The Associated Press today reports Barack Obama's naming of Valerie Jarrett as his White House senior adviser. The report notes:
Jarrett, who hired Michelle Obama for a job in the Chicago mayor's office years ago, is one of the president-elect's closest friends and advisers. Her name has been floated for several top administration jobs. But Obama settled on the senior adviser role, said a person close to the president-elect and willing to speak only on background because the decision has not been officially announced.A White House senior adviser can handle a range of duties. President George W. Bush's top political aide Karl Rove held the title in the current administration.
Jarrett has a background in real estate and politics in Chicago.
The AP could easily have embellished on that background in real estate, which has been common knowledge for some time. In June, the Boston Globe described one of Jarrett's adventures in real estate:
CHICAGO - The squat brick buildings of Grove Parc Plaza, in a dense neighborhood that Barack Obama represented for eight years as a state senator, hold 504 apartments subsidized by the federal government for people who can't afford to live anywhere else.But it's not safe to live here.
About 99 of the units are vacant, many rendered uninhabitable by unfixed problems, such as collapsed roofs and fire damage. Mice scamper through the halls. Battered mailboxes hang open. Sewage backs up into kitchen sinks. In 2006, federal inspectors graded the condition of the complex an 11 on a 100-point scale - a score so bad the buildings now face demolition.
Paragraphs later, the Globe discloses the name of the chief executive of the management company that permitted housing conditions to deteriorate:
Among those tied to Obama politically, personally, or professionally are:Valerie Jarrett, a senior adviser to Obama's presidential campaign and a member of his finance committee. Jarrett is the chief executive of Habitat Co., which managed Grove Parc Plaza from 2001 until this winter and co-managed an even larger subsidized complex in Chicago that was seized by the federal government in 2006, after city inspectors found widespread problems.
It'll be interesting to see if the Associated Press and other mainstream media outlets more fully cover Jarrett's participation in the management of Chicago slums. Certainly if Karl Rove, White House senior adviser in the Bush administration, had such a record it would not have gone unmentioned.
Perhaps President-elect Obama will be asked directly by the press about Jarrett's mismanagement of public housing. Or would that put a damper on all that hope and change the mainstream media have been selling us?
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Comments Policy
The MSM will never touch her
November 15, 2008 - 10:13 ET by auldsailor362After all, to do so would be racist. Besides Jarret has too many friends in the Chicago mob and would never allow anyone to tell the truth.
delete
November 15, 2008 - 10:17 ET by motherbeltdelete
I would say that's worse
November 15, 2008 - 10:17 ET by motherbeltI would say that's worse than the mob!!
Maybe Obama can put her in
November 15, 2008 - 17:26 ET by TailgunnerMaybe Obama can put her in charge of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
NOLI PUGNARE ME OCCIDERE
Obama's replacement
November 15, 2008 - 10:44 ET by Mike BatesNow that Ms. Jarrett's been taken out of contention, Blagojevich can give Obama's senate seat to someone who can really help the Gov.: Tony Rezko. That would shut him up.
What a surprise! How can
November 15, 2008 - 10:43 ET by Mean Gene Dr. LoveWhat a surprise!
How can so many people be so willfully blind?
"An armed society is a polite society. Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life." --Robert A. Heinlein, "Beyond This Horizon", 1942
Willfully
November 15, 2008 - 10:46 ET by Mike BatesHow can so many people be so willfully blind?
If you're a true believer, it isn't so difficult. Hope and change, change and hope, hope and change, change . . .
Phew !!!
November 15, 2008 - 10:52 ET by iveseenitallWhat's that smell??? Barry hasn't even taken office and the Chicago thugs are already coming out of the woodwork.
NEVER,NEVER trust a "liberal"
What's that smell???
November 15, 2008 - 10:55 ET by Mike BatesI think it may be, unfortunately, the scent of (at least) four very grim years for many of us.
