Author: Lynn Sweet

By Dave McKinney
Chicago Sun-Times Washington Bureau Chief

Scott Lee Cohen’s surprise decision to end his pursuit of the lieutenant governor’s office has created a vacuum at the top of the Democratic ticket, breathing new life into the losing candidacies of his rivals and an array of others.

Some in the Democratic Party would regard a Pat Quinn-Dan Hynes ticket as a salve that would quickly heal a party that was ripped apart by their contentious primary battle.

But Quinn and the three-term comptroller, who narrowly lost to the governor, would have to put aside their bad blood before such a Democratic dream team might be viable.

A source in the Hynes camp told the Sun-Times the comptroller isn’t pursuing the opening but would consider it if asked.

“He’ll do whatever he can to help the Democratic Party this fall,” the source said.

Second-place finisher Art Turner, a West Side state representative, said Sunday he wants to be a contender. He was House Speaker Michael Madigan’s endorsed candidate. Other names kicked around included the four others in the primary: Sen. Rickey Hendon (D-Chicago), Sen. Terry Link (D-Waukegan), Rep. Mike Boland (D-East Moline) and electrician Thomas Castillo.

Link said he could offer more regional balance to the ticket and help attract collar county votes.

“I’m not lobbying, I’m not pushing for it, but am I still interested? Yeah,” Link said Sunday night.

Former Deputy Treasurer Raja Kirhsnamoorthi, who narrowly lost the primary election for state comptroller, reportedly would be interested in joining the ticket to add ethnic and regional (he was raised in Peoria) balance.

Also discussed was Veterans Affairs official Tammy Duckworth and Rep. Julie Hamos (D-Wilmette), who just lost a primary for Congress.

The Democratic State Central Committee will choose Cohen’s replacement. The group is to meet March 15 or earlier.

THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
_______________________________________________________________________________________
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 7, 2010

DAILY GUIDANCE AND PRESS SCHEDULE FOR
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2010

In the morning, the President will receive the Presidential Daily Briefing, the Economic Daily Briefing and meet with senior advisors in the Oval Office. These meetings are closed press.

In the afternoon, the President will meet with Secretary of the Interior Salazar in the Roosevelt Room. This meeting is closed press.

In-Town Travel Pool
Wires: AP, Reuters, Bloomberg
Wire Photos: AP, Reuters, AFP
TV Corr & Crew: FOX
Print: Talking Points Memo
Radio: ABC
Travel Photo: New York Times

EST

9:30AM Pool Call Time

9:30AM THE PRESIDENT receives the Presidential Daily Briefing
Oval Office
Closed Press

10:00AM THE PRESIDENT receives the Economic Daily Briefing
Oval Office
Closed Press

10:30AM THE PRESIDENT meets with senior advisors
Oval Office
Closed Press

1:45PM THE PRESIDENT meets with Secretary Salazar
Roosevelt Room
Closed Press

Briefing Schedule

TBD Briefing by Press Secretary Robert Gibbs

##

By KIM JANSSEN AND LYNN SWEET Staff Reporters
CHICAGO–A tearful Scott Lee Cohen, the pawnbroker who won the Democratic lieutenant governor nomination, only to have his scandalized past surface and threaten the ticket, said Sunday he would step aside, giving Democratic Party leaders a chance to pick his replacement.

“For the good of the people of the state of Illinois and the Democratic Party, I will resign,” Cohen said at the Hop Haus, a bar and restaurant at 7545 N. Clark, during the Super Bowl.

The choked-up Cohen, 44, a political neophyte who poured $2 million into his campaign, was flanked by his fiancee, Karen Reisman, and two of his sons, Zachery, 17, and Jacob, 11.

“It is my hope, and I pray with all my heart, that I didn’t hurt the people that I love so much,” Cohen said. “All I ever wanted to do was to run for office and to help the people, not cause chaos.”

“There is uncertainty that if I continue to run that the Democrats will win November,” Cohen said. “Many people came out to support me when I announced.

”The Democratic Party didn’t, but many people did. This is the hardest thing that I have ever had to do in my life.”

Only hours earlier, Cohen told the Chicago Sun-Times that he was not convinced that he was unelectable and was mapping strategy to test the reaction of Illinois voters in the wake of revelations about his personal life after his surprise win in the six-way Tuesday primary.

“I think there is a strong possibility that I am electable,” Cohen said in an interview at a Starbucks at Jefferson and Lake, across the street from his campaign headquarters.

The Democratic primary for lieutenant governor received little attention. And while Cohen did not hide it, court records examined the day after the primary revealed that he was an admitted user of anabolic steroids. Cohen told the Sun-Times Sunday that he bought the steroids from a friend without a prescription.

There also were accusations hanging over him of putting a knife to the throat of a former live-in girlfriend — who turned out to be a convicted prostitute. He also was allegedly behind in child support.

Under Illinois law, the winners of the primaries for governor and lieutenant governor automatically have to run together. Cohen’s presence on the ticket endangered Gov. Quinn’s chances of election and could have dragged down Democratic Senate nominee Alexi Giannoulias and other Democrats.

After Cohen said he would drop out — he still needs to sign withdrawal papers — Quinn said in a statement that “he made the right decision for the Democratic Party and the people of Illinois. Now we can continue to focus our efforts on putting our economy back on track and working to bring good jobs to Illinois.”

A ballot vacancy is filled by the weighted vote of the 38 members of the Democratic State Central Committee.

About 90 minutes after telling the Sun-Times that he was not quitting the race Sunday, Cohen received an afternoon call from House Speaker Michael J. Madigan, the state Democratic Party chairman.

