WHY DOES THE PORT OF CORPUS CHRISTI LIAISE WITH LENCHO RENDON (AND HIS BND / DANNENBAUM COATAILS)?

JOHNNY WENT TO UTAH AND JOHN G & MARIE STELLA TURCOTTE KENEDY HIRED THE PINKERTONS TO FETCH JOHNNY OUT OF TROUBLE.

WHY DOES THE PORT OF CORPUS CHRISTI LIAISE WITH LENCHO RENDON (AND HIS BND / DANNENBAUM COATAILS)?

WILLIE VADEN, IS HE KEEPING HIS ENEMIES CLOSE OR HAS HE BEEN ABSORBED?

INGLESIDE NAS PROPERTY & Asia Access Corp?

Asia Access Corp, LR GLOBAL OSI , BY NOW REORGANIZED AND "NEVER CONNECTED TO THE CONGRESSMAN OR HIS CHIEF OF STAFF"?

For three decades, Florencio "Lencho" Rendon was U.S. Rep. Solomon Ortiz's closest confidant and political strategist.

Rendon got in on the ground floor of Ortiz's political career in the 1970s, working his way through the ranks to chief deputy at the Nueces County Sheriff's Department under then-Sheriff Ortiz. When Ortiz was elected to the U.S. House in 1982, Rendon joined him in Washington, where he has played an integral role in Ortiz's political operations ever since.

"He is the key guy because during the day I am at hearings and meeting constituents," Ortiz said. "He oversees the entire operation."

Through the years, Rendon has gained political contacts and expertise over a range of places and issues, including Mexico and the Far East. He speaks Spanish, and conversational Chinese, which he learned in frequent trips to the Far East with Ortiz.

Rendon’s career Late 1960s: Rendon serves as Webb County jailer Late 1960s-mid-1970s: Undercover officer with the Webb County-Drug Enforcement Agency Narcotics Task Force 1976: Solomon Ortiz and Rendon meet at a Texas Narcotics Officers convention in Laredo; Rendon later turns down a job offer from then-State Comptroller Bob Bullock to serve on a state task force fighting inter-border tobacco and liquor-smuggling 1977: Begins under Nueces County Sheriff Ortiz as sheriff’s deputy 1978: Promoted to chief deputy 1982: Ortiz elected to Congress, names Rendon chief of staff 1992: Rendon graduates from Southeastern University in Washington, D.C., with a B.S. in business. 2006: LULAC Council No. 1 presents a Community Leaders Award to Rendon. Source: Caller-Times files RENDON Helped elect: Richard Borchard - Former Nueces County judge, 1994-2002 Jaime Capelo - Former Corpus Christi state representative, 1997-2004 Nanette Hasette - 28th District Court judge, elected to third term in 2004 Abel Herrero - Corpus Christi state representative, elected to first term in 2004 Loyd Neal - Corpus Christi mayor from 1997 to 2005, served four terms Terry Shamsie - Elected to first term as Nueces County judge in 2002 Source: Caller-Times files

"I think he has been a great asset to the congressman," said local lawyer Rene Rodriguez, an Ortiz ally who expressed surprise at the decision. "He has the congressman's ear and they talk about everything that they do."

Rendon exercised tremendous power in Ortiz's congressional district, friends and political insiders said.

Rendon served as an adviser to numerous successful political campaigns including those of Fil Vela's wife, District Judge Rose Vela; former Nueces County Judge Richard Borchard and his successor, Terry Shamsie; former state Rep. Jaime Capelo; state Rep. Abel Herrero; and District Judges Nanette Hasette and Nelva Gonzales Ramos.

Rendon also has played a powerful behind-the-scenes role in Ortiz's district, providing "advice and counsel" in several South Texas political entities including the Ports of Corpus Christi and Brownsville, the Regional Transportation Authority and the Nueces County Commissioners Court.

"I'll put it this way, Lencho's departure is a significant loss of power, influence and prestige for the congressman's office," said Port of Corpus Christi chairman Ruben Bonilla. "Personally I have always felt that Lencho had the same access to the corridors of power as Congressman Ortiz. If you wanted something done for the 27th Congressional District it was imperative that you consult with Lencho."

Rendon was cryptic about his future.

REDFLAGS: DANNENBAUM a Smoke Screen for Leche Rendon's Dream Team's Relationship w/ Asia Access Corp
Posted on March 13, 2008 at 08:28:00 PM by JAIME KENEDENO

Texas Monthly acknowledges (the de facto existence / independence) of Brownsville Herald Investigative Reporter Emma Perez-Trevino

DANNENBAUM a Smoke Screen for Lencho Rendon's Dream Team Activities /Engagement with Asia Access Corp

Monday, October 22, 2007

Perry Appointee to UT Regents Linked to Scandals

One of the three men Governor Perry appointed to the University of Texas Board of Regents last week has been linked to political scandals at opposite ends of the Rio Grande, according to several news outlets. The appointee is James Dannenbaum, chairman of Houston-based Dannenbaum Engineering Corporation, whose company has become enmeshed in corruption probes in Brownsville and El Paso.

