Despite Rising Unemployment, Obama Raises Political Cash Then Jets Overseas For Olympic Gamble That Only Helps His Chicago Fat Cat Friends

Despite Rising Unemployment, Obama Raises Political Cash Then Jets Overseas For Olympic Gamble That Only Helps His Chicago Fat Cat Friends

Unemployed Chicago Construction Worker Brad Stotlar: “I Think We Have More Pressing Problems To Deal With Than The Olympics In 2016… The Last Time I Looked We Had Double-Digit Unemployment In Illinois And I’d Rather Obama Dealt With That Than Jetting Off To Copenhagen.” (Andrew Stern, “Chicagoans Divided On Obama’s Trip To Win 2016 Games,” Reuters, 9/28/09)

AFTER RAISING MONEY FOR DEMOCRAT GOVERNORS, OBAMA JETS OFF TO COPENHAGEN TO MAKE CHICAGO’S OLYMPIC PITCH

Obama Headlined Fundraiser For Democratic Governors Association Before Leaving For Copenhagen. “President Barack Obama addresses a Democratic fundraiser on Thursday before traveling to Copenhagen to make an Olympic-sized pitch… where he’ll make a presidential push for Chicago’s bid for the 2016 Olympics.” (“Obama Speaks To Democratic Governors,” The Associated Press, 10/1/09)

• Event Expected To Rake In At Least $500,000. “[T]he president will be headlining a fundraising dinner for the DGA (Democratic Governors Association) in Washington, DC, on Oct. 1. The event is expected to raise at least $500,000.”(Chuck Todd, “Obama Stepping Up Effort For Dem Govs,” MSNBC’s “First Read“ Blog, 9/20/09)

Obama’s Pitch “Probably The Biggest Persuasion-By-Charisma Campaign Ever Undertaken In The Olympic Movement.” “While he flies in overnight from Washington and goes straight into the IOC session, First Lady Michelle Obama will have been in the Danish capital for 48 hours, conducting a breathless series of one-on-one meetings with voting IOC members… It is probably the biggest persuasion-by-charisma campaign ever undertaken in the Olympic movement.” (Paul Radford, “Moment Of Truth For Obama Factor In 2016 Olympic Bid,” Reuters, 10/1/09)

OBAMA PRIORITIZING OLYMPICS BID DESPITE MOUNTING JOB LOSSES AND RISING UNEMPLOYMENT

Jobless Claims Continue To Rise.  “First-time claims for jobless benefits increased more than expected last week, a sign employers are reluctant to hire and the job market remains weak… The Labor Department said Thursday that initial claims for unemployment insurance rose to a seasonally adjusted 551,000 from 534,000 in the previous week.” (Christopher S. Rugaber and Martin Crutsinger, “New Jobless Claims Rise More Than Expected To 551K,” The Associated Press, 10/1/09)

ADP Forecasts 254,000 Jobs Lost In September. “Companies in the U.S. cut 254,000 jobs this month, more than forecast, a private report based on payroll data showed today.” “The official Bureau of Labor Statistics jobs report will be out Friday morning. Last month, the official report projected 216,000 jobs lost in August, less than the ADP figure…” (Bob Willis, “ADP Says U.S. Companies Cut 254,000 Jobs This Month,” Bloomberg; 9/30/09, John Tozzi, “254,000 Jobs Lost In September, ADP Says, As Losses Slow,” Business Week, 9/30/09)

And Obama-Controlled GM To Shut Down Saturn, Shedding As Many As 13,000 Jobs Despite $36 Billion Government Takeover. “General Motors said today it would shut down Saturn after respected Detroit businessman Roger Penske shocked GM and 350 Saturn dealers by saying that his plans to buy the storied brand had fallen apart. The announcement came a day before GM and its dealers expected the deal to be finalized. The failure could cost as many as 13,000 jobs at dealerships nationwide and GM.” (Tim Higgins, “Penske-Saturn Deal Collapses After Renault-Nissan Backs Out,” Detroit Free Press, 9/30/09)

YET OLYMPIC GAMES BURDEN HOST CITIES WITH COST OVERRUNS AND DEBT

NPR: “If Making Money Were An Olympic Event, No City Hosting The Games Would Win A Gold Medal. Or Silver. Or Bronze.” (Howard Berkes, “Olympic Caveats: Host Cities Risk Debt, Scandal,” NPR, 10/1/09)

There Has “Never Been An Olympic Games That Has Made A Profit.” Robert Barney, Director of the International Centre for Olympic Studies at the University of Western Ontario: “‘There has never been an Olympic Games that has made a profit….’ Fold in all the costs and revenues, he says, ‘including federal allotments, municipal allotments, provincial or state allotments, it’s always been that a debt has to be paid somewhere.’” (Howard Berkes, “Olympic Caveats: Host Cities Risk Debt, Scandal,” NPR, 10/1/09)

In Fact, Past Olympic Cities Have Lost Billions Of Dollars. “[T]he record is somewhat spottier than boosters admit. Athens and Beijing lost billions. Montreal, which hosted the games in 1976, took 30 years to pay off its loans.” (Annie Lowrey, “An Olympic-Sized Mess,” Foreign Policy, 9/30/09)

Host Cities End Up Paying Far More Than Budgeted Amount. “Host cities nearly always end up forking out well over their budgeted amount. Estimates for the cost of the London Olympics have almost tripled since that city won the right to host the 2012 games.” (Katie Connolly, “Chicago’s Olympic Bid: Both A Blessing And A Burden,” Newsweek’s “The Gaggle“ Blog, 9/28/09)

