SPRINGFIELD, Ill., March 31, 2008
Obama's Political "Godfather" In Illinois
Illinois Senate President Emil Jones Jr., An Old-School Politician, Called "Indispensable To Barack's Career"
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Illinois Senate President Emil Jones, D-Chicago, left, and then Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, D-Chicago confer while on the Senate floor during a session at the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield, Ill., in this July 1, 2004 file photo. Jones helped Obama learn the ways of the state legislature and gave Obama the chance to work on the ethics legislation and death penalty reforms that Obama now boasts about in his presidential campaign. (AP)
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Photo Essay Barack Obama A look at the life and meteoric rise of the president-elect.
It was clear that Democrats were going to win a majority in the state Senate that fall, making Jones the Senate president. And then the campaign machinery would start cranking again, with a long line of people looking to run for the U.S. Senate in 2004.
Obama approached Jones with an unexpected proposal: Use your new clout to back me for U.S. Senate.
"It clicked and made sense," Jones said.
Obama had the personality and intelligence to succeed, Jones said, but he needed a major political figure in his corner - someone who could get unions, county chairmen and potential donors to consider the new guy with the strange name instead of quickly endorsing another candidate.
"He needed someone who could give him credibility," Jones said.
An Obama victory would give Jones some of the credibility that other politicians had gained by showing they could put people in office. "President Jones said something to me like, 'Hey, if they can do it, I can do it,"' Hendon recalled.
As Senate president, Jones assigned Obama to handle major, headline-grabbing legislation.
At a time when flaws in the state's death penalty system had created a furor, Obama was picked to negotiate a bill requiring police to record their interrogations in murder cases. He was also put in charge of long-discussed legislation to curb racial profiling in traffic stops and was a key player in a new ethics overhaul.
These were complicated issues and Obama's Senate hopes could have been damaged if he had failed. But he passed them all with overwhelming support and still cites them as evidence of his ability to find common ground among groups with sharp differences.
State Sen. Donne Trotter, D-Chicago, laughingly accuses Jones of a little "bill-jacking" - taking issues that other senators had been working on and giving them to Obama. Trotter, for instance, said he had hoped to be named chairman of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee but the job went to Obama instead.
In an e-mail, Obama described Jones "a powerful advocate for those who need a voice" and someone with "passion for public service."
Critics offer a different picture.
When Jones married a state employee, she suddenly got a 60 percent raise. His son got a state job that wasn't advertised to the public. A nephew and stepson got computer consulting jobs from a college that received a $4.5 million grant for computing needs.
He has blocked bills sponsored by legislators who challenge him, and dug up an obscure Senate rule to reverse the passage of a consumer-friendly measure opposed by electric companies that had donated to his campaign.
Abner Mikva, a longtime Obama friend and former legal counsel to President Bill Clinton, rejects the idea that Obama should shun Jones and other similar politicians.
He argues Obama was smart to learn from Jones and pass important laws with him, while keeping a distance from Jones' ethical problems.
"Purists usually end up dying pure but without many accomplishments," he said. "True reformers learn how to build coalitions."
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See all 73 CommentsThe Obamites are already calling any one who supports Hillary Clinton a racist for doing so (including me, who supported Civil Rights from the 60s and also voted for Jesse Jackson for President in 1988)---just imagine what they will call anyone who supports John McCain!
Of course, they will end up losing the race for the Democrats anyway, since people will see through the hypocrisy of which Barack Hussein Obama is the incarnation of.
the more you realize how Obamanable he really is
Hillary stuck to her agreement not to campaign in Florida and Michigan. Obama didn''t. He held press conferences in both states and ran an ad campaign in Florida.
Obama won''t wouldn''t support the re-vote because he knew he broke the DNC rules.
Is that all you''ve GOT? Obama''s right up there with Bush''s 935 lies! He''s pro''bly even broke the record by now! Obama lies and flip flops about everything!
is: The anti-christ will be a man,in his 40s, of
MUSLIM descent, who will deceive the nations with
persuasive language, and have a MASSIVE Christ-like
appeal....the prophecy says that people will flock to
him and he will promise false hope and world peace,
and when he is in power, will destroy everything.
Is it OBAMA?? (PART-1)
Posted by rogerspebble at 05:56 AM : Apr 01, 2008
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Are there any comments on this belief from the bible?
the law firm billing records; and,
chelsea jogging around the world trade center on 9/11; and, Sir Edmund Hillary; and, about the soccer team that didn''t exist; and, wanting to be an astronaut.
To name a few off the top of my head. Yes, hillarys our girl. Give me a break
She keeps getting beat up by both Democratic back stabbers and the news media alike. We have realized that Clinton lied about her Bosnia trip, but we also know that Obama has lied about:
1) his relationship with the LUNETIC RACIST Rev. Wright
2) his involvment with the crook Tony Rezko
3) his association with the self-proclaimed Pentagon TERRORIST William C. Ayers
4) his note about his father''s arrival in the US due to Kennedy
5) his taking hundreds of thousands of $$$$$$$$$$$ from lobyists
WHAT IS IT GONG TO TAKE FOR AMERICA TO FIGURE OUT OBAMA IS A RACIST, BIGGOT, AND ANTI-SEMITIC?
DO WE HAVE TO MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE WE DID WITIH GEORGE BUSH?
REMEMBER IF WE HAD SLECTED GORE, WE WOULD NOT BE IN THE IRAQ MESS?
Come on people, WAKE UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We need someone like Hillary to fight for us the same way she is fighing for the nomination.
