Off to a good start…

I don’t believe the evidence will support any accusation that Barack Obama was involved with Blagojevich’s alleged seat-for-sale scheme, but Obama is doing himself NO favors by lying about any element of this matter. There would be nothing wrong with Obama having spoken with the governor, and that’s what Obama should have said today – that he discussed possible candidates with Blagojevich, but had no idea that the governor was making plans to auction off the Senate seat to the highest bidder.
Lying is never a good idea. It’s an especially bad idea when the person who has just been arrested apparently hates you, and would likely love to see you taken down with him. Plus, this sort of pointless lie just fuels the flames for those who are looking for reasons to discredit you and shame you. It makes their job awfully easy.

Previous.

Fitzgerald strikes fast;

Illinois Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich and his Chief of Staff, John Harris, were arrested today by FBI agents on federal corruption charges alleging that they and others are engaging in ongoing criminal activity: conspiring to obtain personal financial benefits for Blagojevich by leveraging his sole authority to appoint a United States Senator; threatening to withhold substantial state assistance to the Tribune Company in connection with the sale of Wrigley Field to induce the firing of Chicago Tribune editorial board members sharply critical of Blagojevich; and to obtain campaign contributions in exchange for official actions – both historically and now in a push before a new state ethics law takes effect January 1, 2009..

Lots of links at Drudge, where the headline reads “Grand Jury subpeonas issued on Rezko/Obama land deal.”
Chicago Tribune;

In one charge related to the appointment of a senator to replace Barack Obama, prosecutors allege that Blagojevich sought appointment for himself as Secretary of Health and Human Services in the new Obama administration…

Smoking Gun;

The criminal complaint filed today against Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich contains a remarkable section detailing the Democratic politician’s alleged attempt to cash in on his ability to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama. Attached to the U.S. District Court complaint is an FBI affidavit, excerpted below, alleging that Blagojevich was caught on wiretaps noting that the Senate seat “is a f***ing valuable thing, you just don’t give it away for nothing.” He was also recorded saying that unless “I get something real good,” he would appoint himself to the vacancy. “I’m going to keep this Senate option for me a real possibility, you know, and therefore I can drive a hard bargain. You hear what I’m saying. And if I don’t get what I want and I’m not satisfied with it, then I’ll just take the Senate seat myself.” According to the surreptitiously recorded conversations, Blagojevich spoke with associates about the possibility of trading the Senate post for either an ambassadorship or a Cabinet post. The Democratic politician, according to the affidavit sworn by FBI Agent Daniel Cain, “analogized his situation to that of a sports agent shopping a potential free agent to various teams.” Blagojevich, 51, and his chief of staff, John Harris, were arrested this morning on political corruption charges.”

Watch how quickly the cheerleaders on Fitzgerald’s Plame and Conrad Black investigations turn…
Media watch side note – as per the usual pattern, the word “Democrat” remains conspicuously absent…
Indeed – “by arresting Blagojevich before Inauguration Day, U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald has done the one thing that absolutely prevents Barack Obama from removing him from his position.”
Which is what I meant by “strikes fast”.

Andrew Breitbart; Fraternities have been closed for less. […] If the photo had exposed a Republican offender, there’d already be a full-bore media scandal and cascading resignations. MSNBC would be rearranging its schedules for a wall-to-wall 24/7 bonanza. Rachel Maddow would finally have her big story. Barbara Boxer, Patricia Schroeder and other righteous feminists would walk up the Capitol steps, reprising the time they tried to destroy Clarence Thomas – for nothing.

(Obama’s chief speechwriter, Jon Favreau, on the left.)

h/t

Have no fear of the coming recession, The One has revealed the answer to our economic problems:

Obama also said he wants to install energy-saving light bulbs and replace old heating systems in federal buildings to cut costs and create jobs.

Yes, an army of illegal immigrants running around installing made-in-China lightbulbs in federal buildings is a sure path to prosperity.

Or, in the words of Jim Geharty – “All Barack Obama statements come with an expiration date. All of them.”

Is there nothing that The Savior cannot do?
h/t
Notice: Some of you have been getting antivirus software alerts. Here’s what I’ve found. The problem is with embedded videos, so I’ve dropped those for now and replaced it with a link.. Actns/Swif.T virus affecting embedded YouTube vids?

