The controversial Obama Presidential Center in Chicago will benefit from almost $200 million in taxpayer funding otherwise designated for work on infrastructure projects near the center on Chicago’s South Side.
The Chicago Sun Times first reported Friday that Illinois lawmakers had approved $174 million for roadwork in and around Jackson Park related to the development of the center.
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, a former Obama White House chief of staff, described the infrastructure improvements as “money well spent.”
The Washington Examiner reports that Illinois taxpayers will also shoulder half of a $50 million project to overhaul an above-ground rail stop two miles from the center. The other half will be funded via a Transportation Department grant.
The Center still has a series of approval steps to go through, including a federal review, but has also faced a lawsuit by Protect Our Parks, which alleged that the city was engaging in a “short con shell game” to get the 12-story museum and library built on parkland.
The lawsuit argued that while the purpose of transferring the land was to house the official Obama presidential library, the center will not include his presidential papers, only a digital copy.
"Defendants have chosen to deal with it in a classic Chicago political way, known as a short con shell game, a corrupt scheme to deceive and seemingly legitimize an illegal land grab, one that will endure for centuries to come, regardless of future changing public park needs and increasingly consequential environmental conditions,” the lawsuit said.
George W. paid for his library using the Bush nonprofit Foundation and raised $300 million. Put $250M into building and the rest in to maintenance and endowment awards.
Bill raised most of the cash with the Clinton Foundation ($240M, adjusted) including $15M (adj) from Saudi Arabia and a bunch of shady people lmao. There's also a bunch of drama with tax fraud involving the roads in and around the library. Should have guessed.
I'm not interested enough to look up the rest, there are like 25 of them. Most of them seem to be funded with private foundation donations.
Matthew Diaz
Also keep in mind, this is $200M in local taxes just for road work to get the project started. The architects for the project said the total cost of the project is likely to be around $1.5 billion.
Here I was, thinking that Illinois was a bankrupt shithole state, but nope, somehow they have $200 million to create a glorified homeless shelter for the local Chimpcagoans.
(((Money well spent))) — T. Kike Mayor
Michael Bell
When Obama dies they plan to add a huge vat called the eternal fryer to provide a free chicken nugget to each visitor.
Wyatt Nelson
Notice that they are very careful NOT to call it a library. A library named after a nigger…lmao. This is a "Presidential Center" for all of the future kangs of Chicongo to go and feel impotent.
Connor Robinson
>>>/intl/
Joshua Bell
or spends 90grand on a single network switch, then company makes it EOL by changing a serial number, and they have to buy 10 more a month later.
At least in my example the govt sells the switch as surplus for a dollar fifty.
Isaac Rogers
Thats actually a really cool looking bridge though.
