No, I am talking about political connections that can get you into the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. Like if you are related to Tony Rezko, for example (if you want more information about Rezko, just do a search at NQ – you’ll get plenty of posts on him and his connections to Obama). Oh, I am not making this up. It has been a big scandal in IL. Haven’t heard about this? Huh – there’s a surprise!! Ahem. Seriously, though, Board of Trustee members of the flagship university have been resigning like rats fleeing a sinking ship over this issue, including the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Niranjan Shah. Shah resigned earlier this month. Considering this story broke in MAY, it makes me wonder what took so long…

And about Tony Rezko’s relative, the Chicago Tribune reported:

In one case, a relative of Antoin “Tony” Rezko, the now-convicted influence peddler for former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, got admitted after U. of I. President B. Joseph White wrote an e-mail stating that the governor “has expressed his support, and would like to see admitted” Rezko’s relative and another applicant.

White’s message to the university chancellor was passed on to admissions officials on the same day they entered a rejection decision for the Rezko relative. “He’s actually pretty low,” replied an admissions officer, referring to the applicant’s ACT score and other credentials. “Let me know when the denial letter can go out.”

Instead, the relative was admitted.

Since 2005, about 800 undergraduate students have landed on the clout list for the Urbana-Champaign campus. It’s unknown how many would qualify for entry on their own, but their acceptance rate is higher than average. For the 2008-09 school year, for example, about 77 percent were accepted, compared with 69 percent of all applicants.

Wow. It seems that maybe “Chicago-style” politics are actually “Illinois-style” politics. Especially considering what this means in terms of academics, and what the University President had to say about all of this:

That’s in spite of the fact that patronage candidates, as a group, had lower average ACT scores and class ranks than all admitted students, records show.

In 2008, for example, freshmen on average ranked in the 88th percentile in their high school class, while clouted students ranked in the 76th percentile.

High school counselors and admissions experts said letting clout affect admissions compromises the integrity of the university.

“Whether it’s [a Rezko relative] or any other kid who takes a spot, he typically takes a spot of someone who is more qualified. That’s the part that gets my blood boiling,” said Jim Conroy, a New Trier Township High School college counselor. “This is not a private institution. This is yours and mine. Our flagship state university should not be part of any political shenanigans.”

President White said it’s not unusual for selective universities to receive input on applicants from interested parties, and it’s important to have a system to track the requests. The additional information can help the admissions office make a more informed decision, he said – though the university discourages applicants from sending letters of recommendations, saying on its Web site that “sending unsolicited materials can be distracting.”

He declined to discuss specific cases, including the Rezko relative, but said: “I would never support admission of a student over better-qualified students simply because of connections and pressure.”

But the Tribune review of about 1,800 pages of documents shows politically appointed trustees and lawmakers routinely behave as armchair admissions officers advocating on behalf of relatives and neighbors – even housekeepers’ kids and families with whom they share Hawaiian vacations. They declare their candidates “no brainers” for admission and suggest that if they are not accepted, the admissions system may need revamping.

Um, well, yes – I would say that’s a Newsflash from the Department of DUH on the whole revamping thing.

Here’s what the investigation found: The investigation found:

–University officials recognized that certain students were underqualified – but admitted them anyway.

–Admissions officers complained in vain as their recommendations were overruled.

–Trustees pushed for preferred students, some of whom were friends, neighbors and relatives.

–Lawmakers delivered admission requests to U. of I. lobbyists, whose jobs depend on pleasing the lawmakers.

–University officials delayed admissions notifications to weak candidates until the end of the school year to minimize the fallout at top feeder high schools.

For example, this spring an applicant described as having “terrible credentials” by the undergraduate admissions office was denied admittance. She sought help from Trustee Frances Carroll, who encouraged her to appeal the denial – an option not mentioned in rejection letters or any university literature. Carroll forwarded the appeal to University Chancellor Richard Herman and sought his help. The applicant was admitted.

Then, to avoid drawing attention at the applicant’s high school, where her acceptance could raise eyebrows, documents show the university planned to wait until the end of the school year to notify the applicant.

Carroll said the Lincoln Park High School senior, whom she didn’t know, had a 3.2 grade-point average, participated in many extra-curricular activities and deserved a spot at U. of I. Carroll said she likes to help disadvantaged students who may not understand the system.

Patronage has become such an entrenched part of the admissions process that there’s even a name for the applicants with heavy-hitting sponsors: “Category I.”

While some trustees and lawmakers said they didn’t realize there was a separate category for their requests, the records showed they needed only to forward a name and a few vital statistics to have the student placed in it.

And many did so without reservation.

Doesn’t this all sound eerily familiar? Sure does to me…

CQ Politics:

"Rep. Jane Harman, the California Democrat with a longtime involvement in intelligence issues, was overheard on an NSA wiretap telling a suspected Israeli agent that she would lobby the Justice Department to reduce espionage-related charges against two officials of the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee, the most powerful pro-Israel organization in Washington.

Harman was recorded saying she would “waddle into” the AIPAC case “if you think it’ll make a difference,” according to two former senior national security officials familiar with the NSA transcript.

In exchange for Harman’s help, the sources said, the suspected Israeli agent pledged to help lobby Nancy Pelosi , D-Calif., then-House minority leader, to appoint Harman chair of the Intelligence Committee after the 2006 elections."  Jeff Stein

—————————————————

Life is just not fair.  Rod Blagojevich was impeached for corruption, is under massive indictment for the same and was pilloried for seeking to bargain with people (various) over President Obama's vacated senate seat.

Jane Harman (according to CQ and Jeff Stein) bargained with a suspected foreign espionage and covert action agent (Israeli) on an open telephone line in a discussion as to whether or not she would attempt to have espionage charges reduced in the case of two men who are still awaiting trial for illegally handing over US secrets to the Israeili embassy.  In return the suspected Israeli operative (not an American) offered to go to Nancy Pelosi to influence her to appoint Harman chair of the House Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI), a position in which she would have been able to do a lot for Israel (or anyone else).

