The Tale Of Michelle And The Cookie Jar

First Lady Michelle Obama has become the co-president to her husband that Hillary Clinton only dreamed of being. She is with him everywhere, making speeches, giving orders, running up the public debt. And if the early reports are substantiated, she's right there with him practicing crooked Chicago politics and extending them to the federal level.

The "cookie jar" that Michelle may have had her hand in is the mini-scandal that could conceivably be the Obama Watergate. Remember the dust-up awhile back about the Inspector General who was removed from office without so much as a "thank you for your loyal service?" IG Gerald Walpin was removed from his office (literally) for getting too close to proving a nefarious connection between the Obamas, a crooked California mayor, and a couple of questionable community organizations. Walpin filed suit to regain his job as watchdog over the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), at least until the normal expiration of his term of office.

Walpin was investigating CNCS, its chairman, Alan D. Solomont, and most particularly former NBA star Kevin Johnson, who is now the mayor of Sacramento, California. Johnson, a personal friend and enthusiastic supporter of the Obamas, was also a director of AmeriCorps (soon to be re-named The Obama Youth Corps) which is a creature of CNCS. Even before the Obamas came into office, there was an investigation into serious allegations of misuse of AmeriCorps funds by Johnson. The Obamas, Chairman Solomont, and the new acting U.S. Attorney in Sacramento were greatly displeased by the investigation, and have since done everything possible to keep Walpin out of office and the investigation gone like the New Black Panther cases in Philadelphia.

House Member Darryl Issa (R-California) and Sen. Charles Grassle (R-Iowa) have been following the investigation and the attempt to suppress it, and are now actively informing their constituents about the latest developments. Walpin had been warned to back off the investigation by Obama administration officials, but refused. The Inspector General statute requires that any IG whose services are going to be terminated ("removed from office") must receive thirty days notice of such intention to terminate. Walpin was apparently getting too close to wait for that thirty days to pass, so instead of terminating him, they suspended him "effective immediately" (he was placed on paid administrative leave, thus avoiding the termination appellation). That, as a practical matter, stopped the investigation without the legal niceties of giving Walpin notice and opportunity to defend himself or to complete his investigation. The entire purpose of the thirty day requirement is fend off political interference with an ongoing investigation.

Among the ginned-up charges against Walpin were allegations that he had gone senile overnight and didn't express himself in a proper logical manner at a couple of meetings with the Obama nay-sayers. Walpin, on the other hand, was not so senile as to forget to demand his rights. And in doing so, he hired some attorneys to file suit to gain his position back. His legal charge against the administration is that the "suspension" was in fact a "termination" in all but name. On December 7, Obama administration lawyers filed briefs in federal court claiming that Walpin's charges were completely without merit, and should be dismissed without a hearing. It is not a big stretch to believe that the motion is an indication of how fearful the administration is that any of this dictatorial activity will be documented in court records.

So where does the unelected and unofficial co-president fit into this scenario? Michelle Obama, without being vetted by the Senate or receiving any official sanction for her position, was given "a central role in the national service agenda." That would, and does, include AmeriCorps. Walpin was removed just as the investigation was showing a close working relationship between Chairman Solomont and the First Lady. Rep Issa reacted angrily to the latest court action by the administration. On December 11, he wrote a pointed and damning official letter to Chairman Solomont, specifically accusing Solomont of making false statements about his relationships.

"After Mr. Walpin's removal, there was speculation in the press that former Chief of Staff to the First Lady Jackie Norris may have influenced the President's action because she left the White House to become a senior advisor at CNCS around the time of Mr. Walpin's removal. Accordingly, Committee investigators specifically asked if you discussed any Corporation business, including the issues relating to the Corporation's Office of Inspector General, with Ms. Norris. You indicated that you did not. The White House announced on June 4, 2009, that Ms. Norris had been appointed Senior Advisor to the Corporation. In light of all this, it seems highly implausible that you would meet with Ms. Norris on June 9, 2009 and not discuss the Inspector General who was fired the very next day."

And the plot thickens. When Congressional investigators questioned White House aides about the obvious connections, the aides terminated the sessions as soon as the questions became pointed about Michelle Obama, Solomont and Norris. Chicago-style politics have now reached the highest levels of the executive branch of the federal government.

For those of you who have searched the mainstream media for all of these developments and found little or nothing, you might be wondering why I might use the expression "Obama Watergate," I remind you that the original Watergate started out as the investigation of a common burglary, and ended up making its way all the way to the White House, resulting in the resignation of a president. With the current makeup of the Congress, there's no chance of impeachment to spur the president into resignation if this story has legs. And if the Obamas are as good at suppressing scandal as the Clintons, this one could fade as fast as Whitewater (with a few sacrificial lambs being sent to the slaughter). But the 2010 elections are less than a year away, and the situation on the ground could change radically.