Obama’s rapid rise from Chicago politics to the national stage
While The New Yorker’s cartoon depiction of Barack and Michelle Obama as radical terrorists is making lots of news, the interesting article inside the magazine on his rise in politics seems to be getting little attention. But this is one of the best articles I’ve read about Obama, and all voters should be familiar with its content.
The theme of the 18 page article by Ryan Lizza entitled, “Making It: How Chicago Shaped Obama“, is that Obama is a very practical politician not afraid to do what it takes to win. Lizza recounts the story of Obama using technicalities to bump his primary opponents off the ballot in his race for the Illinois Senate. Lizza writes, “he was able to remove not just Palmer’s name from the ballot but the name of every other opponent as well.” This doesn’t sound like “a new style of politics” but like the rough and tumble Chicago politics that Obama was engaged in for the last few years.
The article also provides further evidence of the relationship between Obama and Tony Rezko, who raised 10% of Obama’s funds for his first campaign. Lizza notes that Rezko and Obama dined together often and even vacationed together. This is in stark contrast to Obama’s assertion that he was not closely linked with the corrupt real estate developer.
Then there is the story about Obama’s near fight with another state senator on the floor. The senator involved says that Obama told him “I’m going to kick your ass!” Again, this doesn’t really seem like the politics of “change” or “hope.”
The best quote from the entire piece is the following:
“Perhaps the greatest misconception about Barack Obama is that he is some sort of anti-establishment revolutionary. Rather, every stage of his political career has been marked by an eagerness to accommodate himself to existing institutions rather than tear them down or replace them.”
The open question is whether independent voters will see Obama for what he is: just another power-seeking politician, rather than the political messiah that some of his younger, more idealistic supporters think he is. We may have an answer to this question on November 4th.