Firstly, consider the fact that this spook was comfortable enough with Harman to make her an offer like that…  Harman and her husband, Sidney, are major figures in the world of political think-tankery, charity, etc.  BENS, WINEP, AIPAC, JINSA, etc.  They get around.  She has had to "settle" for a lesser committee chairmanship.  As I said, life is not fair.

Then there is the fact that this spook said that he, a foreigner, would go to the minority leader of the House of Representatives (Pelosi) with some prospect of success to ask for Harman to be made chairman of the HPSCI.  Chutzpah indeed!  There must have been a good case that he knew Pelosi well enough for Harman to think that plausible.  I guess if enough people go to enough dinner parties, eventually everyone knows everyone?

Who was this person, the mysterious voice on the phone?  Did he flee the country at some point?  Is he now likely to visit Washington soon as a member of a new government?  Will there be a dinner party?  pl

PS.  There is some thought that the "Israeli operative" may be a naturalized dual Israeli/American national.  This is unclear, but not very important.

STEPHEN DIAMOND: I am a lawyer, political scientist and law professor. I teach courses and conduct research on the global capital markets, business law, international human rights and labor law. My blog is Global Labor and Politics. You may read my other posts at NoQuarterUSA.net here.

Obama is clearly losing goodwill points every day that Blago-gate drags on. Now it appears that indeed Rahm Emanuel was in touch with Blago and aide Harris about the senate seat though no evidence yet of malfeasance on Emanuel’s part.

The stench of Chicago machine politics now clings to Obama like a cheap cologne.

It did not have to be this way.

Obama started out his career firmly in the reform anti-Daley machine wing of the Chicago Democratic Party. That’s what it meant to be an Alinsky-ite Community Organizer in black south side poor and working class neighborhoods in the 80s (where, by the way, he first got to know the powerful Balanoff family of Tom Balanoff aka “SEIU Official” – the flag pole contact in the Feds affidavit against Blagojevich).

That’s what it meant to fight the Mayor’s office and the powerful school board and the teachers union simultaneously in the push for a school reform bill in 1988 which Obama did alongside his pal Bill Ayers. And Obama did that in opposition to mainstream black organizations like Operation PUSH and The Woodlawn Organization.

That’s what it meant to join again with Ayers in securing and then spending $160 million on education reform AGAINST the desires of Mayor Daley in what were called the Chicago School Wars. That’s what it meant to hold his initial campaign event in the home of his “family friends” Bernardine Dohrn and Bill Ayers. That’s what it meant to step into the shoes of outgoing state rep. and fellow traveler Alice Palmer.

In fact, that’s what it meant if your aspiration in political life, as it was for Obama, was to depose Richard Daley Jr. inspired by Obama’s hero, Harold Washington, the first black mayor of the city who died in office while Obama was a community organizer.

But at some point in the late 90s or so, Obama realized he had higher ambitions and perhaps becoming Chicago Mayor was not enough. At that point he began to establish relationships with the Chicago mainstream, including key business figures like Penny Pritzker and he even began cozying up to the Daley machine itself. These would prove critical in his rise to national prominence

And now he is stuck with them. Instead of taking advantage of his new national ties to the Kennedy family or VP-elect Joe Biden he immediately fell back on the Chicago crowd for his earliest appointments – Rahm Emanuel and Valerie Jarrett, for example – while only leaving behind Jeremiah Wright and, hopefully, Billy Ayers.

For whatever reason Democratic Presidents seem too heavily dependent on the home team. Carter had his Georgia buddies as Clinton had his Arkansas cronies. Usually, however, it takes a few years for their inadequacies to shine through. Obama hasn’t even moved to Washington yet!

From my blog, Global Labor and Politics.

MORE ON ALINSKY:

Here’s a brief summary of Saul Alinsky’s relationship to Obama, via Wikipedia:

Alinsky codified and wrote a clear set of rules for community organizing. His rules for radicals are now used as key tactics to learn in the training of new community organizers and were the tactics used by then candidate Barack Obama to win the 2008 election.

[...]

Alinsky’s teachings influenced Barack Obama in his early career as a community organizer on the far South Side of Chicago. Working for Gerald Kellman’s Developing Communities Project, Obama learned and taught Alinsky’s methods for community organizing.

Join Paulie at 9:00 p.m. ET to discuss Saul Alinsky’s legacy at No Quarter Radio!

MATT TAIBBI – Rolling Stone

Blago crapping in the Democrat’s Punch

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/25556350/blagos_revenge

Matt, You Obama sucking assHat, I love what Blago has done to you.  After how you treated Hillary Clinton and John McCain you have the nerve to cry that Governor Blagojevich is shitting on your party?

Not only has the man not been indicted, there’s a very good chance he never will.  I have a feeling that he learned from his mentor, Barack Obama, how to avoid paying any price for stupid political missteps.

I hope that scum keeps giving you and your lying pseudo journalist friends nightmares.  I hope he sticks it to all of you during his appearance on Larry King next week.  I hope I don’t run out of popcorn as I watch this hilarious play.

All this bullshit, we hoped, might end with Barack Obama. But then came Blagojevich, a sleazeball whose massively publicized success in scheming a way to drop turd in the new president’s inaugural punch bowl is a gate-crashing leap above station on the order of Paris Hilton screwing her way into a speaking role in Gandhi or Amadeus. It’s a political disaster that happened only after Democrats once again froze in the headlights at the crucial moment, trying to flee in two different directions at once while a third-rate bookie in a tracksuit seized control of the U.S. Senate.

Don’t ask me what I think of their treatment of Senator Burris in the above cartoon.

I couldn’t read beyond the third paragraph and I left the shitty Rolling Stone down by the wood stove for help keeping us warm tomorrow.

Cross posted from Partizane

Here is the new Cabbage patch doll

for Illinois residents.Now YOU too

can buy the governor.

(Sent to me by our Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy, who’s on the mend.)

What else is goin ‘on?

