I think we should give Obama the benefit of the doubt on this one. He wil screw up enough in the next fews weeks and months, without us making false accusations now. Let's not look partisan already.
However, I have some questions about Rahm Emanuel and Valerie Jarrett. How could they have not known Blago was trying to sell the senate seat? On the tapes, Blago sounds like a man getting cheated out of something he fully expected to get. Why did he expect to get it?
And, if Rahm Emanuel or Valerie Jarrett knew Blago was selling the seat, didn't they have a moral obligation to notify the proper law enforcement agencies? If they did not do anything illegal in the strict sense, this still looks a little shady. [snip]
I am not giving Obama ANY benefit of ANY doubt. He's simply smarter than Blago. There's no doubt in my mind he (Obama) is hip-deep in this mess, far enough removed as to give the sense of plausible deniability. As for looking partisan, well, all I have to do is look at Nancy Pelosi and that tells me EXACTLY what flavor of partisanship she's brewing up. That's the kind of leadership she exudes - sort of like pus from a pimple.
Blago needs/needed money for his legal bills. He was something like $500 million in arrears and he needed to raise a lot of cash in a hurry to begin paying that debt. He simply bit off more than he could chew, got greedy, and failed to cover his ass. Obama is smarter than that.
Also, Blago, being a Chicago-style politician, has an enormous sense of entitlement, as do most Democrats. He felt that any powers bestowed upon him were and are certainly for sale to the highest bidder because he has the power and it's there for his use. In other words, corruption is at the heart and soul of Chicago politicians and Blago fits nicely in that role. The Illinois Constitution gives him that power, and it's his for his use as he pleases. He isn't accountable to ANYBODY.
