Fran Spielman, "Daley Dumps Hired Truck Program," Chicago Sun-Times, 2/9/05
"First Elected In 1989, Daley's Grip On The Office Became Increasingly Firm As His Popularity Soared." (Gary Washburn, "City Hall Woes Hint Of Daley Vulnerability," Chicago Tribune, 4/10/05)
- "[T]he Seemingly Endless Revelations Of Wrongdoing At City Hall Have Been Accompanied By A Lengthy List Of City Tax And Fee Increases, Belt-Tightening Prompted By The Lackluster Economy And Growing Hostility From Organized Labor As Daley Seeks Contract Concessions And Pursues Increasing Privatization Of City Services." (Gary Washburn, "City Hall Woes Hint Of Daley Vulnerability," Chicago Tribune, 4/10/05)
"Just When You Thought Richard Daley Would Serve Out His Term As Mayor For Life, A Harmonic Convergence Of Ironies And Events Suddenly Leaves Him As Vulnerable As Any Mortal Politician Adrift In A Sea Of Corruption." (Don Rose, "Beating Daley," Chicago Tribune, 7/17/05)
- "The Ceaseless Drumbeat Of Scandal After Scandal, From Multimillion-Dollar Rip-Offs At The Loftiest Levels Of The Administration To The Lowest Municipal Timecard Cheater, Has Finally Taken Its Toll…57 Percent Of The Public Holds Him Personally Responsible For The Scandals." (Don Rose, "Beating Daley," Chicago Tribune, 7/17/05)
"For Years Now, Beginning With Exposes Of Daley's Errant Aldermen And Staff Members, On Through Indictments And Convictions Of Phony Minority-Owned Businesses Reaping Millions, On Through Scandals At O'Hare International Airport, The Buildings Department, The Hired Truck Program, Dope-Peddling In The Water Department, The Failing Blue Bag Program, Even Questionable Contracts For The Wonderful Millennium Park, The Mayor Used The One-Bad-Apple Excuse And Disclaimed Any Knowledge Of Wrongdoing." (Don Rose, "Beating Daley," Chicago Tribune, 7/17/05)
"With A Newly Hired Lawyer At His Side, Mayor Richard Daley Was Interviewed For Two Hours Friday By Federal Investigators Looking Into Corruption At City Hall." (Dan Mihalopoulos and Todd Lighty, "Feds Question Daley," Chicago Tribune, 8/27/05)
- "Daley Said He Sat For Questions At The Request Of U.S. Atty. Patrick Fitzgerald's Office, Which Recently Alleged That Mayoral Aides Directed 'Massive Fraud' In City Hall Hiring And Promotions." (Dan Mihalopoulos and Todd Lighty, "Feds Question Daley," Chicago Tribune, 8/27/05)
"Sorich Was The Daley Administration's Go-To Patronage Guy In The Highly Influential Mayor's Office Of Intergovernmental Affairs, An Office The Court Described As 'The Beating Heart Of This Fraudulent Scheme.' On July 6, 2006, A Jury Found Sorich Guilty Of Systematically Rigging City Hiring For The Political Benefit Of Mayor Daley And His Favored Politicians." (Jay Stewart, Op-Ed, "Court Rips Patronage Hiring, But Daley Still Doesn't Get It," Chicago Sun-Times, 4/8/08)
"His Aides Said That $1 Million Of The $3,052,283 In His Campaign Coffers On Jan. 1 Was Contributed By Firms With City Contracts. The Sun-Times Reported A Year Ago The Mayor Received $108,575 From Hired Truck Firms Since 1996." (Fran Spielman, "Daley Dumps Hired Truck Program," Chicago Sun-Times, 2/9/05)
"The Ties Between Emanuel And Daley Run Deep. Emanuel Was The Mayor's Financial Muscle Man In 1989 And Did The Same For President Bill Clinton With Daley's Help Before Joining The White House Staff." (Fran Spielman, "Emanuel Defends Scandal-Scarred Daley," Chicago Sun-Times, 8/25/05)
"City Hall Officials Ordered The City's Top Water Boss, Donald Tomczak, To Marshal His Political Army Of City Workers For Mayor Daley, Congressman Rahm Emanuel And Other Politicians, According To A Federal Court Document Released Monday And Other Sources." (Steve Warmbir, Tim Novak, and Fran Spielman, "Guilty Plea As Feds Unravel Hired Truck," Chicago Sun-Times, 5/3/05)
- "Wesolowski Admitted Taking Nearly $200,000 In Bribes From Trucking Firms And Passing The Money To Tomczak, Who Ensured The Companies Got Work In The Hired Truck Program. Wesolowski Was Tomczak's Top Bagman Among Several, Court Documents Show." (Steve Warmbir, Tim Novak, and Fran Spielman, "Guilty Plea As Feds Unravel Hired Truck," Chicago Sun-Times, 5/3/05)
"But In Federal Court The Day Before, I Watched Four Of Mayor Richard Daley's Underlings Sentenced To Federal Prison For Their Roles In Amassing Giant And Illegal Patronage Armies Of City Workers Who Pounded The Precincts For The Mayor's Candidates, Including Emanuel." (John Kass, Op-Ed, "Emanuel Makes A Point Of Airing Peeve," Chicago Tribune, 11/22/06)
"Mayor Daley Has Decided To Abandon His Long-Standing Tradition Of Remaining Neutral In Democratic Primaries And Endorse Barack Obama Over Hillary Clinton In The 2008 Presidential Race, City Hall Sources Said Tuesday." (Fran Spielman, "Rare Daley Move: Endorses Obama For Primary," Chicago Sun-Times, 12/20/06)
"In 2007, Obama Endorsed Mayor Daley For Reelection -- Barely Two Months After Three Of Daley's Top Aides Received Federal Prison Sentences For Fraud In Connection With Running The City Hall Patronage Machine, And Barely A Year After Dozens Of City Contractors And Employees Had Been Convicted Of Trading City Contracts For Campaign Contributions And Bribes. These Included High-Ranking Daley Aides And Appointees." (David Freddoso, "Soldier For Stroger," National Review, 9/1/08)
Obama: "Finally, Let Me Make A Special Comment About My Own Mayor, Mayor Daley. I Moved To Chicago In 1985 And I Immediately Fell In Love With The City. … Somebody Pointed Out, I Think It May Have Been Doug, That You Know If I'm President That I'm Going To Be Paying Attention To Cities Because If I Wasn't You Guys Could Just Talk To Daley." (Sen. Barack Obama, Remarks At The U.S. Conference Of Mayors, Miami, FL, 6/21/08)