Sen. Obama apparently gave a shout out to Dodge in his speech in front of the National Education Association in Philadelphia yesterday -- while at nearly the same time calling teachers out for negative attitudes towards kids. Check it out:
"Over the last few years, I’ve been traveling to different schools and meeting with all kinds of educators to hear about what’s working, what’s not, what makes the difference when it comes to educating children today. I’ve gained a lot of valuable insight from these visits, but one I’ll always remember is my trip to Dodge Elementary School in my hometown of Chicago," according to his prepared remarks (Remarks of Senator Obama at NEA). "I was talking to one of the young teachers there about the challenges they faced, and she mentioned what she called the “These Kids Syndrome” - the willingness of society to find a million excuses for why “these kids” can’t learn. It’s the idea that “these kids come from tough backgrounds” or that “these kids are too far behind.” And after awhile, “these kids” become somebody else’s problem.Then she said to me, “When I hear that term, it drives me nuts. They’re not ‘these kids.’ They’re our kids."
Obama and Sen. Clinton and everyone else was there to tell the crowds mostly what they wanted to hear, though not entirely when it comes to charters and merit pay (Vying to be teachers' pet).
My read on that is that it is not slight on teachers, but rather society (which, admittedly, may include some teachers), but generally a society who hold low expectations for students. He seemed to be saying that the young teacher held high expectations for her students. Maybe she was a TFA teacher...
Posted by: Educator | July 06, 2007 at 10:25 AM
I had same impression as Educator. Not a slam on teachers at all. A slam on people - all people - who condemn other peoples children to failure by talking about them as other.
Posted by: | July 06, 2007 at 11:22 AM
It is clear, this article or not, that Obama favors charters. He is elite and educated in the same way. His children go to an elite private school and he pays NO tuition for it. It surprises me to no end how the CTU supports him when he uses margarine on one of their high-priority bread and butter issues.
Posted by: | July 06, 2007 at 12:36 PM
He is so busy canpaigning that he does nothing for the mess in Springfield as we speak. Yes, he is a US senator, but if he cannot even handle the local politics at home, which effects healthcare and school funding, how can he do this nationwide?
Posted by: | July 06, 2007 at 12:36 PM
get real people. barack isn't going to take party line on all things. if things were working well perhaps he should. he isn't afraid to buck trends, and that is why he warrants close attention. yes, he has been a supporter of charters. not to supplant the system, but because some of them work well. from the speech here, he seems to be a supporter of sensible merit pay. but it is a bit hard to read between the lines. suggesting the senator is responsible for cutting through springfield though is ludicrous. the people we elect as governor and as our state reps are responsible for that. barack wants to run the country, and it makes plenty of sense for us to want him to do that, and spend all the time he has in the short term focused on that. god knows, we need it.
Posted by: | July 06, 2007 at 01:19 PM
I am not voting for Daley's candidate Barack "Hussein" Obama.
He is not qualified to be President. Finish your term first as Senator.
Michelle Obama is a great lady. But, Obama has time to learn on who the nations leaders are.
But, if he wins, watch for Arne Duncan to be the next U.S. Secretary of Education. Remember they are friends and grew up in Hyde Park.
Posted by: Don't vote for Obama | July 06, 2007 at 04:52 PM
Why did you put his middle name in quotation marks as if that weren't his real name? And who are our nation's leaders? "Bush"? "Rodham-Clinton"? No thanks.
Posted by: | July 06, 2007 at 05:05 PM
Oh, I guess Obama will choose his Hyde Park barber to be the U.S. Secretary of Hair Cuttery, since, you know, they're friends.
Posted by: | July 06, 2007 at 05:06 PM
No. Duh. That is Obama's full name Barack "Hussein" Obama.
Obama couldn't answer the questions on CNN on the foreign leaders.
Yes, "Hussein" Obama, will most likely choose his Hyde Park barber to be U.S. Secretary to replace Spellings.
