Illinois governor arrested [Archive] - GopherHole Message Board Community

bigtenchamps1899

12-09-2008, 03:16 PM

Not surprised, everybody knew it was just a matter of time before he got caught doing something crooked.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-rod-blagojevich-illinois-governor-2,0,4785755.story
i'm not sure who this "everybody" you mention is. it seems to me that the story of blag's corrupt regime has been ignored by the nation for months.

my question is if "everybody" did know about the corrupt politics of chicago, would there have been more scrutiny of obama and his ties to the chicago machine? seems a fair question.

Jim V2

12-09-2008, 03:39 PM

Not surprised, everybody knew it was just a matter of time before he got caught doing something crooked.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-rod-blagojevich-illinois-governor-2,0,4785755.story

I heard that it was Nate that ratted on the Gov b/c the Gov didn't accept his offer of $116.27, 2 tickets to the NW/gophers bball game, and a date with GopherLady for the Senate seat. :D

From the Barn

12-09-2008, 04:06 PM

Gopher4Life

12-09-2008, 04:21 PM

>>...my question is if "everybody" did know about the corrupt politics of chicago, would there have been more scrutiny of obama and his ties to the chicago machine? seems a fair question.<<

Illinois politics is as dirty as it gets. There was very little media scrutiny of Obama because they didn't want to find anything that might sink the chosen one's campaign. He received a free pass because the hatred of Bush, GOP, and the war were out of control.

weezy

12-09-2008, 04:31 PM

Omega015

12-09-2008, 04:42 PM

i'm not sure who this "everybody" you mention is. it seems to me that the story of blag's corrupt regime has been ignored by the nation for months.

my question is if "everybody" did know about the corrupt politics of chicago, would there have been more scrutiny of obama and his ties to the chicago machine? seems a fair question.

The nation might have ignored this coming story but the people of Illinois certainly did not. Blago's approval rating was something like 12% in October. Everyone in Illinois knew this was coming. The entire Rezko trial was to try to get to Blago. This has been years in the making.

bigtenchamps1899

12-09-2008, 04:46 PM

Obama and the soon to be former Illinois governor hated eachother.
are you on first name basis with blags and obama that you know that they hate each other. okay, he called obama a nasty name, in the world of the chicago machine i'm sure nasty names get thrown around a lot.

Mr. obama was blag's top advisor in his 2002 run for governor. Quote from abcnews.com from rahm emanuel about obama's role in blag's campaign:
According to Rep. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., Mr. Obama's incoming White House chief of staff, Emanuel, then-state senator Obama, a third Blagojevich aide, and Blagojevich's campaign co-chair, David Wilhelm, were the top strategists of Blagojevich's 2002 gubernatorial victory.
Emanuel told the New Yorker earlier this year that he and Obama "participated in a small group that met weekly when Rod was running for governor. We basically laid out the general election, Barack and I and these two."

quote from same article:
President-elect Obama today said "I had no contact with the governor or his office and so we were not, I was not aware of what was happening."
qoute from david axelrod to fox news chicago two weeks after obama was elected about a possible replacement for obama:
Axelrod said, "I know he's talked to the governor and there are a whole range of names many of which have surfaced, and I think he has a fondness for a lot of them."

when it comes to chicago politics a lot of democrats hate a lot of other democrats, there is no one else to hate. my point is that obama cut his teeth in the chicago machine. corruption charges don't just hang over the governor, but many chicaco political figures. is it possible for obama to have risen to power in this machine while remaining as pure as the driven snow? yes. is it the media's job to find out if that is the case? yes. obama ran on the promise of reform, but how much reform did he bring to chicago politics. does this interest the media? you?

bigtenchamps1899

12-09-2008, 04:48 PM

The nation might have ignored this coming story but the people of Illinois certainly did not. Blago's approval rating was something like 12% in October. Everyone in Illinois knew this was coming. The entire Rezko trial was to try to get to Blago. This has been years in the making.
exactly! so why, with obama running for the most important seat of power in the world, was this not national news?

bigtenchamps1899

12-09-2008, 04:50 PM

If Obama was in some way connected to the corrupt politics in Chicago then don't you think something would have leaked out by now? Even if the media was biased, certainly the McCain campaign or even the Clinton campaign would have turned something up.
this is a very interesting and telling statement. when it comes to vetting republicans, the job is done by the media. when it comes to vetting democrats, the job is the mccain campaign. something is wrong with this picture.

