COMMENTARY: More questions surrounding the Las Vegas Strip shooting
The readers of my column are well aware I’m not a fan of MGM CEO Jim Murren. I’ve called him “the worst CEO in America” because he entangled his company in radical leftist politics — including the Council on American-Islamic Relations, an organization tied to terror and called by many experts a front group for Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.
I actually felt bad for MGM when this tragedy first happened.
But could it have happened to any Vegas resort? Or were there factors at play that led to this property being chosen for this terrible mass murder?
Murren was appointed by Barack Obama to the Homeland Security Council. From that perch, Murren had insider access to the detailed threats aimed at Vegas. What did he do to prepare and adequately safeguard his guests?
Several MGM security guards and ex-security guards have called my radio show in recent days. They described MGM’s security as “woefully undertrained and understaffed.” One ex-MGM security guard called to say Murren’s first act in taking over Luxor and Mandalay Bay was to disarm most of the guards and declare MGM hotels “gun-free” zones. Maybe that’s why the shooter chose Mandalay Bay.
Why has the timeline involving Mandalay Bay guard Jesus Campos changed so many times? Did he approach the shooter’s room before or after the mass murder started? If it was before, why weren’t the police called?
Did the shooter choose a MGM property because VIP high roller clients were free to use service elevators, thereby avoiding scrutiny?
Finally, was the CEO of MGM focused on his properties? Was the security of his customers a main priority? Or was he distracted?
SEC records for September reveal more than $200 million in stock selloffs from MGM officers and directors. From July 31 to early September, Murren sold more than 80 percent of his MGM stock.
This certainly paints the picture of a CEO with a lack of faith in his own company. Or did Murren have one foot out the door? Was he distracted and uninterested, perhaps making plans to leave? Why else would a CEO sell off a large majority of the shares he owns in his own company? Was Murren focused on MGM security as a major terror attack was being planned at his property? Or was he too busy selling off his shares, at the right price, into the open market, without Wall Street noticing?
MGM’s top executives and key board members also sold huge amounts of stock in September.
How about this eye-popping number? In the past three months, according to SEC Form 4, MGM insiders sold off 6,387,163 shares. Guess how many those same insiders bought? Zero.
Also in September, while MGM’s CEO and insiders were selling off huge amounts of their own company stock, MGM announced a billion-dollar stock buyback program. In other words, they used “other people’s money” to buy back MGM stock on the open market to prop up the price.
Talk about the world’s worst conflict of interest. Shareholders were forced to spend $1 billion to buy “undervalued MGM stock” at the same time the CEO and his team couldn’t wait to get out.
Question: What if MGM had used that same $1 billion to upgrade security or hire twice as many security staff instead of to prop up its stock price while the CEO was selling?
Lastly, did Murren sign for a special “terrorism rider” on MGM’s liability insurance policy? Will a designation of “terrorism” vs. criminal mass murder affect the payout from the insurance policy? Could declaring this a terror act change MGM’s bottom line by billions of dollars? Inquiring minds want to know.
Contact Wayne Allyn Root at Wayne@ROOTforAmerica.com. Hear or watch the nationally syndicated “WAR Now: The Wayne Allyn Root Show” from 3 to 6 p.m. daily at 790 Talk Now and at 5 p.m. on Newsmax TV.
