Instapundit Glenn Reynolds seemed to “enjoy” the story of Chicago Alderman Dick Mell, who forgot to re-register his arsenal of weapons as required by city ordinance, then “quietly introduced an ordinance that would reopen gun registration in Chicago and create a one-month amnesty for himself and other gun owners in the same predicament.”
But that is just the tip of Dick Mell. His son-in-law just happens to be Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich. Okay, maybe Mell had something to do with that. However, you know how things go with in-laws:
Almost as soon as he was elected governor, Blagojevich reportedly felt it important to show he was not merely a creation of his father-in-law. In 2005, without telling Mell, the governor shut down a landfill run by a distant relative of Mell’s wife.
Blagojevich’s office said the governor acted after hearing that the relative was claiming waste haulers could dump illegal trash without having to worry about state regulators.
Mell was livid. He said his son-in-law was willing to “throw anyone under the bus.”
“He uses everybody and then discards ’em,” he told Chicago magazine. In a brief interview with The Associated Press, Mell expressed sadness about how the feud has created a rift in his family, but declined to say more.
For his part, the governor has gone so far as boasting about his ability to make tough decisions, even those involving family members, was evidence of his own “testicular virility.”
In the middle of the hubbub, back in 2005, Mell also accused the governor’s chief fundraiser, Christopher Kelly, of trading government jobs for campaign contributions. He later retracted the allegations after Kelly threatened to sue.
Unfortunately for them, the spat attracted the attention of Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, who got the attention of US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald.
The rest, as they say, is Rezko. Or, as David Mamet had Jim Malone say to Eliot Ness, “Welcome to Chicago. This town stinks like a whorehouse at low tide.”
And now you know… the rest of the story.
Update: Insta-lanche!
Isn’t “Illinois” an old indian world for “there’s one born every minute”?
No, but “Chicago” is the Algonquian name for “Political Shithole”…
Ah. It must be summer in Chicago. Sailboats appear on Lake Michigan. The ivy fills out and covers the infield walls of Wriggly Field, and fat envelopes of cash are stuffed under doors at City Hall.
Politicians, what ya gonna do wit ’em.
In Indiana it’s an unspoken rule that the closer you get to Chicago, the more likely the local government is corrupt. Chicago has reach, I tell you.
Even though I’m 4 hours from Gary, the ruling Democrat party in my town is run by a tight coalition of three or four families–all of which serve on the fire department, which is annually the biggest recipient of squandered tax funds.
If these most recent Chicago shenanigans were splashed across the headlines of my local newspaper tomorrow morning, most readers wouldn’t bat an eye.
Remember in November! This is the political environment that produced Obama – and he is proud to endorse thew most corrupt and incompetent parts of the machine.
Mell is my alderman. City services in my ward are functional, but good luck getting a response out of his ward office if you need any additional help. Oh, and he’s so crooked, you could screw him into the ground.
I can’t understand why this shit hasn’t been indicted in the past – probably because the Great White Whale for the feds is Mayor Daley, and they are exhausting all means of getting to him (and apparently Mell isn’t one of those means).
Moreover, here’s what I’ve heard from a relative who is In The Know: Mell’s feud with Blagojevich may have just saved his ass. Being kept at arm’s length from his son-in-law has kept Mell from getting involved in Blago’s graft. If Mell had his druthers, he’d be out there filling up his pockets.
(Karl, if you ever want to follow a Chicago politician whose shamelessness would put Blago to shame, do a piece on Cook County President. This guy is so bad, a Republican might actually have a viable chance against him in the next general election.)
Ahem: that’s Cook County President Todd Stroger. PIMF.
The way they shielded the health of Stroger’s dad (the fmr pres, for those who don’t know) from the public was very Woodrow Wilson.
Oh, yes, the whole “Weekend at Bernie’s” treatment of John Stroger was something to behold.
If the hippies do succeed in pulling the troops out of Iraq, I would be delighted to have them land of the beaches of Lake Michigan. The Chicago political class is dug in better than Saddam Hussein ever was, and will require armed force to dislodge.
Mr. Clean. Hah.
I can just imagine Mike Royko looking down from his heavenly perch, smiling and shaking his head. Chicago politics – nothing changes.
I would amplify the comment about the polictical environment producing Barack Obama- the Machine manufactured Obama for the express purpose of keeping the King out of prison, first of all, and secondly, to turn the state and later federal money hoses into Cook County’s and Chicago’s desperately empty coffers.
Make no mistake: the presence of David Axelrod operating the controls on the candidate is no mere coincidence.
Percy. Just try to have your driveway resufaced. I can guarantee you’ll hear from the alderman.
I think rank has it’s privileges. The bosses in Chicago have armed security guards, and they should. Look what they do. Criminal, they don’t need any stinking GUNS