According to Madigan spokesman Steve Brown, Madigan called because he heard Cohen was dropping out of the race and wanted to confirm it.

Cohen spokesman Baxter Swilley said Madigan made it clear to Cohen that stepping aside was the best course of action for his personal life and his career and that if he did so, he would have a chance to rehabilitate his image.

During the primary, Cohen flooded the airwaves with ads that focused on jobs, while his five underfunded rivals were basically invisible.

A chorus of Democrats had been calling for Cohen to step aside, but Cohen started to dig in after his win. He may have resisted their calls because they never phoned to congratulate him on his victory.

Cohen told the Sun-Times on Sunday afternoon that Madigan was the only official to call him after the election.

“None of my opponents called to congratulate me, not a senator, not a congressman, not one person called to congratulate me,” he said.

Asked if that hurt his feelings, Cohen said that lack of calls “showed me no respect. It absolutely hurt my feelings.”

The respect issue — which seemed to loom over Cohen’s decisionmaking–came up Sunday night in Cohen’s withdrawal announcement.

“I want to thank Mayor Daley for coming out, being a gentleman. I want to thank Speaker Madigan, who met with me on a personal level to give me advice, give me some reasons why it would be best for me not to be on the ballot,” Cohen said.

Daley was alone among Democratic officials in declining to pressure Cohen out of the contest.

On Sunday, Madigan’s camp disclosed that Cohen met with Madigan at his downtown Chicago law office on Friday. The meeting, which included Phil Molfese, who managed Cohen’s primary campaign, was described to the Sun-Times as a “man-to-man meeting of a seasoned politician talking to a novice.”

Cohen was originally planning to go to the East Rogers Park restaurant and bar for a Super Bowl photo op to tell reporters about his plans to test Illinois voter sentiment and to have reporters see him in a different light.

On Thursday, Cohen appeared on WTTW-Channel 11 with his former wife in a chaotic show in which he failed to put his political problems behind him.

Speaking Sunday night, Cohen said, “When I decided to run for lieutenant governor, I did it with my heart and my soul. I thought that by opening up my life, I could represent the people in a fair, honest, loving, caring way.

“On my election, it went crazy. The last thing I ever, ever wanted to do was to put the people of Illinois in jeopardy in any way.”

Contributing: Dave McKinney

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CBS NEWS – EVENING NEWS
“PRESIDENT OBAMA”
INTERVIEW WITH PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA

KATIE COURIC: Mr. President, thank you for sitting down with us for a few minutes. We really appreciate it.
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Thank you.

KATIE COURIC: Yesterday, you said in front of the DNC Winter Meeting, quote, “Just in case there’s any confusion out there, I’m not going to walk away from health care.” But specifically, how are you going to move forward?

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, what I’ve been doing is consulting closely with the leaders in the House, the leaders in the Senate on the Democratic side. And I want to consult closely with our Republican colleagues. So, they’re gonna be coming in to the White House next week. And what I want to do is to ask them to put their ideas on the table. And then after the recess, which will be a few weeks away, I want to come back and have large meeting with Republicans and Democrats to go through, systematically, all the best ideas that are out there and move it forward.

But part of the reason that people need to understand why we can’t back off on this — one of the major insurers in California just announced that in the individual market, they’re increasing their premiums by 39 percent. That’s a portrait of the future if we don’t do something now. It’s gonna keep on beatin’ down families, small businesses, large businesses. It’s gonna be a huge drain on the economy. We’re gonna have to do something about it. And I think we can.

KATIE COURIC: So, you’re inviting Republicans here to the White House. Does that mean, Mr. President, you’re willing to start at square one?

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well I think that what I want to do is to look at the Republican ideas that are out there. And I want to be very specific. “How do you guys want to lower costs? How do you guys intend to reform the insurance market so people with preexisting conditions, for example, can get health care? How do you want to make sure that the 30 million people who don’t have health insurance can get it? What are your ideas, specifically?” And if we can go step by step through a series of– these issues, and arrive at some agreements, then procedurally, there’s no reason why we can’t do it a lot faster than the process took last year.

KATIE COURIC: You say that jobs are your top priority this year. In retrospect, do you wish you had waited on health care until the economy grew stronger?

PRESIDENT OBAMA: No. Because keep in mind, jobs were my number one priority last year. That’s why we passed the Recovery Act. To make sure that not only did we put $300 billion worth of tax cuts into people’s pockets so that there was demand and businesses had customers. That’s why we provided over $200 billion in assistance to states, so they wouldn’t have to lay off teachers and cops and fire fighters. And that all supported maintaining the jobs that we had.

That’s why we moved forward on infrastructure and clean energy and a lot of job creation. And having taken those steps very quickly at the front end, at the beginning of the year, it was important for us also to start looking at these issues that middle class families have been struggling with for decades now. And do I wish we could have done it faster? That it hadn’t been so painfully slow through the legislative process? Absolutely. But it was the right thing to do then. It continues to be the right thing.

KATIE COURIC: Speaking of the legislative process, when it comes to health care, people watched the sausage being made. And quite frankly, it made them pretty sick to their stomachs. Your White House was in the middle of all these negotiations, all these special deals, that were–

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, I’m not–

KATIE COURIC: –given to certain Senators.

PRESIDENT OBAMA: That’s probably not a right characterization. But–

KATIE COURIC: Well, you aware of them.

PRESIDENT OBAMA: What is absolutely true is that getting something passed through Congress with 535 Members is hard. It’s especially hard in something as big as health care. It’s gonna be true when we try to get the financial reform. So that we don’t have the same kind of “too big to fail”, bailout nonsense that we had last year. Each of these issues are huge complicated issues. There’s tons of special interests and lobbyists out there.

