Hardball With Clean Hands

“If they bring a knife, we bring a gun.”  “I may be skinny, but I’m tough.”

Barack Obama has never made any bones about the fact that he is a product of the rough and tumble “Chicago Way.”  And, while many have seen evidence of that fact and commented on it, most mischaracterize Obama’s particular, and peculiar, adaptation of the old school tactics he’s picked up along the way.  Far from being above the muck and mire being raked and wallowed in by most Windy City blowhards, Obama relishes in his ability to play dirty and come up clean.

In the primaries, he gamed the caucuses, always within “da rules,” he pushed the envelope like a boxer who hits his opponent over the head with a folding chair and then demands that the referee show him where it says in the rule book that such a thing is not allowed.  Since no one ever entertained the thought that a boxer would do such a thing, chances are, there is no rule and the match would go to the chair wielder.  While boxing purists would forever decry such a manipulation of the dignity of the game, for the chair bopper, a win’s a win.  For his opponent, a trip to the hospital and the enduring humiliation of not having foreseen the possibility of a chair meeting his skull that would be heaped upon him by those disappointed purists looking for someone to blame, would likely be enough to end his career.  This is the way Obama does business.

Those of us familiar with Obama’s early “victories” and the tactics used to achieve them, are well aware of his passive/aggressive, frat boy, tech geek approach to politics.  Having opponents disqualified on technicalities, leaking personally embarrassing information, unfairly characterizing opponents as being unfair and then lying about it, exploiting potentially damaging situations to his advantage by throwing former colleagues and confidantes under the bus; these are the ways Obama.  And that’s how he got Rod Blagojevich out of his way.

Like most big cities, in many ways, Chicago operates like a small town.  Considering the fact that the Obama Transition team offices in the John C. Kluczynski Federal Office Building, 230 South Dearborn St., Suite 3900 (39th floor) are located in the same plaza as the U. S. attorney’s in the Everett McKinley Dirksen Federal Courthouse, 219 South Dearborn, it’s not too far-fetched to think that gossip might swirl.  Besides, the “news” that Blagojevich was “under investigation” was common knowledge, since just about every article mentioning the man in the last three years included the phrase.  It wouldn’t be much of a stretch to assume that Camp O, along with everybody else in Chicago remotely “in the know,” might have heard rumors of a wiretap being issued against Blago.  The governor himself seemed very aware of the fact, even in taped conversations.

On Nov. 3, Blago began to make plans for utilizing the power he believed he would soon wield with Obama’s election and subsequent need to vacate his Senate seat.  On Nov. 5, the two men met to discuss the situation.  From all indications, Obama made his preference for Valerie Jarrett known, and in true Don Corleone style, indicated he would “appreciate” it.  Clueless Blago did not fully “appreciate” the implications of the offer, and most likely, made it known that “appreciation” was not enough.  It is also likely that “this was the moment” Obama decided to take him down.

On Nov. 10 – 12, Blago had discussions about what he wanted; in return for appointing Jarrett, Blago wanted an SEIU “Change to Win” position as National Director.  On the 12th, Jarrett removed herself rom contention, which caught Blago off-guard:

Still, Jarrett’s announcement came as a surprise to sources close to Blagojevich, who said that representatives for Obama had floated her name on a regular basis.

On Nov. 13, Obama announced he was resigning his Senate seat, making the “juicy plum” Blago held even “juicier.”  It also left Blgo on his own, twisting in the wind, digging his own grave.  Well aware of the workings of the “Chicago Way” and Blago’s greed, Obama had to know how Blagojevich would react.  He also knew that without cover, Blago would soon neutralize himself.  After all, if Blago had taken Obie up on his offer, nothing would have happened, Blago would simply still be “under investigation,” and none would be the wiser.  However, once Obama is no longer “in the picture” and the seat is “up for grabs” to the highest bidder, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that Blago’s self-interests would become paramount and the force of nature that is Patrick Fitzgerald would naturally take it’s course from that point on.

Thus, Obama could sit back and let things develop predictably, all to his advantage, without lifting a finger.  There was no need for Rahm Emanuel to “drop a dime” on anybody.  And if, as an Obama emissary, he had done such a thing, there would be no need for denials of any sort, Obama would come out smelling like a rose as the “reformer” he claims to be.  The fact that he and Axelrod back off such claims is more telling than anything else; that simply was not ever their motivation.  Getting rid of Blagojevich and clearing the way for Obama’s real choice was the plan.

Hardball with clean hands.  The Chicago Way – Obama-Style.