What Should Obama Do About His Blagojevich Problem?

I did not know Obama had a "Blagojevich problem." I thought Blagojevich was singularly the one with the "Blagojevich problem." I think what Obama should do is denounce what apparently happened (which he did very quickly and in sharp terms) and then not be distracted by attempts to pull him into an issue that really doesn't involve him and focus instead on the formidable amount of work that needs to be done very quickly and at an extremely high level of quality.

While this panel is at the task of considering the issues of "leadership," perhaps they ought to consider the obligations of those who help set the agenda for public debate. A specific case history can be: What kind of leadership is evidenced when a blog about leadership assigns a problem to the President-elect that is really not his problem in the first place?

Doug Poretz
dporetz@qorvis.com
www.deathoftime.com

Blagojevich is not in the Obama Chain of command. He has no responsibility for Blago or his problem. Blago is a seperate actor inside an independent institurion. Criminality is not a Dem or GOP problem. Criminality is handled by the courts. The execuive branch handles the prosecution. When Obama becomes President his responsibilty is faithful execution of he laws. He is expected and required to hire and promote fair and competent proseuctors. Fitzgerald is in place. His job is done vis a vis Mr. Blagojevich.

What problem does Pres.-elect Obama have with RB?? From all apparent evidence so far, he kept a sufficient distance from RB in all matters--even Emmanuel did not meet with him, apparently. The main problem seems to be that some in the media and the entire remaining Republican Party WANT there to be an RB problem for Obama. Sometimes, says Occam's Razor, what is the simplest answer is the best. I begin to suspect that we are in such a situation here.

The question posed is inaccurate. The problem is not his. He has not claimed ownership of this problem, and your question puts the Blagojevich situation at his door, unjustly. As the apparent Democratic standard bearer, he still does not own this problem; but he can do his best to help find a solution, if he so inclines.

I think a good leader knows when to stay out of the fray. Of course, that by definition excludes George W. Bush.

What could Obama hope to gain from what is shaping up to be the death spiral of a once-popular politician? It's all downside. Just reading the transcripts, I'm getting the distinct impression that we're dealing with more than simply venality here -- that Blago is in fact mentally ill.

He wouldn't be the first to flame out in public. Sort of Illinois' version of Britney Spears.

Think I'm exaggerating? Read those transcripts.

Barack should negotiate with Blagojevich and say,
"I'll produce my legitimate birth certificate showing I am a natual born citizen if you resign as Governor."

Obama does not have a Blagojevich problem. The press, surprisingly aggressive since a Democrat has been elected to the White House, has an Obama problem.

The Republicans are huffing and puffing, desperately trying to connect Obama to Blago, and the press is all over it. Why is Obama supposed to prove a negative?

Nothing to see there. Just move on. Wish you, press people, had been as aggressive with Bush over the past eight years instead of rolling over like a buch of lapdogs.

The only people who seem to care about Blago is the press. Just look at the polls..not even Republican voters seem to think that this has any baring whatsoever on Obama. The word-of-mouth is that the press is being a pain in the ### about this whole insignificant affair, at a time when millions of Americans are suffering deeply and the country is faced with multiple crises..if the press would just take a look at the readers' comments in the (mainstream) blogs, we are all fed up with this nitpicking and oohhh ahhhh gotcha attempt at scandal-mongering. Two very important press conferences on critical issues to the country's future went ignored as a a result of the media's obsession with trivia that it (very wrongly) considers to be juicy material. Just lay off, will you???!!!!! Get a LIfe!!!!

What Mr. Obama should do depends upon two things: what he has done, and whether or not he is an honorable man. If, in fact, Mr. Obama is an innocent and honorable man, his course is clear: tell the truth, and the whole truth, to anyone who asks, and he should do so, especially, in a public forum in which the world can hear his voice and his unequivocal proofs of innocence. That he has not yet done so is one tacit permission to doubt if he is, in fact, an honorable or an innocent man; so, I will proceed on the presumption that he is not.

First, one must keep in mind that Gov. Blagojevich's attempt to sell Mr. Obama's senate seat was apparently not the criminal conduct for which Mr. Fitzgerald asked the court for a wiretap order, and received one. As I understand the timing of that wiretap, it pre-dates Mr. Obama's election victory, which also dates it before Mr. Obama's Senate seat was available for sale. We also don't know on what evidence of what possibly criminal misconduct Mr. Fitzgerald convinced the court to grant a wiretap order of Mr. Blagojevich's phones. Was this application suggested by the fruits of another wiretap of someone else's phone? Has the tapping of Mr. Blagojevich's phone led to other wiretaps? The press and the public that comments on it seem determined to overlook the fact that wiretaps are approved to capture the voices of more than one person, and in this case, we have no clue how many voices have been captured, saying what.

