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In the 1960's I had a lady friend who loved Robert Redford. So, naturally, I got dragged to all of Redford's movies. I saw "The Candidate" several times. In that film, Mr. McKay (Redford), a "community organizer" like Barack Obama, hatches a slogan, "McKay, The Better Way" to run for office. Ironically, Barack "Barry" Obama has now chosen "The Better Way" as his mantra through February 10th. Well. Obama's slogan has about as much substance as the celluloid version popularized by Robert Redford. Obama is entirely a creation of wealthy contributors and powerful, liberal media interests. So what he does...

The last time I wrote about Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, I described her as "ever-smiling." Scratch that. The Dem congresswoman from Ohio and Hillary co-chair just snapped at MSNBC's Norah O'Donnell during a discussion of who is responsible for circulating the story about Rezko trial: the media or the Clinton campaign. The conversation was proceeding swimmingly until Norah broached the Rezko matter. And then . . . NORAH O'DONNELL: What about, congresswoman, that many--and Barack Obama--essentially charged today that the reason he failed to win in Texas, Ohio and Rhode Island last night is because Hillary Clinton went negative on...

Ooh! Ooh! The very sound of the name Barack (skip middle) Obama sends such a tingle up my leg! Our beloved Obamassiah can do no wrong. He would never lie about a campaign aide assuring the Canadians that Barack didn't really mean what he said about NAFTA nor would the Obamassiah get involved in a sleazy land deal with Tony Rezko. Unfortunately, the DUmmies are now having to face such harsh reality as you can see in this THREAD titled, "Finally, Obama faces tough questions from the press. Reacts with paranoia, walks out." Yes, suddenly there are clouds on...

SAN ANTONIO It took many months and the mockery of "Saturday Night Live" to make it happen, but the lumbering beast that is the press corps finally roused itself from its slumber Monday and greeted Barack Obama with a menacing growl. The day before primaries in Ohio and Texas that could effectively seal the Democratic presidential nomination for him, a smiling Obama strode out to a news conference at a veterans facility here. But the grin was quickly replaced by the surprised look of a man bitten by his own dog. Reporters from the Associated Press and Reuters went after...

His name might sound familiar. But who is Tony Rezko, and what's his connection to Barack Obama?This week federal prosecutors in Chicago are set to begin laying out evidence in a corruption case against Antoin (Tony) Rezko, a prominent real-estate developer and power broker. Rezko is charged with extorting millions in kickbacks from investment firms trying to win business from a teachers' pension fund. (Rezko pleaded not guilty.) The alleged crimes probably wouldn't have gotten much attention outside the clannish world of Chicago politics, except for one detail: Rezko is an old friend and onetime financial backer of Barack Obama....

The Obama Files by John Batchelor What you need to measure about Barack Obama, a likely potent adversary for the presidency, is that while he is a politically junior and consciously liberal-voting member of the U.S. Senate, he is actually a veteran Chicago politician with a fertile record of surprising associations in controversial events well apart from his work in legislatures. Some few of these associations from his years in Chicago law work and urban development, and from his career in the Springfield, Illinois senate, speak to the quality of his judgment and to the strength of his character. Four...

An undeclared $3.5 million payment from a corrupt Iraqi-British businessman has landed Barack Obama's former fundraiser behind bars. The payment, disclosed in court papers, is the first time that Obama's long-serving bagman Antoin "Tony" Rezko, a Syrian immigrant to the United States, has been linked to Nadhmi Auchi, the Iraqi-born billionaire who is one of Britain's richest men. The relationship is a potential embarrassment for Obama, who has made his opposition to the Iraq war a central plank of his campaign. Court papers describe Mr. Rezko as a close friend of Mr. Auchi. The two are involved in a large...

For the first time, Democratic White House hopeful Barack Obama has surfaced in the federal corrupton case against his longtime campaign fund-raiser, Tony Rezko, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned. The Illinois senator isn’t accused of any wrongdoing. And there’s no evidence Obama knew contributions to his 2004 U.S. Senate campaign came from schemes Rezko is accused of orchestrating. The allegations against Rezko that involve Obama are contained in one paragraph of a 78-page document filed last month in which prosecutors outline their corruption and fraud case against Rezko, who was also a key money man for Gov. Blagojevich and other...

During his 12 years in politics, Sen. Barack Obama has received nearly three times more campaign cash from indicted businessman Tony Rezko and his associates than he has publicly acknowledged, the Chicago Sun-Times has found. Obama has collected at least $168,308 from Rezko and his circle. Obama also has taken in an unknown amount of money from people who attended fund-raising events hosted by Rezko since the mid-1990s. But seven months ago, Obama told the Sun-Times his "best estimate" was that Rezko raised "between $50,000 and $60,000" during Obama's political career. Obama, who wants to be the nation's next president,...

U.S. Sen. Barack Obama expressed regret late Friday for his 2005 land purchase from now-indicted political fundraiser Antoin “Tony” Rezko in a deal that enlarged the senator’s yard. “I consider this a mistake on my part and I regret it,” Obama told the Chicago Sun-Times in an exclusive and revealing question-and-answer exchange about the transaction. In June 2005, Obama and Rezko purchased adjoining parcels in Kenwood. The state’s junior senator paid $1.65 million for a Georgian revival mansion, while Rezko paid $625,000 for the adjacent, undeveloped lot. Both closed on their properties on the same day. Last January, aiming to...