Overstock CEO Resigns After His ‘Deep State’ Comments Sparked Stock Selloff
August 22nd, 2019Here’s the full text of Byrne’s press release, for whatever it’s worth:
August 12, 2019 at 7:03 PM EDT
Overstock.com CEO Comments on Deep State, Withholds Further Comment
SALT LAKE CITY, Aug. 12, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Overstock.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSTK) CEO Patrick M. Byrne has released the following statement:
“Sara Carter has published two articles relating the following claims of mine:
Starting in 2015 I (operating under the belief that I was helping legitimate law enforcement efforts) assisted in what are now known as the ‘Clinton Investigation’ and the ‘Russian Investigation’ (in fact, I am the notorious ‘missing Chapter 1’ of the Russian investigation). It was the third time in my life I helped the Men in Black: the first was when my friend Brian Williams was murdered, and the second was when I helped the M.I.B. shake up Wall Street a decade ago. Unfortunately, this third time turned out to be less about law enforcement and more about political espionage conducted against Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump (and to a lesser degree, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz).
In July 2018 I put the pieces together. I immediately (last July) came forward to a Congressman and a senior military officer, to the Department of Justice this April, and (upon my Omaha Rabbi reminding me of my duty as a citizen late this June) to a small set of journalists this summer. Ms. Carter was among them. Her two stories are accurate.
Having confirmed Ms. Carter’s two articles, I have fulfilled those citizenship obligations of which my Rabbi reminded me. I will speak no more on the subject. Instead, having lived in places lacking Rule of Law and having witnessed the consequences of its absence, I plan on sitting back and watching the United States Department of Justice re-establish Rule of Law in our country.”
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Via: CBS:
Overstock.com CEO Patrick Byrne resigned from the retailer on Thursday following his cryptic statement last week about the “Deep State” and his involvement in various investigations. He had also told The New York Times that he had an affair with convicted Russian agent Maria Butina.
In a letter sent Thursday to shareholders, Byrne said he had no choice but to resign following his comments. “My presence may affect and complicate all manner of business relationships, from insurability to strategic discussions regarding our retail business,” he said. “Thus, while I believe that I did what was necessary for the good of the country, for the good of the firm, I am in the sad position of having to sever ties with Overstock, both as CEO and board member, effective Thursday August 22.”
Byrne’s statement last week raised eyebrows, with the executive claiming to have assisted federal investigators in the “Clinton Investigation” and the “Russian Investigation,” seemingly a reference to the FBI probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Investors were spooked, sending shares of Overstock.com down by more than one-third over a two-day period.
Shares of Overstock jumped after the company said Byrne had resigned. In early afternoon trading, the stock was up more than 9%.
An impressive warrior for truth—worth anyone’s time to look into his story. Battled Goldman Sachs and many others in court for almost 10 years over naked short selling, in the process bringing many documents to light, winning settlements and “uncapturing” the regulators to a certain extent, as it relates to how the hyenas create stock out of thin air to short sell smaller companies right out of business.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CU4hwxm-w7E
From years ago–
https://www.economist.com/schumpeter/2012/01/11/a-not-so-short-story