The American Mind

Power just came back on after a nasty storm whipped through the Arlington, VA area. I open up my inbox to find out a jury found Chicago fixer (and friend of Sen. Barack Obama) guilty of corruption charges:

The 10-woman, two-man jury deliberated for parts of 13 days before convicting Rezko of scheming with Stuart Levine, a longtime Republican insider, to extort millions of dollars from firms seeking state business or regulatory approval.

The jury convicted Rezko of 12 counts of wire and mail fraud, two counts of money laundering and two counts of aiding and abetting bribery.

Clad in a light olive suit and red tie, Rezko showed little emotion as the verdicts were read. He could face $4 million in fines and 300 years in prison.

The jury convicted Rezko of wire and mail fraud, money laundering and aiding and abetting bribery. He was acquitted of attempted extortion.

Democratic governor Rod Blagojevich has more to worry about after this trial. He was more closely linked to Rezko than Obama. Also, Blagojevich came into office claiming he’d clean up Illinois politics.

Yet all isn’t well for Obama. The Democratic candidate is now closely connected to a convicted criminal who helped him buy his current house. Chicago isn’t politically pretty. Obama should expect to be questioned about how he thrived in such a corrupt environment. As Salon.com’s Edward McClelland wrote in Feburary:

Obama’s dealings with his hinky friend have never led him afoul of the law, but they show that, despite his high-minded politics, he was no purer — or no savvier — than Illinois’ biggest hacks in his weakness for a generous contributor. He wouldn’t even say no when Rezko cooked up a deal to help the newly elected senator buy a gracious Georgian-revival home.

Obama claims voters should pick him because of his “sound judgment.” Voters should question Obama’s judgment from his Chicago days.

“Rezko Convicted of Corruption”

UPDATE: RNC chairman Mike Duncan issued this statement:

On the day Barack Obama hoped to unite his party after wheezing over the finish line and claiming the Democrat nomination, a jury in his hometown of Chicago convicted his longtime friend and fundraiser Tony Rezko of multiple felonies. This is further proof that Obama’s high-flying rhetoric is just that and in no way represents the kind of change our nation demands. Today’s verdict and Obama’s friendship with Rezko raise serious questions about whether he has the judgment to serve as president.