Three weeks later, Mr Obama bought a house on the city's South Side while Mr Rezko's wife bought the garden plot next door from the same seller on the same day, June 15.
Mr Obama says he never used Mrs Rezko's still-empty lot, which could only be accessed through his property.
richardMdBorn wrote:http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/w ... 433485.ece
Rezko bought a plot of land which could only be accessed through the Obama’s property. I bet that Beastie does that all the time!
I feel as though I have wasted my time reading this article. No where in the article did the author lay out a compelling case for Obama's connection to Rezko. This is simply a political hit job, much like the NYT piece on McCain. Let's lift the discussion to the issues. Let's have more 16 min discussions on Health Care like the one in the last debate on MSNBC! Let's have longer, more in-depth look at each of their positions....we need to stop this type of tabloid reporting and move forward as a country!
Dutch, Detroit, MI
This story is all hot air. Where is there shown any wrongdoing on Obama's part? Nowhere! So he knows a shady character who knows another shady character -- is that all you've got? And as for the question of where his money came from, in addition to the executive positions his wife held, by 2005 he had authored a bestselling book that was in its second printing along with an audio version of it. That brings in quite a bit of cash on top of his normal salaries. The Obamas have a net worth of $1.3 million, well below most of the other candidates, but certainly enough to afford a $1.6 million-dollar home. The bigger question is where the Clintons got their $35 million.
Mark, Rottenburg, Germany
I have to agree with Pepe of Washington DC: the premise of your article is guilt by association. You state that the Obamas could not afford their 'mansion', but how do you know?
In a recent article in Elle magazine, Michelle Obama was stated to be earning in excess of US$300,000. Combine that with Mr Obama's salary AND given the ease with which credit is obtainable in the US (just look at the sub-prime disaster), it is not inconceivable that the Obamas could have benefited from preferential credit/mortgage facilities often given to those who earn a lot.
This is not the sort of journalism one expects of The Times! Give us facts, true investigative journalism and analysis. NOT innuendo!
Ford, Paris, France
Mr Obama has publicly sought to atone for his closeness to Mr Rezko, paying $150,000 to charity to distance himself from a man accused of political corruption.
The stock has tanked the last two days in anticipation that Obama's bad economic ideas will turn a recession into a depression. I think this is unprecedented. Russia is making threats. Israel is seriously contemplating attacking Iran since they can't depend on Obama for help. The new of staff,Miss Taken wrote:Richard, you may or may not like Obama, you may or may not like his policies, but surely you can see what a triumph this is.
* "[Emanuel] Was Also Zealously Partisan. He Had Once Owned A Consulting Business Devoted To Finding Skeletons In Republican Closets." (Edward McClelland, "The Legend Of Rahm," Salon.Com, 5/8/07)
Emanuel Told His Staff That Republicans Could "Go F--- Themselves!" "'I'll tell you this,' Emanuel shouted out to his staff. 'The Republicans may have the 72-hour program. But they have not seen the 22-month program! ... Since my kids are gone, I can say it: They can go ---- themselves!'" (Naftali Bendavid, "The House That Rahm Built," Chicago Tribune, 11/12/06)
Emanuel Even Told Then-British Prime Minister Tony Blair Before An Appearance With President Clinton: "This Is Important. Don't F--- It Up." "Mr Emanuel is reputed to have walked up to Tony Blair before the prime minister's first public appearance with Mr Clinton, during the Monica Lewinsky scandal. 'This is important,' he told Mr Blair. 'Don't f--- it up.'" ("Former Ballet Dancer Turned Political Fixer," The [London, UK] Guardian, 11/10/06)
Emanuel Attended A Meeting With Clinton Campaign Advisers Following The 1992 Campaign To Discuss Which Politicians And Members Of The Press They Would Seek Revenge Upon. "It was there that Emanuel, then Clinton's chief fund-raiser, repaired with George Stephanopoulos, Mandy Grunwald and other aides to Doe's, the campaign hangout. Revenge was heavy in the air as the group discussed the enemies - Democrats, Republicans, members of the press - who wronged them during the 1992 campaign. Clifford Jackson, the ex-friend of the President and peddler of the Clinton draft-dodging stories, was high on the list. So was William Donald Schaefer, then the Governor of Maryland and a Democrat who endorsed George Bush. Nathan Landow, the fund-raiser who backed the candidacy of Paul Tsongas, made it, too." (Elisabeth Bumiller, "The Brothers Emanuel," The New York Times, 6/15/97)
hhttp://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/11/early_republican_reaction_to_r.phpAnd Emanuel Served On The Board Of Mortgage Giant Freddie Mac As It Expanded Subprime Lending:
Former President Clinton Appointed Emanuel To The Board Of Freddie Mac Where He Earned $231,655 In Director's Fees In 2001 And $31,060 In 2000. "Clinton's going-away gift to Emanuel was a seat on the quasi-governmental Freddie Mac board, which paid him $231,655 in director's fees in 2001 and $31,060 in 2000." (Lynn Sweet, "Too Much Money A Bad Thing?" Chicago Sun-Times, 1/3/02)
The Clinton Administration Ruled Fannie And Freddie Could Satisfy Affordable Housing Obligations By Purchasing Subprime Mortgages. "If Sen. Obama were truly looking for a kind of deregulation that might be responsible for the current financial crisis, he need only look back to 1998, when the Clinton administration ruled that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could satisfy their affordable housing obligations by purchasing subprime mortgages. This ultimately made it possible for Fannie and Freddie to add a trillion dollars in junk loans to their balance sheets. This led to their own collapse, and to the development of a market in these mortgages that is the source of the financial crisis we are wrestling with today." (Peter J. Wallison, Op-Ed, "Obama Voted 'Present' On Mortgage Reform," The Wall Street Journal, 10/15/08)
beastie wrote:This country faces challenges more serious than any I remember in my lifetime. I can only hope the number of people, like Richard, eager to destroy Obama even before he has a chance, is small enough not to mess us up even more. Time will tell.