Arne, start being fair to your teachers, LSC members and try to stay independent. But, in Chicago, you cannot.
Posted by: More on Barack "Hussein" Obama | July 06, 2007 at 05:09 PM
Yes, the last person is right, it is Barack "Hussein" Obama, just looked it up.
Posted by: Hussein Obama | July 06, 2007 at 05:12 PM
The guy who thinks Barack will hire Arne is one weird character. He (if he is a he) seems to conflate a lot of things Since when does where you live and who you know become who you hire? Might be true in CPS, but why true for others? Doesn't have to be that way. Obama hires good people. Look at his record. Like fact that bc the senator is from chicago and was endored by the mayor here, he is owned by Daley? Like his bizarre inclination to put Barack's real middle name in quotes, as if to imply something...like Barack is Saddam's cousin maybe? A terrorist perhaps? Or maybe just foreign....maybe it's hillary's people blogging.
Posted by: | July 06, 2007 at 05:23 PM
Alexander,
Your site has become a magnet for racists. Hmmm. I wonder why?
Posted by: Clyde | July 06, 2007 at 05:27 PM
Alexander,
Your site has become a magnet for racists. Hmmm. I wonder why?
Posted by: Clyde | July 06, 2007 at 05:27 PM
Wow, 5:09, so Obama's parents gave him a middle name WITH quotation marks? Is that legal? Can you include other punctuation marks in names?
Posted by: | July 06, 2007 at 07:26 PM
Sure, how about the guy from The Gods must be Crazy? He had an exclamation point in the middle of his name.
Posted by: | July 07, 2007 at 12:09 AM
so it's an African thing, with punctuation marks in the middle names...?
I can't believe Obama's middle name is still news to some people. Get over it. If you want another Clinton, go right ahead. I'll take Barack HUSSEIN Obama any day over the other candidates. Heck, I'd probably take the guy from The Gods Must be Crazy.
If all they got on Obama is his middle name, then he's in good shape. The Reznick thing was a mistake, and many other people were conned by Reznick.
Clinton? Her husband pardoned about as many scumbags as Bush executed while Guv'ner.
So vote Barack Hussein Obama!
Posted by: | July 07, 2007 at 12:50 AM
I offer my thanks to folks like 1:19 who seem connected to reality and interested in logical conversation. There's an unusually high percentage of posts on this topic that really don't make sense.
I'm surprised by the attempts to blame Obama for the ills of the Illinois General Assembly; he hasn't been IN it for a few years now, remember? I'm genuinely shocked at the blatant, shallow scare tactics about his middle name. Next we'll be hearing that the book of Revelations has something about Obama being the antichrist or something.... How low can you haters go? I didn't see the CNN interview (can't afford cable), but at least Obama is intelligent. I'll take the first black editor of the Harvard Law Review any day over the legacy-admission, C-average Yale cheerleader we've got now.
Also, Dodge is not a charter school. It's an AUSL school with CTU teachers.
And why, just because a teacher is young and has high expectations for students, would that person immediately be perceived as a TFA? I find almost all new teachers to be hopeful and positive about their students.
Perhaps too much contact with the cynics and the burnouts- especially the ones who can't write sentences with proper grammar themselves- is the underlying culprit in "these kids syndrome."
Posted by: teachergrrl | July 07, 2007 at 10:14 AM
thank you teachergrrl, you are a refreshing voice
Posted by: | July 07, 2007 at 11:38 AM
Clyde,
No one is a racist. But, of course to get attention from you, you use the "Race Card". Its that simple and you know it works everywhere.
Obama name is reality. With his middle name being Hussein. Are you disturbed that everyone who doesn't know, will know now, Obama's full name.
Or you just want them to wait when they vote absentee or at the polls early next year.
And, yes President Bush, appointed Margaret Spellings who is also from guess; Texas. As the Education Secretary. HA!
And I am not a Hillary or Republican supporter and not a racist.
