Did Obama pull a Duke Cunningham with his real estate deal?

[trumad]

Sorry Obama fans but this stinks to high heaven.

From Jane Hamsher:

"This is the first time this has happened and I don't like the feeling,'' Obama said. "It's frustrating to me, and I'm kicking myself about it."
Book deal leads to real estate deal


To recap: Obama inked a book deal after winning election to the Senate in 2004. With his new wealth, in June 2005, Obama bought a $1.65 million mansion in Kenwood, some $300,000 below asking price. Rezko's wife Rita paid $625,000, the list price, for an adjacent empty lot the Rezkos may develop.

The deals closed the same day because the seller insisted both parcels be sold at the same time.

When the deals went down, Rezko — who befriended Obama when he was a nobody Harvard law student — was already cast in news stories as a controversial figure and political fundraiser.

By January 2006, when Obama bought a strip of Rezko's yard, Rezko's status was elevated to politically radioactive, since it was known he was under investigation by federal prosecutors.

[]

So what did he learn from the Rezko transactions? Obama said, "One of the things you purchase in public life is that there are going to be a different set of standards, and I'm going to make sure from this point on I don't even come close to the line."
http://www.firedoglake.com/category/democrat-ethics/

[Kagemusha]

1. But no one cares about Hastert's land deals.

Or his personally profiting from earmarks. No one cares about that.

Instead, it's Obama who's going to be frog marched to Club Fed.

[jody]

2. Obama should immediately check into rehab. Mark Foley can recommend one. It's always so sad to find

out that heroes have feet of clay.

I just wish the media had gone after * as aggressively about his illegal real estate deals, illegal stock transactions, AWOL instances, drug arrests, etc.

If the media had done its job, a half million people would still be alive, a nation would not have been destroyed, and the U.S. would not be bankrupt.

[pnwmom]

4. Please read my post #3 below.

[jody]

5. Thanks. n/t

[Gwerlain]

I hate it when people pull...

sound bites out of articles.

"Obama said he had nothing to do with Rezko's eventual purchase of the land next to his house, and they were not negotiating together. He said he had no idea Rezko was offering full price for his land. Obama said he got a bargain -- $300,000 below list -- because his mansion was being unloaded in a 'fire sale.'"

Please read the whole article. Unless you're too... busy.

[pnwmom]

3. Sorry, but the article leaves out some major facts.

Lots of houses go for lower than the asking price. The house that Obama bought had been on the market for several months and the only other offer was LOWER than Obama's.

On the other hand, the adjoining vacant lot had another offer that was just below what Rezko offered -- so Rezko had to offer more than the other potential purchaser in order to get the property.

When Obama offered to buy a strip of land from Rezko, the appraiser, using the usual formula, named a value that was LOWER than what Obama decided to offer. Obama offered more -- he offered to pay 1/6 of the purchase price that Rezko had paid, since the strip Obama wanted was 1/6 of the property.

To sum up, the house Obama bought was originally over-priced, or SOMEONE would have come along in the several months and met the price. The only other offer was less than what Obama offered. The vacant lot attracted an offer from a neutral party that had to be beaten by Rezko in order for him to purchase the property. And Obama could have relied on the appraiser's estimate to make an offer for the property, but instead he offered to pay based on a simple pro-rata share of Rezko's purchase price.