From Jake Tapper:
…it should be pointed out, Mr. Obama has a relationship with Mr. Blagojevich, having not only endorsed Blagojevich in 2002 and 2006, but having served as a top adviser to the Illinois governor in his first 2002 run for the state house.
In the Democratic gubernatorial primary that year, then-state sen. Obama endorsed former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris. But after Blagojevich won, Obama came around enthusiastically. At the same time, meanwhile, Axelrod had such serious concerns about whether Blagojevich was ready for governing he refused to work for his one-time client.
According to Rep. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., Mr. Obama’s incoming White House chief of staff, Emanuel, then-state senator Obama, a third Blagojevich aide, and Blagojevich’s campaign co-chair, David Wilhelm, were the top strategists of Blagojevich’s 2002 gubernatorial victory.
Emanuel told the New Yorker earlier this year that he and Obama “participated in a small group that met weekly when Rod was running for governor. We basically laid out the general election, Barack and I and these two.”
Naturally, Emanuel is backing away from this as fast as he can – amazing how many people will claim they are actually idiots in order to get out of a tight spot. But whatever else Emanuel might be, he’s not an idiot – in fact, he’s probably one of the smartest men in politics today. Point blank, I’m not buying Emanuel’s new story that he was entirely wrong back when but now has been reminded of what it was really like. Like Obama’s statement he hadn’t spoken with Blagojevich about his replacement, Emanuel’s statement that he’s only now correctly remembering what happened is not just a likely falsehood, but is a very stupid likely falsehood, into the bargain. These sorts of statements can only be made by people 100% certain that, in the end, the MSM will cover for them.
This is the biggest corruption scandal in many a year, and the mud will splash on to everyone involved in Illinois politics, especially its Chicago division. Obama is hip deep in Chicago politics, and the dumbest thing he can do is try to pretend he wasn’t around. The smart move is to embrace the muck, express sadness that former colleagues are caught up in this and insist that his only purpose is to see that justice is done. Of course, Obama can only do this if he’s certain that there’s no direct dirt on himself. If Obama has dirt to worry about, then dodging and weaving is all he can do – and hope that other matters quickly trump the public’s attention.
As an aside, anyone who read Caucus of Corruption is entirely unsurprised at this turn of events. Of, if surprised, only by the fact that it took this long for all of it to come out. The book is still for sale – and Blagojevich, Obama and Emanuel are not the only Democrats mentioned in it, nor have even a tithe of the skeletons come out of the Democrat closet at this point.
Blogs For Victory 