[Rhodes22-list] Community Organization

Wed Sep 17 10:14:28 EDT 2008

Bill,

Can't answer that 100% but I think his home is in his old IL Senate
district (I grew up a couple hours south of Chicago but know Manhattan
better). Here's a recent article from his hometown newspaper.  A
reformer?  Riiiiiight!

Brad

----------------------------------

www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-oped0916byrnesep16,0,188873.story
chicagotribune.com
Obama sidesteps reform in Illinois

Dennis Byrne

September 16, 2008

For those of you who still cling to the fantasy that Barack Obama is
"about change," you should note how he, or his minions, want nothing
to do with reforming politics in Illinois, perhaps the most corrupt
state in the Union.

"Throughout his political career, Barack Obama has fought for open and
honest government," proclaims his campaign Web site. Apparently, no
longer. When the Democratic presidential candidate—now his party's
industrial-strength voice for our deliverance from political
corruption everywhere—was asked by a reformer if he would help get his
political mentor back home to get off the dime and move the most
minimal of state ethics legislation toward passage, the Obama campaign
sent word back that amounted to a "no."

State Sen. Emil Jones (D-Chicago) is the Chicago machine politician
who might have been most instrumental in jump-starting Obama's
political career. Now, as Illinois Senate president, Jones is the one
sitting on the reform legislation, refusing to call it for an expected
favorable vote before it officially dies of neglect.

Jones is the pal of Gov. Rod Blagojevich, no friend of reform, who
used his amendatory veto power to change the legislation after it
passed both houses so that Jones would get another chance to kill it.

If all that's confusing, welcome to Illinois politics, where intricacy
is the best camouflage for chicanery. Suffice to say, neither
Blagojevich nor Jones is working for reform.

So, along comes Cindi Canary, director of the Illinois Campaign for
Political Reform, thinking that now might be a good time for Obama to
parlay his friendship with Jones to do a good deed: Won't you
intervene with Jones and try to get him to call the Senate back into
session to get this law passed? "[T]his is a place [Obama] could come
in and quickly clean up some of the damage and serve his state," she
told the Chicago Sun-Times. After all, her group and Obama worked
together during those halcyon days when he actually supported reform
in Illinois, so maybe he'll be receptive to a plea to intervene on
behalf of Illinois folks who have been getting gouged for years by the
likes of Jones. "A 30-second phone call to the Illinois Senate
president could yield huge dividends to this state," she said.

In response, Obama's campaign issued an oozy statement reaffirming
Obama's alleged commitment to reform, while getting no more specific
than urging everyone to get together and love one another right now.
What Canary was asking Obama for wasn't all that much. Maybe a
30-second phone call to back up his usual pap of, "Look, ah, I've, ah,
always been for, ah, reform." For most people, the reform that we're
talking about is so basic that they might ask, "You mean it's not
illegal already?"

The legislation would make illegal the widespread abuse called
pay-to-play politics, by which companies doing business with the state
contribute to the state official in charge of ladling out contracts.
The new law wouldn't let you do it if you have more than $50,000 in
state contracts, which, even at that, leaves open a nice loophole. In
Illinois, this is a huge leap forward from how things are done.
Blagojevich, who has reaped bundles of cash from state contractors,
could be one of the pols most jolted by the prohibition. That explains
why he rewrote the legislation in a way that would make it ineffective
and why the House overwhelmingly rejected his changes.

Jones now is the only one standing in the way of the reform, with
Obama abetting.

Here's another example of how Obama has revealed himself to be a
creature of the Chicago machine. Who can forget his silence when he
could have affirmed his reformer credentials by endorsing Democrat
Forrest Claypool over machine creature Todd Stroger as Cook County
Board president? When things got too hot, Obama severed his ties from
his racially inflammatory pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr. That's not
too hard; you can always find another pastor.

But betraying your political godfather(s) in Chicago and Illinois is
an entirely different matter. Especially if you lose the presidential
election and return to being just another senator from Illinois.
Cutting his ties with the corrupt Chicago machine is one bridge you
will not see Obama burn. Not now, not ever.

Agent of change, my foot.

Dennis Byrne is a Chicago-area writer and consultant. His blog is at
http://dennisbyrne.blogspot.com.

Copyright (c) 2008, Chicago Tribune

On Wed, Sep 17, 2008 at 8:22 AM, Bill Effros <bill at effros.com> wrote:
> Brad,
>
> I don't know Chicago Real Estate that well, but I don't think Obama's
> home is in his district.  Someone from Chicago?
>
> Bill Effros
>
>
>
> Brad Haslett wrote:
>> Rob,
>>
>> Those are Rezko properties that have gone into foreclosure after
>> receiving Obama influenced loans from the 'gubment'.  Senator Obama's
>> home is of course not one of the bankrupt properties, even though he
>> did receive help from his neighbor right across the street, convicted
>> felon, Rezko.
>>
>> Brad
>>
>> On Wed, Sep 17, 2008 at 7:20 AM, Lowe, Rob <rlowe at vt.edu> wrote:
>>
>>> I really have no idea what this is showing.  Without some supporting
>>> explanation, it's just a made up map. - rob
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org
>>> [mailto:rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org] On Behalf Of Bill Effros
>>> Sent: Tuesday, September 16, 2008 12:33 PM
>>> To: R22 List
>>> Subject: [Rhodes22-list] Community Organization
>>>
>>> Brad,
>>>
>>> I think you underestimate Obama's community organizing accomplishments.
>>>
>>> The attached map shows projects sponsored by Barack Obama in his
>>> district.
>>>
>>> Bill Effros
>>>
>>>
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