And each legislator, they think they’re doin’ what’s best for their state or for their district. And what we have to do is just make sure that it is a much more clear and transparent process. I’ve got to push Congress on that. We’ve got to make sure that we’re watchin’ out for that. But the end producy, the actual agreements that were come to on health care are ones that I’m absolutely convinced benefit millions of people all across the country.

KATIE COURIC: But did some of these special deals, Mr. President–

PRESIDENT OBAMA: They didn’t help.

KATIE COURIC: –sort of get it passed at all costs, turn your stomach, too?

PRESIDENT OBAMA: They did not help. They frustrate me. But, you know, this is a democracy. Look, I would have loved nothing better than to simply come up with some very elegant you know, academically approved approach to health care. And didn’t have any kinds of legislative fingerprints on it. And just go ahead and have that passed. But that’s not how it works in our democracy. Unfortunately what we end up having to do is to do a lot of negotiations with a lot of different people. Many of whom have their constituents best interests at heart.

But cumulatively what ends up happening is it ends up looking like each individual Senator, each individual legislator– is just lookin’ out for their own thing. And don’t have the larger public interest at heart. My job is to make sure that we stay focused on that larger vision of how do we lower costs for Americans over the long term.

KATIE COURIC: A lot of people, including Democrats, wrote to me saying, “You campaigned on a slogan of change you can believe in. But their lives and the ways of Washington,” they wrote, “haven’t changed at all. What would you say to them?”

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, it’s not true that they haven’t changed at all. Let’s just take, we’re sitting in the White House here. Every single person who comes into the White House now is posted on a website, so you know every visitor to the White House. That’s never happened in the history of the Republic. We are eliminating lobbyists from boards and commissions that have significant power throughout Washington. That hasn’t happened in a previous Administration.

There’s more transparency on something like the Recovery Act and how taxpayer dollars are being spent than there’s ever been on a project of this size and scale. So, here in the White House, actually, we have instituted a whole range of changes that give people a lot more confidence in what we’re doing. We haven’t done as much as needs to be done. So, for example, on earmarks — what people consider to be pork projects.

What we’ve said is, “Member of Congress, if you’re gonna introduce a project that benefits your district, you should post it on the internet so people can see it, before you vote on it. And we’ll put it on a centralized website.” But all these things take time. I mean, you know, you’re not gonna transform a culture in Washington or anywhere else over the course of a year. You just gotta keep on chipping away at it, and that’s what we’ve tried to do.

KATIE COURIC: Chris from Falls Church, Virginia writes, “Mr. President, I lost my house two years ago and I’ve been out of work for a year. Can the Federal Government really stimulate the economy enough to start creating new jobs any time soon?” Without getting into too much policy speak, what would you say to Chris?

PRESIDENT OBAMA: I’d say to Chris — I know how tough it’s been. I’d say that we are seeing the corner turn on the economy growing again. Last year, at this time, the economy had contracted, had shrunk by six percent. We know now that last quarter it had grown by six percent. That’s a good sign that companies are starting to pick up hiring again, because they see the opportunities to go out there and make money.

It’s not happening as fast as we’d like. And that’s why there’s still some things we can do in terms of tax credits for small businesses. Taking some of that TARP money that’s been repaid and giving it to community banks, so that they can lend it to small businesses. Giving job credits to small businesses for hiring. Potentially, a million small businesses out there could get $5,000 for each employee they hire this year. All those things, I think, are moving us in the right direction. And my hope is, is that for folks who are unemployed, they’re gonna start seeing concrete improvement in their own lives in the next few months.

KATIE COURIC: A cab driver told us to tell you he is scared to death of the deficit. And Congress couldn’t even establish a bipartisan commission to study the deficit, because Republicans were afraid it would raise taxes and Democrats were afraid it would cut spending. You can understand why people are not only afraid, but so frustrated.

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Yeah. Well it’s important to remember that actually, the majority of Democrats did vote to set up this commission. What happened was you had seven Republicans who had been cosponsors of the bill, who decided not to vote for it.

KATIE COURIC: But some Democrats didn’t support it, correct?

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, no, of course. But think about this. You’ve got seven Republicans who were cosponsors of the bill. It was their idea. And when I said, “Yes, let’s do it.” Suddenly they decided to say no. That’s indicative of a lot of posturing. And on this issue. And what I think the American people want is just an honest assessment of the situation.

Now, the honest assessment is this. We had a big structural deficit even before the recession. The recession made it much worse. We’re not gonna solve this overnight. And we don’t want to either raise taxes or drastically slash government spending while the economy’s still fragile. If Democrats and Republicans come together in a sensible way, putting everything on the table, not trying to position themselves politically ahead of time, then there’s no reason why we can’t start putting in place some serious measures that will start driving the deficit down long term.

The biggest thing, the most important thing that we can do on deficits, and I would say this to your cab driver and everybody else. Is to get a health reform package passed. The package that we put together. The Congressional Budget Office says will cut the deficit by a trillion dollars. Even in Washington, that’s real money. If we can start bending the cross curve on health care, that’s the most important thing we can do to deal with the deficits long term.

KATIE COURIC Have you ruled out trying confessed 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Muhammad in New York City?

PRESIDENT OBAMA: I have not ruled it out, but I think it’s important for us to take into account the practical, logistical issues involved. I mean, if you’ve got a city that is saying no, and a police department that’s saying no, and a mayor that’s saying no, that makes it difficult. But I think that the most important thing for the public to understand is we’re not handling any of these cases any different than the Bush Administration handled them all through 9/11.