OR was he a poison pill? (Sadly, this won’t keep the MSM from incessantly — and I do mean incessantly — blathering on and on and on and on about Bill and Hillary and Bill/Hillary vs. Barack/Joe and all that utter nonsense they use to fill the empty hours at MSNBC.)

Via Political Wire:

Clinton Confirmed

The U.S. Senate confirmed Hillary Clinton to be President Obama’s secretary of state in a 94 to 2 vote.

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) was instrumental in urging Republicans to support Clinton. Only Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) and Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) voted against her nomination.

JOHN McCAIN IS A CLASS ACT! (Second time today I’ve published that!)

And a purveyor of prostitutes as well as a customer of the D.C. Madam who’s in for the fight of his life when reelection comes in predominantly-religious Louisiana (with its significant population of conservative Catholics appalled by David Vitter’s behavior), along with a South Carolinian homophobic, anti-single-parents rightwinger (Jim DeMint, who says that not just homosexuals but also single parents should not be allowed to teach in schools, I kid you not!) were the only two nay votes.

Damn good, Hillary. If those two losers had voted for you, I’d worry.

And so …
What else is goin ‘on?

“Roland Burris is a good man and a fine public servant, but the Senate Democrats made it clear weeks ago that they cannot accept an appointment made by a governor who is accused of selling this very Senate seat. I agree with their decision, and it is extremely disappointing that Governor Blagojevich has chosen to ignore it. I believe the best resolution would be for the Governor to resign his office and allow a lawful and appropriate process of succession to take place. While Governor Blagojevich is entitled to his day in court, the people of Illinois are entitled to a functioning government and major decisions free of taint and controversy,” said President-elect Obama.

Oh, no. Obama is “extremely disappointed.” Well, join the freakin’ club, Obama. You aren’t the only one. There are millions of us who are disappointed. Heck, despairing might even be the word of choice. But I digress.

Now, Obama has changed his tune (surprise!!!!!). According to this CBS Report, Obama is now saying:

Mr. Obama was just asked about the Burris appointment during his morning press conference. The president-elect did not take a position, saying it was “a Senate matter.”

Mr. Obama noted he had known Burris for years, adding: “If he gets seated, then I’m going to work with Roland Burris, just like I work with all the other senators.”

Newsflash from the Department of Duh: You already took a position, Mr. Obama. Perhaps YOU should learn hot to use that whole Google thing to remind yourself of what you said about a week ago. Just sayin’.

And for the record, the Senate does NOT get to decide who they will allow in or not. It’s a matter of who each state sends. You might want to go take another little look-see at that pesky piece of paper you find to be so “deeply flawed,” the Constitution. Just a thought!

But Obama isn’t the only one who is probably making Burris’ head spin (and mine). The above-mentioned Senate owner (hey, that’s how he is acting), Harry Reid. His constant stand that Burris will now be admitted to his playgroup is now weakening:

After repeatedly saying they wouldn’t accept him and turning him away Tuesday, it now appears that Senate Democrats eventually plan to seat Roland Burris after all.

After Burris met privately with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois, Reid told reporters today that he hopes “sooner rather than later” the full Senate will vote on whether to accept Burris.

And get this:

Reid said he and Burris met for 45 minutes and since he had “never met the man,” it was “very enlightening,” calling Burris “obviously very engaging, a very nice man.”

Well, by all means, Harry, if the only criterion you have is if you think someone is “nice” enough, glad to hear Burris suits you on that level.

I have written about this before, but holy crap – our Senate is a very small junior high school. Grow the hell up already, Harry!! Sheesh!

By the way, in the article linked above about Reid, there is a link to a US News and World Report article (by Michael Barone)regarding issues of legality and seating Burris. I’ll bottom-line it for you: they have to seat him.

In the meantime, I think the following should be Burris’ theme song:

So, what will it be? Will he stay or will he go?

Say this is not true.

You tell us that armed guards are going to keep Roland Burris from taking his seat. One strike.

But Harry, now this?

Days before Gov. Blagojevich was charged with trying to sell President-elect Barack Obama’s U.S. Senate seat to the highest bidder, top Senate Democrat Harry Reid made it clear who he didn’t want in the post: Jesse Jackson, Jr., Danny Davis or Emil Jones.

Rather, Reid called Blagojevich to argue he appoint either state Veterans Affairs chief Tammy Duckworth or Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, sources told the Chicago Sun-Times.

Now, granted Harry recommended women, which is REALLY rare from today’s Regressives Progressives. But Harry blew off four, count them four, black potential candidates to fill Barack Obama’s slot. The only black US senator is leaving that seat, and Harry couldn’t abide one of these four guys? And looking at the names tells me that Roland is the best pick of all.

At least Roland is not a long-time New Party borderline Communist waiting to send us all to the potato fields after he redistributes our income, like Danny Davis.

At least Roland is not a typical Chicago Fixer and Obama’s political Godfather like Emil Jones. How ironic, though. Jones Made Obama. Incidentally, this is the same guy who called an African American Clinton delegatean “Uncle Tom”. I wonder what he’s thinking now about his “Godson” Barack Obama turning his back on Roland Burris.

I honestly don’t know what Jesse Jackson Junior is, besides being Jesse Senior’s son. Furthermore, he thew his own father under the bus for Barack Obama, which to me is a strong indicator of just how far he would go to get ahead.

Say what you want about Jesse Sr. Agree with him or don’t agree with him, but he has worked his tail off for the African American community since he was a young puppy. I remember Jesse speaking at my college during what the Gen-Y crowd would call the Stone Age. Jesse Junior’s achievement record is Nil compared to his father. He’s hitching a ride off of Daddy’s name and everybody knows it. So the least he could have done was show his father some respect. This goes to character. But still, this guy went all out for Barack Obama, even unto turning his back on his own father.

But Harry seems to have a problem with placing of anyAfrican American in the seat of the only black person in the Senate. And apparently Barack Obama has the same problem.

Barack would do well to remember that if he hadn’t bamboozled the African American community into thinking, among other things, that he is going to drop money from the sky upon them, he would not be President-Elect Obama today. This has to be a huge blow to the morale of the community. The Congressional Black Caucus has got to be wondering where Reid and Obama are really coming from.

