Comments on: John Fund: Obama did nothing about Chicago corruption – but now he can help change it

By: Sal

Sal — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 04:44:57 +0000

Obama is as much a part of the Chicago Political Machine as Blagojevich. He will no more clean up the mess that is Chicago Politics than he will suddenly decide that redistribution is a bad thing.

By: Dishman

Dishman — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 17:08:16 +0000

Obama and Emanuel know how the game is played, and “where the bodies are buried”. If they actually put their minds to it, they could do something about it.

By: Trish

Trish — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 03:38:45 +0000

Dishman–
Holding his feet to the fire is a good idea, but Illinois Democrats have asbestos toenails.

By: Dishman

Dishman — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 00:27:55 +0000

Somehow we need to hold his feet to the fire on this.

He may have to decide whether to run an aggresively clean administration, or let the corruption taint everything he says, does, and is remembered for.

I suspect that the events to force a decision are already in motion. Helping them along would be a good thing.

Maybe he’ll have an “Only Obama could go to Chicago” moment. We can hope.

By: Steve Skubinna

Steve Skubinna — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 19:49:02 +0000

Yeah, Obama has left Chicago politics behind and doesn’t need to look back. For him, it’s a closed book. He won’t be doing anything to clean it up – and as you point out, he wants to go back there in four or eight years (unless an adoring Congress gets the 22nd Amendment repealed, in which case it’s never).

So why ruffle feathers back in his adopted hometown? The only real cure for “The Chicago Way” will be a few truly selfless political figures who don’t mind risking self immolation to end corruption. That surely does not describe Obama.