They prosecuted the 190 folks in these Article III courts. Got convictions. And those folks are in maximum security prisons right now. And there have been no escapes. And it is a virtue of our system that we should be proud of. Now, what I’ve also said is that, you know, it’s important for us to recognize that when we’re dealing with Al Qaeda operatives, that they may have national security intelligence that we need.

And it’s important to make sure that the processes and procedures we approach with respect to these folks are not identical to the ones that we would use if we’re apprehending the local drug dealer. And that’s why we’ve put in place some very particular ways of dealing with these issues that ensure our security, but also still uphold our due process.

KATIE COURIC: Are you talking about reading them the Miranda rights? Their Miranda rights? In other words, like Abdul Matallab, who was read his Miranda rights? A lot of people are very upset about that. Because he was giving information to the F.B.I. Then his rights were read to him, and he clammed up.

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, that’s actually not what happened. What happened was he clammed up, and after we had obtained actionable intelligence from him, that’s when the F.B.I. folks on the ground then read him his Miranda rights. But keep in mind, Richard Reid was read his Miranda rights five minutes after he was arrested, under the previous Administration. Some of the same critics of our approach have been employing this policy for years.

KATIE COURIC: Having said that, should the practice of reading suspected terrorists their Miranda rights be reviewed?

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Absolutely. Everything should be reviewed. And what we’ve done is we’ve said, “Let’s have the best interrogators around.” Some of those, by the way, are going to be F.B.I. officials. Some of them are gonna be police officers who are very good at their jobs. Some of them are gonna be national security experts. “Let’s put together teams that are in charge of the interrogation process. Because we want to make sure priority number one, when these kinds of events happen, have we gotten all the information we need to ensure that there’s not gonna be any additional attacks?”

KATIE COURIC: But you have not ruled out New York City as a venue?

PRESIDENT OBAMA: We have not ruled out anything. We will make a definitive judgment based on consultations with all the relevant authorities.

KATIE COURIC: All right. And finally, a Super Bowl question. I know you have said that you are rooting for the Saints a bit. You’re impressed by what Drew Brees has done for New Orleans. But I’m gonna let you show off your sports knowledge for a moment. Who do you think will win and why?

PRESIDENT OBAMA: You know, I think the Colts probably have to be favored. Mainly because they’ve got perhaps the best quarterback in history. I mean, Peyton Manning is unbelievable. And you know, they’ve got a team that has complete confidence in him. Everybody knows the system. There’s enormous continuity with that team.

So they are tough. I do have a soft spot in my heart for New Orleans. Mainly because of what the city’s gone through. Over these last several years. And I just know how much that team means to them. And I got to know Drew Brees when we shot a commercial for having kids get more active and get off the couch. And he’s just a class act. Terrific guy. Wonderful family. But I would say that the Colts have to be favored. Now, one other factor that I have to confess here is that when my Bears went to the Super Bowl several years ago, it was the Indianapolis Colts that beat ’em. So I probably–

KATIE COURIC: Got an axe to grind.

PRESIDENT OBAMA: –will still have (LAUGH) a little bit of an axe to grind.

KATIE COURIC: And you’d like to issue an executive order, I understand, mandating a close game.

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Mandating a close game. We had a great game last year. And I’m hopeful that we’ve got the same kind of game we had with the Cardinals and the Steelers.

KATIE COURIC: All right, President Obama again, thanks so much for talking with us. Appreciate it.

Democratic Senate nominee Alexi Giannoulias kicks off his general election contest today at the Springfield home of Sen. Dick Durbin, who will be the chairman of Giannoulias’ campaign.

The selection of Springfield is strategic, since central and southern Illinois will be battlegrounds in the race between Giannoulias, the state treasurer, and the GOP Senate nominee, Rep. Mark Steven Kirk. Giannoulias lives on Chicago’s Near North Side and Kirk’s home is in north suburban Highland Park.

Durbin, the No. 2 Senate leader, is the only statewide Illinois officeholder who lives outside the Chicago area. Raised in East St. Louis, Durbin is popular Downstate. He accompanied then-state Sen. Barack Obama while Obama was running for the U.S. Senate in 2004, helping introduce him to other parts of the state.

Giannoulias already has run statewide as governor. Kirk outlined his plans Wednesday at an Illinois Republican Party breakfast at the Union League Club. “I’ve already been from Rockford to Cairo, but I am less well known in central and southern Illinois, so I am going to be spending a lot of time down there,” he said.

Durbin and Giannoulias are expected to focus on job creation at today’s event. Durbin is one of the chief drafters of the Senate Democratic jobs packages. He has been working on legislation dealing with spurring small business growth in part by making access to credit easier.

On the campaign trail Giannoulias has been touting how he leveraged Wells Fargo bank’s desire to continue to do business with Illinois — with $25 billion of state deposits — in 2009 when the bank wanted to liquidate Hartmarx, a men’s clothing company in Des Plaines. Giannoulias pressured the bank to find a purchaser, which it did, saving 600 jobs.

Ex-girlfriend at center of Scott Lee Cohen scandal: Lt. Gov. nominee not fit to hold office
Comments

BY MAUDLYNE IHEJIRIKA, MONIFA THOMAS, LYNN SWEET AND MARY WISNIEWSKI
Chicago Sun-Times

The ex-girlfriend who accused Democratic Lt. Governor nominee Scott Lee Cohen of threatening her with a knife said Saturday she “does not believe he is fit to hold any public office.”

Amanda J. Eneman’s statement, issued through well-known celebrity attorney Gloria Allred, are the first public comments by the convicted prostitute since details about Cohen’s background emerged following his victory in the primary Tuesday.