Omega015

12-09-2008, 04:54 PM

The nation doesn't care about one particular state's politics unless a celebrity is involved, and even then they only care for a minute.

In the case of Blago... the national media ignored the Blago part of the Rezko trial and focused on Rezko's connection to Obama. The story was out there, but the media tried to make it about Obama and not about Blago.

GopherLady

12-10-2008, 12:42 AM

I heard that it was Nate that ratted on the Gov b/c the Gov didn't accept his offer of $116.27, 2 tickets to the NW/gophers bball game, and a date with GopherLady for the Senate seat. :D

LOL! JimV2...must you point out how rejected I feel right now!? We thought the deal would be sweet enough, you know how hard it NU/MN bball tickets are to come by!

From the Barn

12-10-2008, 06:57 AM

this is a very interesting and telling statement. when it comes to vetting republicans, the job is done by the media. when it comes to vetting democrats, the job is the mccain campaign. something is wrong with this picture.

Or the media did their job, and the outcome isn't what you wanted.

bga1

12-10-2008, 07:49 AM

Or the media did their job, and the outcome isn't what you wanted.

Time will tell. What we know right now is that Obama was tight with Rezno- tight enough to do a shady land deal with him. We also know that Obama was an associate of Gov. Blag and that Obama's carreer was hatched in Chigcao with cooperation of the Daly machine. We know that Rezko cooperated in fingering Blago. It's a pretty tight triangle.

I think we need to give Obama the benefit of the doubt. But there is and should be, plenty of doubt. If you are honest, if the situation were reversed, you haave to admit you would be screaming if this were Bush in Obama's shoes.

Omega015

12-10-2008, 07:54 AM

Time will tell. What we know right now is that Obama was tight with Rezno- tight enough to do a shady land deal with him. We also know that Obama was an associate of Gov. Blag and that Obama's carreer was hatched in Chigcao with cooperation of the Daly machine. We know that Rezko cooperated in fingering Blago. It's a pretty tight triangle.

I think we need to give Obama the benefit of the doubt. But there is and should be, plenty of doubt. If you are honest, if the situation were reversed, you haave to admit you would be screaming if this were Bush in Obama's shoes.

I think you're right, there is some doubt. But this story has been in the works for years (except for the senate seat), and if there was something there to implicate Obama, I think it would've come out by now.

Either that or Obama was simply smart enough to distance himself once he found out that Blago was under investigation.

Gopher4Life

12-10-2008, 09:18 AM

1899,

>>so why, with obama running for the most important seat of power in the world, was this not national news?<<

It wasn't national news because the media had sold out to Obama and wasn't about to risk uncovering any mud that would stick. Why such surprise that our national news would carefully look the other way on several questions of character, experience, and associations rather than weaken the messiah's campaign?

jamiche

12-10-2008, 10:19 AM

Time will tell. What we know right now is that Obama was tight with Rezno- tight enough to do a shady land deal with him. We also know that Obama was an associate of Gov. Blag and that Obama's carreer was hatched in Chigcao with cooperation of the Daly machine. We know that Rezko cooperated in fingering Blago. It's a pretty tight triangle.

I think we need to give Obama the benefit of the doubt. But there is and should be, plenty of doubt. If you are honest, if the situation were reversed, you haave to admit you would be screaming if this were Bush in Obama's shoes.

Thanks for giving Obie the benefit of an awful lot of doubr, beej. I do agree that this scandal will cause Obama discomfort and I would guess that Blago will tell the feds anything that they want to hear, true or not. (BTW, I have read that it was Rahm Emanuel who called the feds which means that the Obama organization must have heard something that they didn't like.)

However, to say that Bush would have been raked over the coals on something like this is to ignore the fact that he got virtually a free pass as he drove the country into a ditch during the last eight years.

