Tag Archives: Los Angeles Times

More controversy surrounding the past of Barack Obama has surfaced.
The Los Angeles Times, in an article dated April 27, 2008 reveals
that Obama received a $8,000 a month retainer from Robert Blackwell
for his technology firm, Electronic Knowledge Interchange,
for a total of $112,000. The following exerpts are from the LA times
article:

“A few months after receiving his final payment from EKI, Obama sent a request on state Senate letterhead urging Illinois officials to provide a $50,000 tourism promotion grant to another Blackwell company, Killerspin.”

“With support from Obama, other state officials and an Obama aide who went to work part time for Killerspin, the company eventually obtained $320,000 in state grants between 2002 and 2004 to subsidize its tournaments.”

“But Obama portrays himself as a lawmaker dedicated to transparency and sensitive to even the appearance of a conflict of interest.”

“Killerspin’s owner, Blackwell, was a political supporter and friend as well. Both men lived on Chicago’s South Side. Blackwell, a savvy and successful entrepreneur, was one of the first donors to Obama’s early campaigns, including the state senator’s failed bid for a congressional seat in 2000. In the presidential race he is credited on Obama’s website with committing to raise $100,000 to $200,000 for Obama’s campaign.”

“In his book “The Audacity of Hope,” Obama tells how his finances had deteriorated to such a point that his credit card was initially rejected when he tried to rent a car at the 2000 Democratic convention in Los Angeles. He said he had originally planned to dedicate that summer “to catching up on work at the law practice that I’d left unattended during the campaign (a neglect that had left me more or less broke).”
Six months later Blackwell hired Obama to serve as general counsel for his tech company, EKI, which had been launched a few years earlier.”
If this activity was considered ethical under the law, it certainly
is suspect for a candidate trying to appear squeaky clean and
touting reform. Read the rest of the article here:

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-killerspin27apr27,0,6789688.story