Obama Indirectly Helped Take Down Blagojevich
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- current89
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more from News and Politics:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/10/us/politics/10chicago.html?hp
President-elect Barack Hussein Obama (D-Ill.) indirectly took down corrupt Illinois governor Rod R. Blagojevich. An ethics bill that Obama pushed for led to Blagojevich's demise. It is a rumored that Blagojevich was taken down by Rahm Emanuel as well, Obama's Chief of staff.--------------
In a sequence of events that neatly captures the contradictions of Barack Obama’s rise through Illinois politics, a phone call he made three months ago to urge passage of a state ethics bill indirectly contributed to the downfall of a fellow Democrat he twice supported, Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich.
Mr. Obama placed the call to his political mentor, Emil Jones Jr., president of the Illinois Senate. Mr. Jones was a critic of the legislation, which sought to curb the influence of money in politics, as was Mr. Blagojevich, who had vetoed it. But after the call from Mr. Obama, the Senate overrode the veto, prompting the governor to press state contractors for campaign contributions before the law’s restrictions could take effect on Jan. 1, prosecutors say.
Tipped off to Mr. Blagojevich’s efforts, federal agents obtained wiretaps for his phones and eventually overheard what they say was scheming by the governor to profit from his appointment of a successor to the United States Senate seat being vacated by President-elect Obama. One official whose name has long been mentioned in Chicago political circles as a potential successor is Mr. Jones, a machine politician who was viewed as a roadblock to ethics reform but is friendly with Mr. Obama.
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wilmo1975
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Sipping my Kool Aid and feeling confident with MY choice of Obama! I really like this man!
- 1 year ago
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wilmo1975
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Steven44 [removed]
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wilmo1975: This comment has been removed.
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Steven44 [removed]
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quixotic12
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Wow. Good for Obama. I think he has effectively demonstrated his ability to crack down on corruption. At least in this context anyway. I only hope he doesn't endorse Mr. Jones though, that would go back on everything he just worked to accomplish by taking down Blagojevich.
- 1 year ago
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quixotic12