• And Chicago Residents, Illinois Taxpayers On The Hook For Overruns: “Chicago officials say there is very little taxpayer funding going to the games up front, though the city and state of Illinois have guaranteed that they will cover hundreds of millions of dollars in potential cost overruns.” (David Schaper, “In Chicago, Some Protest Olympic Bid,” NPR, 9/30/09)

• American Taxpayers Could Be Put On The Hook As Well. “Chicago and the Obama administration are exploring ways the federal government can bolster the city's bid for the 2016 Olympic Games with financial support for the $1-billion Olympic Village … Crain’s has learned that senior presidential adviser Valerie Jarrett and Lori Healey, president of the Chicago 2016 committee, met this month with top officials of the Department of Housing and Urban Development to discuss financing options for the village, the single biggest project — and question mark — in the city’s bid.” (Paul Merrion, “Chicago 2016 Hunts Fed Cash,” Chicago Business, 9/28/09)

London Already Mired In “Multibillion-Dollar Mud” For 2012 Olympics. “[London] is nevertheless stuck in multibillion-dollar mud. The numerous oversight bodies and local and federal agencies are locked in turf wars. And the British government has little choice but to spend its way out, recession be damned… The budget for the games has quadrupled to a truly Olympic size: £9.3 billion ($15 billion), and rising.”  (Annie Lowrey, “An Olympic-Sized Mess,” Foreign Policy, 9/30/09)

SO WHO DOES BENEFIT FROM A CHICAGO OLYMPICS?

Chicago Tribune Columnist: “If Obama Gets 2016 Games, Daley Will Be King, Not Mayor.” “By going to Denmark with all the other City Hall politicos, including those from the White House, President Barack Obama is doing more than asking the International Olympic Committee to allow Chicago to host the 2016 Games… He’s asking the IOC to make Mayor Richard Daley the king of Chicago for life.” (John Kass, “If Obama Gets 2016 Games, Daley Will Be King, Not Mayor,” The Chicago Tribune, 9/30/09)

AFL-CIO Signed “Letter Of Commitment” To Invest $500 Million In Development Of Olympic Village. “The AFL-CIO investment trusts and the labor-owned Union Labor Life Insurance Co. have signed a ‘letter of commitment’ to pump $500 million into building the Olympic Village, a project alternately viewed as the riskiest element of Chicago’s Olympic bid and its enduring ‘physical legacy.’” (Fran Spielman & Lisa Donovan, “Union Bets $500 Million On Olympic Village Plan; Will Invest Pension Funds In Lakefront Community,” The Chicago Sun-Times, 7/3/09)

Chicago 2016 Committee, Board Members Bundled Millions Of Dollars For Obama’s Campaign. “Chicago 2016 committee and board members bundled at least $1.95 million for the campaign, according to a review of campaign finance records by the Huffington Post.” “And while the White House denies that the substantial overlap between Obama’s personal and political network and Chicago 2016 organizing committee played any role in his abrupt decision to reverse himself and attend the Olympic meeting in Denmark, the potential conflicts of interest have raised eyebrows.” (Sam Stein, “Chicago Olympic Committee Members Bundled Nearly $2M For Obama Campaign,” The Huffington Post, 10/1/09; Michael Scherer, “Obama’s Olympics Bid: Political Risks Even If He Wins,” Time, 9/30/09)

• And Four Co-Chairs Of Obama’s Inaugural Committee Tied To Chicago 2016. “Four of the five co-chairs of Obama’s inaugural committee continue to have unpaid leadership roles in Chicago 2016, including Pat Ryan, the chairman and CEO of Chicago 2016; John Rodgers, the treasurer and director of Chicago 2016; Bill Daley, the former Clinton administration commerce secretary and brother of the Chicago mayor; and Penny Pritzker, the Chicago businesswoman and Hyatt hotel heiress who led Obama’s meteoric presidential campaign fundraising… Pritzker’s family also owns or manages a handful of hotels singled out by Chicago 2016 as accommodations for Olympic workers, press and family members.” (Kenneth P. Vogel, “Obama Tied To Olympics, Win Or Lose,” Politico, 10/1/09)

Obama Senior Advisor David Axelrod’s Former PR Firm Paid To Do Communications Work For Bid Committee. “A.S.K. Public Strategies, the Chicago-based corporate public relations company founded by Obama political guru David Axelrod, has been paid ‘a nominal amount of money’ by Chicago 2016 to do ‘communication management [and] communication planning,’ said former Axelrod partner Eric Sedler.” (Kenneth P. Vogel, “White House Lobbies For Olympics In Chicago,” Politico, 5/12/09)

Obama Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett Was Former Chicago 2016 Vice Chair, Former CEO Of Real Estate Company Hoping To Cash In On Olympic Construction. “Until joining the Obama administration, Jarrett was both vice chair of Chicago 2016, the $49 million nonprofit enterprise created in 2006 to lead the city’s bid, and CEO of The Habitat Company, a real estate company that is among the bidders to build the 3,500-unit Olympic Village.” (Kenneth P. Vogel, “Obama Tied To Olympics, Win Or Lose,” Politico, 10/1/09)

• And If Chicago Wins Bid, White House Advisor Valerie Jarrett “Would Head A Special Office To Provide Top-Level Support To Chicago.” “Chicago 2016 spokeswoman Mica Matsoff said that if Chicago wins its bid, Jarrett ‘would head a special office to provide top-level support to Chicago’ by coordinating among federal agencies that might have a role in the Olympics — which would be a first for a U.S. administration.” (Kenneth P. Vogel, “White House Lobbies For Olympics In Chicago,” Politico, 5/12/09)