Overall, I cannot avoid the temptation to say on behalf of Women in America: Welcome To The Club. Unfairness Sucks, doesn’t it? I’ll bet it does. That’s why this statement from the Obama camp is particularly unconscionable:

An Obama transition team spokeswoman would not comment, referring reporters to a report released by Obama’s transition team before Christmas.

I have a feeling, if this “transition” is any indicator, we are going to hear a lot of “No Comments” from Barack Obama in the next four years. He is doing the same thing with the Gaza conflict. He acts as if we are interrupting his hoops and workout every time the press asks him a burning question. Considering the practice he got during the primaries and the election, he’s seasoned at avoiding questions that force him to reveal a detail or make a commitment. But what’s up with this subject of his Senate seat replacement? Does Barack want to pull a Clarence Thomas and kick the ladder out from under him for African Americans now that he got to climb it?

This morning Reid has denied having this conversation at all. I hope this is true. But I have the distinct feeling that Blago knows where plenty of bodies are buried and some of those bodies were dragged across the room while the tape was rolling–

Considering Reid’s behavior over Roland Burris’ appointment— what with talk of Armed Guards–and considering there is a boatload of audio tapes– my money is on the man with the Big Hair on this one.

Things are lookin’ bad for ya, Harry. This morning FOX paraphrased you as saying on this morning’s Meet The Press,

“We have the right to do whatever we want to”.

Nice to know we are living in a Democracy, Harry. Nice to know. Just really hard to tell when we have a cranky Totalitarian bastard like you in charge of the Senate.

Rather, I want to share with you the backbone, the intestinal fortitude, with which some of NY’s politicians are made. You may recall that not everyone in NY was happy with the whole Kennedy Schlossberg push for Clinton’s Senate seat. Specifically, the Assembly Speaker, Sheldon Silver, was opposed to her appointment. I know I should not be surprised by this, but in this NY Post article, “Silver Now Takes Shine To Caroline,” we learn WHY he has made this 180 turn. Ready for this? Here it is:

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, who last week sharply questioned whether Caroline Kennedy should be appointed to the US Senate, said yesterday he’s rethinking his views because he believes Gov. Paterson may soon pick her.

The emphasis is mine. I am practically speechless. Silver wasn’t, though:

“I have determined there’s a good possibility she will be the appointee of the governor,” Silver, the state’s second most powerful Democrat, told The Post.

“If she is the appointee of the governor, I will certainly be supportive of her. I will work for her and will work strenuously for her election.”

Let’s see – even though he was opposed to her the other day, because he now thinks the governor may pick her, he’s for her. Wow – way to stick to the courage of your convictions there, Silver! Oh, yeah – and he’s willing to work for her re-election, too! Just like that – snap! I am sure his constituents are thrilled that he is such a man of his word.

Here is the recap of the past week on Silver’s position:

Last week, Silver said Kennedy seemed more loyal to Mayor Bloomberg, who has twice defeated Democratic opponents, than she was to Paterson.

He also said he was unhappy with Kennedy’s less than 100 percent commitment to support the Democratic candidate who’ll run against Bloomberg, who was twice elected as a Republican, this year.

Asked if he was now more favorably inclined toward Kennedy then he was last week, Silver responded, “Yes, it’s true.”

The speaker insisted he had no inside information – from the governor or anyone else – that Kennedy would be named to replace Hillary Rodham Clinton, President-elect Barack Obama’s choice to be secretary of state.

But he said he reached the conclusion her appointment was likely because of “public opinion polls, which are not negative, and because the governor, I think, wants to run [in 2010] with a strong candidate, and I’m sure . . . having a well-known woman on the ticket will be helpful.”

Well, one would think. Didn’t help Hillary, but, oh, yeah – that’s because she was cheated, as we all were. But I digress.

Here’s the problem. Silver’s math comprehension:

While a national poll earlier this week showed a majority of Americans view Kennedy as qualified to be senator, a survey of New York voters last week found that 41 percent felt she was not qualified and 40 percent thought she was.

Apparently, he is not clear on PERCENTAGES. A friend who’s a math professor could help him with that. And even though it is a small percentage, it is not that Kennedy Schlossberg is being received with OVERWHELMING support the way, oh, I dunno, CLINTON was. Just sayin’.

But get this explanation for why it should be the exceedingly wealthy, connected Kennedy (and someone remind me why this is not a “pay to play” scheme? Does ANYONE think favors have not been promised for her to get in? Really??):

Meanwhile, Bloomberg’s top political aide, Deputy Mayor Kevin Sheekey – who has been lobbying for Kennedy – played his trump card yesterday. He argued that only Kennedy, an early Obama supporter, would have the clout a cash-strapped New York will need within the next administration.

“I think New York needs someone who can work with the new president. I think New York needs someone who supported the new president. I think New York desperately shouldn’t appoint someone who opposed the new president,” Sheekey said.

I think Sheekey means to say this is the payback for all Kennedy Schlossberg did for Obama during the campaign, like comparing him to her father, though there is absolutely no basis whatsoever for such a comparison. And for her coming out of her private little world to stump all over creation for The One (and no doubt, her uncle’s influence in having the RBC make a mockery of any sense of decency and fair play).

Just seems to me that this is different only in small degrees from what has happened in IL. She is someone Obama wants in there because she won’t EVER buck him (I assume that’s what Sheekey means when he says she’ll “work” with PEBO), and will simply be a yes-woman to him. We all know that would NOT have been Hillary’s role – acquiescing to whatever PEBO wants. The other piece of the equation often left out is the representation of the people of NY. Cuomo would be a much better pick for that, but why quibble. If PEBO wants her in, you know she’ll get it, even though she is unqualified for it. Welcome to New Politics Obama-style, same as Chicago-style. Seems it’s here to stay…

Rod Blagojevich may be a little crazy alright—crazy as a pissed-off fox. The still-legally-sitting Governor’s appointment of Roland W. Burris to take over Barack Obama’s vacated senate seat has set off a firestorm among African American lawmakers and legal scholars, and should be of great concern to all of us for reasons noted below.