Gopher4Life

12-10-2008, 10:45 AM

Let's not forget that Bush had plenty of co-drivers and they weren't all Republicans. In fact, a case could be made that very little is Bush's fault since he was asleep at the wheel so often.

bga1

12-10-2008, 11:07 AM

weezy

12-10-2008, 12:10 PM

We know that Rezko cooperated in fingering Blago

...?

jamiche

12-10-2008, 12:38 PM

Jamiche- "....Bush got a free pass...."

R-i-g-h-t. Bush got a free pass. Let me think here. Yep - I have to admit I never heard anyone just jump on him as soon as something happened. Yeah- I guess you are right he rarely if ever was criticized.

My bad.

Actually, Bush and Cheney had the press quite intimidated until after the 2004 election. The emperor-has-no-clothes moment came when Katrina hit. After that the criticism came but it was too late. The damage to the country had been done.

bigtenchamps1899

12-10-2008, 12:47 PM

Or the media did their job, and the outcome isn't what you wanted.

barn, you have no idea what i want. you don't know anything about me.
i don't really care about obama.
i was trying to make the larger point that the media is not objective and when the media does "do its job" it is absolutely not objective.

think about the 2004 election. you had the media "doing its job" making up fake documents to prove GWB got special treatment in the air national guard.

yet, if the media had been objective, they would have "done their job" to make up fake stories about kerry's war record. instead that job had to be done by a republican PAC. they can "do their job" making up lies about bush, but could not "do their job" by making up lies about kerry--if not even for the purpose of "objectivity".

i may have been a little too sarcastic when i asked the rhetorical question why the media had not been all over this story. i know why. because the media has a hard time doing their job when it comes to exposing their fellow democrats.

From the Barn

12-10-2008, 01:07 PM

And the only way the media will do its job, according to you, is if Obama is indicted for who knows what. Couldn't it just be that the press isn't reporting any wrong doing because there is none?

Jike Spingleton

12-10-2008, 01:09 PM

Actually, Bush and Cheney had the press quite intimidated until after the 2004 election.

Precisely. Sadly, the media - along with most of Congress - rolled over for Georgie post-9/11. But sales of miniature American flags went through the roof!

bga1

12-10-2008, 02:52 PM

Rezko currently is in the pokey and is talking to investigators in an effort to shorten his stay at the government hotel. I believe he has helped with info that incriminates Blago.

bigtenchamps1899

12-10-2008, 02:58 PM

And the only way the media will do its job, according to you, is if Obama is indicted for who knows what. Couldn't it just be that the press isn't reporting any wrong doing because there is none?
once again you are putting words into my posts. when did i ever say anything about indicting obama? i want to know why the press is not interested in the Chicago Combine in which obama was groomed. blagojavich has been under federal investagation since long before obama became the democratic nominee for president. and since blags ran on the podium of change from a crooked republican who held court before him and obama not only helped run the guy's campaign, but claims to be the change candidate to reform after a crooked republican, the press should be interested in reporting on the crooked chicago machine. it is not about whether or not there is anything there, it is about the media's self appointed role to keep candidates accountable while only seeming to keep republicans accountable.

maybe, as you say, they have done their job and found nothing, but if it turned out that palin had been groomed in the crooked political machine of wasilla alaska, wouldn't you think that would be a story that the national news media would have picked up on. it speaks to the media's self-righteousness: "we will let all ya'll know when a story is important enough for ya'll to hear." like the NYT's self-important motto: "all the news that's fit to print." i'm glad the NYT is making that distinction for all us know-nothings.

let me give you another example of the media's arrogance. in today's tribune there is a story that says that the tribune knew about this story for a while and did not run with it. why? was it out of the kindness of their heart and their hunger for justice? i doubt it. they did not report it because blags threatened the tribune and you don't threaten the sanctity of the tribune.

