Roland Burris: Not a Virgin in A Chicago Whorehouse
Friday, January 09, 2009 8:43:03 AM · 46 of 46
maggief to maggief
(no link)
WOOD PROPOSAL WOULD HAVE SHARPLY CUT DONATIONS
Belleville News-Democrat, The (IL) - Friday, March 8, 2002
Author: Associated Press
EXCERPT
On the Democratic side, former Attorney General Roland Burris would have been hit hardest. Nearly all of the $1.2 million he raised came from two companies controlled by Chicago-area broadcasting tycoon Joseph Stroud . Blagojevich ‘s $60,000 donation from A. Finkl & Sons Co. and Paul Vallas’ $50,000 donation from California real estate developer Angelo Tsakopoulos would have been barred.
..
(no link)
Where all that campaign cash comes from Democrats rely on - family and friends to fill their coffers
Daily Herald - Saturday, February 9, 2002
Author: John Patterson Daily Herald State Government Editor
(snip)
But Mell’s influence on Blagojevich ‘s political success can be counted in terms of dollars. The Illinois Campaign for Political Reform recently compiled the top 10 donors to Blagojevich ‘s political career. His father-in-law ranks third, having donated $118,166 to Blagojevich ‘s campaigns since 1992.
But the single biggest donor to Blagojevich ‘s career is the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which has pumped $900,000 into Blagojevich ‘s campaign since July 1. But while that campaign committee may be the biggest contributor, Blagojevich really has netted only $268,000 from it after he sent it $632,000.
That exchange was done because federal law limits how much individuals and groups can donate to federal candidates. For instance, an individual cannot donate more than $1,000 per election. Illinois law has no restrictions.
So Blagojevich , currently a member of Congress, sent $632,000 in hard-to-raise federal funds to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. That money can be used to help fund Democratic candidates for Congress throughout the nation.
In return, the Democratic committee gave Blagojevich ‘s governor’s fund back the $632,000 plus another $268,000 for a total contribution on paper of $900,000. None of those funds are subject to the strict federal campaign contribution limits.
The financial exchange between committees also means there is no way to track the initial source of a significant portion of Blagojevich ‘s campaign contributions.
“You can think of it as a currency exchange,” said Kent Redfield, a political science professor at the University of Illinois’ Springfield campus who tracks campaign spending in Illinois.
(snip)
So this year, Burris has financed his campaign almost entirely on the back of one donor - Joseph Stroud . Stroud runs Jovan Broadcasting Corp., which owns WJYS-TV, the only African American- owned television station in the Chicago area.
Stroud has donated more than $1 million to Burris’ latest campaign for governor, accounting for nearly 92 percent of all the money Burris’ campaign received during the last six months of 2001.
Despite relying so heavily on Stroud , Burris said he is not beholden to anyone.
“Like I tell everybody else, you can give me $1 or $1 million, what I’ll guarantee you is good government,” Burris said.
(snip)
..
Partial link: http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-1427357.html
Quiet donor gives Burris $1 million
Chicago Sun-Times - Sunday, February 3, 2002
Author: Scott Fornek
Joseph Stroud is said to be a quiet guy who doesn’t like the limelight.
That was certainly true Friday, when Stroud —head of the only black-owned television station in the Chicago area and president of a telecommunications firm—did not return phone calls about the support his firms have given to Democratic gubernatorial candidate Roland Burris—support worth more than $1 million.
It is believed to be the largest contribution from an outside source in Illinois political history.
Stroud is so publicity shy that Burris’ campaign initially refused to provide reporters with any additional information about an $800,000 loan from Telephone USA Investments Inc. that showed up on the campaign disclosure report Burris filed Thursday. An aide would only call it “the corporate identity of a supporter who ... prefers to remain anonymous.”
Burris confirmed Friday it was Stroud he went to for help but insisted he was not trying to be mysterious about the source of the money.
“It wouldn’t do us any good to do that, knowing you all,” Burris said. “Trying to hide something of that magnitude? That is like trying to put an elephant in a pup tent.”
But Burris refused to say much else, calling the money corporate contributions from “two companies that believe in good government.”
(snip)
http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2008/aug/15/travel/chi-kass-15-aug15
More on “Jimmy DeLeo (D-How You Doin?) and his sidekick, convicted stool pigeon Mark “Jimmy’s Weakest Link” Richmond.”
..
(no link)
Deerfield billboard summit finds some at loss for words
Chicago Tribune (IL) - Thursday, May 15, 2008
Author: John Kass
State Sen. James DeLeo (D-How You Dooin?) is one fascinating Illinois politician.
Who else would take a convicted felon to a business meeting with a suburban mayor to talk about all the money that could be made in the billboard business on the sides of the Illinois tollways?
And who would spend $62,000 on letter openers and other promotional gifts from that same felon, and drop more than $1,000 in gifts to the felon’s family, though the guy doesn’t live in DeLeo ‘s district?
But first, remember that DeLeo has fun. There’s too little of that in Illinois these days, what with the FBI poking around, putting Outfit bosses in prison, trying to figure out how Rush Street nightclubs got occupancy permits and who may have engineered that bottle service bill to help the nightclubs separate fools from their cash, and who gambles where and how and with whom, and so on.
Through all this, DeLeo perseveres, cool, leasing flashy luxury cars from Bentleys to Mercedes.
He wears fine gold watches. He’s got a piece of Tavern on Rush that he forgot to list on his state economic disclosure statement. He’s bought real estate from Outfit widow Annie Spilotro after her husband Michael was murdered. And he’s on record with the Sun-Times saying there is no such thing as the Chicago Outfit.
Years ago, Jimmy’s freezer was found to contain $35,000 wrapped in white butcher paper, when he was just starting out in politics as a young bailiff in traffic court, and others stood up boldly to testify it wasn’t DeLeo ‘s frozen cash at all. So these days, he pays by check and has an interesting friend:
(snip)
Were they business partners, trying to make a deal?
“John, I really did not know,” Harris said. “I didn’t know if they shared a business relationship. They sure understood the billboard business, though. And they wanted to help me in any way. We couldn’t do business.”
Richmond told me that he and DeLeo were not involved in any business relationship, billboards or any other, in Deerfield, Rosemont, Melrose Park, you name it. Richmond said DeLeo spent the $62,000 with his Axiz Group on promotional items for fundraisers.
And, Richmond said, I’m making too big of a deal about his friendships with DeLeo and White and their dice games in the Aruba casino linked to the Chicago Outfit.
“You’re wrong about the craps,” Richmond said. “I play blackjack, and I believe Mr. White , he plays blackjack.”
I stand corrected.