Spoke with Google/YouTube and apparently anti-spyware software from Computer Associates had been returning false positives, identifying certain files contained within YouTube embed codes as malware. The specific YouTube issue is apparently being corrected by Computer Associates and wasn’t actually harmful in the first place. If you’ve got CA software, you might want to check for any updates.]

The perfect gift for the lefties on your gift list, a priceless reminder of the day the world changed.

h/t

“… saying that his plan would reduce oil imports, create jobs in energy conservation and renewable sources of energy, and reverse the warming of the atmosphere.

Good times!

Economically speaking, this is total lunacy. But he believes. Nor does he need Congress to act, since the EPA is already dealing with petitions to regulate CO2 as a pollutant. He simply does what he said he would do before the election, which is to regulate CO2 as a HAP. Even farms would have to go through permitting, as would large stores, etc.
Last week an EPA appeals board dumped another coal plant, and said the EPA should develop national rules for CO2 emissions. That ruling is widely believed to have placed about one hundred coal plants in jeopardy, at a time when the US is rapidly running out of electricity. Plants in Utah, New Mexico, Kansas and Georgia have all recently been stopped by legal action.
That leaves the US with no new drilling, no new nuclear plants, no new hydro plants and no new coal plants. In short, it leaves us with no real substantial new energy sources except perhaps plants that burn natural gas.

Combining the Clinton White House with the Bush tax cuts.

[F]inally, the day will come, and the first thing Obama will do is…not touch the Bush tax cuts. In addition to proposing a “vast economic stimulus plan,” the Times news pages report today, Obama is “said to be reconsidering a key campaign pledge: his proposal to repeal the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. According to several people familiar with the discussions, he might instead let those tax cuts expire as scheduled in 2011, effectively delaying any tax increase while he gives his stimulus plan a chance to work.”

Heh. Is there nothing that Obama can’t do?
I wonder how many loyal Democrats realized during the heated battles of the primaries that they were making a choice between Hillary and Hillary?

* *

Life imitates Ric Mercer.

More – Zogby measures media malpractice – and is attacked for it.

Or not.

“Six Agencies Illegally Scoured Joe the Plumber’s Records for Dirt, Including Office of the Attorney General, So That Information Could Be Turned Over to National Media.”
That’ll teach him!
But the bigger question being asked by Americans today is this: Could Obama get a job in the Obama administration?

On Thursday’s front page, the New York Times revealed that President-elect Barack Obama’s transition team, apparently intent on avoiding personal scandals and ethics embarrassments, is requiring prospective staffers to answer what is probably the most exhaustive disclosure questionnaire ever written by an incoming administration.
It includes questions such as “Do you or any members of your immediate family own a gun?” and “If you have ever sent an electronic communication, including but not limited to an email, text message or instant message, that could suggest a conflict of interest or be a possible source of embarrassment to you, your family or the President-Elect if it were made public, please describe.”
And this: “If you keep or have every kept a diary that contains anything that could suggest a conflict of interest or be a possible source of embarrassment to you, your family, or the President-Elect if it were made public, please describe.”

Well that throws a cold, wet blanket on the “Hillary for State” speculation, no?

$600 million doesn’t go as far as it used to. The candidate of hope needs a little more change.

“Iraq bombings show progress, challenges”

Screenshot
Update!

(h/t Dutch Canuck)

Nice move, rookie;

Just hours after President Bush and President-elect Obama met in the Oval Office of the White House, details of their confidential conversation began leaking out to the press, igniting anger from the president, sources claim.
“Senator Obama would be wise to keep close counsel,” a top Bush source warned.
“BUSH AND OBAMA AT ODDS OVER AID FOR AUTO INDUSTRY,” splashed the NEW YORK TIMES in an exclusive Monday evening, quoting “people familiar with the discussion.”
The two met at the White House in private, without staff.

But that’s not all…. from Ayers to the IRA to palling around with Hamas. More on that here;

That Malley would be working on Middle East policy for the new administration is troubling enough, but the fact they’ve now repeatedly been dishonest about his involvement in the campaign makes it much worse.

(So, should people speculate as to where this leak came from?)

“The page you requested is not available right now”.

It’s barely worth mentioning, because it’s so obvious, that if a GOP president-elect were engaging in this kind of scrubbing, it would be getting saturation Old Media coverage

h/t
More – “Agenda disappears from Obama Web site”

A new administration, a new approach in the hunt for Bin Laden. Start small, and work your way up.