Posted by: More on Senator Barack Hussein Obama | July 07, 2007 at 04:12 PM
I'm voting for Osama Hussin Obama.
Posted by: Osama oops Obama | July 08, 2007 at 11:38 AM
O mama--I am definately not!
Posted by: | July 09, 2007 at 07:02 PM
The hyde park connection goes long and strong--do not be fooled.
My issue with Obama is he needs to be paying attention to Il issues. What has he done for us lately? Last I heard, refereeing stupid hyde park arguments about promitroy point. He is not presidential material yet. And he is biracial--get over it y'all.
Posted by: | July 09, 2007 at 07:05 PM
What has Obama done besides voting in the Senate in D.C.?
Does he visit his Chicago office?
And we foot the bill for his protection?
B.S.
Give everyone else the same protection.
Fair is Fair.
I like to see Barack Hussein Obama take some time and do work in Illinois for us. Otherwise, we continue to pay his bills while he campaigns for president.
This is so silly about Obama. He will be controlled by Daley and City Hall.
That means unions are in trouble from teachers, etc.
Posted by: Do some real work Osama, Obama | July 09, 2007 at 10:50 PM
Obama surfaces in Rekzo's federal corruption case
Source confirmed Obama is the unnamed "political candidate" referred to in document which outlines case against Rezko
January 20, 2008
BY DAVE MCKINNEY, NATASHA KORECKI, CHRIS FUSCO AND TIM NOVAK Staff Reporters
For the first time, Democratic White House hopeful Barack Obama has surfaced in the federal corrupton case against his longtime campaign fund-raiser, Tony Rezko, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned.
The Illinois senator isn’t accused of any wrongdoing. And there’s no evidence Obama knew contributions to his 2004 U.S. Senate campaign came from schemes Rezko is accused of orchestrating.
» Click to enlarge image Presidential hopeful Barack Obama and Tony Rezko (left).
(AP, file photo)
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The allegations against Rezko that involve Obama are contained in one paragraph of a 78-page document filed last month in which prosecutors outline their corruption and fraud case against Rezko, who was also a key money man for Gov. Blagojevich and other politicians.
Rezko is set to go to trial Feb. 25. The revelation that Obama’s name could come up in court is a political headache he doesn’t need as he heads into a round of primaries that are likely to determine his party’s nomination for president.
Obama is not named in the Dec. 21 court document. But a source familiar with the case confirmed that Obama is the unnamed “political candidate” referred to in a section of the document that accuses Rezko of orchestrating a scheme in which a firm hired to handle state teacher pension investments first had to pay $250,000 in “sham” finder’s fees. From that money, $10,000 was donated to Obama’s successful run for the Senate in the name of a Rezko business associate, according to the court filing and the source.
Rezko, who was part of Obama’s senatorial finance committee, also is accused of directing “at least one other individual” to donate money to Obama and then reimbursing that individual — in possible violation of federal election law.
A spokesman for U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald declined to comment.
Obama — a state senator when he got the contributions in 2004 — has moved to distance himself from Rezko since his longtime friend and supporter was indicted in October 2006. After news reports that Obama had engaged in a real estate transaction with Rezko’s wife at a time Tony Rezko was known to be under investigation, the senator called the episode “boneheaded” and “a mistake.”
‘No way of knowing’
Obama campaign aides said Friday he was unaware Rezko was behind the contributions cited in last month’s court filing or that the document referred to the senator.
“We have no way of knowing he is the politician named here,” spokesman Bill Burton said, “but we returned this money months ago for other reasons.”
Obama donated more than $44,000 in Rezko-linked contributions to charity last year, including the $10,000 donation mentioned in the court filing.
That money was donated to Obama by Joseph Aramanda, a Glenview businessman and Rezko associate who, sources have said, is the “Individual D” prosecutors say received the $250,000 in finder’s fees demanded by Rezko. Individual D did nothing to earn those fees, according to prosecutors.
