Cheri Bustos D-IL dishonest attack on a job creating program she co-sponsored. Says CMB Regional Centers, LLC

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. - Oct. 23, 2014 - PRLog -- Kraig A. Schwigen, the Senior Vice President of the CMB Regional Centers states: I hope to bring the truth to a series of political attacks that have been hurled at our company. CMB operates under the investor visa program commonly known as EB-5. Over the past few months CMB, the EB-5 law and the nearly 50 individuals employed by CMB have come under attack by the political campaign of Cheri Bustos. Cheri Bustos and her campaign have made claims about our company, the EB-5 Program law and our employees (her own constituents) for political gain with no concern to what is true and the damage that is being done to innocent individuals. Cheri knows the truth about the EB-5 law, those of us that work at CMB and the great work that we do across the United States and in the 17th congressional district in creating New American jobs.

Contrary to what Cheri and her campaign have claimed nobody can utilize the EB-5 Investor Visa Program in order to buy permanent residency or citizenship in the United States. There is no law that allows individuals to buy U.S. citizenship. To imply this or to make statements to this effect is blatantly false. These statements have been made by Cheri, her campaign committee and political action committees that support her. If this assertion were true, it would be incumbent upon every congressperson and every senator to stop it. Cheri not only voted to make the EB-5 law permanent, she co-sponsored the bill with support by Senator Durbin. In 2012, the EB-5 law was renewed by an overwhelming majority in both the House and Senate. (There were only three dissenting votes.)

To characterize a law as a “loophole” and to state the individuals that invest through the EB-5 Program have only limited background checks is totally incorrect. Congress has put safeguards in place in order to ensure the integrity of the program. Aspects of the EB-5 Program are overseen by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Department of State, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Commerce and the Office of the Inspector General. There are also many state and local government agencies that play a role in the EB-5 Program, so to imply that the program lacks oversight or has limited background checks is disingenuous. These false statements are beneath an elected official who knows the truth about CMB and the federal law in which we work. To make statements that CMB and/or Bobby Schilling are selling citizenship is false and is insulting to members of Congress and to the good people that work in these local, state and federal jobs. These are hardworking individuals with the best of intentions that are being painted with a brush that is smearing the good work that they do and the new American jobs that come from a result of their oversight.

The 17th district has areas of high unemployment where new jobs through EB-5 would make a tremendous difference. CMB EB-5 investors have invested $1.5 billion of their own capital in projects where the total amount of spending exceeds $8 billion. CMB has helped create over 90,000 New American jobs. Cheri implies it is only Chinese investors that are making these investments which is another misleading statement. CMB investors are from 65 countries around the world.

(Cheri and I have known each other for years; she and I had a meeting in Washington recently. I can assure you that Cheri knows her statements are not true.)

Kraig A. Schwigen, Senior Vice President, CMB Regional Centers