“Ms. Eneman was Scott Lee Cohen’s girlfriend and lived with him for about a year, some four or five years ago,” said Allred, who has represented women claiming to be girlfriends of golfer Tiger Woods among other high-profile clients.

“Based on her personal observations during the course of their relationship and his behavior, Ms. Eneman does not believe that he is fit to hold any public office, including that of Lt. Governor,” Allred said.

Allred said her 29-year-old client “has no further comment at this time and does not wish to be contacted.”

Cohen’s spokesman, Baxter Swilley, wouldn’t comment specifically late Saturday about Eneman’s statement.

“He wishes her the very best,” Swilley said.

Swilley also said Cohen, a wealthy pawnbroker who spent $2 million of his own money in the primary, won’t give up his spot as Gov. Quinn’s running mate in the fall general election.

“At this point, he’s still staying in the race,” Swilley said.

Last week, Cohen publicly called for Eneman to come forward to discuss his Oct. 14, 2005 arrest. A police report from the incident shows she accused him of placing a knife up to her neck and pushing her head against a wall, causing scars and a bump on her head. The charges were later dropped when Eneman failed to show up to a court hearing.

“When the facts come to light, after my ex-wife and ex-girlfriend speak, the people of Illinois can decide, and I will listen to them directly,” said Cohen, who denied laying a hand on anyone. “I am asking my ex-wife and ex-girlfriend to come forward and to talk with the media.”

Cohen’s ex-wife, Debra York-Cohen, gave a television interview Thursday saying that although she stood behind allegations in a 2005 divorce case that Cohen had tried to force her to have sex and had an explosive temper, she said he is “not that person today and hasn’t been for quite some time.”

Swilley wouldn’t confirm statements from a Cohen campaign source, who told the Sun-Times Friday that Cohen was seeking an “honorable way” off the ticket. Cohen, the source said, was upset that Quinn denounced him even before calling him after Cohen’s primary win.

But Saturday, a spokesman for Quinn said the governor has still not spoken to Cohen.

Larry Grisolano, a Quinn consultant, told the Sun-Times that he “did not know the circumstance” under which Quinn would be prompted to make a call to Cohen.

Grisolano said the “push” for getting Cohen off the ticket over the weekend was focused on having Democratic elected officials “expressing their views in public” about Cohen and calling for him to quit the race. U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan and others have asked Cohen to withdraw.

“I think that is the most persuasive thing going on right now,” Grisolano said.

But there was at least one top local Democrat who refused to join the chorus: Mayor Daley.

“It’s a constitutional dilemma. Once you get elected in the primary, no mayor, no newspaper, no citizens can ask you to resign because I don’t like you anymore,” Daley said.

Daley questioned whether an arrest that didn’t lead to a conviction should be used against Cohen.

“So anybody who’s arrested and the case is thrown out, they should not run for public office?” Daley asked. “I’m just saying it’s a very complicated issue.”

Contributing: Mark Konkol

THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
_______________________________________________________________________________________
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 5, 2010

WEEKEND GUIDANCE AND PRESS SCHEDULE FOR
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 6 AND SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2010

On Saturday morning, the President will deliver remarks at the DNC Winter Meeting at the Capitol Hilton. The President’s remarks are pooled press.

On Sunday, the President and the First Lady will host a Super Bowl party at the White House. Attendees will include Members of Congress, Cabinet members, as well as service members who were injured in Iraq or Afghanistan and their families. This event is closed press. A list of expected attendees is below.

Members of Congress:
Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-CA)
Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA)
Rep. Joseph Cao (R-LA)
Rep. Andre Carson (D-IN)
Rep. Brad Ellsworth (D-IN)
Rep. Baron Hill (D-IN)
Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA)
Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT)

Cabinet Members:
Secretary Shaun Donovan
Secretary Arne Duncan
Attorney General Eric Holder
Administrator Lisa Jackson
Secretary Janet Napolitano
Ambassador Susan Rice
Secretary Kathleen Sebelius
Secretary Eric Shinseki
Secretary Tom Vilsack

Saturday’s In-Town Travel Pool
Wires: AP, Reuters, Bloomberg
Wire Photos: AP, Reuters, AFP
TV Corr & Crew: CBS
Print: St. Petersburg Times
Radio: Talk Radio
Travel Photo: New York Times

Sunday’s In-Town Travel Pool
Wires: AP, Reuters, Bloomberg
Wire Photos: AP, Reuters, AFP
TV Corr & Crew: CNN
Print: Scripps Howard
Radio: VOA
Travel Photo: TIME

Saturday, February 6, 2010

EST

9:45AM Pool Call Time

10:30AM THE PRESIDENT delivers remarks at DNC Winter Meeting
Capitol Hilton
Pooled Press (Gather Time 10:05AM – North Doors of the Palm Room)

Sunday, February 7, 2010

EST

No Pool Call Time

Schedule for Week of February 8, 2010

On Monday, the President will attend meetings at the White House.

On Tuesday, the President will meet with bipartisan leaders of the House and Senate at the White House to discuss working together on the economy and jobs.

On Wednesday, the President and First Lady will host “In Performance at the White House: A Celebration of Music from the Civil Rights Movement” – a concert celebrating Black History month. The concert will feature songs from the Civil Rights Movement as well as readings from famous Civil Rights speeches and writings. The concert will be streamed live on www.WhiteHouse.gov and the President’s opening remarks will be pooled press.

On Thursday and Friday, the President will attend meetings at the White House.

##

The debacle of Democrats nominating pawnbroker Scott Lee Cohen for lieutenant governor — a candidate so politically toxic he could bring down the Democratic ticket in November — highlights the awful job House Speaker Michael J. Madigan is doing as chairman of the Democratic Party of Illinois. Unlike every other state party chairman in the nation, Madigan refuses to run a viable statewide political organization.

