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Audacity of Truth
Rahmbo:
"Rahm Emanuel is son of the devil's spawn. He is an individual who would sell his mother to get a vote. He would strap his children to the front end of a steam locomotive."
-Rep. Eric Massa (D-NY) on Obama's COS, 3/7/10
Velvet Lair- Legends March 18, 2010
- Some things are just not cute March 18, 2010
- The adventures of the lady spider killer continue March 11, 2010
- Intermission February 19, 2010
- People who allow their dogs to poop in other people’s yards February 16, 2010
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- Michelle Malkin
- GOP fights again: Cantor introduces privileged resolution challenging Slaughter Solution; Dems move to table the motion, 232-181
- Video: Democrat Rep. Perriello admits, “If you don’t tie our hands, we will keep stealing”
- Speed-readers unite! House Rules Committee finally releases Wreckonciliation bill; Hoyer announces weekend schedule
- Jake Tapper
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- Lynn Sweet
John Fund: Obama did nothing about Chicago corruption – but now he can help change it
As I and many others have noted on more than one occasion, for as “different” (read: “honest and open”) a politician as Barack Obama has claimed to be the last two years, he rose in Chicago politics in large part on the backs of far leftists and “Chicago Way” types as Tony Rezko, Bill Ayers, Emil Jones Jr., Rev. Wright, Father Pfleger, the Daleys, and soon-to-be-former Gov. Blago. He had the opportunity for 8 years as a state Senator to try and institute real change in a city known for its history of corrupt politicos big and small, but failed to do anything meaningful about it.
John Fund argues today that with the eruption of the Blago pay for play scandal, Obama can take the opportunity he didn’t while in Chicago to urge a clean up of a political system that has repeatedly rewarded some of the shadiest, dirtiest politicians and public figures for decades. Fund makes some good points, but I don’t see Obama doing much in the way of trying to “change” anything in Chi-town once this scandal dies down. For starters, he’s already got his hands full with the economy – which understandably is front and center right now for him. Not only that, but Chicago has served its purpose for him; it helped land him where he is today, and while he has thrown the “machine” under the bus, beyond condemning what happened I don’t see him having a need to ruffle too many feathers. He still plans to return to Chicago often, as he has family and friends there and – as has always been the case – he wouldn’t want to be persona non grata in the cocktail circuit to the most powerful who aided in his rise to power. So he’ll keep a safe distance, utter the right words about how things must “change” in Chicago, but beyond that, don’t expect much – if anything.
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5 Responses to “John Fund: Obama did nothing about Chicago corruption – but now he can help change it”
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Yeah, Obama has left Chicago politics behind and doesn’t need to look back. For him, it’s a closed book. He won’t be doing anything to clean it up – and as you point out, he wants to go back there in four or eight years (unless an adoring Congress gets the 22nd Amendment repealed, in which case it’s never).
So why ruffle feathers back in his adopted hometown? The only real cure for “The Chicago Way” will be a few truly selfless political figures who don’t mind risking self immolation to end corruption. That surely does not describe Obama.
Somehow we need to hold his feet to the fire on this.
He may have to decide whether to run an aggresively clean administration, or let the corruption taint everything he says, does, and is remembered for.
I suspect that the events to force a decision are already in motion. Helping them along would be a good thing.
Maybe he’ll have an “Only Obama could go to Chicago” moment. We can hope.
Dishman–
Holding his feet to the fire is a good idea, but Illinois Democrats have asbestos toenails.
Obama and Emanuel know how the game is played, and “where the bodies are buried”. If they actually put their minds to it, they could do something about it.
Obama is as much a part of the Chicago Political Machine as Blagojevich. He will no more clean up the mess that is Chicago Politics than he will suddenly decide that redistribution is a bad thing.