Mrs. Obama's boss explains

If anybody truly feels that her pay raise has nothing to do with her husband's election, I have a lot of things I could sell you.

No need to explain.If this was ambulance chaser Peter Roskam's wife,the wing nuts wouldn't question a thing.

What is it about Obama that makes wing nuts foam at the mouth.Does it bother you that he's

1.Articulate 2.Clean as a whistle 3.Part Black.

As for Roskam,another Repukeican Chickenhawk,had the nerve to accuse Tammy Duckworth of cut and run in Iraq.She should just kick his &%!,which I'm sure she could do.

President Obama,nice ring to it!

Physical violence is always the best alternative for the loon. Since he can't have an intelligent argument and resorts to name-calling at the drop of a hat, I'm not surprised.

Raving Loon asks: What is it about Obama that makes wing nuts foam at the mouth?

I don't know quite what it is, Loon, but it's apparently the same with Hillary, Bill, Al, John, Howard, etc.

Truth maybe?

I have a bridge in New York available for anyone that thinks Mrs. Obama's recent prosperity has nothing to do with Mr. Obama's election. Very big. Lots of lanes. Used every day by thousands of commuters. Act fast!

Raving Loon,

The only thing that bothers me about Sen. Obama is that he is already selling himslef out to the corruption needed to advance if government, in ANY PARTY. He is realizing the goals, ambitions and ethics have no place in Washington. HE will need money, millions of dollars to have any hope of a presidential bid. Hence his trip to Africa. He could have raised awareness about HIV in Cabrini Green, or any other poor neighborhood.

I ask you this; do you rally think this country is going to solve any of todays issues when 80% of the time is spent arguing what the Rep/Dem did. There is so much infighting among the parties that we must seem like the Comedy Channel to other countries. If 1/2 the time spent bashing Bush, balming Bush, blaming the Democrates, etc, etc..... who knows what could be accomplished.

I have no ill will for Mr. Obama. This is a life long republican who changed ways in order to vote for Mr. Obama. I truly felt he was the breath of fresh air our government needed. Unfortunatly, talk of Presidencal possibilities surface too soon. Now he realizes that if he want to advance, he must compete with the money grubbing jerks that compose our government. I really wish he would have run for Governor. Topinka or Rod, thats like choosing between an in-grown toenail or constipation.

RKS...I don't know why you are complaining...other than to complain. The republican party is in bed with most of the companies that are causing great hardship on us right now. Pharmacuetical companies enjoy the republicans because there is no push to solve health care issues. Oil, whether or not there is a conspiracy or not, enjoys the friends in the whitehouse. Abramoff used to enjoy many in the republican party. Ney, and a host of others, including the very moral Tom Delay. If you are
outraged at slimy politics, I'ld look first to ones that really play an part in our lives.

RKS,where did you come from?A sensible Republican!

I agree about where they raise the funds,but do you think your party could do without lobby money?

If elections were strictly about what's best for the American citizens,the Dems win.

Right now elections are about what's best for Big Oil,Insurance,Defense providers,etc.That's why your party has won.

That's about to change.

Come on Billy,you're a big boy,you can take it,oh that's right,you just like to dish.

Still waiting for some answers Bill,compare Edwards or Obama to how the Fotrunate Son made his dough.

I'll sell you that same bridge if your goofy enough to beleive that BIG OIL and Fat little Karl don't chit chat every so often.

Bill r.,

EVERYBODY is in bed with Big Oil, The Pharmaceuticals, Agribusiness etc. Not only Republicans.

What would the complainers here like Mrs. Obama
do? Would it make you feel better if she not try to better herself and position in a company? Do you think it would be fair for her to quit just to appease you complainers? I don't get it...with all the real issues facing us..you choose this to get upset at. Face it, there is nothing Obama can do to satisfy you except pass out pacifiers.

The Republican Neo Cons can trash Barack Obama all they want.

It's not going to make one bit of difference.

Barack Obama is going places very fast,and this makes the Neo Nuts on the right all itchy,and sweaty.

I'm proud to be from Illinois, where the Republican NeoNuts get their lass handed to them in every election.
No,the majority of people in my home state have NEVER bought into any of the George W. Bush,and Co. lies.....notice that they send Mrs.Stepford (Laura Bush) to campaign for Republicans (The ambulance chaser Peter Roskum comes to mind)in Illinois,Republicans in my home state don't want to be seen with W.,and Cheney....and I'm proud of that....

bill r
Your post is exactly what I am talking about. Let's say your entire post was about solutions, suggestions, opportunity. BUt no, you are talking about who the republicans are in bed with yada yada. It is time to stop all of this BS and decide that we must act like a UNITED STATES. I am talking about Democrats, Republicans, Independents whoever. I do not care who the Republicans are in bed with. I do care about whne they might actually stop arguing like grade schoolers and spend that energy on important issues.