With Democrats now facing uphill battles to elect Gov. Quinn and Senate nominee Alexi Giannoulias, they head into the nine-month general election campaign without a real, working statewide party. The Illinois Republican Party has a very engaging, energized chairman, Pat Brady. Illinois Democrats have Madigan, who shows little interest in doing the job of state party chairman, including mapping strategy to win in November.

Madigan has used the position mainly to re-elect his state House members and to help daughter Lisa Madigan when she first ran for attorney general. He is up for re-election as Democratic Party of Illinois chairman in April.

Every Democratic activist I’ve been talking to the last few days says it is time for Madigan to step up or step out.

I’m told that Cohen is contemplating dropping out but needs some time and a face-saving way to quit the ticket, where by Illinois law he is Quinn’s automatic running mate. A political neophyte, Cohen did not realize, I’m told, that when his entire background came out — his anabolic steroid abuse and allegations of being a deadbeat dad, attempting to force his then-wife to have sex and holding a knife to the throat of his live-in girlfriend, a prostitute — he would be unelectable in November.

Now, there is a lot of blame to go around for Cohen — with his scandalized background — winning Tuesday’s six-way Democratic lieutenant governor primary. Except for my colleague, Sun-Times columnist Mark Brown, the stretched-thin Chicago media never got more stories in the papers about Cohen’s flaws and his potential — by spending his own millions of dollars — for winning the primary.

But blaming the press does not excuse Madigan. Most party chairmen would have started caring about the viability of the top of the statewide Democratic ticket — no matter if Quinn or Comptroller Dan Hynes were to be the eventual nominee — once Cohen started pouring huge sums of his own money into his race. Cohen loaned his campaign $300,000 on Dec. 14, $200,000 on Dec. 28, $40,000 on Jan. 4, $300,000 on Jan. 11, $200,000 on Jan. 16, $200,000 on Jan. 25 and $55,098 on Jan. 29. Cohen’s ads — with, ironically, a very effective jobs message — were all over television, while his poorly funded rivals were invisible.

The Democratic Party of Illinois did not make an endorsement in the lieutenant governor race. Madigan gave his personal endorsement to state Rep. Arthur Turner (Chicago). But Madigan did not do much to assist Turner, who had only $50,000 to spend on ads. Two of Turner’s spots were probably too subtle anyway; they ended with a warning about how a “millionaire pawnbroker [is] trying to buy this election.”

The Cohen episode demonstrates that Illinois Democrats could use a real state party leader. Even if Madigan did not want the party to endorse anyone, usually a chairman would at least try to make sure the least-electable contender does not get the nomination.

“In any other state, campaigns or interested parties would have gone to the state party chair and aired their concerns about Scott Lee Cohen’s candidacy,” said Kitty Kurth, a Chicago-based Democratic consultant. “The state party chair could have asked Cohen to step down for the good of the party. If Cohen said no, then the party chair could have stood up in the press and said to voters, ‘Vote for any Democrat, but not this one.’ “

Illinois Democrats have not had an activist party chairman since Gary LaPaille, who served between 1990 and 1998. During LaPaille’s tenure, he was a statewide voice for Democrats on a state and national level, and the state party was involved in coordinated campaigns, voter registration drives and had an office in Chicago accessible to the public.

That has not been done under Madigan, as other Democratic entities have stepped into the void. Sen. Dick Durbin has played a major role in statewide Democratic organizing for years; so have the Illinois Democratic County Chairmen organization, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and Organizing for America, the former Obama political organization now run out of the Democratic National Committee.

Madigan spokesman Steve Brown said criticisms of Madigan for being hands-off were “ironic” since Madigan is sometimes accused of being “heavy-handed.” I asked Brown going forward what Madigan’s role would be in dealing with the Cohen situation. On Thursday, Madigan agreed with Quinn that Cohen should step aside. Brown said he did not know if “Chairman Madigan” would be doing more than that.

Below, from Lisa Madigan….

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan

“Scott Lee Cohen Should Step Aside Immediately”

Scott Lee Cohen should step aside immediately. It is clear that he is unfit to hold public office. The fact that he thinks he’s “done nothing wrong” just proves that. His ex-wife and court and police records confirm that he has a recent history of violence against women. His alleged failure to pay child support and his admitted use of steroids are just a few other examples of his complete lack of judgment. This conduct is inappropriate for a public official, and his extreme character flaws are an insult to the people of Illinois.

President Obama and First Lady Michelle are inviting members of Congress, the Obama cabinet and some soldiers injured in Iraq and Afghanistan to their Super Bowl party Sunday.

The Obamas will host seven members of Congress; six men and one female; six Democrats and on Republican. Of the cabinet level invitees, there are five men and four women.

Click below for the names.

Below, from the White House
On Sunday, the President and the First Lady will host a Super Bowl party at the White House. Attendees will include Members of Congress, Cabinet members, as well as service members who were injured in Iraq or Afghanistan and their families. This event is closed press. A list of expected attendees is below.

Members of Congress:
Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-CA)
Rep. Rick Boucher (D-VA)
Rep. Joseph Cao (R-LA)
Rep. Andre Carson (D-IN)
Rep. Brad Ellsworth (D-IN)
Rep. Baron Hill (D-IN)
Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA)
Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT)

Cabinet Members:
Secretary Shaun Donovan
Secretary Arne Duncan
Attorney General Eric Holder
Administrator Lisa Jackson
Secretary Janet Napolitano
Ambassador Susan Rice
Secretary Kathleen Sebelius
Secretary Eric Shinseki
Secretary Tom Vilsack

Below, Hare release…..