No matter what we think of the guy, Blagojevich is legally permitted to make such an appointment, despite being charged (but not yet indicted) for conspiring to commit fraud and soliciting bribery. No constitutional provision exists to defy his action.

But Senate Democrats have vowed to refuse to seat anyone appointed by the besieged Governor of Illinois. Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid has stated in no uncertain terms that Burris, specifically, will never be seated.

Here’s the looming problem for Senate Democrats. Burris is an African American. He wants the job. His credentials and other requirements (i.e., age, residency, citizenship) to be a U. S. Senator are satisfactory, which is all the Constitution demands. And, with Obama gone, there would be no other AA senators.

Burris is standing strong against Reid’s threat. He has already taken Illinois’ Secretary of State Jessie White to court to force him to certify the appointment. Burris may well prevail because the SoS, it turns out, has no real veto power. And if Burris prevails there, what will Harry Reid do if he shows up on the Senate stairs later this month? Ask Capitol Police to whisk him away? How is that going to play out on the 6 o’clock news?

Black members in the House have given fair warning. As stated in the New York Times, “Several black lawmakers said the Senate’s efforts to block the appointment of Mr. Burris by Mr. Blagojevich would be viewed by many black voters as a signal that systemic roadblocks continue to prevent qualified, respected African-Americans from climbing the political ladder. They said Mr. Obama’s opposition to the appointment would do little to ease such concerns among their black constituents, who remain concerned that the Senate has no black members.”

Rejecting an African American who was legally appointed and qualified for the job adds up to a PR nightmare and puts our new President in an even more precarious position. President-elect Obama’s response is,

Roland Burris is a good man and a fine public servant, but the Senate Democrats made it clear weeks ago that they cannot accept an appointment made by a governor who is accused of selling this very Senate seat. I agree with their decision, and it is extremely disappointing that Governor Blagojevich has chosen to ignore it. I believe the best resolution would be for the Governor to resign his office and allow a lawful and appropriate process of succession to take place. While Governor Blagojevich is entitled to his day in court, the people of Illinois are entitled to a functioning government and major decisions free of taint and controversy.

So now the Senate, with the concurrence of the newly elected President, wants to expand its powers. Legal analyst Peter Johnson points out, as have many other legal scholars, that the law favors Blagojevich and Burris. He notes that the Consitution allows Congress to make a decision based only on constitutional parameters, not, whether they like who appointed him.

So, this is the change we’ve been waiting for? Increased Washington powers in state affairs?

As for Harry, he should have kept his mouth shut. Chicago plays much rougher, tougher and smarter than he can.

Twas the night before Christmas, and across this great nation, there was a strange feeling. It was not jubilation.

For the Messiah had come to much hallowed ground. Yet, there was absolutely no hope and change to be found.

Barack was his name. A name funny indeed. He was black, he was white. He could be whatever you need.

He flew into D.C. on a shiny new sleigh. Yet called Pastor Rick to say the hell with the gay.

With his middle finger extended, brushing dirt here and there, he let women feel used and he just didn’t care.

For us at No Quarter it was so plain to see. A messiah he wasn’t, it just couldn’t be.

Susan in her stockings and Larry in his cap. We all knew, Saint Obama was just full of crap.

We would not build him a throne made of gold, cloth and brass. For the dirt from Chicago grew way past his ass.

Blago the Ogre knew many truths to be told. How this so-called Messiah could be bought and sold.

But, a crafty Messiah, works hard Christmas night. He gathered his elves to prepare for the fight. On Rahm, On Hillary, Caroline, Oprah too. Leave Biden at home, he should have nothing to do.

We must spread word to the people across our great land. That the Messiah is real, and hope and change are at hand. With ABC, NBC, CBS and the cable, the people will know he is virtuous and able.

Distractions so numerous must not interfere with Michelle’s plans to rule above and to sneer.

Let the people think you’ll pay for their mortgage and gas, just as long as they give us a pass.

And many were fooled and they slept the good sleep. Yet many of us knew this just goes to deep.

Larry and Susan, Truthteller too. Rabble Rouser Rev Amy just to name a few. And Ani and Pat along with LD, Patsy and Sugar, Pamela and me. We will not go quietly, we will stay in plain sight. So Merry Fitzmas to all and have a good night.

Commercial Note: Please remember Capture the Magic and all of the sponsors here at No Quarter as you finalize your Holiday purchases. The proceeds go a long way to helping us keep doing what we do. At www.capturethemagic.com, you can upload a picture of your living room (tree, fireplace etc.) and add a stunningly realistic looking Santa to your picture. The kids (or grandkids) will love it. It’s a lot of fun and helps out my day job and this website at the same time. Just click on the banner on the top of the page.

Thanks again and have a great Holiday!

Rob

ITEM: Illinois Governor Rod Blagoevich says he has done nothing wrong and vows to remain in office:

“It’s begining to look a lot like Fiztmas. Everywhere you go. Take a look a look at all the hacks, trying to watch their backs before Blago takes the stand and lets out all he knows.” The Gov could be the gift that keeps on giving.

The last thing anyone connected with Illinois government wants to see is Blago on the stand during an impeachment preceeding with absolutely nothing to lose. Then again, they might prefer that to seeing him cut a deal with the U.S. Attorney.

Either way, a whole lot of Chicago machine cronies are not getting very much sleep right now. They would love to cut a deal with the Governor, but can’t. He is being watched way too closely.

ITEM: Rick Warren will offer the invocation at Barack Obama’s inaugaration. The left, Gay and Lesbian activists and especially Rachel Maddow are not happy:
“O Come all Ye Faithful”. As long as you come with someone of the opposite gender. The good news is this is all part of the Obama economic recovery plan. Detroit will makes lots of money keeping up with the orders for new buses for PEBO to throw his supporters under. This does add credence to my initial thoughts about Obama that he doesn’t believe in anything except advancing the cause of Barack Obama. Whatever works best for his self-interest is where he will go. The gay and lesbian community, along with their supporters are just too small for him to be worried about.

