Cellini indictment and trial coverage, Republican Bill Cellini not being scrutinized, Chicago Tribune article disappears, Protecting Obama
“Why was Obama in constant contact with Tony Rezko in 2004 when Rezko was conspiring with William Cellini to use TRS, Teacher Retirement Fund, assets for political gain and personal enrichment?”…Citizen Wells
“I believe I’m more pristine on Rezko than him.”…Rod Blagojevich
“Connections could touch every somebody”
“Illinois is Six Degrees of Bill Cellini.”…John Kass, Chicago Tribune
When was the last time that a Republican, with a history of shady deals, corruption figure connections, tied to Rezko, Blagojevich, et al, indicted for corruption involving a teacher retirement fund and scheduled for trial soon, was not being scrutinized, examined under a microscope and found guilty in the press?
Can you imagine such a scenario?
We have one now in the indictment and upcoming trial of William Cellini.
This is being very much underreported.
Why?
Here is a pretty good summary of Cellini’s background from The Beachwood Reporter October 31, 2008.
“”William Cellini has spent four decades as Illinois’ ultimate insider, cozying up to Republicans and Democrats alike as he wielded power and influence while trying to stay out of the spotlight,” the Tribune reports.
“But the spotlight found Cellini on Thursday when a federal grand jury indicted the millionaire Springfield businessman and pulled him into the center of the ongoing probe of corruption in the administration of Gov. Rod Blagojevich.”
Cellini, in fact, is the most classic embodiment of the concept of the Combine – the notion that a group of insiders both Democrat and Republican control the spoils of running state government, regardless of which party is actually, nominally, in power.
“A onetime high school teacher, Cellini latched on to politics early, was elected Springfield’s commissioner of streets and public improvements and, by age 35, became transportation czar in Gov. Richard Ogilvie’s Cabinet. After officially leaving state government, he became an influential fundraiser and powerful lobbyist who headed up the Illinois Asphalt Pavement Association,” the Tribune notes.
“His power grew even more during Gov. James Thompson’s 14-year reign when he won state contracts, landed a riverboat casino license in Alton and put together a sweetheart hotel deal that turned into a lemon for taxpayers.
“Under Gov. Jim Edgar, Cellini’s sister, Janis, served as patronage chief, a coveted position overseeing personnel issues in a sprawling government that runs on friends and political favors.
“When George Ryan became governor, Cellini kept a grip on state government through longtime loyalists he spent years placing in sensitive positions.”
When the Democrats finally took the governorship, it didn’t matter, as we now see.
“When we’re in, we’re in,” he once said, as recalled by the Sun-Times today. “And when you’re in, we’re in. We’re always in.”
And who is “we’?
“His business partners are equally powerful men, including Victor Cacciatore, president of Lakeside Bank; Earl Deutsch, a longtime Democratic attorney who, with Cellini, created Commonwealth Realty Advisors, which invests about $1 billion in state pension funds; Michael Marchese, president of Harlem Irving Companies, and Richard Stein, senior managing director of Mesirow Financial’s real estate division.”
And that gang has close ties to Michael Madigan, Ed Burke, and, of course, Richard M. Daley.”
“”Cellini has always been the guy behind the guy,” John Kass writes today.
“The suits making speeches on TV aren’t real politics. They’re just the suits making speeches. It is the men on the inside who matter, flying below the radar to swoop down to the public trough and feed without much notice.””
Read more:
http://www.beachwoodreporter.com/2008/10/
I mentioned that the William Cellini trial has been underreported. Well, it is worse than that. When Cellini’s trial date was set on December 2, 2010, it was reported at Citizen Wells on December 10, 2010.
From the Chicago Tribune December 2, 2010.
“A date has finally been set for the long-delayed trial of a
Springfield businessman charged with illegally plotting to raise
campaign funds for former Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
At a status hearing Thursday, a federal judge in Chicago scheduled
William Cellini‘s trial for Aug. 22.
Cellini is a longtime fundraiser and behind-the-scenes power broker in
Illinois politics.”
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/sns-ap-il–cellinitrial,0,6721744.story
Citizen Wells link:
I noticed some time later that the Chicago Tribune article was no longer there. I then searched within the Tribune site and the internet. The article was gone. However, another Chicago site still has the story up.
From Chicago Breaking News December 2, 2010.