From the Barn

12-10-2008, 03:06 PM

You mean it wasn't because the FBI said it would jeapordize their investigation? And when did the media not report about Rezko, or Blagovich?

bigtenchamps1899

12-10-2008, 03:07 PM

Precisely. Sadly, the media - along with most of Congress - rolled over for Georgie post-9/11. But sales of miniature American flags went through the roof!

ever heard of Bush Derangement Syndrome? because sadly, that is the one most ill-informed statement i have ever heard (or read). just because something gets into the liberal consciousness through trite demagoguery doesn't make it logical.

bigtenchamps1899

12-10-2008, 03:11 PM

You mean it wasn't because the FBI said it would jeapordize their investigation? And when did the media not report about Rezko, or Blagovich?

didn't the NSA say that the NYT and usa today reporting on the LEGAL analysis of phone records would jeapardize their investigation. didn't stop them then.

bigtenchamps1899

12-10-2008, 03:21 PM

You mean it wasn't because the FBI said it would jeapordize their investigation? And when did the media not report about Rezko, or Blagovich?
they may have given it lip service, but what about the stories that they didn't even pay lip service to.

have you ever heard of the chicago annanberg challenge? this was president elect obama's ONLY executive experience in his entire career. the records were being archived at university of illinois chicago and were not released when a freedom of information act was granted for them to be released. did this raise the eybrows of the national media? no. would the media have ignored this if it was, say someone not releasing the records of something bush was a part of? oh wait they went crazy over his national guard records, so much so that they made *&^!#*&^!#*&^!#*&^!# up. i think that the records of a presidential candidate's experience on a public board should be an important factor in determining his ability to be the executive of the united states of america. and yet i bet not a single obama voter could tell me what he and the chicago annanberg challenge accomplished.

From the Barn

12-10-2008, 03:21 PM

ever heard of Bush Derangement Syndrome? because sadly, that is the one most ill-informed statement i have ever heard (or read). just because something gets into the liberal consciousness through trite demagoguery doesn't make it logical.

So the media provided adequate scrutiny regarding WMDs and the run up to the Iraq war?

From the Barn

12-10-2008, 03:28 PM

they may have given it lip service, but what about the stories that they didn't even pay lip service to.

have you ever heard of the chicago annanberg challenge? this was president elect obama's ONLY executive experience in his entire career. the records were being archived at university of illinois chicago and were not released when a freedom of information act was granted for them to be released. did this raise the eybrows of the national media? no. would the media have ignored this if it was, say someone not releasing the records of something bush was a part of? oh wait they went crazy over his national guard records, so much so that they made *&^!#*&^!#*&^!#*&^!# up. i think that the records of a presidential candidate's experience on a public board should be an important factor in determining his ability to be the executive of the united states of america. and yet i bet not a single obama voter could tell me what he and the chicago annanberg challenge accomplished.

Obama derangement sydrome? Private organizations don't need to release information, and a FOI request only applies to the government. The Annenberg challenge was a school reform effort funded by a former Nixon era ambassador. On its board were both Republicans and Democrats interested in improving the Chicago school system. Guess who I voted for?

Jike Spingleton

12-10-2008, 04:33 PM

ever heard of Bush Derangement Syndrome? because sadly, that is the one most ill-informed statement i have ever heard (or read). just because something gets into the liberal consciousness through trite demagoguery doesn't make it logical.

You're correct when you said earlier we don't know anything about you. But based on this, I can safely assume you moved here sometime after 2003. Welcome to the United States, and never fear, the last eight years are about as bad as it gets.

bigtenchamps1899

12-10-2008, 04:33 PM

i tire of this conversation. making well-thought out arguments tires me;)

Jim V2

12-10-2008, 05:29 PM

Let's not forget that Bush had plenty of co-drivers and they weren't all Republicans. In fact, a case could be made that very little is Bush's fault since he was asleep at the wheel so often.

Which of Bush's signifcant co-drivers weren't republicans? I'm blanking.

I appreciate the humor in your second sentence, but on a serious note, I don't hold blameless drivers who kill people because they got behind the wheel when they were dead tired and closed their eyes as soon as they hit the highway.

oak_street1981

12-10-2008, 07:31 PM

NateDawgUM

12-11-2008, 09:00 AM

or does his hair actually grow that way?

He resembles a used car salesman from Bensenville, more than Gov. of a large, wealthy state.

Chicago politics are really something, and make no mistake about it, Chicago runs it all statewide, even today.

Well this was his opponent in the general election:
http://illinoischannel.org/Pictures/TopinkaJudyBaar030312.jpg

You can practically smell the cigarette smoke on her clothing through the screen.