingnuts that infuriate us. How dare they tell you that you should have no control over your personal health decisions or tell me that I can't marry the man I love when they don't even live up to their own moral standards! And furthermore, how dare they forsake their duty to their constituents (and in Ensign's case, violate the very laws he swore to protect and defend!).
Oh yes, and whatever happened to the "conservative mantra" of personal responsibility? I find it funny that none of the Ensign defenders here bring that up. Doesn't Johnny Casino have some responsibility to honor his marriage vows and keep his libido in check? Doesn't he have some responsibility to ensure he complies with campaign finance laws? How is it that all of us working-class folks need to be held "responsible" sometimes for things that aren't our fault while poor lil' Johnny Casino can get away with blaming his own moral and legal failings on the Hampton family?
Doug Hampton-greedy opportunist
John Ensign-opportunist who uses religion and God to mask the reality of his actions. WWJD?
This sounds more like a trailer park soap opera, than the actions of a US Senator. I guess that's the norm now. When will the American people say enough is enough? Isn't it greed and corruption that brought down most great civilizations? How arrogant we would be to believe we are any different.
An investigation of this fiasco will surely find that "Stupid is as stupid does."
Which of the Hampton children did not receive the "gifts" from the senior Ensigns? Is it the oldest who was a paid staffer? As treasurer, wasn't Cindy Hampton responsible for the dispersement of campaign money? Should Doug be charged with pandering? Is C Street a boarding house or a bord...?