Right-Wing Attack Group Funder's Company Going Bankrupt

The casino company of billionaire Sheldon Adelson, financial backer of right-wing attack groups, may be going bankrupt:

Las Vegas Sands Corp., billionaire Sheldon Adelson's casino company, fell the most in New York trading since going public after saying it may default on debt and face bankruptcy.

The casino owner, which had $8.8 billion in long-term debt at the end of June, said in a regulatory filing today that it probably won't meet the requirements of loans arranged by Citigroup Inc., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. unless it cuts spending on developments, boosts earnings at its Las Vegas Strip casinos and raises more capital.

The reversal of fortune is a black eye for the 75-year-old Adelson, who was once America's third-richest man on the strength of his Las Vegas Sands holdings. The Las Vegas-based company's dwindling cash flow is threatening $16 billion worth of developments in Macau, China, and Singapore, where Las Vegas Sands is building resorts to cater to wealthy Asian gamblers.

Tom Edsall reported on Adelson in July:

Sheldon Adelson, the 74-year-old casino billionaire who has become the third richest man in America and who has strong ties to the hard-line Likud Party in Israel, has emerged this year a major benefactor of the American right. Past evidence suggests that Adelson will capitalize on his ascent to the top of the Republican money elite to try to build opposition in America to any Middle East peace settlement calling for the division of Israel into two states, one Jewish, the other Palestinian.

In the current election cycle, Adelson has surpassed such past financial mainstays of conservative causes and of the GOP as oilman-corporate raider T. Boone Pickens ($4.6 million 2003-4), Houston real estate magnate Bob Perry ($18.5 million 2003-6) and former Univision CEO Jerry Perenchio ($9.1 million 2003-6).

...

Here in the US, Adelson is the single largest source of cash for two 501(c)4s: the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) and a sister organization, Freedom's Watch, an Iraq War advocacy group largely run by top officials of RJC. Freedom's Watch intends to spend substantially more than $30 million for "independent" ads and phone banks designed to undermine support for Democrats.

...

On top of that, Adelson, according to the National Journal, has begun channeling cash and fundraising support to Vets for Freedom, which is expected to use the influx of money to finance what it claims will be a multimillion dollar "Four Months For Victory" ad campaign. The group's most recent commercial is described on its website as highlighting "the success of the Surge, and expos[ing] detractors of the policy--namely Senators Harry Reid (D-NV), Barack Obama (D-IL), and Chuck Hagel (R-NE)." A prominent headline on Vets for Freedom's website states: "Obama's Head in the Sand."

Comments

[BethStuart]

It couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

[karinct5]

Aw... How sad.

Another slimey snake becomes road kill.

[hardlyhikin]

That's not fair to snakes - they're not slimy, they're scaly. Please don't associate these misunderstood creatures with right wing nuts (or other slimy Republicans, for that matter)

[cranecat]

That's unfair to snakes. I like snakes. He seems more like a slug to me.

[PCRX]

Angry OLD white man = FAIL

[Tobiasism]

Maybe the republicans would like to bail out the casino industry.

[KarlaElisa]

This goes into the file 'Story's that warm my heart'.

[soupson52]

Love it. Great comment.

[robiform]

Gee, where are the HuffPost trolls going to get their money from now??

[demandfortruth]

cindy mccain

zing!

[sak]

Boo Hoo. I trust he won't end up on the street like most people who have to declare bankrupcy. He will keep his homes and yachts and cars and such. Remember, the GOP destroyed the bankruptcy process which now is much more harsh on poor people and much more lenient on rich people. He will survive and I really don't care about his reputation. He never had one.

[majorteddy]

Too bad. Somebody who has made a living fleecing people of their hard eaned wages shouldn't havve it this easy. He should have to wash dishes or clean toilets while regular people get to spit on him. Just desserts for such a nasty jerk who never thought it could happen to him. Bankruptcy is for losers. Hi LOSER. Are you a little more humble now?

[truth2008]

Now, maybe these chicken hawks, who love to send other peole children to war will go away!

[Fight4Freedom2008]

I'm willing 2 "Bet" he is not happy :-P

[bpowell1]

The Obama/Biden campaign made them spend every dime that they had. They didn't have enough money to compete with him. They didn't expect for him to raise that kind of money to be able to compete with them and out perform them at every turn. I am sure they are still in shock.

[Gib]

Obama kept raising ...

[brynn6]

Woot!

[jalowe1957]

As the old saying goes, you get what you pay for.

[sak]

You betcha.

[fistbump]

Whew-hoo! Let them all lose their shirts.

Rupert Murdoch's Newscorp earnings fell 30% this past quarter, and T. Boone Pickens lost $2 billion in the recent market sell-off.

Let them all lose their shirts and know how the other half lives.

[Wolf Larsen]

Poor Sheldon is having a problem trickling down....common problem for a man your age Shel.

Reaganomics takes another one of their own......sweet.....