Again, as long as our leaders spend all of their energy blaming the other party, we will be at war.

I do like Barack.
But this salary does seem high.
I am very cynical about non-profit organizers making $300K. It's not limited to her- it's common at all non-profits. She earns her money by organizing volunteers? Hey, maybe they could find someone to volunteer to do that.

Especially since the Obama's don't seem to need the money.

If Barack ever runs for President you can be sure that she will be presented as a great non-profit humanitarian. And the Republicans will say, "Isn't that a lot of money for a humanitarian?"

Update on Paulo's reading list:

My Pet Goat
Curious George
Hell in a Very Small Place Bernard B. Fall
Steet Without Joy Bernard B. Fall
A Bright Shining Lie Neil Sheehan
the works of Keith William Nolan

Please continue to contribute.

No Cliffsnotes now Paulo.

"2.Clean as a whistle?"

First his wife slides into a job and receives a pay raise that triples her salary. Sure, that happens to all of us.

Now the spectre of Obama endorsing the ethically challenged Alexi Giannulous, the Democrat nominee for Illinois State Treasurer. "I'm going to take a look at what's been going on and I'm going to ask Alexi directly what is happening," said Obama, an early and enthusiastic backer of the first-time candidate. That was months ago. In the meantime, no more than a handful of voters has ever heard of Giannulous, but a lot of money bought a lot of TV ads featuring an endorsement from Sen. Barack Obama, and that carried Giannoulias to a victory over an underfunded opponent

Now Mike Madigan is starting to raise questions about Giannulous. Obama profiles himself as the Democratic point person on ethics in the Senate, yet back in his home state, the man he strongly endorsed for state Treasurer was once under fire from the Chicago Tribune for questionable loans and questionable answers about those loans.

So now we have Blessed Barack's wife, a wife who suddenly triples her salary, and a still-unexplained endorsement of a candidate whose background Madigan notes, is tainited. "I mean my history in politics, if you were alleged to be connected to the mob, you were done, but life seems to go on," says Madigan.

Go back and look at the Trib's scathing editorial from April 12, 2006, "Deposit some answers, please." Unfortuantely, since then, the Chicago Tribune has jumped on the Obama-as-Superstar Wagon, letting Carol Marin and the Sun-Times continue doing the job that the Tribune has chosen to ignore.

Where's Nancy Pelosi and her "Culture of Corruption" charges when you need her? Oh, I forgot. That only applies to Republicans.

Meet the new boss, Barack Obama. Same as the old boss.

C'mon Bill R., I know you're smarter than that. You know that the disease is lobbying and not the republican party. You're right that the republicans are in bed with pharmaceutical companies, the insurance industry and oil companies... because of those industries lobbying efforts that focused on republican candidates.

Would it be any different if the democrats were in power? Yes. Instead of favorable legislation for those industries we'd see favorable legislation that benefitted trial lawyers groups, labor unions, radical interest groups like PETA and other democrat influence purchasers... because those are the organizations that spend the most money on democrat candidates.

Over the last 20 years lobbying has grown from a barnacle on the hull of democracy to a full-fledged barracuda weighing down the ship of state. It's created the permanent campaign and the politicization of the most mundane government tasks (like federal judgeship appointments). Right now the Washington culture isn't changing in the right direction.

The whole system needs an overhaul. Coburn-Obama was a start. But more legislation to rein in influence-peddling is necessary. You can check all the posts I've made on this blog, I've been calling for it for some time.

As for Jack Abramoff, he's the poster boy for the problem. But let's remember it wasn't just republicans who he financed campaigns for. Tim Russert quite famously called democrats Tom Daschle and Harry Reid onto the carpet for accepting Indian Tribe donations from Abramoff's firm. Here's a link:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/02/AR2005060202158.html

That should pretty much dispel the myth that both parties don't engage in these shenanigans.

A side note: As I've previously stated I think that Mrs. Obama is a very minor player in the problem of companies placing famous names on their boards of directors. The problem itself is huge, but her participation is at a very low level. I certainly wouldn't hold it against her husband in the voting booth.

If anybody truly feels that her pay raise has nothing to do with her husband's election, I have a lot of things I could sell you.

Posted by: RKS | Sep 27, 2006 10:06:53 AM

Now where in this post RKS, do you offer solutions, suggestions, or opportunities? My point would be, why would you hold whatever
accomplishments Mrs. Obama achieves whether
that be as a result of her husbands position or not against Mr. Obama? Do you believe she doesn't deserve it? Would turning that position down make you happy?
Feel better towards politicians? Thats absurd! My point as to Ney, Delay, and others is to show you, these are serious issues,not whether Mrs.Obama got a promotion in her job. If some perks happen on the way up, what would be so bad about that if it didn't include graft. There is a game to politics and if you don't play, you don't win. Whats wrong with giving the man a chance?

