It's not as if Obama is in the same league as Duke Cunningham, but it doesn't really look good. Chicago real estate connecto Tony Rezko gave Obama some really timely help in buying a fancy, very nice South Chicago home. Obama got himself a deal and Rezko helped out by buying the lot next door, which Obama didn't want, but was part of the sale. This allowed Obama to get the property for about $300K less than it was listed for.
And, oh, Tony Rezko is Syrian. And he was indicted by Patrick Fitzgerald (to quote Firedoglake commenters, "Fitz!!!!!!!!!!!!!") on extortion and fraud charges, which include shakedown allegations involving an Illinois pension fund.
Here's Turkana with more:
Rezko, a Syrian-born U.S. citizen who owned a real estate development business and a group of fast-food franchises, has spent his career showering Illinois officials with campaign money. He was a top fundraiser for Democratic Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
His connection to Obama began when the future senator got national attention as the first black president of the Harvard Law Review. Rezko was impressed by what he read and offered Obama a job to work in his real estate development company. Obama turned him down, but it was the beginning of a political friendship, with Rezko being one of the first to donate big bucks to Obama's senate campaign in 1996.
In October of 2006 it was revealed that Rezko helped Obama purchase a home for hundreds of thousands of dollars below the market value, while Rezko bought the lot next door. Illinois residents remember well Obama saying he didn't recall the conversations with Rezko, then remembered after Chicago papers started examining the deal, then admitted it was a "bone-headed mistake" on ABC.
And Brian Ross of ABC has more
This isn't to say that this is anything worse than a cattle futures trader making $100K for Hillary by trading her money.
But it smacks of the cozy relationship between people who help pay the bills for politicians in return for connections and amorphous favors, even though there's no evidence Obama actually did any favors. This is akin to (but not as bad as) Governor Mike Huckabee's wish list and domestic support paid for by wealthy Arkansans.
People are sick of this shit, no matter which party they belong to.
Obama himself calls this a bone-headed mistake. That's an understatement.
Given what the Republicans did to the Clintons over Whitewater (where they found nothing after years), it's at least legitimate to ask what they might do with this story.
Nah, the Republicans won't dare use something like this against Obama. And the media would never report it if they did.