When the Boston F'ing Globe calls out a "progressive",
November 15, 2008 - 14:19 ET by agingcynicyou KNOW it is something egregious. A wikipedia search turned up "willing suspension of disbelief" by Coleridge in 1817. Partial description is "the willingness of a person to accept as true the premises of a work of fiction, even if they are fantastic or impossible." Pretty much describes non-specific "hope and change", eh?
Content of a Smile
November 15, 2008 - 10:53 ET by CellaThe smile from this woman is made of "crumbling plaster."
There will be daggers in the smiles of this bunch coming into and near the White House.
Yes, I am afraid for our country.
When you're smilin'
November 15, 2008 - 10:58 ET by Mike BatesAnd we all remember what the Undisputed Truth said about Smiling Faces. Or at least the geezers do.
»→ Sometimes?
November 15, 2008 - 11:03 ET by Cool Arrow"Sometimes, they don't tell the truth"
Can we switch "sometimes" with "sometimes maybe but almost hardly never"?
Sometimes, Cool
November 15, 2008 - 11:06 ET by Mike BatesCan we switch "sometimes" with "sometimes maybe but almost hardly never"?
You sure have a way with words. Maybe BO can line you up in the diplomatic corps. . .
»→ I thought about it
November 15, 2008 - 11:14 ET by Cool ArrowBut then I considered Madalaine Albright whose opinion it was that our coalition was not significantly large to legitimize our entry into Iraq. (Gulf War I)
And I considered how silly her position was in light of Albright's natural parents having died in an oven in Nazi Germany.
Join that nest of vipers? Who can match their fiendishness?
Only in jest can I imagine the depths of their depravity.
Smiling Villains
November 15, 2008 - 11:48 ET by iveseenitallVillains! Willy (not Clinton) knew it back in 1600.
NEVER,NEVER trust a "liberal"
»→ I can't wait
November 15, 2008 - 11:00 ET by Cool Arrow"But it's not safe to live here."
Just about sums up America under the Obama regime, doesn't it?
Jarrett fits into the plan nicely.
She probably has something
November 15, 2008 - 11:00 ET by SeashellShe probably has something on Obama. Otherwise, why would he hire someone with such a miserable track record. BTW, isn't she the one that said Obama would rule the country?
Obama rules
November 15, 2008 - 11:10 ET by Mike BatesBTW, isn't she the one that said Obama would rule the country?
Yep. Although I think The One's had that idea for quite a while.
Dictatorship we can believe in
Track record
November 15, 2008 - 19:00 ET by iveseenitallRight. And the larger question is why did America "hire" someone with such a miserable track record? Don't turn your back on any of these Affirmative Action jabonies. My wife's diamond ring went missing in Chicago. I thought I saw it on Jarrett's finger.
NEVER,NEVER trust a "liberal"
Why?
November 15, 2008 - 14:53 ET by jaywlBecause he is an arrogant jerk without any respect for the people and institutions that are supposed to oversee him. He knows with a few words he can disarm the media, fellow democrats, or the fawning ignorant mobs of adorers.
He also needs to appoint practically all of the people he knows in Chicago to avoid appointing the entirety of the Clinton Administration. After all, since his only experience is in the almost criminal political world of Chicago, he doesn't know enough people to begin filling the slots. Think about it, he can't appoint the Chicago inspector of sewers to the EPA. He has been running for President since becoming Senator and failed to become acquainted with qualified people coming up in Washington. Hence the leftovers/holdovers from Clinton.
Change the positions, not the name. Ch ch ch Change!
Obama's sewage
November 15, 2008 - 18:38 ET by Mike BatesThink about it, he can't appoint the Chicago inspector of sewers to the EPA.
As I'm sure many of my fellow NBers are aware, Obie's political godfather, Emil Jones, was a Chicago sewer inspector.
Ed Norton would be rolling in his grave.
Just another Chicago "thug"
November 15, 2008 - 11:01 ET by msh1973Just another Chicago "thug" in the Obama Administration. Is anyone really surprised?