The only point I cited from the article is that Rezko's plot was accessible only through Obama's plot. None of the comments you quoted touch on this. However, it is clear that Obama's connections to Rezko were extensive. The man I talked to last week, who claimed he worked for Obama, said that Rezko raised a ton of money for Obama. That is clearly the case.Ray A wrote:richardMdBorn wrote:http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/w ... 433485.ece
Rezko bought a plot of land which could only be accessed through the Obama’s property. I bet that Beastie does that all the time!
Richard, do you really believe that a Times article can settle this? Just out of interest I read some of the 300-plus comments:
Rurning some of a bribe under pressure does not exonerate the person who accepted it.Ray A wrote:And from the article:Ray A wrote:Mr Obama has publicly sought to atone for his closeness to Mr Rezko, paying $150,000 to charity to distance himself from a man accused of political corruption.
Miss Taken wrote:My husband was sitting in a restaurant yesterday (doesn't get too excited about anything...calm type) was reading through the Independent yesterday (good broadsheet) and just kept uttering...
I still can't believe it. I can't believe America has done it.
Richard, you may or may not like Obama, you may or may not like his policies, but surely you can see what a triumph this is.
I've been utterly depressed about Bush and America for the last few years (invasion of Iraq onwards) and for me, you guys are now back at the top where you belong in my mind.
40 years ago people of mixed race in your country couldn't even sit with whites on a bus, and now your wonderful land of opportunity, of equality, of hope for all, has voted in a man of mixed race.
I'm in awe. It's incredibly wonderful, and a triumph over prejudice and injustice for the underdog.
Having said all that. I get the distinct impression that Obama is American through and through.
He's an American first. He loves his country, and McCain, even if not you, has the grace and dignity to accept and recognise that.
He's certainly going to have to hit the floor running though!!
Mary
Really? REALLY????
More serious than Vietnam? More serious than Mutually Assured Destruction with the Soviet Union? More serious than failing to get an Equal Rights Amendment passed? Roe V. Wade? Reeeeeeally?
You're just like the Mormons that you bicker with. Think about it. If President Monson had the associations, or sat in a ward that taught the things Rev Wright taught... I'm pretty certain you'd be up in arms. BUT, because B.O. is your guy, you do cartwheels and backflips to cut this man slack that you don't, whatsoever, cut Mormons. B.O. is just on your team. Team Democrat. I'm not surprised by human behavior in general, but you in particular, with your cultish devotion to this man is something odd to see. I'm disappointed.
Why is it that Democrats feel like they have to carry the burden of the world on their shoulders? Why do they have to usurp man's right to self-determination by making themselves economic and social martyrs... Are they seeking some sort of absolution for something they can't quite understand, but feel responsible for? It's bad enough they want to nail themselves to that big wooden cross they carry around, but now they want to nail the rest of us up there, too. And if we resist, we're demonized as the very evil they think they're rescuing everyone from in the first place.
But the thing is... They create more evil by tolerating it; Man infantalizing man incubates the horrors they seek to avoid. It's only through rugged individualism, tempered with thoughtful and moderate socialism can man and society progress. Too much nannying retards the human potential, and stifles the spirit. This is my reason for not supporting B.O.. It's too much. We're exculpating entire segments of the population from personal responsibility, which is necessary, at the inherent level, for man to become something more than an animal that consumes.
Republicans are asses. And they let their bigotry get in the way of good governing. And as a result people flock to the Democrats because Repubs don't want to "grant" (as if they had the power to determine man's value and equality... ASSES) homosexuals equal status, they don't want women to have the same inherent rights and opportunities as men, and in the past their party, that once was the harbinger of freedom instead became the refuge for racist and misogynists. If Republicans could open their hearts to The Other, and extend the hand of equality, true equality, then they would become the Party of the People. Instead, because they're so biased toward those they think make Baby Jesus and The Duke cry, they're losing their ability to influence in government. Their bigotry, in other words, is their downfall, and ultimately this nations undoing. What a shame. :(