ITEM: Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg launches a campaign to be appointed Senator in New York:

“Teddy the Lion, was a holly jolly soul. With blood shot eyes, and and puffed out cheeks, he just realized he is very old.” And he wants to keep a family member in the chamber to be there after he finally has to answer for Chappaquidick. Yes David Patterson, is the only vote that matters, but the Kennedy-Schlossberg team are making it impossible for him to choose anyone else.

They are running all over the state wooing Democratic leaders with Kennedy-Schlossberg cash to use them to help pressure Patterson. They are using the media’s Kennedy lust to help promote her to the public as a worthy candidate and they are very quietly letting it be known that this is the will of the Messiah.

Of course, those Democratic officials who have worked hard on behalf of the people and party for decades in New York and have earned the right to be considered by the Governor will just have to step aside.

Condi is on Meet the Press Today:

“Run, Run Condi. Get out of Washington as fast as you can.” One of the best thing about George W. Bush leaving office is he is taking Condi with him. Never has someone so incompetent been allowed to serve, so long. She was working on the Bush Revisionist platform with David Gregory this morning. Her premise that the media would rather focus on the shoe, than all the good that is now taking place in Iraq. As always, they miss the point. Yes, things are better now in Iraq, but that shoe does represent something. It represents a belief from Iraqi citizens that no matter what the final outcome is in Iraq, it is not worth what the United States has put them through the past six years. And Condi is part of the team that prepared to destroy their lives from day one of the Bush administration.

PETA names Oprah as “person of the year”: Obviously her kindness to misogynistic pigs shows her commitment to animal rights.

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Join us as we get ready to celebrate the holidays together.

Governor Rod Blagojevich apparently has been trying to sell Obama’s Senate vacated seat. Shameful!

Then along comes Caroline Kennedy (Schlossberg) who appears to believe that genealogy is sufficient to take over Hillary’s Senate seat.

This all stinks. I see them in my mind’s eye as little children who both belong somewhere other than in leadership positions.

But which one is the lesser of two wrongs?

I come down on the side of Governor Rod Blagojevich. At least with “pay to play,” more than one person gets a shot at the prize. A tiny sniff of the American way is built in there. With Caroline, it’s all about perceived entitlement as part of a dynasty. Didn’t our forefathers and foremothers risk all to escape that?

Well, despite his protestations to the contrary, when Gov. Rendell decided to endorse CHRIS MATTHEWS in his run for the 2010 US Senate run in PA, he pretty much sealed his own place in the Sexist Hall of Fame. I mean, REALLY – how can he go from supporting Hillary Clinton to supporting one of the most sexist, misogynistic men in the MSM, who ROUTINELY demeaned and belittled Clinton??

Unbelievable.

And along those lines, did you catch Rahm Emmanuel complaining the other day that he couldn’t walk and chew gum at the same time? Oh, no – that’s not right. No, he said he couldn’t be a father and answer a reporter’s questions all at the same time. I am not kidding. It was in the Chicago Sun Times, regarding the whole Blagojevich debacle:

President-elect Barack Obama’s chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, refused to take questions from reporters this morning about whether he was the Obama “advisor” named in the criminal complaint against Gov. Rod Blagojevich…

Emanuel was uncharacteristically absent from Obama’s news conference this morning. He was spotted two hours later in the lobby of Chicago’s City Hall. He was there to listen to his two children performing in a concert with their school, Anshe Emet.

A Sun-Times reporter pressed him to comment about whether he was the emissary named in the criminal complaint.

“You’re wasting your time,” Emanuel said. “I’m not going to say a word to you. I’m going to do this with my children. Don’t do that. I’m a father. I have two kids. I’m not going to do it.”

Asked, “Can’t you do both?” Emanuel replied, “I’m not as capable as you. I’m going to be a father. I’m allowed to be a father,” and he pushed the reporter’s digital recorder away.

Holy cow. Can you IMAGINE what would have happened if, say, PALIN had said that? Oh, here’s a little example of the crapola said about HER being a parent:

Where the hell was Ed Schultz when Rahm Emmanuel couldn’t even answer a SIMPLE question because he’s a FATHER??? He’s something – besides being a father. Let your imaginations go wild…But hey – I didn’t hear any hew and cry from the Brotherhood of Sexist Men about THAT response, oh no.

Oh, but Schultz isn’t the only one. Remember this little gem by Campbell Brown questioning Palin’s fitness as a mother?

How about when Obama got all pissy with reporters for following him around when he took his two girls trick or treating? Oh, wow – can you IMAGINE if Hillary or Sarah or ANY WOMAN in public life got all cranky with the national media if they were out and about with their kids?? Whooey – the airwaves would be filled with the videos of them, over and over, with the predictable question of, “if they can’t handle a little thing like this, how are the going to deal with National Security” or whatever the issue of the day is. Yeah. But Obama can tell these folks to get back on the bus, Gus, and with a very few exceptions, we don’t hear a lot more about it. Just like the little Rahm fit.

Gwen “I Want to Help Obama Get Elected So My Book Is Relevant And Sells” Ifill asked Rep. Heather Wilson the wrong question. Rep. Wilson pretty much says it all about the vast discrepancies between the sexes, with some bonus discussion on how much more Palin was vetted than the other candidates:

It really is remarkable. Somehow, Governor Palin is capable of being governor of an entire state while having five children, and HER abilities are questioned all of the time. How DARE she not be there full time for her children!! Rahm Emmanuel has a hard time answering a question when he is at his kids’ school to just LISTEN to a concert, and gets whiney about how he cannot do two things at once. Please. Don’t use your kids as a damn excuse, Rahm. Funny – it seems you were capable of multi-tasking before, you know, talking to your good buddy, Rod, and being Obama’s right hand man.

