The Gadfly: Credit, Not Criticism
Some in the news media seem determined to put President-elect Obama and his chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, in the middle of Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich's alleged improper acts, despite evidence they had no improper involvement.
From where I sit, Obama, and Emanuel in particular, deserve credit, not criticism.
It apparently was Emanuel, after all, who told Blago's top guy there'd be no quid-pro-quo if Blago named one of those on Obama's list to his Senate seat. Partial transcripts released in the 76-page criminal complaint showed that Emanuel offered nothing more than "appreciation" to Blagojevich, much to the foul-mouthed frustration of the governor, who wanted a cabinet post at the very least.
Obama's own internal investigation found no improprieties; granted, critics can write that off as being self-serving. But the impartial evidence before us, from the prosecutor and what we learned from the Blago transcripts released thus far, shows the same thing.
Despite all the evidence, however, there are those who continue to try to draw Obama and Emanuel into the Blago mess. Some write the mess will impact Obama's first days in office, the underlying premise being there was contact between Emanuel and Blago's top guy. What would be odd is if there had been no contact between the two.
Politics is dirty enough without aspersions being cast based on nothing more than the flimsiest of premises. ~ Mike McCarville
From where I sit, Obama, and Emanuel in particular, deserve credit, not criticism.
It apparently was Emanuel, after all, who told Blago's top guy there'd be no quid-pro-quo if Blago named one of those on Obama's list to his Senate seat. Partial transcripts released in the 76-page criminal complaint showed that Emanuel offered nothing more than "appreciation" to Blagojevich, much to the foul-mouthed frustration of the governor, who wanted a cabinet post at the very least.
Obama's own internal investigation found no improprieties; granted, critics can write that off as being self-serving. But the impartial evidence before us, from the prosecutor and what we learned from the Blago transcripts released thus far, shows the same thing.
Despite all the evidence, however, there are those who continue to try to draw Obama and Emanuel into the Blago mess. Some write the mess will impact Obama's first days in office, the underlying premise being there was contact between Emanuel and Blago's top guy. What would be odd is if there had been no contact between the two.
Politics is dirty enough without aspersions being cast based on nothing more than the flimsiest of premises. ~ Mike McCarville
Labels: Gadfly's Columns
posted by Mike McCarville @ 10:46 AM
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