We also only know of one indictment, a very narrow one, dealing with only one crime. Many have lamented the early disclosure of Mr. Fitzgerald's investigation into the attemt to sell Mr. Obama's Senate seat, and respond as if this were the only charge against Mr. Blagojevich that was under consideration or pending. For all we really know, there may be any number of other cases against Mr. Blagojevich awaiting presentation to a grand jury, or any number of indictments already handed down by a grand jury.

All of this is relevant to Mr. Obama's future conduct because it is possible that he may figure in any one or several investigations of which we have not yet any knowledge. If Mr. Obama has anything to conceal, he can only escape the accusations against him by knowing, first, every allegation against him and the evidence that supports them. Whether these allegations may be criminal or merely embarrassing to a president-elect, Mr. Obama cannot make any comment that might later be contradicted by the evidence or testimony of future indictments or trials.

Mr. Obama will, nevertheless, be pressed to comment, and he will have no alternative but to issue some statement on these matters in any case. This demand will create the most dangerous of traps for Mr. Obama, especially if he is to find himself accused of criminal wrongdoing. Mr. Obama cannot afford to speak for himself, if anything he might say can possibly be discovered false in the future. A bold-faced lie to a US Attorney or to the public would be instantly fatal to Mr. Obama politically, at least, and highly prejudicial to his defense if the allegations upon which he lies are criminal. He must, then, speak through an intermediary, whose contradicted statements might be dismissed as his misunderstanding of the facts, of what Mr. Obama "really" said, or as off-the-cuff comments he was not authorized by Mr. Obama to make, in the first place. The liability of such a course of action is its quality as a cover-up. As bad as the Watergate scandal was, Mr. Nixon made it infinitely worse with the conspiracy to conceal his wrongdoing, a lesson neither the nation nor Mr. Obama is likely to have forgotten.

Mr. Obama will, I suspect, comment as little as possible on Mr. Blagojevich's legal woes until he, himself, shares them. Whatever Mr. Obama will say he will not say, himself, but will be communicated by a third party who, as the vulgar expression goes, Mr. Obama might throw under the bus if what is said in his name is proven to be false.

"I am not a crook," and, "I did not have sexual relations with that woman," as far separated by time as they are, still echo as if spoken only yesterday in the minds of the American people. Mr. Obama is surely mindful of this, and will proceed with as much silent caution as a favorable media will allow him to do.

And you wonder why newspaper readership is down!

Obama should tell all the Press to chill out..he will tell you when he gets ready.He is working on his time schedule not yours and no amount of guessing what may or may not have transpried,all should just wait for the facts to be released.

Barack does not have a Blago problem. Fitzgerald did everyone a big favor by flagging the governor BEFORE he sold the office, while the crime was still in the talking stage. The prosecutor may pay a price for his alacrity, but he did the right thing for the state of Illinois and for the President-Elect. Barack should just sit tight and ignore all questions that are intended merely to generate headlines.

Why is it OBAMA'S problem? What exactly hasn't been made clear that the President-elect has ALWAYS maintained a wide berth apart from Blagojevich since his early days in the Illinois State Senate? He knew a sleaze when he saw one right off. The only people who have a Blagojevich problem, besides Blagojevich, are the folks who won't accept that Barack Obama won the presidency, won it by a huge margin and won it FAIRLY. Those folks and, apparently, members of the press with too much time on their hands.

Nothing, this is not Obama's problem. If the press would do some real reporting and leave this sort of thing to the tabloids we wouldn't be discussing this non story. And here I am doing just that. Who cares what this nobody did or didn't do. The prosecutor will make the news. Spending time speculating is junk news, tabloid news. Of course Obama's camp had contacts with what's his name, so what. Can we get on with some real stories about real issues. Well, that would take real journalist led by real news people so I guess were left with junk

Rich

Blago didn't get elected twice, because his democrat buddies ignored him. Obama also didn't become a U.S. Senator without the force of all democrats behind him!!

Both men came out and supported each others campaigns with praise and cash! And mrs. Blago was their real estate agent.
Sounds cozy to me!!

What is this article’s writer going to do with his/her credibility problem.

