Mark Halperin's point-by-point analysis - 'not advice' - on how to beat Barack Obama is nice - thanks Mark. Put it in the closet with the fruitcakes and the lint rollers.
Barack Obama's record and Illinois Legislative past with a thick emphasis on ties to indicted Tony Rezko will unravel his campaign on its own. In today' Chicago Tribune it is reported that:
In her ruling, St. Eve said the government contends that Rezko directed business associates Joseph Aramanda and Elie Maloof to make contributions to an unnamed political candidate in late 2003 and 2004 because Rezko had already contributed the maximum legal amount.
The only candidate Maloof and Aramanda contributed to during that time frame was Obama, then running for the U.S. Senate in Illinois. Maloof and Aramanda each gave $10,000 to Obama's campaign.
Maloof of Vernon Hills had supported Obama in an earlier political campaign, and disclosure reports from that effort listed her as a vice president of operations for a Rezko pizzeria management firm. Aramanda is a Glenview businessman whose son received a coveted summer internship in Obama's Capitol Hill office in 2005.
Until his recent legal troubles, Rezko had been a longtime friend and financial supporter of Obama's political career. Prosecutors have not alleged any wrongdoing on Obama's part, but the developments come at an awkward time as Obama faces crucial March 4 primary contests, one day after the scheduled start of the trial.
Obama's campaign says it has given more than $150,000 in Rezko-linked contributions to charity, including the money from Aramanda and Maloof.
"We had no knowledge of any straw donations and have returned any of the donations about which we have any reasonable question," Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton said in a statement late Monday.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-obama-rezko_both26feb26,0,5062637.story
Even Leftie Mother Jones is piling on to the calls from Illinois Democratic legislative former colleagues who learned to their collective surprise that Obama took credit for 823 pieces of legislation:
In 1999, Barack Obama was faced with a difficult vote in the Illinois legislature — to support a bill that would let some juveniles be tried as adults, a position that risked drawing fire from African-Americans, or to oppose it, possibly undermining his image as a tough-on-crime moderate.
In the end, Mr. Obama chose neither to vote for nor against the bill. He voted “present,” effectively sidestepping the issue, an option he invoked nearly 130 times as a state senator.
Sometimes the “present’ votes were in line with instructions from Democratic leaders or because he objected to provisions in bills that he might otherwise support. At other times, Mr. Obama voted present on questions that had overwhelming bipartisan support. In at least a few cases, the issue was politically sensitive
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http://www.motherjones.com/mojoblog/archives/2007/12/6659_yesterday_the_n.html
Barack Obama's Campaign will unravel on its own. Halperin means well, but give him a pass. Keep being John McCain. Keep things respectful - tough but respectful - like you did in Cincinnati when the disc jockey started to sneer at Barak Obama's name. Keep it McCain-like and dignified. Barack Obama's mummy like rhetorical wrapping is unwinding.
