You may not see his documents but you may gaze with admiration on his most awsome personage...
Posted on 06/28/2010 12:07:19 PM PDT by STARWISE
Judge James Zagel denies a defense request to gain access to the FBI report summarizing then President-Elect Obama's 2008 interview with federal investigators.
Defense lawyers argued in a filing last week that the government minimized Obama's knowledge of the then-Governor's attempts to horsetrade for the Senate seat appointment.
They said that testimony by government witness John Harris contradicted that portrayal by federal prosecutors.
Harris testified last week that Blagojevich believed Obama knew about the then-governor's request for a presidential cabinet appointment in exchange for appointing Valerie Jarrett to the Senate seat.
Zagel said there was nothing relevant concerning Harris's testimony that would allow the defense access to Obama's interview.
"There's just nothing there," Zagel said.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Excerpt:
But, Alderman Burke's control of Chicago's financial purse strings isn't his only lever of power.
Cook County has the largest unified court system in America. In heavily Democratic Cook County, 100% of all of the judges are Democrats. The Chairman of the Democratic Party Judicial Slating Committee is none other than Alderman Burke.
The Chicago Reader astutely observed Burke's "Seat on the Democratic Party judicial slate-making committee ensures that Cook County judges owe him their jobs." Alderman Burke's influence goes beyond the Cook County level:
his wife Anne is a justice on the Illinois Supreme Court.
Along with all of Alderman Burke's power to control Chicago's tax code and Cook County's judicial system comes campaign contributions. Alderman Burke doesn't represent a wealthy ward, nor has he ever faced a serious political opponent, but he still has amassed an eye popping campaign fund. The Chicago Tribune explains:
~~~
"But the state’s richest political family was Ald. Edward Burke (14th) and his wife, Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne Burke. Together, their political committees held $8.3 million in cash.
The Tribune reported Monday that Anne Burke’s campaign was returning a large portion of her cash to donors because she is running unopposed in the Democratic primary.
Mayor Richard M. Daley, who traditionally ceases fundraising after elections, raised just $43,000 in the last six months, but had $3.1 million in cash on hand."
~~~
In terms of cash at the very least, Burke is already more potent not only than Daley but has more in his coffers than Daley and all 49 Aldermen combined.
But, the ever active Alderman Burke is also a businessman, not surprisingly a rather successful one.
The state of Illinois has rather lax ethics laws, and since being an Alderman is a "part time” job, Alderman Burke has outside employment. Burke runs a successful property tax appeals business.
Burke's latest ethics form filed with the city of Chicago shows his impressive list of clients. Such big corporations as AT&T, American Airlines, Bank of America, Northern Trust, Harris Bank, T Mobile and many others have done at least $5000 in legal business with Alderman Burke's law firm in the last year.
They also – I am sure readers will be shocked – do business with the city of Chicago. WBBM, the local CBS affiliate, even has Alderman Burke handle some of its legal business.
Occasionally, Alderman Burke's conflicts get reported on.
When Obama ally and Blagojevich influence peddler Tony Rezko was looking to get his taxes cut on a big land deal the Chicago Sun-Times explained:
~~~
"Why did Ald. Edward M. Burke vote to approve Tony Rezko’s plans to develop the South Loop’s biggest piece of vacant land even as he was working for Rezko on that same deal?
Burke says: I forgot to abstain."
~~~
When Rod Blagojevich first decided to run for Governor in 2001, he got important backing from Burke. Blago's father-in-law, by the way, is Alderman Dick Mell, a colleague of Alderman Burke's who got the ball rolling.
The Daily Herald unearthed this revealing statement from Alderman Burke in 2001 concerning Blago:
~~~ "I am with Rod 100% because he has what it takes to win – money, message and an army of supporters,” said Burke, referring to a rousing announcement speech given by Blagojevich to a reported throng of 10,000 people on August 12. Burke also mentioned filings with election officials that show Blagojevich with over $3 million in his campaign fund, double the amount of cash on hand of all of his potential Democratic opponents combined."
~~~
In the coming years, as Chicago style politics seeps into America's mainstream, remember Alderman Burke.
Thirty of Burke's colleagues on Chicago's City Council went on to become convicted felons since 1970. But Alderman Burke is still standing, and still dominating in the shadows, atop much of what happens in the Windy City.
~~Chicago Way
Evidently, you can’t see his birth certificate, school records, or passport records. There really is not much about Mr. Skittles you can see, is there?
“Zagel said there was nothing relevant concerning Harris’s testimony that would allow the defense access to Obama’s interview.
“There’s just nothing there,” Zagel said.”
Well, if the judge says so, I’m convinced./s
1. The defense team has a right to see any and all evidence that might exonerate Blago. They should fight this decision.
2. If, as Judge Zagel says, “There’s just nothing there,” then that’s all the more reason to let the defense team see it. If there’s nothing there, then there’s nothing to hide.
If there’s “nothing” there, then why not allow them to see it?
We've known that for quite some time now.................
Can you say grounds for appeal?
“Can you say grounds for appeal?”
Mistrial.
You may not see his documents but you may gaze with admiration on his most awsome personage...
““Zagel said there was nothing relevant concerning Harris’s testimony that would allow the defense access to Obama’s interview.”
I am certainly no expert but isn’t that a matter of fact (to be decided by a jury) rather than a matter of law (to be decided by the judge?)
Wouldn’t it be interesting if the Feds claim of Presidential privilege for denying viewing FBI materiel was challenged by the defense on the grounds that the protections offered to the person known as President are not valid as the occupant did not provide documentation establishing his ability to hold the office as per the Constitution.
Hmmm, this could get very, very interesting.
Well, there are such things as ‘federal rules of evidence’ and I’m not sure where this falls. But it sounds like grounds for appeal.
But he was but ‘president elect’ during the interview. Is there now a president elect privilege?
Well no one told me about him
The way he lies
Well no one told me about him
How many people died
But it’s too late to say he’s sorry
How would he know, why should he care
Please don’t bother trying to find him
“There’s just nothing there,”
This must be the judge's way of saying that there is nothing there regarding the specific line of questioning by the defense, but there is something else there that they haven't questioned yet, and showing it now would tip their hand to it when they might otherwise miss it entirely.
-PJ
-PJ
I think the awareness of Obama’s corruption has reached the tipping point. It may not even matter whether or not the records are released - he’s toast.
Yup! I’m glad you caught it!
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