For Sale: Obama's Senate Seat (no, really)

[Gaspar]

quote:Originally posted by Hoss

quote:Originally posted by Gaspar

Starting to get more interesting. . .

Chicago Sun-Times Reports:
President-elect Barack Obama's chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, is reportedly on 21 different taped conversations by the feds -- dealing with his boss' vacant Senate seat!

I'd say that constitutes "contact".

I withhold judgment.  Rahm may have just been discussing the opolstry of the seat.

This was discussed last night.  Contacts could be just that.  Who initiated them?  Was Blago doing so to try and leech money and got turned down 20 more times?

I think if something was really there then Fitzgerald would have already moved on it.

You're probably right.  I was just commenting on the term "Contact."  

When someone states that "no one in my administration has had any contact with the governor." I figured they meant conversations too.  But they could have been referring to heavy petting, or actual physical contact.

I suppose it depends on what the definition of "contact" is, and that of course would depend on the what the definition of "is" is.

It's all so complicated.

[guido911]

Hillarious poll from dudebag Underground:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x8046332

[we vs us]

He's only Crazy Like a Fox until he get's sentenced to jail time, and then he automatically converts into Bat**** Crazy.

He just appointed a squeaky clean elder statesman, Rodney Burris, to Obama's seat.  At least for a moment, that puts him into Crazy Like A Fox territory.

[Gaspar]

quote:Originally posted by we vs us

He's only Crazy Like a Fox until he get's sentenced to jail time, and then he automatically converts into Bat**** Crazy.

He just appointed a squeaky clean elder statesman, Rodney Burris, to Obama's seat.  At least for a moment, that puts him into Crazy Like A Fox territory.

If Burris was a wise politician, he would have graciously declined the seat until the controversy over the "Hamburgerler" was over.  No, Instead he stood there like a tool, allowing Blogo to diminish his good name.  Now he probably won't be seated, and a new election will have to take place.  Not smart on Burris's part.  Not smart at all.

[rwarn17588]

As a former longtime Illinoisan, I have a few thoughts about Roland Burris.

He seemed to be a mostly competent but uninspiring candidate. Two things about him rubbed me the wrong way. One, he was utterly tone-deaf to downstate voters. When he was comptroller, he saw him speak at a small banquet in small-town central Illinois. His speaking style, like a fiery Southern preacher, went over like a lead balloon when a plain-speaking style would have been much more effective. He tried running for governor a couple of times, and failed miserably. He was simply was unable to speak to rural voters like a certain president-elect did when he was a U.S. Senate candidate in Illinois.

Second, he always seemed to be looking to the next ladder rung even when he'd barely assumed a new position. His political ambition was fairly naked. Subtlety wasn't one of his strong suits.

Burris is now 71 years old. To me, his acceptance of the Blagojevich appointment smacks of quasi-desperation, of a man who wants a final shot at some sort of political glory without considering the implications. Unless you've been living under a rock in recent weeks, Blagojevich is as radioactive as Chernobyl. It's pretty stupid to be associated with the guy at all. Why Burris would want to do this befuddles me.

Burris was a decent public servant. Now, he will be associated with one of the state's biggest-ever symbols of corruption and venality.

It's kinda sad, really.

[Townsend]

Secretary of the Senate turns away Roland Burris, won't let him be seated

[guido911]

Turns out Blago did hit Burris up for a $10,000 campaign contribution before he was appointed.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/02/14/report-blagojevich-asked-burris-donation/

I wonder why Burris did not disclose this nugget before he was seated.

I guess its just the culture of corruption.

[Cats Cats Cats]

The question is did he give him $10k.  If somebody hit you up for money and you didn't give it to them.  I don't see how that means you somehow bought the seat.

[guido911]

quote:Originally posted by cmatt1

The question is did he give him $10k.  If somebody hit you up for money and you didn't give it to them.  I don't see how that means you somehow bought the seat.

Well maybe this will help you "see" better:

http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/clout_st/2009/02/burris-now-acknowledges-fundraising-effort-for-blagojevich.html

[rwarn17588]

None of this stuff that's happened recently surprises me. Burris always had the faint whiff of vanity and preening ambition about him without the smarts to pull it off.