My advice, if you can’t handle being a parent and a Representative/Obama tool, maybe you should give one of them up. I vote for giving up the Representative/Obama tool part. That would make one less Chicago politician in Washington, which would be just peachy with me. Just go home with your kids, Rahm. You can teach them all about Politics, the Chicago way! Make sure you tell them ALL about Uncle Hot Rod, Uncle Billy (Ayers), Uncle Tony (Rezko) while you’re at it. Or maybe you could call Hillary and ask her how to do more than one thing at a time. I’m sure she could teach you how to walk and chew gum at the same time.

There have been reforms in the state, most notably a new ethics law designed to limit the impact of money in politics. It was approved only after Obama, a former state senator, called his one-time mentor, Senate President Emil Jones, and urged its passage.

His “one-time mentor”? Are you freakin’ KIDDING me??? How about the Kingmaker who put Obama’s name on legislation on which he had not worked?? Oh, wait, that’s just too close to the truth of Obama’s lack of experience/qualifications. No way can the AP get that close…

Ahem. But of course, the ONLY reason The One made the decision to begin his political career in Chicago, apparently, was to clean up Illinois politics. Hahahahaha! Yeah, and that’s why he endorsed Blagojevich – TWICE. And worked on his campaign. But why quibble over past history, right? RIGHT??

That does seem to be the MO around anything related to BO. It is really amazing to me. In my opinion, though, the only way someone can deny Obama is a Chicago-style politician is flat our ignorance, or flat our denial of reality. Take your pick. There is NO way from the stories that have come out about Obama, his relationships to Blagojevich, Rezko, Wright, Meeks, Ayers, et al, that he is above typical Chicago politics. The Rezko thing ALONE is indicative of his involvement. And there is no way that Blagojevich JUST became corrupt as of Nov. 5th when Obama, with the help of ANOTHER corrupt Chicago political institution, ACORN (there have been so many stories on ACORN, and their actions this year, it is hard to single out just one, but here’s a YouTube video, and here’s another. There are many more videos on this subject. If you want more article information, please feel free to use the”Search” function at the upper right hand corner of this page.), helped him become PEBO.

Yes, I know the MSM has been a HUGE help in both regards – ignorance and denial. But not ALL reputable sources were completely in the tank for The One. The New Yorker, for instance, had some impressive pieces, particularly this one,The Political Scene: “Making It: How Chicago shaped Obama. The article title alone is indicative of the effect of Chicago-style politics on Obama. The author, Ryan Lizza, published this article in July 21, 2008, so like I said, the information was definitely available…

Many of us have heard of Alice Palmer, one of the first people (of whom we are aware) thrown under the bus by a power-hungry Obama. There was another woman, too, Toni Preckwinkle, who had a whole lot to say about the young Mr. Obama on his ascension into Chicago politics:

One day in 1995, Barack Obama went to see his alderman, an influential politician named Toni Preckwinkle, on Chicago’s South Side, where politics had been upended by scandal. Mel Reynolds, a local congressman, was facing charges of sexual assault of a sixteen-year-old campaign volunteer. (He eventually resigned his seat.) The looming vacancy set off a fury of ambition and hustle; several politicians, including a state senator named Alice Palmer, an education expert of modest political skills, prepared to enter the congressional race. Palmer represented Hyde Park—Obama’s neighborhood, a racially integrated, liberal sanctuary—and, if she ran for Congress, she would need a replacement in Springfield, the state capital. Obama at the time was a thirty-three-year-old lawyer, university lecturer, and aspiring office-seeker, and the Palmer seat was what he had in mind when he visited Alderman Preckwinkle.

“Barack came to me and said, ‘If Alice decides she wants to run, I want to run for her State Senate seat,’ ” Preckwinkle told me. We were in her district office, above a bank on a street of check-cashing shops and vacant lots north of Hyde Park. Preckwinkle soon became an Obama loyalist, and she stuck with him in a State Senate campaign that strained or ruptured many friendships but was ultimately successful. Four years later, in 2000, she backed Obama in a doomed congressional campaign against a local icon, the former Black Panther Bobby Rush. And in 2004 Preckwinkle supported Obama during his improbable, successful run for the United States Senate. So it was startling to learn that Toni Preckwinkle had become disenchanted with Barack Obama.

Well, I’ll be damned – Obama DIDN’T win all of his races! Amazing how we have RARELY (if ever) heard about his “doomed” race. Or that some people who know him, really know him, no longer are delighting in his glow:

Preckwinkle is a tall, commanding woman with a clipped gray Afro. She has represented her slice of the South Side for seventeen years and expresses no interest in higher office. On Chicago’s City Council, she is often a dissenter against the wishes of Mayor Richard M. Daley. For anyone trying to understand Obama’s breathtakingly rapid political ascent, Preckwinkle is an indispensable witness—a close observer, friend, and confidante during a period of Obama’s life to which he rarely calls attention.

Although many of Obama’s recent supporters have been surprised by signs of political opportunism, Preckwinkle wasn’t. “I think he was very strategic in his choice of friends and mentors,” she told me. “I spent ten years of my adult life working to be alderman. I finally got elected. This is a job I love. And I’m perfectly happy with it. I’m not sure that’s the way that he approached his public life—that he was going to try for a job and stay there for one period of time. In retrospect, I think he saw the positions he held as stepping stones to other things and therefore approached his public life differently than other people might have.”

Well, again, if anyone could see the trajectory of Obama’s career as anything other thank opportunistic “stone-stepping,” it is only because they did not WANT to see that Obama was a driven POLITICIAN.

But here is my point: Chicago politics. This is a major foundation the MSM and Obama worshipers/supporters refuse to acknowledge – because it does not fit the narrative they have created:

On issue after issue, Preckwinkle presented Obama as someone who thrived in the world of Chicago politics. She suggested that Obama joined Jeremiah Wright’s Trinity United Church of Christ for political reasons. “It’s a church that would provide you with lots of social connections and prominent parishioners,” she said. “It’s a good place for a politician to be a member.” Preckwinkle was unsparing on the subject of the Chicago real-estate developer Antoin (Tony) Rezko, a friend of Obama’s and one of his top fund-raisers, who was recently convicted of fraud, bribery, and money laundering: “Who you take money from is a reflection of your knowledge at the time and your principles.” As we talked, it became increasingly clear that loyalty was the issue that drove Preckwinkle’s current view of her onetime protégé. “I don’t think you should forget who your friends are,” she said.

