Monday 15 December 2008

”Welcome to Chicago…”

“…this town stinks like a whorehouse at low tide.”
Barack Obama's choice to be his White House chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, is coming under mounting pressure to make a full disclosure about his contacts with the disgraced governor of Illinois over the billowing Senate "seat for sale" scandal.
Well, I expected the bloom to start coming off the Obama rose quite quickly.

But even I thought the other shoe would drop after the coronation, not before!
Though Emanuel is understood not to be a target of the investigation, the disclosure that he was in contact with Blagojevich's office with regard to the seat has unleashed a storm of media interest that is awkward for the Obama team.
So, now we see media interest in Obama’s background and political affiliations? Yet before the election, all we heard about was Sarah Palin’s tanning bed and in-law disputes. Good going, legacy media!
There is nothing untoward about Emanuel having made clear Obama's opinions about the Senate appointment. What is proving difficult is the silence emanating from the Obama camp about the full nature of his contacts with the governor. Observers are puzzled by how long any response has taken, giving Republicans space to criticise Obama for failing to live up to his promise of open government.
I uses Obama learned one thing, at least; it’s always the cover-up that gets you…

Not sure how effective the tactic of staying silent will prove, instead, though. It’s a bit like holding your breath under water – it goes quite well for the first few minutes. But then you’ve gotta come up, no matter what.

I’ll keep watching for bubbles… ;)

4 comments:

Mark Wadsworth said...

Sweet! This is not "Obama's closest associates mired in corruption", this is just "awkward for the Obama camp".

Yeah, right.

Anonymous said...

FWIW I lived in Chicago at the time Richard J Daley (pere) was running the city (60s and 70s). As well as delivering the presidency to JFK by fraud (not a lot of coverage about that from the BBC funnily enough) Daley inherited (and passed on) the corrupt practice of politics in Chicago and Illinois.

There is no way any politician could thrive in Illinois politics except by being corrupt or, at the very least, being complaisant in corruption. Think Labour politics in East Glasgow and you'll get the idea. The difference is that, under Daley, Chicago worked (albeit expensively) for those who paid the local taxes compared with the crap services delivered in the UK to those who foot the bills.

Anonymous said...

xxx Well, I expected the bloom to start coming off the Obama rose quite quickly. xxx

Quite. AMAZING how some people can be so blind that they thing because he is black, evereything will be SOPOO much better.

I would suggest the Brother of this dead Nigerian oil minister that thinks I am his friend of late is not your avereage blue hair, blond eyed two meter Anglo-Saxon either.

Von Brandenburg-Preussen.

Anonymous said...

"There is no way any politician could thrive in Illinois politics except by being corrupt or, at the very least, being complaisant in corruption."

Indeed.

And yet, given that (despite his mantra of CHANGE!) he's staffed his cabinet and offices with ex-Clinton administration people, wouldn't you think they'd be a bit better at handling awkward liaisons...?

"...AMAZING how some people can be so blind..."

Oh, very true. As Simon and Garfunkel put it: 'All lies and jest, still the man hears what he wants to hear,
And disregards the rest,'