First of all Obama has nothing to do with Blagsonovabitch.(as Jay Leno calls him) Its not his problem. He did not elect the man the people of Illinois did, first of all. Plus as far as his transparancy, the prosecutor requested that Obama and his staff not talk about it since the investigation is still on going and he doesnt want to taint it. He has enough on his plate anyway, and I agree with others that it is the news media that is making it a problem for Obama.
As for [Archaritos] comments, like so many others. I don't know where you morons get off on questioning Obamas citizenship. He was born in Hawaii 2 years AFTER it was initiated into the Union of the United States. If his citizenship is in question, so is that of many others like soldiers who marry women from other countries and have children here. Those children are automatic citizens. You reasoning would put millions of citizens in question. You are an idiot and need to go back to school.

Obama does not have a "Blago problem."

Rather than report on substance such as the bipartisan Senate Armed Services Committee report that directly connects Donald Rumsfeld, high ranking US military officers and George Bush to WAR CRIMES in Iraq and Afghanistan, the MSM is obsessed with innuendo.

Patrick Fitzgerald said on day one, THERE IS NO LINK.

So who has the problem?

Are you guys smoking crack or something? This is Obama's problem? Please explain, with facts and not some irrational thought process and conspiracy theory, how.

Reasonable and rationale people will see this for what it is - a rogue governor gone wrong, just happens to be a Democrat.

If you see more to the story than this, you should also say Hi to Hannity and tell us how the rest of the hard-right wing is doing these days in the wilderness.

Obama doesn't have a Blagojevich problem news media lemmings like you have the problem. This is similar to the fake scandal created by the media over Whitewater. Why don't you people get a life and a respectable career?

Why do you think Michele Obama's salary tripled at the Chicago hospital where she worked? Looks like the same kind of shakedown corruption to me.

Obama hasn't got a Blagojevich problem. It looks like the only contact was probably Rahm Emmanuel telling somebody on Blagojevich's team "no deal" when they tried to get Obama's people to pony up some of that spare campaign money to fund his (Blagojevich's) retirement. There's no evidence Obama or his people did anything wrong, and all the indications point the other way. I doubt even the RNC believes that there's been any significant contact between him and Blagojevich.

Look, I voted for the other guy, but Obama is going to be the next president. He needs to focus on doing his job, and he has inherited a mess so it will be a tough job. The Republican Party, the media, and the people of this country need to chill and let him do it.

Yawn. Obama has a Blagojevich problem? Would you mind telling us about it? I thought he came out pretty well when Blagojevich was quoted saying Obama was only willing to give him appreciation. So what do you know that no one else knows? Oh, I get it! They both come from Chicago, so that makes Obama somehow responsible for Blagojevich. By that logic, you and Bush both call Washington D.C. home. It's an outrage you've both been sitting on your lazy butts for the past eight years while Bush has laid waste to this country. Shameful! You should both be ashamed of yourselves. If you're going to insist on being a lemming journalist, you're going to take this country right over the cliff.

Define for me what the "problem" is before asking me what Obama should do.
There is ZERO - 0 - evidence that Obama had ANYTHING to do with what Blasonofabitch did. I think the idea that he would try and sell his sneate seat after winning the Presidency to be patently rediculous.
Obama should do exactly what he's doing - getting his administration ready to face the unbelievable mess the republicans have left.

I am more interested in that fact that Obama is a member of the Council of Foreign Relations (just like Bush Sr. and Jr.,both Clintons, John Mc Cain,John Edwards, John Kerry,etc........) I just don't trust Obama....he is another insider groomed as an outsider for change like President Carter ...yes.....another Council of Foreign Relations guy (think central banks,big oil,Rockefeller ,etc)

The press will not leave this alone as lone as they think a possible connection between Obama and Blagojevich will make news. Obama could say "There is no connection" until he is blue in the face but the press will not stop hounding him for another answer.

In this case, leadership requires a short term and long term fix. The issue is that an ethically challenged individual was able to achieve high office. How did this person get there?

On the one hand, he was not properly "vetted" by the party. All too often, individuals who run for office are able to gain the party's support due more to influence and fund raising capabilities than strength of character. As the leader of the party, Obama should attempt to steer party politics away from such individuals and push for better candidates who have been scrutinized for such flaws. One element of this should be to find a way to begin to seriously limit the obscene amount of money that all too often drives the campaigns.

The longer term issue has to do with reinvigorating the willingness of people to exercise their citizenship rights through voting, informing themselves of the issues and participating in government. Nationwide, Obama must struggle with the vast cynicism regarding government that has pervaded our lives in the post-Vietnam era. Only 40% of the Illinois electorate participated in the 2006 election that brought Blag to office. Had more people been engaged, then maybe a better person would have stepped forward or more scrutiny would have been put to his activities during the primaries.

Indifference has for too long held the field of politics. Obama must be a real leader and attempt to motivate the electorate..