Corruption Casts Shadow Over Obama-Biden

by Bobby Eberle

The Democratic National Convention is underway -- with all the pomp and pageantry we've come to expect from the Obama campaign. But if the true measure of a person is what they do when no one is looking, the real Barack Obama -- and the real Joe Biden, for that matter -- aren't the candidates that Democrats are trying to sell you.

On Monday, while Democrats delivered vague speeches from a stage set that rivaled a rock concert, those outside the convention hall were left asking: Who is the real Barack Obama? The American Issues Project's new ad provides part of the answer.

The ad explores Obama's ties to William Ayers, whom the New York Sun describes as a "founding member of the group that bombed the U.S. Capitol and the Pentagon during the 1970s."

• In 2001, Ayers Did Not Express Regret For His Past Conduct And Even Claimed The Weather Underground "Didn't Do Enough" Bombings. "Mr. Ayers wrote a memoir, 'Fugitive Days,' published in 2001, and on the day of the September 11 terrorist attacks, he was quoted by the New York Times as saying: 'I don't regret setting bombs. I feel we didn't do enough.'" (Russell Berman, "Obama's Ties To Left Come Under Scrutiny," The New York Sun, 2/19/08)
• "Obama's relationship with Ayers is an especially vivid milepost on his rise, in record time, from a local official who unabashedly reflected a very liberal district to the leader of national movement based largely on the claim that he can transcend ideological divides." (Ben Smith, "Obama Once Visited 60s Radicals," Politico, 2/22/08)

The fact that Barack Obama chose to launch his political career at the home of an unrepentant terrorist reflects not only a lack of judgment, but also real questions about his views. Obama's response to the ad? A full-throated defense of his long association with a man who says he didn't bomb enough U.S. targets. That tells us more about Barack Obama than any of the speeches we saw Monday night ever could.

To find out more facts about the Obama-Ayers relationship, just click here.

Also, in a AP news story running on GOPUSA, Ayers "compared U.S. government actions to the Sept. 11 attacks."

It is also becoming clear that the Obama-Biden ticket has even deeper ties to corrupt political powerbroker Tony Rezko.

On Monday, we learned that Joe Biden has a 30-year friendship with a key figure in the Tony Rezko trial. When Biden sought the Democratic nomination for president, he turned to his long-time financial contributor and adviser Joseph Cari, Jr. for help. Cari is now awaiting sentencing for his part in an $850,000 kickback scheme overseen by Tony Rezko.

• Shortly Before Cari's Indictment Biden Called Him "An Honorable Guy." "Shortly before Cari's corruption indictment by a federal grand jury in Chicago in 2006, Sen. Biden called him "an honorable guy" and was planning to appoint him to a high-ranking campaign position for the 2008 presidential campaign. However, the Illinois shakedown scheme...derailed Cari's future plans." (Chuck Goudie, "Unlocking Biden's Baggage Reveals Blago Ticket," Daily Herald [Chicago, IL], 8/25/08)
• Biden "Won't Give Obama Much Cover On The Tony Rezko Front." "No matter what help Barack Obama might get from Sen. Joseph Biden, his newly named vice presidential running mate won't give Obama much cover on the Tony Rezko front." (Dave McKinney, "Biden Has Deep Ties To Rezko Accomplice," The Chicago Sun-Times, 8/25/08)

As predicted, this week voters are getting a preview of the choice they will have to make in November ...