Comments on: Obama's Rezko Ties Escape National Radar

Politico: Just-Underway Trial Of Obama's Former Fundraiser Evades Intense Media Coverage

[nonesoblind]

To HILLARY4US: Clinton accused him of working for a slumlord, and Obama replied factually about that work.

Re the house/land purchase, the original owners are on record that Obama did not receive any special arrangements or discounts, so no wrongdoing there; it was "boneheaded" because it could be subject to the APPEARANCE (my emphasis) of wrongdoing. There was no actual wrongdoing, though.

Certainly, nobody should be deemed guilty by association alone. Otherwise, Clinton would be "guilty" by dint of her relationship with fundraiser Jinnah,
http://articles.latimes.com/2008/02/21/news/na-jinnah21
who hosted fundraisers in his home for her and others, and just plead guilty to funneling $53,000 to Senators Clinton and Boxer.

And of course there''s Hsu. (cont''d below)

[nonesoblind]

Contd....Finally, there''s IPA and the $170,000 in campaign contributions.
The federal government has accused the Illinois management consulting firm...of a brazen pattern of sexual harassment including "sexual assaults,%u201D %u201Cdegrading anti-female language" and "obscene suggestions."

In a 2001 lawsuit full of lurid details, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission claims that 103 women employees at IPA were victimized for years. The civil case is ongoing, and IPA vigorously denies the allegations.

"This is by far, hands down, the worst case I''ve ever experienced," said Diane Smason, one of the EEOC lawyers handling the lawsuit....
Sen. Clinton%u2019s spokesman, Howard Wolfson, told NBC News in a statement that the senator decided to keep the funds because the lawsuit is "ongoing" and because none of the sexual harassment allegations has been proven in court. "With regard to the pending harassment suit, as a general matter, the campaign assesses findings of fact in deciding whether to return contributions," Wolfson said.
http://deepbackground.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/02/29/718285.aspx
So, per Wolfson, not guilty until proven in court.
Very true.
But in this case, I''d have to question Clinton''s judgment in hanging on to that $170,000. It APPEARS boneheaded to me.....

[jagee49]

Jan. 4, 1996
Hillary Clinton''s billing records from the Rose Law Firm are found on a table in the White House residence book room after two years. Clinton aide Carolyn Huber says she found the bills in August 1995 but didn''t realize their significance until coming across them again. The documents include copies of bills for Hillary Clinton''s legal work, showing she performed 60 hours of legal work for Madison in 1985 and 1986.

Jan. 8, 1996
In a commentary titled "Blizzard of Lies," New York Times columnist William Safire describes Hillary Clinton as "a congenital liar." White House press secretary Michael McCurry said if Clinton were not president he "would have delivered a more forceful response to that [column] on the bridge of Mr. Safire''s nose."

Jan. 15, 1996
Republicans suggest billing documents may have been withheld from their investigation to disguise how much work Hillary Clinton had done for Madison Guaranty. The White House issues a denial.

Jan. 22, 1996
Kenneth Starr subpoenas Hillary Clinton in a criminal probe to determine if records were intentionally withheld. This is the first time a wife of a sitting president has been subpoenaed.

Jan. 26, 1996
Hillary Clinton testifies before a grand jury about the discovery and content of the billing records.

March 4, 1996
Whitewater trial of Arkansas Gov. Jim Guy Tucker (D) and the McDougals begins in Little Rock.

[jagee49]

Aug. 10, 1995
The House Banking Committee, chaired by Republican Jim Leach of Iowa, finishes its examination and finds no illegalities.

Aug. 17, 1995
A grand jury charges James and Susan McDougal and Arkansas Gov. Jim Guy Tucker with bank fraud relating to questionable loans.

Oct. 26, 1995
The Senate Whitewater committee issues 49 subpoenas to federal agencies and others involved in the affair.

Dec. 12, 1995
White House associate counsel William H. Kennedy III, who worked at the Rose Law Firm, refuses to release subpoenaed notes of a 1993 meeting between administration officials and the president''s lawyers about Whitewater.

Dec. 20, 1995
The Senate votes along party lines to enforce the subpoena. The next day, the White House drops its claim to attorney-client privilege and releases the notes. They prove vague and do not reveal any illegality, but contain the phrase "Vacuum Rose law files WWDC Docs %u2013 subpoena."

[jagee49]

Foster''s suicide.Jan. 3, 1995
The Democratic majority on the Senate Banking Committee releases a report finding no laws were broken in the Whitewater matter.

April 22, 1995
Starr interviews the Clintons privately.

July 18, 1995
The Senate Special Whitewater Committee, chaired by Republican Alfonse D''Amato, begins hearings on Whitewater and on Foster''s suicide. D''Amato is also a chairman of Republican Bob Dole''s presidential campaign. The hearings last 11 months.

[fjstratford]

Saw this on nytimes: It was Obama''s running away from reporters asking him questions about Antoin Rezco under the excuse "I have answered those question already," and "Sorry, I''ve got to go; we are running late." Most of the Texans didn''t buy those evasive excuses, and those who made up their minds on election day trashed Obama.

[ariostel]

The comparison of search results is premature. Rezko is going to trial now. Hsu has been tried. Apples, oranges. It''s a story. It needs to be covered. But so far there''s nothing to report except innuendo (maybe we should see who Vogel is?) and that''s why it''s under the radar. This is what I hate about the media, this--"so and so was a friend and he did a bad thing so everyone who knew him is a crook."

[shayjo-2009]

My suspicion is that if there was something valid there, it would be FRONT page news. There is no there there. It would be too juicy for the media to pass up. If there was a real story here that was incriminatin, more so than what Mr. Obama has already discussed, it would have been splattered every where. I don''t believe the press has that much discretion. To suggest that they would sit on this story would be incredulous. Why is it so hard to believe that Mr. Obama is a different type of candidate? No politician''s hands are 100% clean, but his hands are cleaner than most and definitely cleaner than his opponents. Obama 2008!!!

[henry19671]

What all the hola hola about Obama and Rszko''s connections. What aabout the Clintons and their Rezko''s connections? What about the photo? Oh Hillary is a Liar she hiding a lot of things and all those voters that are voting for her are in for a big surprise if she wins the Nomination,Democrats will be in shock when the truth about Hilary is revealed. Foreign experiences? 80 countries traveled? Yeah, let''s dig into her investments in India and China,having investments in businesses that have outsourced American Jobs abroad? America wake up! vote for hope and progress. Vote for Obama who will make things much better for us all here in the USA.

[sjbj2322]

You know there is another way to look at this. If I were Rezko and had done as much for Obama as he clearly did only to be poo-pooed by the man, I''d be out for a little payback. Only problem is he can''t cash in on Obama without implicating himself. So since the media won''t press the relationship between the two it appears Barack will get a free ride on this one too.