Monday, March 10, 2008

Barack Obama Tied In Again At Rezko Trial

The AP is reporting that Barack Obama's name has come up again at the Rezko trial, as Susan Lichtenstein, who was general counsel to Blago, indicated that Obama was consulted about who should be appointed to the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board. True, it appears that several other officials were also consulted, and there is no testimony thus far that Obama was involved in any way in the later scandal concerning the Board, but it seems like the Rezko trial is apt to keep Obama's name in the news, perhaps in some surprising ways, for weeks to come.

The more this goes on, the more Obama is in grave danger of being irrefutably tied in to the Springfield/Chicago culture of corruption that has pervaded Illinois, despite Blago's self-styled "reformer" mantle. See more here. Many people have already questioned Obama's need to run to Kenya to lambast corruption, all the while turning a blind eye to what was happening right under his nose. The more his name gets mentioned in all of this mess, the less credible his 'politics of change' message will become. And, if Hillary fails to exploit this truth, McCain sure will.

This post from Taylor Marsh (a Hillary supporter) is a few weeks old now, but her thoughts pretty much sum up what I'm trying to say:

"Look at Obama's record coming up in Illinois politics. At every turn it represents the antithesis of the politics of change and hope. It is at its heart a story about old time, Chicago style political games and money backing from a man now under federal indictment for a "pay to play scheme on steroids." That's not to say Obama isn't gifted or that political opportunism and old style hardball is wrong. It's just not what he's selling today. *** I do not think Barack Obama can win, regardless of his unmistakable talents, especially since he's campaigning as something other than what he is, which his record proves and offers the Republicans a treasure trove of gifts."

The Treasure Trove of GOP gifts that Marsh speaks of are well laid out in her post; it's worth a read for those seeking the real scoop on Barack.

If you still don't understand how Obama was originally tied in to Rezko as a result of the shady property deal concerning Obama's new home (after Obama belatedly revealed that he toured the property with Rezko before buying it), take a look here (photos of the Obama house and side yard). Don't feel bad that you don't understand it, though, lots of news outlots are now publishing "Obama-Rezko" primers to help people walk through this mess.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

TA:

No one has yet looked into the Obama- Emil Jones connection. Jones is one of the most disappointing leaders of Illinois and a mentor to Obama.

Anonymous said...

Why hasn't Sen. Obama condemned the anti-Israel rantings of his pastor?

Anonymous said...

Good question, Anon 9:34. Mr. Obama will NOT condemn either Farrakkhan or his Pastor, Mr. Wright. When Tim Russett tried to get Obama to do just that, rather than the articulate speaker he wants us to hear, he fumbled and fought to find some decent answer. He couldn't. He does say that he takes counsel with his Pastor, has done so for neary 20 years. If this is the kind of counsel he seeks when he's the presidennt of our country, God help us all.

Anonymous said...

It's getting too easy TA. More questions for Dan on what's behind the spin and grin on Israel.

If he likes to call himself Obama lite perhaps he can defend this on top of all of the other nutjob nonsense we hear from the anti-war/anti-israel groups he's getting hundreds of thousands of dollars from online:

"Ms. Power reportedly was very close to Sen. Obama, often, she claimed, receiving instant messages from him late at night. So it's likely her views on foreign policy are close to his own.

The most striking thing about Ms. Power's otherwise conventionally liberal views is her hostility towards Israel. She has recanted the view she expressed in 2002 that U.S. troops be sent to Israel to force creation of a Palestinian state. But she criticized the New York Times in 2003 for covering Israel too favorably when the Times reported the finding of a human rights group that a massacre had not in fact occurred in the Palestinian town of Jenin."

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/03/obamas_foreign_policy_blunders.html

Anonymous said...

Anon 9:34 -

A better question for 10th District voters is why hasn't Dan Seals condemned the anti-Israel, pro-Farakahn, rantings of RezkObama's pastor? RezkObama supports The Pup and vice-versa right?

Team America said...

I agree. Leaving aside Obama for the moment, besides the simple claim that "Dan Seals is a strong firend of Israel" I've never seen any proof that would actually back that up. Check out this hot-off-the-press post looking at Mark Kirk's pro-Israel stance and Seals pales in comparison.

Anonymous said...

Dan Seals has still not released his tax returns as Obama has called on others to do.

Anonymous said...

Seals is hosting a fundraiser tomorrow in Washington, DC, with lobbyists, trial lawyers, special interests and big labor unions.

Now that is change I can support! Needless to say many there will be reporting back to TA...

Anonymous said...

Seals came to DC - well over 13 people met him. What a joke.