Others told me that Preckwinkle’s grievances against Obama included specific complaints, such as his refusal to endorse a former aide and longtime friend, Will Burns, in a State Senate primary—a contest that Burns won anyway. There was also a more general belief that, after Obama won the 2004 United States Senate primary, he ignored his South Side base. Preckwinkle said, “My view is you have to bring your constituency along with you. Granted, you have to make some tough decisions. Granted, sometimes you have to make decisions that people won’t understand or like. But it’s your obligation to explain yourself and try to do your supporters the courtesy of treating them with respect.” Ivory Mitchell, who for twenty years has been the chairman of the local ward organization in Obama’s neighborhood—considered the most important Democratic organization on the South Side—was one of Obama’s earliest backers. Today, he says, “All the work we did to help him get where he finally ended up, he didn’t seem too appreciative.” A year ago, Mitchell became a delegate for Hillary Clinton.

What?? Obama not appreciative? Yeah – no kidding. He has made it abundantly clear that he will step on whoever whenever it is politically – I said, POLITICALLY – expedient for him to do so. And still:

The same month Mitchell endorsed Clinton, the Obama campaign reached out to Preckwinkle, and eventually she signed on as an Obama delegate. I asked her if what she considered slights or betrayals were simply the necessary accommodations and maneuvering of a politician making a lightning transition from Hyde Park legislator to Presidential nominee. “Can you get where he is and maintain your personal integrity?” she said. “Is that the question?” She stared at me and grimaced. “I’m going to pass on that…”

Can’t say as I blame her. What does it say when someone who DOES actually know him has “to pass” on answering a question regarding Obama’s integrity? Or when the governor of his home state refers to him as a “mo***r f***er”?? These are the people who KNOW him, after all, not just who worship him from afar.

And then there is this (emphasis mine):

Chicago is not Obama’s home town, but it’s where he chose to forge his identity. Several weeks ago, he moved many of the Democratic National Committee’s operations from Washington to Chicago, making the city the unofficial capital of the Democratic Party; his campaign headquarters are in an office building in the Loop, Chicago’s downtown business district. But Chicago, with its reputation as a center of vicious and corrupt politics, may also be the place that Obama needs to leave behind.

Exactly. Chicago, with its long, long, LONG history of corrupt politics, is the city in which Obama decided to forge his political identity. One other interesting note on Obama and Chicago politics:

…David Axelrod, who has been Obama’s chief strategist since 2002 and is the foremost political consultant in Chicago, was a witness to all of it, first as a political reporter for the Chicago Tribune and later as the chief consultant to two mayors: Harold Washington, Chicago’s first black mayor and a hero of the Independents, and the current Mayor Daley, whose last name still carries negative connotations in the precincts of Hyde Park…

Uh huh. David Axelrod has shown himself to be a part of Chicago-style politics in the way he has run Obama’s campaign, that’s for sure. And no doubt, he will continue to use Chicago-style politics in the White House, too. Why change horses in mid-stream, right?

Oh, wait – that’s the wrong talking point. Ahem. Yes, Obama is trying to distance himself from Chicago politics NOW. Now that so many of its players’ wrong-doings are in the headlines, but those of us who have been keeping score know the real deal. Obama is inextricably bound to Chicago politics, and Chicago STYLE politics, as we saw this year with Hillary Clinton, Sarah Palin, and John McCain. Basically, anyone who had the “audacity to get in Obama’s way experienced Chicago politics up close and personal, and it was not pretty.

There is much, much more to the New Yorker article, and I hope you will click HERE to finish reading it (it’s long, which is why I am not reprinting it all here). In it you will read about Obama’s contentious relationship with another member of the IL Senate, Rickey Hendon; his relationship with Rezko, Ayers, and Dorhn; how his community organizing REALLY went (hint: not as well as he likes to claim NOW), and much more. I will leave you with this passage:

Part of Obama’s political success is that he has been able to exploit relationships with important yet ethically dubious figures in Illinois while still maintaining his independence. In some ways, this is an Illinois tradition. When the liberal reformer Adlai Stevenson ran for governor, in 1948, one Democratic boss reportedly noted that he would “perfume the ticket.” The earnest Lincoln scholar Paul Simon stood out in the Senate for his moral rectitude and his commitment to good government even as his state wallowed in scandal. “The political bosses knew they had to have what they used to call in business a loss leader—the showcasing,” Don Rose, the Chicago political consultant, said. “The car that you sold for under its value for advertising purposes. While you had at the top of your ticket a shining star, under that it was like turning over a rock.”

Obama has said little about the scandals in his home state. Besides the Rezko and Blagojevich cases, there have been indictments and convictions against the Daley administration concerning hiring and contracting practices. Getting close to the sullied political leadership in Illinois was probably an unavoidable cost of winning the U.S. Senate seat. Emil Jones told me that another of the lessons Obama learned after his 2000 loss was the importance of political sponsorship.

You can say that again…

And then there is this one about Obama and Blagojevich (which stands on its own, regardless of m1media’s editorial comment):

Funny – the media hasn’t been mentioning THAT a whole lot – that Obama endorsed Blagojevich TWICE. TWICE. Are we really supposed to believe that, out of the clear blue sky, after all these years, the Governor is JUST now becoming corrupt?? Hahahahaha!!!

This one is a two-fer: Blagojevich AND Jesse Jackson, Jr., that arrogant, sexist, liar:

And just for fun, this one, which has Campbell Brown near the beginning – after all of the photos of Obama and Blagojevich together (Ahem) – but then Charleston Son, Stephen Colbert:

So I was wrong – Lincoln isn’t rolling over in his grave – Colbert has him!

The timing of all of this is no accident, of that I am sure. And I do have to wonder why, when Blagojevich KNEW he was under investigation, he continued to use his personal phone? Did he really think he was above reproach, or was he looking to take someone else down with him? Just wondering…