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Subscribe to RSSOn Sunday's Meet the Press, host David Gregory pressed Illinois Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias to outline what he knew about loans made by his family's bank to criminal figures, including convicted felon Tony Rezko.
Giannoulias replied that, while there were individuals with "colorful pasts that we didn't want to do business with," community banks determine worthiness to receive loans based on borrowers' creditworthiness and other objective measures.
"If I knew then what I know now, these are not the kind of people that we'd do business with," he added, "but that's not how banks work."
Asked again if he knew that criminal figures were the recipients of some of those loans, Giannoulias said again, "I didn't know the extent of their activity."
Speaking to reporters after the show, Giannoulias said that the bank was aware of "rumblings" about some of the borrowers but reiterated that the decision to offer the loans was based on the borrowers' creditworthiness alone.
NBC News rates Giannoulias's race against GOP Rep. Mark Kirk a tossup.
Watch the full exchange here:
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Kind of like Claude Rains, who was shocked, simply shocked, to learn that there was gambling going on at Rick's- right before being handed his winnings.
In any other state, this joker would not even be on the ballot. This is, however, Illinois, a place where, I believe, being a thief yourself, or at minimum, a compatriot of thieves, is a prerequisite for entering into the political scene.
No wonder they cannot even pay their bills
Boy, you said it NO-JO
But I am sure there will be no problem with the libs on THIS sight. I mean they don't have a problem calling female politicians whores.
Man, they are being so rude and hateful because they know they are going to get their @ss handed to them in 24 days, its comical.
So much for the party of tolerance.......they preach it but if you don't agree with them you are a no good, right wing, lunitic fringe, whaco, nut job, piece of $HIT whore.
I tell you, I have never and I mean NEVER voted a straight ticket before, but I will now. After seeing the way the dems on this sight have no respect for anybody and the language they use, It makes my voting easier. Tea- Party candidate, or Republican.........anybody but dems.
Yet you are from New Jersey....enuf said
Why just use the Illinois politicans as corrupt? Isn't most of our politicians across the country? Look at those local government officials in California, paying themselves so much money. How about the gangs on Wall Street? Are they any different from the gangsters in Illinois? Maybe they don't use guns but they sure did bring down a lot of people.
isnt this where obama comes from,didn;t he have dealings with rezco,I think the biggest thief of all is liveing in the white house.
carlyss man
isnt this where obama comes from,didn;t he have dealings with rezco,I think the biggest thief of all is liveing in the white house.
No the bigger thieves are George Bush and Karl Rove who live in Texas. But, the "Biggest Thief", 6x the draft dodger, and Haliburton scammer, Dick Cheney, lives when he's not in the Hospital, an undisclosed bunker, or one of his homes in Maryland, Wyoming or McLean, Virginia.
Dick Cheney is probably the smartest American alive today...so I can see why your little Commie blog group wouldn't like him much...and did you serve your country in a war, Bev ? If not, STFU...
Another Obama, Rezco, Ayers, Daly thug from Chicago. Perfect guy for the Dems to have in the race...the Dems believe that if you don't have a rap sheet that you are unelectable...
Sounds familiar.
Yes, I sat in the Reverand Wright's church for 20 years, but I 'didn't know the extent of his activities'.
This is all part of the corrupt Chicago political machine.
LOL.
And I sat in church with a pedophile pastor leading Mass..but I did not know the extent of it...there is nothing Chicago about it..
The difference being, Patsysocal, is that the pastors wind up in jail or at least stripped of their livelihoods. Others wind up sitting rather pretty as Presidents or Senators.
Being oblivious is not generally a desirable self-description on a resume.
So typical, mention some shady character where democrats are linked and the right wing jumps on it with zealous. Yet they ignore the shady dealings within their own party like Cheney being in the back pocket of big coal and oil and allowing them to establish the Bush administration energy policy. Remember those secret meeting? Where was your outrage then?
I'd like to know what percentage of urban community banks do business with convicted felons.
It's totally fair to go after Giannoulias about this but please stop the Chicago hate. Everyone in Texas isn't like Tom Delay and everyone in Colorado isn't like Ted Haggard.
Beverly in Chicago...
Wow Beverly...welcome to 2010. Exactly when does one acknowledge the CURRENT corruption in Washington and stop living in the past? Shall we go back to Clinton and rehash his garbage?
Did you watch Meet the Press yesterday? Giannoulias was CAUGHT in a lie....said he left the bank in 2005, yet claimed over 1 million in deductions for 2006. Giannoulias LOOKED corrupt! He did not have the answers and kept skirting the questions.
So the Illinois Democrat candidate for the Senate, Giannoulias, allegedly provided mobsters with loans from his family owned bank? Is the there anything new in the Chicago gangsta politics? I think not. And then he Democrats are targeting Christine O'Donnell for "dabbling" into witchcraft as a teenager 20 years ago. Halloween is fast approaching so they will have an easy target in her. I am sure they are already licking their chops. Furthermore, Giannoulias is not fit for the Senate, but I would not be surprised if he won.
Wow another crooked politician.What a surprise!!I mean this kinda stuff isnt even news.Who cares ?these politicians need to talk about the economy the war in Aphganastan or the idiotic health care bill.Who cares if the guys family owned a bank that loaned money to some mobster,I could care less.I am mad the government loans money to foreign countries knowing that we willnever get re-payed!!!!!!!!
You should have added from Illinois. I live here and can't get over the corruption that occurs in this state, not just in Chicago but especially in St Clair County where I live. Please all citizens of Illinois, vote out all of the incumbents, but specially Jerry Costello.
Look, politicans never lie or deceive, they just tend to bend the truth a little. The oddest thing is their noses tend to grow longer everytime their mouths move.
This guy is lying through his teeth. It is NOT only about credit worthiness. You are supposed to know your customer to determine his/her suitability. There are also VERY strict rules regarding criminal behavior and if he was aware of "rumblings", he has a duty to look into it. He is either an incompetent twit or a crook. Probably both.
More evidence of the corrupting influence of the incestuous relationships between banking and politics.
Mr. Smith goes to Chicago? Nah, he'd be moidelized.
When you read all the comments then eliminate 'rant n rave' types seems that the american people want to dump republicans and democrats, and get honest people in government.
Oh yes tea party is just republicans. sorry I missed them.
The "Tea Party" movement is for smaller government, reigned in/smart spending and the rights of the individual taxpayer over the rights of those who don't pay taxes and live of the blood sweat and tears off those who do. Democrats don't believe in that, do they?
Unfortunately, the real story here is that at least in Illinois, neither party can produce/put forward a truly qualified candidate for a US Senate seat. Kirk, despite his National Guard stints, is little more than an career politician having started out as the chief aid to the congressman whose seat he inherited. The Democrat party in Illinois almost never, ever allows an outsider (maverick, independent) in the party. They would rather have Blago, than a non party Democrat.