RUSH: All right, let’s go through a little timeline here. Jeremiah Wright, ‘America’s chickenssss-ach are coming home to roost.’ ‘God-bleep America!’ Barack Obama: ‘Well, I was in the church for 20 years; I never heard that.’ Bill Ayers blew up the Pentagon, blew up the Capitol, blew up some people in their house. Barack Obama: ‘He’s just a guy in my neighborhood. I was a young boy when he was doing those despicable acts.’ Governor Rod Blagojevich, selling a Senate seat. ‘I had no idea this was going on.’ It is amazing. It is amazing that there’s all of this stuff swirling around Barack Obama and he knew nothing.
Now Jesse Jackson, Jr., has been identified, ladies and gentlemen, as Candidate #5, Senate Candidate #5 who either himself or emissaries were offering Blago 500 grand to a million dollars for the Senate seat, and it was Blagojevich who called Obama an MF-er because he won’t pony up any money, wouldn’t give him anything for appointing whoever Obama wanted. Yet Obama said he had no idea this was going on. Jesse Jackson, Sr., the Reverend Jackson, was caught on the Fox News Channel on microphone (on a live mic, not on air) saying he wanted to cut off Obama’s nuts. And now look whose nuts have been cut off. The son of Jesse Jackson, the Reverend Jackson’s son has had his nuts cut off here in the Blagojevich thing. This is interesting. Barack Obama had no idea.
He’ll never be senator from Illinois. He’s going to have to move to Mississippi, run from there or somewhere else. Can you imagine the conversation between Jesse Jackson, Sr., and Jesse Jackson, Jr.? ‘Son, I did these shakedowns and got away with it for 30 years before somebody went public on me. The first time you try this and look what happens? Who the hell has been teaching you this stuff? Because it sure as hell wasn’t me.’ Fascinating, fascinating stuff. By the way, I have a story here that just cleared. This is from Newsweek. New research on why we procrastinate and what we can do to fight… I’m not going to read this ’til tomorrow. I don’t have time for it right now. Union official. This is in the Washington Post today. ‘Union Official Allegedly Liaison Between Governor, Obama Team.’
That the union thug that was an Obama intermediary, on one level, is ‘surprising.’ ‘Among the revelations contained in the complaint brought against Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich yesterday was the description of an official with the Service Employees International Union acting as an apparent intermediary between the governor and Barack Obama’s camp in discussions over Obama’s Senate seat.’ What? But the Obama camp has said nobody… Well, no, Obama corrected it. I haven’t, he said, talked to the governor. ‘The alleged role of the [union] official was surprising,’ says the Post (chuckles), ‘given that the union had not figured publicly in the investigation into Blagojevich (D). But on another level, the [union’s] apparent involvement is an indication of the extent to which it has, under the leadership of its ambitious and controversial president, Andrew L. Stern, become an omnipresent force in Democratic politics.
‘With organized labor holding such high expectations for the Obama administration — notably, hopes for legislation fiercely opposed by business leaders that would make it easier to form unions — officials of other unions were hoping yesterday that the SEIU’s apparent involvement in the Illinois scandal would not undermine their cause in Washington. … The complaint also states that on Nov. 12, Blagojevich spoke by phone with an ‘SEIU official’ who was in Washington and with whom Blagojevich had met a week before on the understanding that the official was an emissary to discuss [Valerie] Jarrett’s interest in the Senate seat.’ Valerie Jarrett is who Obama wanted! Valerie Jarrett pulled herself out of the running after Blagojevich said: No! He’s an MF-er. If he’s not paying anything, he doesn’t get the seat.
‘Apparently undeterred, Blagojevich allegedly suggested that SEIU could assist in the formation of a nonprofit political organization that could employ Blagojevich while also assisting Jarrett. The SEIU official agreed to ‘put that flag up and see where it goes.” This is from the complaint. So the union is up to its…eyeballs in this, as well. ‘The complaint’s wording suggests that the SEIU official who allegedly talked with Blagojevich was Stern, because it quotes the governor’s chief of staff as saying the official ‘could make’ the governor the head of Change to Win,’ but, see, we talked about this yesterday. Change to Win, which is an arm of the SEIU, has a spokesman named Denier, and Denier went out and denied that SEIU had anything to do with this yesterday! (interruption)
Well, how would you pronounce it? D-e-n-i-e-r. I guess his first name is Tom. I don’t remember for sure. He’s not mentioned in this story, but his last name was Denier. (interruption) Well, yeah, they’re probably going to say it’s Den’ier, or Den’eer. But Den’eer, Denier, it’s still pretty close. ‘Depending on what else emerges in Illinois, SEIU’s rule could affect labor’s agenda. If there turns out to be a connection with SEIU, it’s not going to be a great thing for labor.’ Come on! We’re not a bunch of idiots. We know damn well nothing’s gonna change here. This is just a sitcom. All of this is just… About all it’s worth here is laughing at because nothing’s gonna change. I don’t even… You know what? The way things have shaken (I was telling Snerdley at the top of the hour) I’m wondering if by now, in terms of felonies, misdemeanors, if Fitzgerald even has a case now. ‘Cause he stopped the investigation before Blagojevich actually sold the seat, and these people are running now demanding he be impeached. He can’t do this and he can’t do that.