“A federal judge today set trial for next summer for William Cellini, a
largely forgotten co-defendant of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
The Springfield powerbroker is charged with extorting a Hollywood
producer with Chicago connections to make a campaign donation to
Blagojevich in return for business with a state pension investment
board.
At a routine status hearing for Blagojevich today, U.S. District Judge
James Zagel set Aug. 22 for Cellini’s trial.
Zagel previously allowed Cellini to be tried separately from
Blagojevich, who himself is scheduled to be retried on April 20 after
a jury deadlocked last summer on most of the charges against the
former governor.”
http://archive.chicagobreakingnews.com/2010/12/trial-set-for-blago-co-defendant.html
Perhaps this means nothing.
But where is the press? Why are the attack dogs not all over Cellini?
Cellini’s scheming with Rezko in 2003, 2004 and 2005 hits a little too close to Obama.
Who will be called as a witness at the Cellini trial?
Austan Goolsbee Obama chief economic adviser leaving, Citizen Wells commenters on small business problems, Obama economic failures
Austan Goolsbee Obama chief economic adviser leaving, Citizen Wells commenters on small business problems, Obama economic failures
“the Times of the nineteenth of December had published the official forecasts of the output of various classes of consumption goods in the fourth quarter of 1983, which was also the sixth quarter of the Ninth Three-Year Plan. Today’s issue contained a statement of the actual output, from which it appeared that the forecasts were in every instance grossly wrong. Winston’s job was to rectify the original figures by making them agree with the later ones.”…George Orwell, “1984″
“Another liberal economic nut ‘quits’ his job to go back to teaching, because the economy isn’t better. This is nothing more than a manager firing his advisors because he made a horrible decision, based upon his beliefs and their recommendations. Sadly, it’s not like these ‘economic advisors’ get held accountable for poor decision making process and economic policies. No, they get to go back to their ‘teaching jobs’ so they can tell students how great they are and how it was all somebody else’s fault.”…commenter pete
“It’s easy to see why some businesses hire undocumented workers to avoid the tax burden. Or worse yet they just pick up stakes and move out of the country.
And now obamacare will tax us more? Our government’s over taxation and interference has caused small businesses to be reluctant to hire more employees. Under the Obama regime we’ll see businesses leaving the country droves. It is no wonder that our country’s economy is on a downward spiral”….commenter Jonah
Reported on Citizen Wells this morning.
“Most of the key economic indicators have worsened recently, the unemployment rate is back over 9 percent and there is increasing mention of the spectre of a depression.
From the Chicago Tribune June 6, 2011.
“Top Obama economic adviser, Austan Goolsbee, will quit to return to University of Chicago”
“Austan Goolsbee, President Barack Obama’s chief economic adviser, is leaving the administration and returning to the University of Chicago Booth School of Business to teach.
The announcement from the White House late Monday comes at a time when the U.S. unemployment rate is back above 9 percent, speculation is growing that the nation may be at risk of dipping back into a recession and amid intense political debate over whether to extend the nation’s debt ceiling,
Goolsbee began advising Obama before his election as president and has become the administration’s chief public spokesman on the economy. He has headed the White House Council of Economic Advisers for the past nine months. On ABC’s “This Week” program Sunday, Goolsbee emphasized that the administration had made progress on employment since the depths of the Great Recession and said “don’t make too much of any one jobs report.”
May’s unemployment rate, released last week, climbed to 9.1 percent. The stock market has been sliding recently on concerns about a slowing economy in the U.S. and globally.
Obama said in a statement, “Since I first ran for the U.S. Senate, Austan has been a close friend and one of my most trusted advisers. Over the past several years, he has helped steer our country out of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.”””
The following comments placed on that article are worthy of publishing:
Commenter pete:
CW,
Do you think that anyone has seen through the game. Another liberal economic nut ‘quits’ his job to go back to teaching, because the economy isn’t better. This is nothing more than a manager firing his advisors because he made a horrible decision, based upon his beliefs and their recommendations. Sadly, it’s not like these ‘economic advisors’ get held accountable for poor decision making process and economic policies. No, they get to go back to their ‘teaching jobs’ so they can tell students how great they are and how it was all somebody else’s fault.
