In the candidate mud fight last night, Hillary Clinton made a drive-by reference to Obama's "representing your constituent Rezko in his slumlord business," and the Illinois Senator responded by passing the association off as "I worked for someone and a church group and I did a few hours work." Both were being, to put it kindly, disingenuous.
For weeks now, Clinton supporters under the radar have kept up an accusatory drumbeat about Obama's connection to Antoin Rezko, who goes on trial next month for corruption in federal court, and Obama is vulnerable about a relationship that goes back to 1990, involving transactions he will ultimately have to explain in detail.
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, "In 13 years in politics, Obama has gotten at least $168,000 in campaign donations from Rezko, his family and business associates....
"Eleven Rezmar buildings were in the state Senate district Obama represented between 1996 and 2004. Many of the buildings ended up in foreclosure, with tenants living in squalid conditions, the Sun-Times reported last year. In one instance, Rezko’s company left tenants without heat for five weeks. Obama said he was unaware of problems with the buildings and minimized the legal work he’d done.
"Obama’s relationship with Rezko grew closer in June 2005, when Obama and Rezko’s wife bought adjoining real estate parcels from a doctor in the South Side Kenwood neighborhood. Obama paid $1.65 million for the doctor’s mansion, while Rezko’s wife paid $625,000 for the vacant lot next door. Obama’s purchase price was $300,000 below the asking price; Rezko’s wife paid full price.
"Six months later, Obama paid Rita Rezko $104,500 for one-sixth of the vacant lot, which he bought to expand his yard."
In 2006, the Senator expressed regret about the transaction. “It was a mistake to have been engaged with him at all in this or any other personal business dealing that would allow him, or anyone else,” Obama said, “to believe that he had done me a favor.”
Last week, after a published report that a $10,000 donation to his 2004 Senate campaign came from a fraud that Rezko is accused of devising, Obama's campaign announced it would give charities $40,350 in donations linked to the developer, in addition to more than $44,000 it divested last year.
The Clintons' Whitewater dealings, ultimately not found to be illegal, nevertheless ended up with Ken Starr and impeachment on unrelated matters. Now that Rezko is in the limelight, Sen. Obama would be well-advised to clear up accusations that fail to pass the smell test. Otherwise, they may continue to haunt him all year, with a little help from the Clintons and, should he win nomination, the Republican remnants of the Rove smear machine.
Karl Rove is in retirement preparing his commencement speech for The Choate School graduation ceremony this coming June.
ReplyDeleteThe seniors are ecstatic as are, I am sure, Barak Obama and John McCain .
Mainstream media has been avoiding this scandal for months on end. Clinton should not be blamed for doing the job mainstream media won't do. She and the former President have had to assume the roll of the media to have ANY scrutiny of Obama. The unlimited miles on Obama's free pass needs to come to a close, and mainstream media needs to do THEIR job, and BACK OFF the Clintons, who are doing the American citizens a public service. Unfortunately, the average citizen is too uninformed and so completely mesmerized by Obama's rhetoric (propaganda) to think rationally. Snap out of it America. Chicago crime is an age-old institution. Like Obama said, "I know the old-style rough-and-tumble Chicago politics", remember? Obama will not escape this unscathed. And Sen. Dick Durbin is next. NOW you know why mainstream media has coronated Obama and the GOP has also given him a pass. They know he'll never survice a general election. Then there's the Farrakhan connection to his church...Do your homework, America. Even Oprah can't fix this one. POP. That was your bubble that just burst. If it seems to good to be true, it is.
ReplyDeleteCan you prove it, anon? Got any reliable sources or are you just shooting off the mouth Clinton style?
ReplyDeleteWhy don't you prove these allegations to yourself and do some homework, I am in no way connected to Clinton or supporting of her and even was a supporter of Obama at one time. This stuff is true. He has really deceived some young people who are actually rooting for a Marxist way of life in America, this is Not American, Obama's views are Anti-American, can't you all see that? It is obvious to a lot of people of all walks of life and it is not a racial issue, it is a national security issue which has nothing to do with race, i.e. William Avery who is white, and is also connected to Obama. This is some very scary discoveries, and lately it is Obama throwing the first punches in on McCain, who is a man that actually served in our armed forces and sacrificed a lot, Obama has all of four years on his resume. Do we really want to take the chance of someone with the possible hidden agenda and such little experience in our government to get into office. Well, the terrorists did say they would bring us down without firing a single shot. Get ready to kiss your freedoms goodbye, Obama will first outlaw guns and disarm America, the first step to a Totalitarian government, get ready America, this will be bigger than 9/11.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, why does McCain have to jump through hoops with his medical record scrutinized and his wife's tax records scrutinized and Obama can just pull a race card and be exempted from further investigation from some very serious allegations, if he really wasn't lying he would agree to have the FEDS investigate every aspect of his life and his connections and not because he is black but because these are in fact allegations that are very concerning for freedom loving Americans?
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