The following summary of the situation in Brownsville represents my summary of stories done by investigative reporter Emma Perez-Trevino for the Brownsville Herald. The original stories can be found here and here. In the Brownsville case, the Port of Brownsville wanted to work with Mexico to build a bi-national bridge to Matamoros, Mexico. Brown & Root won the contract to work on the bridge and billed the Brownsville Navigation District (BND) $424,505 up through July 1997. That's when a familiar name entered the picture: state senator Eddie Lucio. The Brownsville Herald has reported that Dannenbaum Engineering Corporation (DEC) hired Lucio for marketing, consulting, and public relations work. In the course of this work, Lucio introduced the firm to the BND board. Within a month, the BND board voted to fire Brown & Root and hired DEC without requesting proposals. DEC's original contract was for $2,053,515, but a series of supplemental contracts brought DEC's take to $15.5 million. Of this money, $10,529,058 went to subcontractors in Mexico, $9.2 million of which was paid to just three companies, all of which had ties to a DEC employee. One helps startup businesses, one provides security services, and one is a real estate company. BND was required to approve all subcontracts before any work was done, but DEC entered into 16 of 17 subcontracts without requesting that approval.

Construction of the bridge depended upon securing an agreement with Mexico to perform work on its side of the Rio Grande, which DEC representatives said was forthcoming. Despite such assurances, BND never received approval from Mexico. This is not a bridge to nowhere. It is a nowhere bridge.

In 2004, BND retained Charley Willette, Jr., as a special counsel to investigate how a total of $21.4 million in taxpayer money was spent on a project that was dependent upon Mexico's support. Willete's 62-page report traced the millions paid to subcontractors in Mexico and their ties back to DEC.

Peter Zavaletta, who became chairman of the Navigation District in 2004, told the Brownsville Herald that the only work that BND received was 49 black binders in which were a couple of charts.

Perez-Trevino reported in May that a criminal inquiry into the money that was spent on the nonexistent bridge is in the hands of a special grand jury, whose term will expire in early November. Both the FBI and the Texas Rangers began looking into the situation last March.

The El Paso situation is less complex. A United Press International story last June referenced "Dannenbaum Construction" in a wide ranging federal probe in El Paso:

EL PASO, Texas, June 13 (UPI) -- A Texas man once named by President George Bush to the International Boundary and Water Commission has been labeled a "bagman" in a corruption case.

John Travis Ketner, former chief of staff to El Paso County Judge Anthony Cobos, pleaded guilty Friday to conspiracy to commit bribery. Arturo Duran, who also is a member of the board of Thomason Hospital in El Paso, was identified as one of 17 co-conspirators in the case, the El Paso Times reported.

Federal investigators say Duran served as a go-between for two companies, Valley Risk Consulting and Dannenbaum Construction. The companies were after contracts from County Commissioners Court.

In a story about the El Paso investigation that appeared in the Herald, Perez-Trevino reported about Dannenbaum's role in the federal investigation in El Paso. These are the salient paragraphs:

In El Paso, Dannenbaum's firm allegedly is referenced as “DC” in an information report that the U.S. Attorney's Office filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas on a guilty plea entered by John Travis Ketner, former chief of staff to El Paso County Judge Anthony Cobos.

Ketner pleaded guilty June 8 to two counts of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and one count of conspiracy to commit bribery in connection with his role in a conspiracy to fraudulently secure vendor contracts, public records show.

The El Paso Times identified "DC" as "Dannenbaum Construction" of Houston.

Noting that the name of his firm is Dannenbaum Engineering and not Dannenbaum Construction, Dannenbaum said, "our firm was not named in anything, was not referenced in anything."

According to the information report, Ketner and co-conspirators would meet with selected vendors to discuss the contracts being sought by the vendors and to settle on the amount of a bribe.

A co-conspirator allegedly acted as the intermediary and "bag man" for "DC," making and promising payments in cash or as campaign contributions to elected county officials, the information report reflects.

The report shows that on one occasion, a "DC" principal met with a county elected official. The intermediary and the elected official then entered a small bathroom in the county office and the intermediary promised a campaign contribution in exchange for the official’s votes to secure contracts for "DC".

Dannenbaum said that he did not have an intermediary, did not meet with the elected official and that no one from his office did. "Not to my knowledge," he said.

The question that naturally arises out of all this is what is going on in the governor's office? It seems to me there are only two possibilities here: Perry (1) didn't know or (2) didn't care. Even if he believes that Dannenbaum and his company have done nothing wrong (and to this point nothing official suggests otherwise), Perry has put UT in a position where one of his appointees can reflect discredit on the university. There are plenty of Texans who aren't enmeshed in criminal investigations in two cities who are qualified to be on the Board of Regents.

The other question is whether ethics rules--allow a state senator to operate a consulting business in which he introduces vendors to public officials who award contracts. I don't see how the answer can be "yes," but if it is, the rules need to change. I don't think Lucio is the only one who plays this game.