From a small business perspective the problems are easy to see. Foremost, you have a bunch of idiots making the hiring of new employees and economic growth very risky. Obamacare, new regulations, unable to get loans and credit, inflation of goods costs, and bear marketplace all conspire to strike fear into employers. Second, customers are AFRAID. About 1/3 of americans see the Constitution (and rule of law) evaporating before their eyes for the first time in history, and they fear for the future. About 1/3 of Customers are oblivious to the politics, but have no jobs or real income and are underwater on their houses. About 1/3 are starting to believe that the government could default on SS and Medicare/Caid, as well as other entitlements which they are dependent upon. These factors lead to a loss of Consumer Confidence, and fewer and fewer exchanges, jobs, and tax revenue. By the way, even IF you succeed now, and make more than 250k in a year, create jobs, and help your local community, you will be saddled with 71% income tax next year. REALLY! 71%, you might as well make less and smell the roses, send some of your employees home.
What I’m trying to say, while out in the trenches of the small business world, is that Jimmy Carter II on Steroids, Barack Obama (or whatever his/her name is) is bad for small business. Small Business is the engine that runs the American Economy, and it hurting. The government bailouts…..none was targeted to growth of small business or small industry. The new regs and obamacare attack all industry , but are especially hard for small business to cope with because of limited resources.
Ronald Reagan understood america and small business contribution. His economics weren’t trickle down as much as they were designed to help the middle class businessman, the Job creator, to succeed. Obama economics are pumping trillions to the Bankers and the GM/GE of the world, which is truly a trickle down economics. Worse yet, that money just ends up overseas in the ‘global economy’ with job creation elsewhere.
Obama’s economics have struck at the heart of America by removing MIDDLE CLASS JOBS and therefore, the middle class. The liberals, whom pride themselves supposedly helping the poor and middle class, are hypocrites, as their policies actually make it worse for these people by depriving them of needed small business jobs and manufacturing. While people will start to get used to the ‘new economy’ of 8-12% unemployement, the government is going to run out of ‘other peoples money’ soon, and the other shoe is going to drop.
What I written above I believe with my very core, and since it is critical of Obama and his Fascist/Elitist policies, I suppose that makes me a racist. I have sensed an increase in attacks from the left wing nuts as the reality falls upon them that the ‘annointed one’ and his cronies are a lot of hot air and not of true real life tested ideas. Just like socialism I might add, lots of ‘utopia promised’ followed by lots of misery and failure.
Keyensian ecomomics doesn’t work when you don’t have a base of production and small business. Keyensian economics doesn’t work when the Government is not a moderator, but becomes the unchecked new predator (competing for business resources) in a delicate system of customer and business. The ‘brilliant’ economists that have ‘quit’ the Obama economic team obviously not as smart as they thought they were….perhaps we should call Obama’s Economics the ‘Audacity of Arrogance with Ignorance implemented with Inexperience’.
Sorry, done ranting for the morning, I gotta go back to work to try to keep my employees with jobs and pay for other peoples mortages.
Pete”
Commenter Jonah:
“Pete,
Our family has owned a business for almost 40 years. I started paying the bills for the business about 7 years ago and I was alarmed to learn the cost to run a business.
OUR SMALL BUSINESSES PAYS:
FEDERAL INCOME TAX
STATE INCOME TAX
FEDERAL UNEMPLOYMENT TAX
STATE UNEMPLOYMENT TAX
7% SOCIAL SECURITY TAX FOR EMPLOYEES
(this is in addition to the 7% the employee gives the government)
PROPERTY TAX
PERSONAL PROPERTY TAX
UTILITY TAXES ON GAS, ELECTRIC, AND PHONE
GASOLINE TAX
SALES TAX TO THE STATE FOR EVERYTHING WE SELL
APROXIMATELY 7% SALES TAX ON EVERYTHING WE BUY
PLUS WE PAY
MEDICAL INSURANCE
AUTO INSURANCE
PROPERTY INSURANCE
LIABILITY INSURANCE
WORKMAN’S COMP
VARIOUS LICENSES AND PERMITS
I’m sure I’ve forgotten a few things.
THE GOVERNMENT GETS MORE OF OUR MONEY THAN WE DO!
It’s easy to see why some businesses hire undocumented workers to avoid the tax burden. Or worse yet they just pick up stakes and move out of the country.
And now obamacare will tax us more? Our government’s over taxation and interference has caused small businesses to be reluctant to hire more employees. Under the Obama regime we’ll see businesses leaving the country droves. It is no wonder that our country’s economy is on a downward spiral.”
42 Comments
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Tagged Austan Goolsbee Obama chief economic adviser leaving, Citizen Wells commenters on small business problems, Obama economic failures