Now we're starting to see why Obama didn't want him seated in the Senate.

[guido911]

quote:Originally posted by rwarn17588

None of this stuff that's happened recently surprises me. Burris always had the faint whiff of vanity and preening ambition about him without the smarts to pull it off.

Now we're starting to see why Obama didn't want him seated in the Senate.

I knew Reid did not want to seat him. Do you have a source for Obama? From what I recall Obama wanted Burris seated:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/07/dem-aide-obama-wanted-sen_n_155909.html

[rwarn17588]

quote:Originally posted by guido911

quote:Originally posted by rwarn17588

None of this stuff that's happened recently surprises me. Burris always had the faint whiff of vanity and preening ambition about him without the smarts to pull it off.

Now we're starting to see why Obama didn't want him seated in the Senate.

I knew Reid did not want to seat him. Do you have a source for Obama? From what I recall Obama wanted Burris seated:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/07/dem-aide-obama-wanted-sen_n_155909.html

Source here:

http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=13&articleid=20081231_13_A3_Illino556150&archive=yes

The key passage:

"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," the president-elect said in a statement.

[altruismsuffers]

I am sure this guy was a dirty cheating scumbag like ALL politicians.  But why was he taken out?  Could it have something to do with "Kicking Bank of America our of Illinois"?

Don't F with the Banks... I have already covered this in previous posts.  

[Gaspar]

quote:Originally posted by altruismsuffers

I am sure this guy was a dirty cheating scumbag like ALL politicians.  But why was he taken out?  Could it have something to do with "Kicking Bank of America our of Illinois"?

Don't F with the Banks... I have already covered this in previous posts.  

Funny you should mention that. . .

From the Financial Times this morning:
Barack Obama, the president, who has tried to avoid panicking lawmakers and markets by entertaining the idea, has moved more towards what he calls the "Swedish model" – an approach backed strongly by Mr Graham. In the early 1990s Sweden nationalised its banking sector then auctioned banks having cleaned up balance sheets. "In limited circumstances the Swedish model makes sense for the US," says Mr Graham.  

Mr Obama last weekend made clear he was leaning more towards the Swedish model than to the piecemeal approach taken in Japan, which many would argue is the direction US public policy appears to be heading.  

"They [the Japanese] sort of papered things over," Mr Obama said. "They never really bit the bullet#8201;.#8201;.#8201;.#8201;and so you never got credit flowing the way it should have, and the bad assets in their system just corroded the economy for a long period of time."

National Healthcare
Central Banking
National Education
National Housing
National Transportation
Government control of private salaries

We manifest our own destiny and convince ourselves that it is not dangerous. We play with wild animals and convince ourselves that they are humanized. We see the wild animal every day, out of it's natural habitat and that desensitizes us to its fangs.


We are fast approaching the stage of the ultimate inversion: the stage where the government is free to do anything it pleases, while the citizens may act only by permission; which is the stage of the darkest periods of human history, the stage of rule by brute force.
Ayn Rand

[cannon_fodder]

I had nothing to do with the Governor and didn't even want the appointment.  I will serve my state and I welcome the Senate confirmation hearings.

I may have wanted the appointment, but had no contact with the governors office.  I can't wait to for the confirmation hearings..

I told with several people I really wanted the appointment, but had limited contact with the office.  I think the confirmation hearings went smoothly.

I told everyone I wanted the appointment, and I spoke with the governors head fund raiser but did NOT attempt to raise any money. The Senate ethics commission is aware of this.

I wanted the appointment, spoke with the head fundraiser, and tried to raise a little money... but I wasn't very good at it.   And THAT's the truth.  You can trust me.    I look forward to the ethics committee investigation.
- - -

Just like a high school kid he is willing to admit to the any fault that he knows he is caught in order to deny whatever he was ACTUALLY doing.  He keeps ramping up his level of fault to fit whatever the current state of the investigation is.  Always admit to the fault they you think they can prove in hopes of stopping inquirer into a more serious crime and perhaps convincing people you are being honest.  

Smoking cigarettes in my car during lunch?  Absolutely.  And I'm really sorry about that.  I won't smoke on school grounds any more I accept my detention (there is no need to go out to my car to prove your point, I admit it, cigarettes are bad).