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Friday, November 23, 2012

What's the deal with Jesse Jr?

Since it came out in the news this past summer, I followed as closely as I could the medical leave of Jesse Jackson Jr. Jackson was my congressman for the past decade until the recent redistricting placed me in Bobby Rush's congressional district. That story seemed to have some weaves and turns it was unbelievable.

It was a while before the public found out that Jesse Jr. had been on medical leave. It was a while still until we found out that he had been out of Congress due to exhaustion. Then still a while until we found out that he had been diagnosed with bipolar depression.

There had been a lot of speculation as to the nature of his disorder such as his gastric bypass. Then eventually it turned to the Blago scandal as Jesse Jr. had found himself embroiled in that corruption. The feds even after they got Blago didn't stop digging and there had been an associate who continued to be questioned about it. The associate being a banker who helped the former Congressman fund raise.

And now what should've been a promising career had been clipped. Before the Thanksgiving holiday Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. had resigned his Congressional seat. Jackson himself had won the seat in a special election against Mel Reynolds in 1995 after Reynolds himself was forced to resign after becoming embroiled in a sex scandal. Now there will be a special election to follow Jackson.

It's interesting that after a whole lot of secrecy he's out and it appears his staff were even left in the cold. It's unfortunate that both he and his wife - Sandi - who is a Chicago Alderman are under the federal radar mainly for misusing campaign funds.

All the same, who knows what would've happened if he had stayed away from Blago's senate seat sale. Would he still have a congressional seat had he not aspired to the US Senate in the wake of Obama ascension to the Presidency?

Also, in his resignation letter he's indicated that he's continuing to cooperate with the feds so who knows how long it will take to get him into court. One part of that process appears complete. Why resign from Congress if you're not concerned that the feds have very little on you in the first place?

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