I think that's what the left
November 15, 2008 - 13:59 ET by the strugglerI think that's what the left calls a crony.Somebody ask Chris Matthews if this is what he means when he says "cronyism."
I can see it now.
November 15, 2008 - 14:01 ET by mizflame98Obama picks Chris Matthews as WH Press Secretary.
Perfect Demotivator for the Obama Administration
http://www.despair.com/government.html
Miz
November 15, 2008 - 15:59 ET by SeashellNo, he wants Chris to stay in the media so Chris can "make sure that his Presidency is successful"
Matthews sounds like a
November 15, 2008 - 16:53 ET by Dan DiegoMatthews sounds like a perfect fit, he'd talk non stop (with spittle flying freely) which would prevent any press questions. The One's way communication, no challenges allowed.
The cost of living's going up, and the chance of livin's going down. - Flip Wilson
Slum Lord Projects
November 15, 2008 - 14:34 ET by jaywlOne of the accomplishments ObamaOne can cite with pride is his work with Slum Lords. Instead of a project to eradicate slums, he has a Slum Lord Project. Rezko was the first and did quite well. Even when caught he apparently has kept Obama clean, maybe. Wouldn't it be super fun if Fitzpatrick indicted Obama? Don't forget the Gazebo Project, bringing employment to the immigrant workers (read: Non-Chicago illegal Mexicans working for a landscaping company). Jarrett is just the latest Slum Lord to be outed. In her new job she will be shielded from Congressional scrutiny and after a few years can become a consultant for ever bigger Slum Lords. Change the players, not the game.
Hey wait a minute....
November 15, 2008 - 15:28 ET by MidAmericaIsn't that supposed picture of Ms. Jarrett actually ken burns?
»→ You're right
November 15, 2008 - 16:02 ET by Cool ArrowIt is Ken Burns. Picture was obviously taken after voting a second time.
I thought it was a Roswell
November 15, 2008 - 16:55 ET by Dan DiegoI thought it was a Roswell crash survivor.
The cost of living's going up, and the chance of livin's going down. - Flip Wilson
She's the result of a
November 15, 2008 - 17:44 ET by mizflame98She's the result of a facelift gone wrong.
Perfect Demotivator for the Obama Administration
http://www.despair.com/government.html
She's the result of a
November 15, 2008 - 20:49 ET by SeashellShe's the result of a facelift gone wrong.
Or something gone wrong. She is a very strange looking woman. She almost gives me the shivers.
Ken Burns
November 15, 2008 - 18:41 ET by Mike BatesIsn't that supposed picture of Ms. Jarrett actually ken burns?
Seems to me that Burns has done a better job of maintaining those girlish good looks.
MA.... Ken Burns! I am
November 15, 2008 - 20:36 ET by bigtimerMA....
Ken Burns!
I am still laughing...I wondered who she reminded me of today looking at that picture earlier...
You hit the nail on the head!
"America isn't the problem...America is the solution." ~ Rush Limbaugh
Does anyone else find irony in this?
November 15, 2008 - 17:51 ET by mizflame98Obama was a community organizer who was suppose to help poor people in Chicago. People who lived in sub-standard housing that was infested and run by slum lords. He even took offense at the fact that Palin had the audacity to belittle his "accomplishments" as a C.O. So, why on earth is he associating with (and appoiting) the same sort of slum lord scum that he was suppose to be fighting against? Makes you wonder what sort of community organizing he was really doing.
Perfect Demotivator for the Obama Administration
http://www.despair.com/government.html
B. Hussein's cronies
November 15, 2008 - 18:44 ET by Mike BatesSo, why on earth is he associating with (and appoiting) the same sort of slum lord scum that he was suppose to be fighting against?
And have you noticed how his associates have been very successful in shaking down government money? All to help the po' of course.