What if he beats the rap? What if he beats the rap? This is Chicago. What if he beats the rap? Now, I know it’s unlikely, ’cause all of the forces are aligned now against Blago. Remember, the ever-alert Jonathan Alter at Newsweek even told us to be on the lookout for Blagojevich to start telling lies about Obama, to try to bring him down. See, you do that because you set the table so that if Blagojevich starts naming Obama we’ve already got the Drive-By wizards of smart saying, ‘Oh, yeah, we expected him to lie like this. We expected the Republicans to do this. We can’t believe Blagojevich doing it, but we have predicted it.’ So there you have it, ladies and gentlemen, that’s pretty much where we stand. They’re talking about a special election to fill this seat. Do they realize if they do that they’re opening up the possibility Republicans could win it? Yeah. (interruption) What do you mean, they don’t care? The Democrats really don’t care that a Republican might win the seat? I think they do care about something like that. I don’t think they think a Republican could possibly win. Who is it going to be? Who’s willing to announce his candidacy for the seat of Barack Obama, who also wants to hold onto his kneecaps?
BREAK TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: Paul in Frankfurt, Illinois. Welcome, sir, to the EIB Network. Nice to have you with us.
CALLER: It’s an absolute honor to talk with you, Rush.
RUSH: Appreciate that.
CALLER: I have another quick question for you here about a Chicago news topic, and it’s not our crazy governor. What’s your thoughts on this union situation at Republic Windows and Doors? It’s my contention that unions all over the country have just been emboldened because they’ve now forced Bank of America to cough up some cash that they previously said they won’t and apparently Chase bank is also going to be giving Republic some money.
RUSH: Now, you may be more informed than I. Is this a done deal? Last night, the last I saw on this, this was still not complete.
CALLER: I don’t have any information about whether or not it’s a done deal. I’m not an insider, but I did read that they were going to pledge a, quote, limited amount of money.
RUSH: Yeah, I did, too, but see, here’s the thing. Bank of America said they’re going to extend a limited loan. But here’s the thing — as I looked into this, the employees at the door company, the window and door company, it was in their agreement that they would be given X-number of days of notice and that they would be given limited benefits, a severance package and sick pay or something like that.
CALLER: Right.
RUSH: But it wasn’t interminable salary.
CALLER: Chase Bank is a owner of the subsidiary that has a stake in Republic Windows and Doors, and they decided they’re going to put $400,000 into the bucket for these guys, so my point was just that unions all over the country now realize that all they need to do if they want something, just sit out for a few days and —
RUSH: Now, hold it a second here, because there’s some things here that are irrelevant. I understand what you’re saying, but apparently these people had an agreement at the window and door company to be paid a limited amount of money, just a two-week severance and their unused vacation and that they were to be given six days’ notice if the place was going to be shut down. They were given three days’ notice and they weren’t paid, and the company said we’re not paying ’em, we’re shutting down, and the company said Bank of America won’t give us a loan, won’t extend a line of credit.
CALLER: That’s true.
RUSH: Wait, wait, wait, wait. So apparently the company violated terms of an agreement. So the unions, the employees there, some of whom I understand speak English, by the way, did their sit-in for stability.
CALLER: But —
RUSH: Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah. Bank of America came up with enough money, not enough to reopen the company, but enough to give these workers what their contract said that they were owed. Now, your point is that this is thuggish behavior by the union forcing the private sector to do things against its own interests and it’s going to embolden unions all over the place to act this way, thuggish and so forth, and this is a bad sign. That’s your point, right?
CALLER: Bingo. Before I let you go, Rush, real quick question. You were talking the last segment about your first job?
RUSH: Away from home, yes.
CALLER: Yes. Was your program director at that first job Rod Blagojevich?
RUSH: No. (laughing)
CALLER: You said —
RUSH: No, no. It doesn’t matter. I don’t know that the guy’s name was even true. I don’t even know that the name he gave me was accurate. I couldn’t tell you who he is.
CALLER: Well, he said he was a psychopath and a liar so maybe I’m just confused.
RUSH: Blagojevich does have some problems.
CALLER: Just a few.
RUSH: There’s no question. Look, you’re in Frankfurt . I mean that’s not Chicago, you’re closer to where I grew up than you are to Chicago.
CALLER: No, I’m pretty close. I’m right outside Chicago, only about 35, 40 miles. But I’m in a conservative pocket of the Chicago suburbs.
RUSH: Frankfurt ?
CALLER: Yes.
RUSH: Then I’m confusing it. Oh. I’m confusing it with West Frankfurt —
CALLER: Yes, you are.
RUSH: Down in Southeast — yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Then you tell me, you’re just 35 miles outside the danger zone there. I’ve been telling the audience that people in Illinois and particularly in Chicago understand that what goes on in that town doesn’t going on go unless the mayor is involved.
CALLER: The mayor is certainly involved in almost everything. This union case is one of them. Did you happen to know that the Chase Midwest division’s president is Mayor Daley’s brother? Wonder why they pitched in $400 grand.
RUSH: Well, of course.
CALLER: It all comes back to him.
RUSH: Look, it does. It does. Now, don’t misunderstand. I’m not saying that Blagojevich did what he did on orders from Daley. I’m saying if Daley wants Blagojevich in trouble, Blagojevich is going to get in trouble. If Daley wants Obama out of Illinois, Obama is going to be out of Illinois. It’s just our bad luck that that trip took him to the White House.