*Hare Urges Scott Lee Cohen to Step Down*

* *

*Rock Island**, IL*-*Congressman Phil Hare (D-Rock Island)* today released
the following statement calling on Scott Lee Cohen to drop out of the race
for Lieutenant Governor:

“Violence against women is reprehensible and cannot be tolerated. Given the
gravity of the allegations against Mr. Cohen, I am calling on him to drop
out of the race for Lieutenant Governor. With the Ryan and Blagojevich
scandals behind us, the people of Illinois expect and deserve leaders who
exhibit the highest standards of personal conduct possible. Mr. Cohen fails
that test.”

###

—

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

_______________________________________________________________________________________

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 4, 2010

DAILY GUIDANCE AND PRESS SCHEDULE FOR

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2010

In the morning, the President will receive the Economic Daily Briefing and the Presidential Daily Briefing in the Oval Office. These meetings are closed press.

The President will then attend a memorial service at the CIA Headquarters in Langley, Virginia. The President will deliver remarks. The service is closed press. A transcript of the President’s remarks will be released following the service.

Later, the President will then travel to Lanham, Maryland where he will visit a small business and meet with small business owners. The meeting is closed press. The President will deliver remarks on job creation and small business initiatives. The President’s remarks are pooled press.

In the afternoon, the President will meet with members of the Park View Little League baseball team of Chula Vista, California in the East Room to congratulate them on winning the 2009 Little League World Series. This greet is closed press. The President will then meet with senior advisors. This meeting is closed press.

In-Town Travel Pool

Wires: AP, Reuters, Bloomberg

Wire Photos: AP, Reuters, AFP

TV Corr & Crew: ABC

Print: Salon

Radio: SRN

Travel Photo: TIME

EST

9:00AM Pool Call Time

9:00AM THE PRESIDENT receives the Economic Daily Briefing

Oval Office

Closed Press

9:15AM THE PRESIDENT receives the Presidential Daily Briefing

Oval Office

Closed Press

10:30AM THE PRESIDENT attends memorial service

CIA Headquarters

Closed Press (Travel Pool Gather Time 9:35AM – North Doors of the Palm Room)

12:10PM THE PRESIDENT meets with small business owners

Lanham, Maryland

Closed Press

12:30PM THE PRESIDENT delivers remarks on job creation and small business initiatives

Lanham, Maryland

Pooled Press

2:20PM THE PRESIDENT meets with the 2009 Little League World Champions

East Room

Closed Press

2:45PM THE PRESIDENT meets with senior advisors

Oval Office

Closed Press

##

Democratic Illinois Senate nominee Alexi Giannoulias called for embattled Illinois Lt. Gov. Democratic nominee Scott Lee Cohen to step down, in the wake of allegations of domestic abuse, anabolic steroid use and being behind on child support payments as Cohen was pouring $2 million into his own campaign:

“These revelations are deeply disturbing and there is no place in society let alone public office for this type of behavior,” Giannoulias said in a statement.

The first third-party ad in the Illinois Senate race comes from VoteVets and slams GOP Senate nominee Rep. Mark Steven Kirk (R-Ill.), an intelligence officer in the Naval Reserves. Kirk makes much of his military record, so it is interesting to see what impact the VoteVets group has in the race. The spot–running in the Chicago market–hits Kirk on an energy vote and for taking campaign contributions from energy interests. See the spot here.

Illinois Democrats start off the general election season with a big problem and his name is Scott Lee Cohen, the pawnbroker and political unknown who self-financed his way to winning the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor on Tuesday. Then came news Cohen was accused of threatening his live-in girlfriend with a knife and being user of injectable anabolic steroids. Gov. Quinn is saddled with Cohen as a running mate. Under Illinois law, the governor and lieutenant governor contenders each run in their own primaries for the nomination. Once nominated, they have to run as a team, like it or not. On Thursday, Quinn was not liking it and called for Cohen to step down. With the revelations–splashed on the front pages of the Chicago Sun-Times and Chicago Tribune–Quinn said the “only appropriate thing is to step aside.”

The Chicago Sun-Times Quinn/Cohen package

BY ABDON M. PALLASCH AND DAVE McKINNEY Staff Reporters

Gov. Quinn said today that if his running-mate, Scott Lee Cohen, can’t adequately explain the charges against him — that he held a knife to the throat of a prostitute ex-girlfriend — then “he should step aside” as the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor.

and this headlined, Scott Lee Cohen allegedly abused steroids, forced himself on ex-wife

BY CHRIS FUSCO AND DAVE McKINNEY Staff Reporters

Gov. Quinn’s embattled running mate, Scott Lee Cohen, allegedly abused anabolic steroids, displayed fits of rage and forced himself sexually on his ex-wife before their divorce, court documents reviewed by the Chicago Sun-Times show.

and this with the headlines, Details surface of Scott Lee Cohen’s 2005 domestic violence arrest SHOCKING PAST | Dem nominee for lt. gov was once accused of holding knife to woman’s neck

BY CHRIS FUSCO, DAVE McKINNEY, ABDON M. PALLASCH AND STEVE WARMBIR Staff Reporters

Scott Lee Cohen — a pawnbroker who shocked state Democratic leaders Tuesday night by winning the party’s nomination for lieutenant governor — was arrested about four-and-a-half years ago and accused of holding a knife to a former live-in girlfriend’s neck, newly obtained court records show.

Former Gov. Rod Blagojevich was re-indicted on Thursday, with eight new corruption charges added, including extortion of White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel back when he was a congressman along with one of his brothers. Read the indictment here. Read Sun-Times federal court reporter Natasha Korecki’s report here.

