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| -Lurid Crime Tales- |
| Case Confirms Rezko Is Talking With Prosecutors |
| 2008-12-12 |
| A footnote to the 76-page criminal complaint and affidavit charging Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) with soliciting bribes confirms what has long been rumored -- that a former longtime friend and fundraiser for President-elect Barack Obama is talking to federal prosecutors in hopes of a reduced sentence. Antoin "Tony" Rezko's offer to provide authorities with evidence of others' wrongdoing is "not complete," and prosecutors are working to corroborate the claims he has made so far, the footnote said. Rezko, a 53-year-old developer, was convicted in June of 16 criminal counts, including fraud, money laundering and abetting bribery. He is in custody awaiting sentencing. Prosecutors depicted Rezko at trial as a fixer for Blagojevich and the man to see to secure a high-level appointment with the governor's administration. Rezko had been a longtime fundraiser for Blagojevich and other Illinois politicians, including Obama. Obama was not implicated in the months-long trial, and he has said that Rezko sought no favors from him. At a news conference on Tuesday, Patrick J. Fitzgerald, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, went out of his way to dampen speculation about Obama. "I should make clear, the complaint makes no allegations about the president-elect whatsoever," Fitzgerald said. "We make no allegations that he's aware of anything, and that's as simply as I can put it. . . . "There's no reference in the complaint to any conversations involving the president-elect or indicating that the president-elect was aware of it. And that's all I can say." Legal experts said it was unusual for a prosecutor to make such a blanket statement while an investigation was continuing. "That carries a great deal of weight," said Jan Witold Baran, a Washington lawyer who represents politicians on ethical complaints and campaign finance matters. "It is really unusual for a U.S. attorney to say someone is not implicated. "Could evidence pop up in the future to the contrary? Sure, it's possible. Is it likely? I think that, based on what he said yesterday, the answer is no," Baran added. The ongoing investigation is sure to present political complications for the Obama Justice Department, because advisers close to the president-elect are referenced in the criminal complaint and will be interviewed by federal prosecutors, legal analysts said. A lawyer for the Obama transition team did not return calls or e-mails yesterday. Fitzgerald was appointed U.S. attorney by President Bush, but he is a political independent. Obama could retain Fitzgerald, lending an element of continuity to the Blagojevich case and insulating himself somewhat from accusations that he is seeking to remove a dogged prosecutor from a case targeting Illinois Democrats. Rezko's reappearance in the headlines in recent years has been of continuing use to Obama's political opponents -- including Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.), both of whose presidential campaigns pointed out that Obama shared a long history with the Chicago developer. Over Obama's political career, Rezko raised contributions for him and introduced him to powerful aldermen. Rezko even offered real estate advice when Obama bought an expensive house on Chicago's South Side. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #18 Wicked, Frank. Wicked LOL |
| Posted by: lotp 2008-12-12 19:48 |
| #17 Suggestions4Obama - I am intrigued by your ideas and wish to subscribe to your newsletter |
| Posted by: Frank G 2008-12-12 18:59 |
| #16 Therefore, he was not involved in any wrongdoing - it's time to move on and look forward! Apparently "move on and look forward" also includes censoring questions on the matter. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2008-12-12 18:23 |
| #15 Looks more like a reminder of how the right continues to be guilty of aiding and abetting the left. |
| Posted by: Mike N. 2008-12-12 13:52 |
| #14 Aisle #3 is left as a display of what currently passes for thinking on the part of Obama supporters. |
| Posted by: lotp 2008-12-12 13:32 |
| #13 If I remember it was Sen. Tom Daschle who first called on his fellow countrymen to "move on" after we learned the truth about Bill Clinton's relationship with Monica Lewinsky and the lies he told when he denied it. Seems like one of the primary donk characteristics is to "move on" and pay no attention to that man behind the curtain. Well, nuts to you, Suggestions4Obama. We are not over the rainbow. We wanna stop and look into it a little more because we think your man is the Creature from the Black Lagoon and, yes, that is a critical issue. |
| Posted by: Ebbang Uluque6305 2008-12-12 12:56 |
| #12 it will be a surprise indeed if we see that Mr Obama hasnt got any one him while in the political machine of Illinois for so long.... |
| Posted by: reality check 2008-12-12 12:51 |
| #11 Aisle #3. Where do these people go to learn such mindless gibberish? Liberals are the only folks I have ever seen that could throw out that sort of word salad. |
| Posted by: Zorba Glinetch9476 2008-12-12 12:00 |
| #10 Tony 'The Fixer' Rezko corrupted anyone and anything he got near. But when he interacted with Obama he realized he was dealing with a politician that was pure as the driven snow so he was always on the up and up. Can we all believe that? Yes we can! Yes we can! Yes we can! Yes we can! All this shouting is making me thirsty. Can I please have another glass of Koolaid? |
| Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC 2008-12-12 11:58 |
| #9 Hey, Suggestions, you are dumber than my pet pooch if you think the crowd here is gonna swallow that pablum. G'bye. |
| Posted by: Woozle Elmeter 2700 2008-12-12 11:48 |
| #8 Why wouldn't corruption be a "critical problem at hand"? Why should we "move on" just because a politician "indicates" he wasn't involved? |
| Posted by: DoDo 2008-12-12 11:11 |
| #7 Let's focus on all other critical problems at hand! Hey rookie, you just said that this is a critical problem but not to pay attention..you know, like it was in English class. |
| Posted by: swksvolFF 2008-12-12 10:29 |
| #6 And that's too bad. It's foolish to let these astroturfers use the Burgs bandwidth to spread their propoganda when they've no interest in reciprocity. One set of rules for the, another set for me. I see nop reason to help our |
| Posted by: Mike N. 2008-12-12 09:59 |
| #5 Suggestions4Obama, are you paid to post comments at certain blogs? Is Rantburg on your morning list? Also, if you're into suggestions, why is it that if I go to change.gov and ask a question about how Obama is going to clean up corruption, that question is flagged as 'inappropriate'? Notice that, as a moderator, I'm not flagging you as inappropriate. |
| Posted by: Steve White 2008-12-12 09:44 |
| #4 Terminal Kool-Aid spill on isle #3. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2008-12-12 09:40 |
| #3 The thing to remember is that as a politician in the same state and party any politician has to interact with people. However, he or she does not have to befriend a person, and limit the interactions to professional boundaries. Obama might have endorsed Blago in the general but in the primary he did endorse his opponent. So, the conclusion is that all the interactions were strictly professional. In a similar analogy, a lots of folks who endorsed Hillary then turned their endorsement to Obama when he won the primary. Even though he was not their first choice, he was the Democratic nominee so they endorsed him. That is politics works. Obama does not need to discuss any interaction once he indicates that he has not have any discussions regarding the vacant seat. Therefore, he was not involved in any wrongdoing - it's time to move on and look forward! Let's focus on all other critical problems at hand! |
| Posted by: Suggestions4Obama.com 2008-12-12 09:29 |
| #2 No, don't go into business with me, I'll set you up with a job over at X. I'm thinking about partnering with X, and I need someone I can..... trust, if you get my drift. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2008-12-12 07:58 |
| #1 "Obama declined a job offer from Rezko, instead accepting a position at a small Chicago law firm that would later represent Rezko's company and whose senior partner would in time go into business with Rezko." Even outside of the Chicago Machine, that's considerd a difference without distinction. |
| Posted by: DepotGuy 2008-12-12 07:54 |