Bil...You're right I do understand the problems with lobbys..and I'm not really trying to pick on republicans only,they just came to mind first.
My problem is that no one seems to give this guy a break. So what if his wife got a promotion...big deal. Did he sell his soul for it. I doubt it big time. To go through politics without some of it spilling on you is absurd. It just happens. That doesn't mean he is corrupt. I think people are taking unfair shots at this man.
If I were a young man thinking of running and read this crap..I wouldn't even try. Whether I was a saint or not.

Well bill r,

I truly enjoy people who only see and here what they want. Maybe if you read some other posts you would see my suggestions.

I have no problem giving the man a chance. I am only pointing out that any time we get a breath of fresh air like Sen.Obama, it does not take very long for that breath to realize that morals and ethics do not exist in Washington.

"There is a game to politics and if you don't play, you don't win. Whats wrong with giving the man a chance?"

The "game" of politics is what is dividing this country. Terrorists will rely on our inability to do ANYTHING without months and months of arguing between parties much more than anything Bush or any other INDIVIDUAL does.

So, read all of the posts, not just the parts you want to.

I have read all yout posts..be assured of that..and again, to think one could make it in politics without playing the game "or"needing money is noble and naive!

Good points, Bill. I can't imagine why anyone would want the headache of being involved in politics these days. No amount of power in the world would be worth it, it sometimes seems.

I've tried to write in my posts that I see the corporate boards thing as a problem with executive leadership as a whole and I don't think Mrs. Obama's participation in it is any big deal. It's a problem only the companies themselves can solve. Not politicians.

What reporter Mike Dorning is hiding, or perhaps just ignorant of: the hospital boss who tripled Mrs. Obama's salary, Michael Riordan, was and is a megabucks contributor to Obama's senate campaign. Some of Riordan's contributions are listed at
http://www.opensecrets.org/indivs/search.asp?NumOfThou=0&txtName=riordan&txtState=IL&txtZip=&txtEmploy=&txtCand=&txt2006=Y&txt2004=Y&txt2002=Y&Order=N

It has all the appearance of a sweetheart deal--wealthy Obama campaign contributor employs Mrs. Obama, then triples her salary after Obama's election. If this was a Republican senator, the Tribune would have already launched a full investigation. Can anyone say "influence buying"? Can anyone say "illegal campaign contribution"?

At the least, by hiding this information Mr. Dorning gives Mr. Riordan's proclamations of innocence a non-partisan air, unjustified by the facts. Was Mr. Dorning just being a bad reporter, or was he trying (like other "Swamp" reporters) to whitewash "Saint Barack"?

Bill...I would love to see contributions given up totally. Let each candidate start with x amount and put everyone on the same playing field. Independents also. Do away with lobbies altogether. Why are their concerns more important than the peoples. But again..it sounds good and noble...but I think naive..and that is why I don't understand this anger at Obama. Again it sounds great, but that is not reality.

I know Republicans try to make the case that both parties are crooks.But take a peek at this site and see the king of crooks.

http://www.bushwatch.com/bushwater.htm

Hmmmmm, 300% increase from a "not for profit" operation. Now earning 1.3 million, 4x what it was in 2000. I think we all need to call our bosses and ask for a raise.

I wonder what her day to day job is like as a "liason" to the community.

What does that mean? As if no one in Hyde Park is familiar with U of C?

"Growing" into a 300k job?

"There was a real initiative by the university and the hospitals to have a real relationship with the community,"

WTF does this mean? A "real" relationship?

"1.Articulate 2.Clean as a whistle 3.Part Black."

Loon, I think this is why you guys drool over him.

Is it that Bridgeport guilt Loon?

Did you get your Sox playoff tickets?

I have no ill will for Mr. Obama...Unfortunatly, talk of Presidencal possibilities surface too soon. Now he realizes that if he wants to advance, he must compete with the money grubbing jerks... I really wish he would have run for Governor. Topinka or Rod, thats like choosing between an in-grown toenail or constipation.

Posted by: RKS | Sep 27, 2006 11:03:29 AM

Hear, hear!

I see that no one wants to discuss that Dick Cheney's wife, after he was vice-chairman of the committee investigating the Iran-contra scandal,
was appointed as chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities by Ronald reagan.

Bill R - Reagan? What is that twenty plus years ago? Lets get alittle more updated like, Clinton's sexual preferances, the millions the Clinton's have made both in office and after. The point is always follow the money, it will lead you to possible problems. While I do believe Obama is a good man today, after a few more years being around all these idiots, we'll see. Public office usually ends up about power and money, nothing else. Why would the Bushes, Kennedy's, Kerry's want the job otherwise? They where all rich before politics! Power and more money! None of them give a damn about John Q. Public.