The $10,000 contribution to Obama was given in Aramanda’s name on March 5, 2004, records show. While Obama’s camp has said the senator did not know Aramanda, Obama’s office hired Aramanda’s son as an intern in 2005, at Rezko’s urging.
Repeated attempts to reach Aramanda, who was involved in pizza franchises Rezko owned, were unsuccessful. He has not been charged with any wrongdoing.
A longstanding relationship
Rezko is one of Obama’s earliest political patrons. Long known as a prolific fund-raiser, the Syrian-born businessman helped raise money for Obama’s political campaigns beginning in 1995, when Obama was running for the Illinois Senate.
In 13 years in politics, Obama has gotten at least $168,000 in campaign donations from Rezko, his family and business associates. The Sun-Times reported that figure last June. Obama’s “best estimate” seven months earlier had been that Rezko had raised no more than $60,000 for him.
When Obama ran for the U.S. Senate, Rezko held a June 27, 2003, cocktail party in Rezko’s Wilmette mansion, picking up the tab for the lavish event. Obama’s campaign staff has said it has no records to show who attended that party, or how much it cost.
Obama’s relationship with Rezko dates to 1990, when Obama, then a Harvard law student, interviewed for a job with Rezko’s development company, Rezmar Corp. Obama turned down the job, instead going to work for a small Chicago law firm — Davis Miner Barnhill. That firm did work on more than a dozen low-income housing projects Rezmar rehabbed with government funds.
Eleven Rezmar buildings were in the state Senate district Obama represented between 1996 and 2004. Many of the buildings ended up in foreclosure, with tenants living in squalid conditions, the Sun-Times reported last year. In one instance, Rezko’s company left tenants without heat for five weeks. Obama said he was unaware of problems with the buildings and minimized the legal work he’d done.
Obama’s relationship with Rezko grew closer in June 2005, when Obama and Rezko’s wife bought adjoining real estate parcels from a doctor in the South Side Kenwood neighborhood. Obama paid $1.65 million for the doctor’s mansion, while Rezko’s wife paid $625,000 for the vacant lot next door. Obama’s purchase price was $300,000 below the asking price; Rezko’s wife paid full price.
Six months later, Obama paid Rita Rezko $104,500 for one-sixth of the vacant lot, which he bought to expand his yard. In November 2006, he expressed regret about the transaction.
“It was a mistake to have been engaged with him at all in this or any other personal business dealing that would allow him, or anyone else,” Obama said, “to believe that he had done me a favor.”
Sen. Obama Presidential Campaign Q&A
A Chicago Sun-Times Exclusive: Sen. Barack Obama’s presidential campaign gave the following written responses to these questions about the Rezko court filing.
Q. What is Sen. Obama’s reaction to being referred to in the Rezko evidentiary proffer?
A. We have no way of knowing he is the politician named here but we returned this money months ago for other reasons.
Q. Was Sen. Obama aware that Rezko allegedly had directed at least one person to donate to the senator’s campaign and later reimbursed that person, possibly violating federal election law?
A. No.
Q. Has the Federal Election Commission or the U.S. attorney’s office in Chicago contacted the senator or any of his representatives about these matters?
A. No.
Q. Why has the senator donated to charity campaign contributions from Rezko and Rezko-linked people?
A. In keeping with our practice of donating to charity donations from people who have been called into question through the legal process, when he was named in documents as potentially engaging in wrongdoing we thought it was appropriate to return his donation to charity.
Q. Does the senator think this development will have any impact on the presidential campaign or undercut the senator’s message that he is an agent of change?
A. No. In fact, Sen. Obama has been a champion of reforms that have made campaign finance laws more transparent so that the public can more closely follow the source of contributions to campaigns. As with any campaign, occasionally individual contributions are called into question. Sen. Obama’s policy in such instances is to donate that money to charity which is what he did in this case seven months ago when questions first surfaced.
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