Oh, come now, people...the
November 15, 2008 - 20:14 ET by RR GOPOh, come now, people...the delapidated state of those slums are because of Bush's eight years of failed policies...don't you get it? We never had slums when Roosevelt, Truman, JFK, Johnson, Carter and Clinton were in the White House.
Yeah, right.
Actually, I think this one will get rid of the slums-no matter how many billions it costs. And, of course, it will be lauded as 'the right thing to do'. Never mind the fact that when simply handed something people are not likely to appreciate it or take care of it.
One of the 24% who thinks George W. Bush was a great President. One of the 89% who wants to bring back the stock and pillory.
Blame it on the Gipper.
November 16, 2008 - 10:55 ET by mizflame98Actually, in Obama's autobiography (I'm trying not to laugh when I refer to that work of fiction that way) he blames Ronald Reagan for the state of the slums.
For the record, that was one of the worse books I've ever read. I couldn't even finish it because it kept pissing me off so much.
Perfect Demotivator for the Obama Administration
http://www.despair.com/government.html
...there goes the
November 15, 2008 - 20:25 ET by TN Mom...there goes the neighboorhood!
Jarrett, the Slum Lord shouldn't be any where near the Oval Office; she should be in jail with fellow board member Rezko!
Maybe she can get Aunt Zeituni a new place to crash...
November 15, 2008 - 21:48 ET by CapeCodScottRemember..."Zeituni Onyango, the aunt so affectionately described in Mr Obama’s best-selling memoir Dreams from My Father, lives in a disabled-access apartment in a rundown public housing project in South Boston." (LINK)
www.ScottOnCapeCod.com
"Most men lead lives of quiet desperation"... until they get fed-up enough to finally say something about it!
Ken Burns Image Link....Spot On!
November 15, 2008 - 21:54 ET by CapeCodScottKen Burns
www.ScottOnCapeCod.com
"Most men lead lives of quiet desperation"... until they get fed-up enough to finally say something about it!
Is it just me? Or does that screenshot
November 15, 2008 - 23:02 ET by Teddyof Ms. Jarrett look like something out of Madame Tussauds?
Teddy
November 16, 2008 - 08:33 ET by SeashellNot just you, there is something very strange about her
Lets do this right, shall we?
November 15, 2008 - 23:51 ET by crosspatchIt wasn't "AP", it was Nedra Pickler who ignored Obama's slum ties. AP simply decided to put her story on the wire. I am tired of "journalists" being able to write stuff like this without being called on it. The byline is there for a reason, to hold the author responsible for the content. Pickler is a well-known cheerleader for the Democrats in general and Obama in particular. Forget for a moment about what AP says, just remember who wrote the article.
You can bet your bottom dollar that any article you see from Pickler will be a fawning piece for the Democrats. Adjust your filters accordingly. Go to Google News, for example and look up pieces with that byline. You can pretty much expect every one of her articles to be positive for Democrats and negative for Republicans.
Though I do find it interesting that Firedog Lake accused her of being a "Republican Shill" earlier this year. I suppose anyone that isn't always 100% in the tank for the Democrats is a Republican shill. Anyway, from my perusing of available articles she has written, she seems pretty much a Democrat cheerleader to me.
Why did he appoint her??
November 16, 2008 - 08:53 ET by Uncle DonFor all you that can't figure out why he'd name someone with such a timebomb waiting to go off in her file?? Look at her picture...he doesn't care what their education, their past, their experience, their anything....first and formost is that they're black. then he'll go from there. The press, of course, won't ask the questions or do any reporting on the absurdity of having these types of people in the administration for the same reason...don't want to be seen as racist!
When is this foolishness going to stop? When is one of the MSM going to stand up and say "wait a minute, let's start asking some real questions of this guy?"
Sorry, I wandered there for a minute....as someone else said, if this was Karl Rove, there'd be 100 reporters and cameras in front of the Slum....
Goog morning Uncle Don
November 16, 2008 - 09:15 ET by cocodrieYou're right. She is the icing to cover up the horsehockey that is going to be passed off as cake.