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She keeps getting beat up by both Democratic back stabbers and the news media alike. We have realized that Clinton lied about her Bosnia trip, but we also know that Obama has lied about:
1) his relationship with the LUNETIC RACIST Rev. Wright
2) his involvment with the crook Tony Rezko
3) his association with the self-proclaimed Pentagon TERRORIST William C. Ayers
4) his note about his father''s arrival in the US due to Kennedy
5) his taking hundreds of thousands of $$$$$$$$$$$ from lobyists
WHAT IS IT GONG TO TAKE FOR AMERICA TO FIGURE OUT OBAMA IS A RACIST, BIGGOT, AND ANTI-SEMITIC?
DO WE HAVE TO MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE WE DID WITIH GEORGE BUSH?
REMEMBER IF WE HAD SLECTED GORE, WE WOULD NOT BE IN THE IRAQ MESS?
Come on people, WAKE UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We need someone like Hillary to fight for us the same way she is fighing for the nomination.
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While you''re at it, take a look at how he''s conducted himself in this campaign! He''s dirtier even than he was knocking off all his opponents to get his Illinois senate seat!
He doesn''t UNITE! He just eliminates everybody else from the playing field with dirty campaign tactics!
You forget that 396 other people voted for the Iraq war! She didn''t get it passed by HERSELF! What a goofus!
Obama couldn''t reach across party lines for 7 solid years in his Illinois senate seat! He didn''t get one spit of legislation passed until his kingmaker Jones handed him EVERY piece of legislation to write in a democratic majority senate! Obama couldn''t do squat without somebody handing it to him! And he hasn''t passed squat as a US senator without stealing other people''s bills. He''s NOTORIOUS for it! He''s named a post office, and one other insignificant piece of legislation!
When a presidential candidate doesn''t even know how to write and get passed legislation, how in the hell is he going to lead others to do it?
Take off your rosey sunshines and take a look at this man and his record for pete''s sakes! Not only is he incompetent, he is corrupt! Look at the $300 million dollars he poured into Jones Chicago district in earmarks. PAYOLA!!! RealPatriot! PAYOLA!
Posted by realpatriot1 at 12:45 PM : Apr 01, 2008
At some point, these politicians need to be held responsible for their actions and most especially the Repugs in Congress ..... It''s no secret what they''ve done and what they intend doing - I already know how high Gas and anything, everything else is - in just 7 short years .... Repugs like to have selective memories, it''s just sad that they''re probably feeling the hardest brunt of it, but they''ll never face up to the real issues affecting America.
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Posted by realpatriot1
Are you serious? Do you think before writing, or do you just write?
Hillary has nothing to do with the problems of Michigan and Florida.
If Obama had cared at all about the voters in those states he would have been there with Hillary. But no, that''s not the way Obama works. He only cares about people who can get him something he wants.
Obviously the Democratic party is the problem, not the people running.
If those folks in Florida had half a brain they would realize that it was Hillary who cost them their vote.
If she had stuck to her committment along with ALL other candidates to not compete in the moved up Primaries then Florida & Michigan would''ve been talking about rescheduling back in late January-early February when there was still sufficient time to re-vote.
They have Hillary to blame, along with their state officials, for throwing this monkey wrench into the process.
How do you propose that Hillary or McCain will unite the country? What''s Hillary gotten done?
You constantly raise the bar for him and lower it for Hillary and you''ll never change. All you do is *** about Obama and you never offer a coherent reason to support her that''s anything other than a soundbite from her campaign.
The woman voted to allow Bush to invade a country that had not attacked us with no preconditions while voting against allowing the international community to finish looking for WMD.
Whne she explains why she did that I''ll think about voting for her; until then, she doesn''t deserve my vote or anyone else''s.
He''s united NOTHING! His acts along to get elected were self-serving! He couldn''t even reach across the aisles for 7 years in Illinois and get a piece of legislation passed when the republicans had control of the senate! He didn''t get a piece of legislation passed until THIS MAN Jones, handed him every piece of legislation to write after the democrats took control!
He hasn''t passed one piece of legislation as US senator that someone else didn''t write first! He literally stole ideas!
The man is an incompetent but ambitious! And the idea that he can unite this country and write books spewing separatist ideology is ludicrous!
How dare I present you with the truth about Obama''''s corrupt politics??? He''''s dirty! From day one in his campaign for the Illinois senate where he eliminated every opponent by backroom sleaze!
Posted by RowdyTexan2 at 10:30 AM : Apr 01, 2008
A politics of Unity to a Repug like you is Corrupt - cuz most Repugs can''t understand why he isn''t pushing for divisions or throwing mud at his opponents .... His relationships is a testament to how he''s proven to have his own Mind and not influenced by his sorroundings or the people he''s had to unite with in other for progress to be made in his careers - IMO, these associations prove that he''s the best candidate to unify our congress, if he could have flourished under a Wright and associated with Jones - Repugs will be much easier for him to get along with cuz they''re just really very greedy and Right now AMerica needs everyone to work TOGETHER in fixing all these Repug problems facing this country TODAY. Cheers!
Posted by strangepols at 10:24 AM : Apr 01, 2008
I believe most people would rather have Repugs tell us about their own candidate than lie about the Dem candidates or is there really nothing to talk about ???
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Posted by parrot123 at 10:00 AM : Apr 01, 2008
How dare I present you with the truth about Obama''s corrupt politics??? He''s dirty! From day one in his campaign for the Illinois senate where he eliminated every opponent by backroom sleaze!
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