Terry....I see,the fact that people today are bashing Obama about a promotion at work or a cushy job for his wife doesn't give a cushy job 20 years ago any relevance? You seem qiuck to point that out about Obama but it doesn't bother you that the same was true for Cheney? Clinton's sexual preferences don't bother me...I like women too. I agree that most politicians don't give a hoot about JohnQ, but people need to give Obama a chance before trashing him when cushy jobs for wives is common place. Let his actions
dictate the motives. We will see.

I find it appalling that Repubs have a propblem with Obama's income,but not a word about the Big Oil executive pay.

AH,Priorities.

Campaign contributions by a corporation, especially a nonprofit corporation, to a candidate are illegal.

But fatcat donors have found a way around this law. They "hire" the candidate, or the candidate's spouse, and pay them an outrageous salary from corporate funds, in the knowledge that the salary will find its way into the candidate's kitty. This dodge is especially obvious when, as is the case here, the corporate head was an early-and-often megabucks donor to the Obama campaign.

Obama has precisely the morals one would expect of a Cook County Democrat politician--which is what he is.

But don't worry, Barack Hussein Obama--the Tribune will never investigate you. They're too busy promoting you for the presidency. And, in the case of reporter David Mendell, promoting a future book deal.

Bruce,
Barack Hussein? You have hit a new low, interestingly enough it's not surprising. You should go in public and make these ridiculous accusations out loud. My guess is people will feel sorry for you and give you spare change you deranged idealogue

"I find it appalling that Repubs have a propblem with Obama's income,but not a word about the Big Oil executive pay."

Ha!.

Loon, do you have an understanding of capitalism or are you really serious about being appalled?

Maybe the answer lies everytime you fill up with the least expensive, unlimited amount of gas you and millions of others use on a daily basis to keep our economy going.
Nope, no talent, skill or investment needed to keep that going huh?

I guess being a "liason" to the community is a bit more important.

What does she do, stand on the corner of 55th and LSD waving to the community?

HI, we want better relations with you!

This kind of stuff sickens me, too.
http://www.journalinquirer.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=17257523&BRD=985&PAG=461&dept_id=161556&rfi=6
It's a story about Ned Lamont writing himself another 3/4-million dollar check. Publicly-funded campaigns would even the playing field between people like LaMont and Michael Huffington and people who want to serve the public and aren't rich.

Glad to see most everyone knows why Mrs. Obama is now a VP of Univ. of Chicago Hospitals. But no one has commented on what she does. IT IS A VERY DIFFICULT JOB GETTING MEDICAID PEOPLE WHO LIVE ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF CHICAGO TO GO GET THE FREE MEDICAL TREATMENT!!! But when you are charging $5.oo for an asprin, $15 for a mucus recovery system (box of Kleenex) and the prices go on and on... along with the repeating of meaningless tests and constant review by a resident Doctor(medical student, but Billed as a real Doctor) you have to be sure you are going to get paid by the only dummy who would pay such a bill, MEDICAID/MEDICARE. NOW DO YOU SEE WHERE THE SENATORS WIFE FITS IN.

Why do the Obamas have a hispanic nanny for their kids and not a black woman?

It's odd that people are surprised by the dollar figures involved. Michelle Obama is a VP of an organization with a $1.6 BILLION annual budget. The community that UCH addresses extends far beyond Hyde Park to the whole South Side, which usually views the university and its hospitals with a great deal of suspicion.

It doesn't matter whether her employer is a for-profit (it does in fact clear operating income) or not-for-profit corporation; regardless, it's a huge and complicated organization which requires great management talent, and that deserves proper compensation.

I say this as someone who quite willingly, and knowingly, earns about 60% less money at a non-profit than I could in the private sector.

Mrs Obama clearly could do more public outreach and liaison work in the Chicago area after her husband got a job in Washington DC. It is a short commute between the two cities.

A tripling of her salary is a well deserved minor adjustment. She is "worth her weight in gold". This brings a breath of fresh air into the political and health care around Chicago.

LOL
I don't think Dick Cheney ran telling everyone how above everything he was. He also didn't throw his grandmother under the bus at the drop of a hat. :-)
Obama is the same old, same old.
I really don't care if his wife is never really proud again of the country I love.

I am a proud military spouse of a soldier who has been deployed 3 times already and getting ready for his 4th deployment in 4 months. I just read that Mrs Obama cut her hours by 80% a few months back but didn't cut her salary at all. With the military now fighting to keep our little 2% raise this coming January I find it amazing that a non-profit organization would not cut her salary with her cutting her hours back that much. I worked in the corp and non-profit sectors and that is just unheard of. I am a voting Democrat.