198 Barack H. Obama: The Unauthorized Biographyspokesman, Ben LaBolt, put out the standard line that Obama does not ever “recall” meeting
Alsammarae. The Associated Press ran a follow-up story on April 14, 2008, calling Auchi a
“mysterious billionaire with his hands on a major chunk of Chicago real estate,” and described
his arrival in Illinois in April 2004, as a major event in which Lt. Governor Quinn “headed a
welcoming delegation that greeted Auchi when his private plane touched down at Chicago’s
Midway Airport.” (Evelyn Pringle, opednews.com)REZKO’S 2004 RECEPTION FOR AUCHI:
DID OBAMA AND MICHELLE ATTEND?
Auchi was plainly treated like a head of state when he arrived at O’Hare in 2004 to meet with his
cohorts. How could a convicted felon enter the US so easily? Did Senator Obama help Auchi clear
some hurdles with the federal authorities? Pringle notes that ‘all members of the “Combine” have
tried to distance themselves from Auchi’s visit because, as previously explained, he is not allowed
in the US. However, the question that remains is, how did he enter this country in April 2004, after
his 2003 conviction in France. According to the February 28, 2008 Sun-Times: “Auchi’s London-
based lawyer, Alasdair Pepper, wouldn’t answer that.” “State Department and Homeland Security
officials said they couldn’t comment,” according to the Times. During a March 14, 2008 interview,
the Times asked Obama: “Did you ever help Auchi enter the country?” He said, “No.” But when
asked the follow-up question of whether “his office” helped Auchi enter the country, he replied,
“Not that I know of.” On January 28, 2008, Raw Story’s Michael Roston reported that after rumors
began spreading that Auchi may have met with Obama, “In what appears to be a clumsy ‘cleanup’
operation, evidence of Auchi’s visit to Illinois has now been deleted from two websites linked to his
company, General Mediterranean Holding.” (Evelyn Pringle, opednews.com)
Then there is the fascinating issue of a sumptuous reception, fit for a king, which was offered in
the honor of visiting dignitary Auchi by his close business associate, Tony Rezko. At the time of
this reception, invitations were doubtless very much in demand. But now, in a surprising reversal,
the local bigwigs who attended are frequently attempting to argue that they were not there at all:
because Auchi has now become a hot potato, especially for Obama, there is
... a disagreement over whether Obama did or didn’t attend a party at Rezko’s house for an
Iraqi-born billionaire named Nadhmi Auchi. A prosecution witness testified that Obama and his
wife were guests at the April 3, 2004, gathering in the Chicago suburb of Wilmette. The Obama
campaign responded that neither of the Obamas recalled attending such an event. Auchi
similarly has “no recollection of meeting Senator Obama at any party in 2004 or at any other
time,” according to his lawyer, Alasdair Pepper.’(David Ignatius, “Obama and the Chicago
Insider,” Washington Post, April 20, 2008)
There is a very good chance that we have just caught the distinguished senator and his charming
consort lying, once again. This scandal makes the Billygate scandal of the Carter administration
look like an innocent flirtation. The official position of the Obama campaign is that Obama has
never met Auchi, meaning that the sworn testimony of Stuart Levine in the Rezko trial on this issue
was perjury.
Obama may have been smart enough to make sure that he did not get photographed together
with Auchi, but his Governor Blagojevich apparently did not exhibit the same level of elementary
prudence. There are in fact pictures of Auchi together with Blagojevich: