It’s Another Chicago Thing

Perhaps you’ve heard – Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is under arrest for, essentially, trying to sell Barack Obama’s vacant former Senate seat:

A 76-page FBI affidavit alleges that Blagojevich, a Democrat, was intercepted on court-authorized wiretaps during the last month conspiring to sell or trade Illinois’ U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama for financial and other personal benefits for himself and his wife. At various times, in exchange for the Senate appointment, Blagojevich discussed obtaining:

A substantial salary for himself at a either a non-profit foundation or an organization affiliated with labor unions;

Placing his wife on paid corporate boards where he speculated she might garner as much as $150,000 a year;

Promises of campaign funds – including cash up front; and

A cabinet post or ambassadorship for himself.

Expect the leftyblogosphere to spend a lot of time updating the gentle reader on Mark Foley, Larry Craig and Duke Cunningham.

It’ll be an interesting question for the next one-to-four years; did Barack Obama escape Chicago Democrat politics, or did he bring ’em all to DC?

35 thoughts on “It’s Another Chicago Thing

  1. The reality-based community thinks that it is sheer coincidence that when Obama decided to start a career in politics he made a beeline for the most corrupt state & local government in the country.
    No problem. Obama was thoroughly vetted by our diligent free press.
    Making Hillary his secretary of state was a stroke of genius on the part of Obama. She is from Illinois. Unlike Gentleman John McCain Hillary has no scruples about hitting her enemy’s weak points. She probably knows far more about the dirty dealings he’s been involved in than she has ever let on. Now Hillary — and her husband, and a number of past Clinton WH staffers — are neutralized.

  2. > Expect the leftyblogosphere to spend a lot of time updating the gentle reader on Mark Foley, Larry Craig and Duke Cunningham.

    Nah, they’re busy throwing Blagovimwucvh2@^cgh under the bus, hoping we don’t notice it was totally Obama’s seat Blagovizzz*c3[ was selling. Obama’s seat. No escaping that.

    Meanwhile, fellow Illinois Demokleptokrat Dick Durbin is trying to get former Governor Ryan off the hook.

    Illinois Demokrats. I hate Illinois Demokrats.
    /jc

  3. It’s predictable, but it’s still amazing, how quickly folks on the left are scrambling to try to make sure that none of this splash on The One. Over on twitter, Noah Kunin has even gone so far as to pass along rumors that Rahm Emanuel tipped the FBI to Blago’s solicitations, even though the source is . . . (wait for it) . . .

    . . . the local Fox affiliate.

  4. You should read the indictment. Obama did push a name!

    Read it quick. Probably won’t be in the movie version.

  5. 4 out of the last 7 Illinois governors arrested and charged with corruption felonies. That alone says something about the place.

  6. Reason Fitz had to talk about Lincoln rolling over in his grave? Had to go back that far to find honest IL politician.

  7. The Rove-Bush noise machine will soon be at work trying to convince the American People that this Blago-gate stuff is somehow of greater significance to the Republic than Larry Craig’s twitching leg.
    This investigation has been going on since at least 2005 and involved political associates of Obama. It seems that the professional journalists in our elite national media were too busy writing hit pieces on Cindy McCain to assign even an intern to cover Illinois corruption.

  8. Actually, Lincoln was a crooked railroad lawyer who more or less started the Civil War and the Indian Wars by insisting on massive subsidies to Western railroads. So he’s just sad for Blago if anything.

    I read part of the indictment–if they follow through, the Illinois Democratic Party will be able to meet in publicly funded housing. Specifically, housing with bars, barbed wire, and guard towers.

  9. Blogo used to be on Jr.’s (Richard Daly) staff…you’d think he’d be smarter after having learned at the feet of the master.

    I highly recommend reading the indictment, it has the Fresh Prince’s name and the names of his closest minions all over it.

    To say nothing of the involvement of a particularly offensive union…

    Gonna be a real treat, these next few years.

  10. Chuck, there is a portion of Chicago politicians that talk that way at church, sad to say. (and at least two preachers that we can think of, for that matter) You’d think you were at a party hosted by AngryClown in Nuevo York.

  11. Angry Clown has likely spent the entire day writing an irrefutable defense of all Illinois politicians, including the Current Occupant of the Office Of the President Elect. It’s probably stuck in Mitch’s or JRoosh’s “moderation Queue”.

  12. Odd that the Clown-in-Chief hasn’t chimed in on this obvious wingnut conspiracy. We are simply misconstruing a misunderstanding of a misstatement.

  13. Three things-
    1) Compare the diligence of CBS news in ‘vetting’ a Illinois presidential candidate with close ties with crooked politicians and political fixers with their flogging of the story, backed by obviously forged documents, that Bush missed some reserve meetings in 1972.

    2) This will make it very, very difficult for Obama to fire Fitzgerald. Although I think some of Fitzgerald’s prosecutions were ill-advised, he is a dogged prosecutor. He will follow the threads of a conspiracy to their ends, and he will use every break he gets or can manufacture to produce indictments and convictions. I think it is probable that Rezko gave Fitzgerald Blagojevich. Who will Blagojevich give Fitzgerald to get the cuffs off?

    3) Kos, Huffpo, and Atrios are convinced their is a single corrupt politician in Illinois, and his name is Rod Blagojevich.

  14. Jesse Jackson has to be cursing his bad luck. Just when he was in a position to push his son as the next Senator from the Great State of Illinois ,Blago gets creamed with an indictment. It will shock me if Jesse Jackson, Jr. would now receive the nomination because everyone in Illinois knows he was pitching himself for the spot. Now that the option of actually BUYING the position has been virtually eliminated, all of yesterday’s logical choices are out of the mix. If they would have only ponied up the ante quicker!

  15. Wither the AssClown?

    Heh….really sucks when your entire worldview gets the fifth degree, doesn’t it wad boy?

    HHHaahahahahahahahahahaha(I got my red Clown nose on!!!)hahahahahah
    hahahahahahahahahahahah(and I’m sticking my big floppy biker boots under the Democrap party’s nose!!)hahahahahahah

  16. Stink, the Prince of Poverty’s son has been releated to the sh
    *t can of history. Much to the elders consternation.

  17. Blago: “They’re not willing to give me anything except appreciation.”

    Get back to me when you’ve got something, m’kay?

  18. Get back to me when you’ve got something, m’kay?

    Well, I don’t technically “have” anything. Technically, that’d be the purview of the federal prosecutors who are bringing the charges.

    I don’t follow legal stuff very much, but someone help me out here; do Federal prosecutors commonly bring frivolous, baseless, spur-of-the-moment indictments against sitting governors?

    If only some federal prosecutors or people who follow such things for a living were to sound off on this…

  19. If you are from the Tic party, any and all charges brought against you are frivolous and baseless.

    Perhaps you should give Peev a ring. 😉

  20. Lying does not Disqualify the O-man for Presidency….

    It seems that the 0-man has either lost an entire day from his memory, or he just flat out lied on National TV.

    Either way, this probably sets a record for earliest Presidential scandal.

    Let’s see if the MSM calls him on it.

    Of course, losing entire days from memory does NOT disqualify you from the Presidency.

    Unfortunately though, it brings up the scary reminder that your VP is Ego Biden.

    Curiouser and curiouser.

    Axelrod is the 0-man’s Rove. He doesn’t make mistakes. If he said 0-man talked to the Gov about the appointment, then 0-man did.

    And now A-rod comes out and says he’s taking it back? I don’t believe it. 0-man’s transition team members are all over this indictment.

    I believe 0-man knew exactly what was going on. That tacit approval means he was up for playing the game.

    CHANGE YOU CAN BELIEVE IN— ?????

    “Obviously like the rest of the people of Illinois I am saddened and sobered by the news that came out of the US attorney’s office today… I had no contact with the governor or his office and so we were not, I was not aware of what was happening.” – Barack Obama After the arrest of his close friend Governor Blagojevich, December 9, 2008.

    Of course, David Axelrod appeared on Fox News Chicago on November 23, 2008 and said Obama’s “talked to the governor” about his replacement.

    And, Connect Tristates also reported that Obama was meeting Governor Blagojevich on Wednesday November 5, 2008 to discuss his senate seat:

    “Now that Barack Obama will be moving to the White House, his seat in the U.S. Senate representing Illinois will have to be filled. That’s one of Obama’s first priorities today. He’s meeting with Governor Rod Blagojevich this afternoon in Chicago to discuss it.”

    Here’s more on that meeting with Obama from the governor’s website on November 5, 2008, where the two discussed Obama’s senate seat. From the governor’s press release:

    “Governor Blagojevich Congratulates President-elect Obama and Discusses U.S. Senate Seat To fill President-Elect Barack Obama’s Senate seat, Governor will use deliberate process to select suitable replacement”.

    Later in the day on November 5, 20008, Blagojevich held a news conference to talk about Barack Obama’s replacement in the US Senate:

    Obviously, Barack Obama is not being honest about his contact with Blagojevich.

  21. On Blagojevich there appears to be plenty of evidence. Bad Illinois governor! What you try to do subtly, and the Mitchketeers, in typical fashion, do with an excess of bile and spittle, is to slime Obama. Once again, get back to Angryclown when you’ve got something.

  22. I laugh in your general direction, angryclown?

    What’s the difference between “Culture of Corruption” and “Isolated Incident”?

    Political affiliation, apparently.

  23. I bet if there were a federal prosecutor around, he’d give you nothing but appreciation.

    [Expletive] ’em.
    /jc

  24. Meanwhile, Clown, Newsweek’s Michael Isikoff already broke the report that Rahm Emanuel held the same congressional seat that Blago occupied before he ran for governor. Take that!

    “It was just His associations, running away from me!”
    /jc

  25. Say, AssClown?

    I bet you’re second guessing your decision to send Blogo your offer of “unlimited tossed salads” via “ground” instead of “next day” aren’t you?

    Ya coulda been [candidate 6], but now you’re just another clueless, lefty moke from palookaville.

  26. It’s looking more and more like Rezko gave Fitzgerald Blago. That would be Rezko, the guy who was Obama’s neighbor and early political supporter. Obama has known Rezko since at least 1990.
    There are very close ties between Rezko & the first law firm Obama worked for, Davis, Miner, Barnhill & Galland (example: A senior partner at DMB&G was named by Blago to the Illinois Investment Board on Rezko’s recommendation). It appears that Obama’s first law firm was hip-deep in the ‘pay-for-play’ corruption of Illinois politics. We, of course, have no idea what Obama did while he was employed by DMB&G. For some reason it never seemed to interest the media as much as, say, Sarah Palin’s tanning bed.

  27. My guess is still that the scalp that Fitzgerald is after is Daley’s. The Mayor of Chicago is a much more important figure than the Governor of Illinois. It’s been that way at least since Dick Daley had the seat.

    Having said that, what is happening now was always the biggest danger with electing Obama. The question is whether he’s a politician on the Harry Truman model (a product of a corrupt machine who is personally clean) or the Spiro Agnew model. Remember, Agnew was forced to resign because of actions he took prior to becoming Vice President.

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