The Obama Timeline

Inflating the Resume

In November of 2002, Obama is re-elected to Illinois State Senate (with no opponent on the ballot) and Democrats take control of the Illinois Senate. Essentially a non-productive water carrier for Chicago’s Mayor Daley during his previous years in the State Senate, Obama persuades Senate President Emil Jones to steer bills his way in 2003 so he can make a name for himself to help his 2004 campaign for the U.S. Senate. Democrat colleagues in the Illinois State Senate are intensely critical of Obama’s legislative tactics in taking credit for bills he had virtually nothing to do with. State Senator Ricky Hendon says, “No one wants to carry the ball 99 yards all the way to the one-yard line, and then give it to the half-back who gets all the credit and the stats in the record book.” Hendon is the original sponsor of Illinois’ racial profiling and videotaped confession legislation. Jones takes the bills away from Hendon so that Obama can put his name on them. (Once in the U.S. Senate, Obama repays Jones with tens of millions of dollars in federal spending for his district, which Jones glibly refers to as “steak” rather than “pork.”) [98, 99, 239, 292]

Obama and his wife Michelle declare income of $259,294 for 2002. [1278]

During his four terms in the Illinois State Senate, Obama works, on average, less than two days per week. He has virtually no accomplishments during his first six years, and then gets 26 bills passed in his final year—with the help of senate President Emil Jones, who has Obama’s name placed on bills as their author even though many of them were written by other state legislators. The Illinois State Archives never receives a request from Obama to archive any records in his possession, suggesting it was his intention to personally retain details of his work and not make records public. [346]

By late 2003, with a slew of Jones-fed legislation under his belt and some “substance” for him to run on, Obama starts working on his plans to enter the 2004 U.S. Senate race. Aiding him is political pro David Axelrod, who has camera crews following almost all of Obama’s public appearances even before his election to the U.S. Senate. (Axelrod eventually uses the footage for a five-minute Internet video linked to Obama’s announcement that he is running for president.) [245, 1314]