From the indictment:

16
Solicitation of United States Congressman A
21. In or about 2006, after United States Congressman A inquired about
the status of a $2 million grant for the benefit of a publicly-supported school,
defendant ROD BLAGOJEVICH instructed Harris not to release the grant until
further direction from ROD BLAGOJEVICH, even though ROD BLAGOJEVICH
previously had agreed to support the grant and funding for the grant had been
included in the state’s budget.

22. In response to inquiries by a high-ranking state official as to
whether the grant money could be released, defendant ROD BLAGOJEVICH
informed the official that ROD BLAGOJEVICH wanted it communicated to
United States Congressman A that United States Congressman A’s brother
needed to have a fundraiser for ROD BLAGOJEVICH.

23. Defendant ROD BLAGOJEVICH told Lobbyist A that ROD
BLAGOJEVICH was giving a $2 million grant to a school in United States
Congressman A’s district and instructed Lobbyist A to approach United States
Congressman A for a fundraiser.

24. After defendant ROD BLAGOJEVICH learned from Harris that the
school had started to incur expenses that were to be paid with the grant funds,
ROD BLAGOJEVICH initially resisted the release of the grant money, and then
ultimately agreed to the release of certain of the grant funds to cover incurred
expenses, but only on a delayed basis, even though no fundraiser had been held.

Below, release from DSCC…

DSCC RELEASES “ENOUGH IS ENOUGH” – NEW WEBVIDEO BRINGS TO LIGHT MARK KIRK’S LONGSTANDING HABIT OF CATERING TO SPECIAL INTERESTS

DC Insider Kirk’s First Event Of General Election Was With Former DC Mega Lobbyist Haley Barbour

Kirk Takes Thousands Of Dollars From Special Interests, Then Turns Right Around And Votes For Them In Congress

“Enough Is Enough” Found HERE

Today, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee released “Enough is Enough,” a new web video bringing to light Congressman Mark Kirk’s longstanding habit of catering to the special interests. Though two-faced Congressman Kirk says he will fight for those who can’t afford a lobbyist, the truth is that Kirk stands with DC insiders and the special interests, holding his first campaign event of the general election with DC mega lobbyist Haley Barbour. While Barbour lobbies for big energy and big insurance companies, Kirk takes thousands of dollars in donations from the same special interests and votes to give them tax breaks and against reigning in abuses practices. The DSCC is urging Illinois residents to call Congressman Kirk and tell him that they have had enough with him and his DC insider habit of catering to the special interests.

“The fact that Congressman Kirk brought in his BFF, mega lobbyist Haley Barbour to kick-off his general election campaign says all you need to know about candidate Kirk,” said DSCC National Press Secretary Deirdre Murphy. “Kirk and Barbour are both DC insiders, who advocated tirelessly for the failed policies that drove our country into recession, and now they show no sign of backing down from playing the same old Washington games. The people of Illinois are tired of Kirk’s habit of palling around with lobbyists and taking thousands from special interests, and it’s why his political career will come to a close this November.”

Two-faced Congressman Mark Kirk and former mega lobbyist Haley Barbour are both entrenched Washington insiders who have consistently put Wall Street over Main Street. Barbour’s insider resume includes a stint as the Chairman of the Republican National Committee, Chairman of the Republican Governor’s Association, Governor of Mississippi, and a big time, mega lobbyist in DC. Barbour and his lobbying firm have accepted millions of dollars from a diverse range of clients such as big tobacco, the health care industry, and energy companies. The disastrous policies advocated by Republican establishment figures such as Kirk and Barbour created our economic crisis in the first place. Now, instead of working to move the country forward, they both want to take the country back.

BY DAVE McKINNEY
Sun-Times Springfield Bureau Chief

CHICAGO–Illinois state Comptroller Dan Hynes conceded the Democratic gubernatorial race this morning to Gov Quinn.

“The people have spoken, and the votes have been counted,” Hynes, accompanied by family members, including his father Tom and longtime friend John Schmidt, said. “We rose up but fell just a little short.

“And if democracy means anything, it means that the campaign with more votes wins. We did the right thing, made sure all the votes were counted, and now we know for sure: That wasn’t us.

“And, rather than contest or demand anything further, let’s do the right thing again.”

Hynes called Quinn this morning and congratulated him.

“It’s true that we had a few disagreements during this campaign,” Hynes said. “But that’s what happens during spirited discussions about our future. And I have never doubted the governor’s commitment to the people of Illinois.”

“To the victor goes our compliments and our support . . .

Rasmussen Reports came out with the first public post-Illinois primary poll on Thursday morning. ‘ Interesting finding in Rasmussen poll: While GOP nominee Rep. Mark Steven Kirk (R-Ill.) is ahead of state treasurer Alexi Giannoulias by six points, there is a gender gap: Kirk leads among male voters “but trails his Democratic rival by 13 points among female voters.”

Rasmussen findings: “Republican Mark Kirk holds a modest 46% to 40% lead over Democrat Alexi Giannoulias in the race for the Illinois Senate following Tuesday’s party primaries.

“The first post-primary Rasmussen Reports Election 2010 telephone survey of the Kirk-Giannoulias race finds just four percent (4%) of likely voters in the state prefer some other candidate, while another 10% are undecided.

“Among voters not affiliated with either of the major parties, the Republican holds a sizable 59% to 22% lead.

“In December, Giannoulias was up by three points over Kirk. In October, the two men were tied at 41% each. In mid-August, Kirk held a modest 41% to 38% lead over Giannoulias.”