Barack Obama's buddy Tony Rezko didn't have a good day yesterday.
CHICAGO -- A prominent fundraiser for Sen. Barack Obama and Gov. Rod Blagojevich was convicted Wednesday of fraud and money laundering after a high-profile federal trial provided an unusually detailed glimpse of the pay-to-play politics that has made Illinois infamous.
Antoin "Tony" Rezko showed no emotion as the jury found him guilty of a majority of the 24 counts he faced, including scheming to get kickbacks out of money management firms wanting state business and a contractor who wanted to build a hospital in northern Illinois. He was acquitted of charges that included attempted extortion.
"What the jury did was vindicate the interests of the citizens of Illinois and honest government," said U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald.
The nine-week trial included explosive testimony about all-night drug parties involving the government's star witness and allegations that the governor discussed a state job for a supporter after the donor handed over a $25,000 check for Blagojevich's campaign.
Testimony barely touched on the relationship between Obama and Rezko, who has known the Democratic presidential candidate since he entered politics and was involved in a 2005 real estate deal with him. Most of the focus was on shakedowns prosecutors said Rezko arranged when he was a top adviser to Blagojevich.
Neither Blagojevich nor Obama has been accused of wrongdoing. Blagojevich planned an evening news conference to address the verdict. Obama's campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
...While Obama's name rarely surfaced, the case focused attention on Obama's relationship with Rezko, a man Hillary Clinton derided in one televised debate as a "slum landlord."
Rezko, a real estate developer and fast-food entrepreneur, had been friendly with Obama for years, even offering him a job after Obama finished law school. Obama turned down the offer, but a political friendship developed.
Rezko donated more than $21,000 to Obama and raised far more for his campaigns in Illinois, though not his presidential bid.
He also advised Obama on the purchase of a new Chicago home and, in his wife's name, purchased a vacant lot next to the new Obama home at the same time from a couple who insisted on selling both pieces of property simultaneously. The purchase raised questions about the extent of his help.
The charges against Rezko had nothing to do with Obama, who has donated $150,000 in Rezko-related contributions to charity.
A man is known by the company he keeps.
Obama's choice of friends doesn't reflect well on his character.
Though Obama wasn't accused of wrongdoing, there's that stench of corruption that remains.
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