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Chuck Neubauer and Tom Hamburger, "Obama Donor Received A State Grant," Los Angeles Times, 4/27/08

Joe Stephens, "Contracts Went To A Longtime Donor," The Washington Post, 8/22/08l

Robert Blackwell Jr.
Who Am I?

"Robert Blackwell Jr., CEO And Founder Of Electronic Knowledge Interchange Inc., Has Been Named To The Transition Team Of Governor-Elect Rod Blagojevich." (Electronic Knowledge Interchange Web site, www.eki-consulting.com, Accessed 8/14/08)

  • "Ties To Gov: Company Has Given $20,000 To Blagojevich's Campaign, And EKI Founder And CEO Robert Blackwell Jr. Was On Blagojevich's Transition Committee." (Jamie Francisco, "Illinois Auditor General William Holland Is Assailing Several Contracts Issued By Gov. Blagojevich's Central Management Services Department," Chicago Sun-Times, 4/27/05)

"In Addition To An Information-Technology Company, Blackwell Runs Killerspin, A Firm That Manufactures Ping-Pong Equipment, Apparel And Videos. He Has Assembled A Team That Has Captured Two National Championships In The Past Year And A Half." (Raoul V. Mowatt, "Sport Of Table Tennis Gets A Local Spin," Chicago Tribune, 1/1/03)

"At A Time When A Growing Number Of American Information Technology Consultancies Are Tapping Into India's Workforce, Chicago's Electronic Knowledge Interchange Is Looking South, Not East, For Cheaper Labor." (Julie Johnsson, "Firm Farms Out Work A Bit Closer To Home," Crain's Chicago Business, 11/17/03)

  • "While The Vast Majority Of Outsourcing Is Occurring In Asia, EKI Sees A Chance To Differentiate Itself With A 'Near-Shore' Partner." (Julie Johnsson, "Firm Farms Out Work A Bit Closer To Home," Crain's Chicago Business, 11/17/03)
  • "The $10-Million-Revenues Firm Has Struck An Alliance With Mexico's Largest Systems Integrator, Softek S.A., That Will Expand Electronic Knowledge Interchange's (EKI) Customer Base In Latin America While Giving The Firm Access To Softek's Large Base Of Software Programmers, Who Generally Draw Lower Wages Than Their Peers In The U.S." (Julie Johnsson, "Firm Farms Out Work A Bit Closer To Home," Crain's Chicago Business, 11/17/03)

"Two Years Ago, The Office Of Michelle Obama, The Vice President For Community Relations At The University Of Chicago Medical Center, Published A Glossy Report Detailing The Improvements Her Office Had Made In The Lives Of Local Residents, In Part By Increasing Ties To Minority Contractors." (Joe Stephens, "Contracts Went To A Longtime Donor," The Washington Post, 8/22/08)

  • "Center Administrators Declined To Disclose Which Businesses Benefited; The Report Lists One -- Blackwell Consulting Services." (Joe Stephens, "Contracts Went To A Longtime Donor," The Washington Post, 8/22/08)

"In 2005, The [University Of Chicago Medical Center] Expanded Its Bidding Process And Invited African American Businessman Robert Blackwell Sr. To Join A Competition To Upgrade The Center's Intranet, The In-House Equivalent Of A Web Site. His Company, Blackwell Consulting, Won Contracts Totaling Nearly $650,000." (Joe Stephens, "Contracts Went To A Longtime Donor," The Washington Post, 8/22/08)

Facts About Me and Barack

"Help Arrived In Early 2001 From A Significant New Legal Client -- A Longtime Political Supporter. Chicago Entrepreneur Robert Blackwell Jr. Paid Obama An $8,000-A-Month Retainer To Give Legal Advice To His Growing Technology Firm, Electronic Knowledge Interchange." (Chuck Neubauer and Tom Hamburger, "Obama Donor Received A State Grant," Los Angeles Times, 4/27/08)

  • "It Allowed Obama To Supplement His $58,000 Part-Time State Senate Salary For Over A Year With Regular Payments From Blackwell's Firm That Eventually Totaled $112,000." (Chuck Neubauer and Tom Hamburger, "Obama Donor Received A State Grant," Los Angeles Times, 4/27/08)
  • "Blackwell Sr., Who Served With Michelle Obama For Years On The Board Of A Local Literacy Group, Said Her Diversity Program Is Critical Because Minorities Don't Always Enjoy The Informal Social Connections Available To Others." (Joe Stephens, "Contracts Went To A Longtime Donor," The Washington Post, 8/22/08)
  • "Blackwell And His Family, Records Show, Have Been Longtime Donors To The Political Campaigns Of Michelle Obama's Husband, Barack. Robert Blackwell Jr., A Former Partner In The Firm, Is A Major Fundraiser For Barack Obama." (Joe Stephens, "Contracts Went To A Longtime Donor," The Washington Post, 8/22/08)

"With Support From Obama, Other State Officials And An Obama Aide Who Went To Work Part Time For Killerspin, The Company Eventually Obtained $320,000 In State Grants Between 2002 And 2004 To Subsidize Its Tournaments." (Chuck Neubauer and Tom Hamburger, "Obama Donor Received A State Grant," Los Angeles Times, 4/27/08)

"A Few Months After Receiving His Final Payment From EKI, Obama Sent A Request On State Senate Letterhead Urging Illinois Officials To Provide A $50,000 Tourism Promotion Grant To Another Blackwell Company, Killerspin." (Chuck Neubauer and Tom Hamburger, "Obama Donor Received A State Grant," Los Angeles Times, 4/27/08)

  • "Killerspin Specializes In Table Tennis, Running Tournaments Nationwide And Selling Its Own Line Of Equipment And Apparel And DVD Recordings Of The Competitions." (Chuck Neubauer and Tom Hamburger, "Obama Donor Received A State Grant," Los Angeles Times, 4/27/08)
  • "The Day After Obama Wrote His Letter Urging The Awarding Of The State Funds, Obama's U.S. Senate Campaign Received A $1,000 Donation From Blackwell." (Chuck Neubauer and Tom Hamburger, "Obama Donor Received A State Grant," Los Angeles Times, 4/27/08)

"Illinois Ethics Disclosure Forms Are Designed To Reveal Possible Financial Conflicts By Lawmakers. On Disclosure Forms For 2001 And 2002, Obama Did Not Specify That EKI Provided Him With The Bulk Of The Private-Sector Compensation He Received." (Chuck Neubauer and Tom Hamburger, "Obama Donor Received A State Grant," Los Angeles Times, 4/27/08)

  • "As Was His Custom, He Attached A Multi-Page List Of All The Law Firm's Clients, Which Included EKI Among Hundreds." (Chuck Neubauer and Tom Hamburger, "Obama Donor Received A State Grant," Los Angeles Times, 4/27/08)

"In Late April, One Name Was Actually Removed From The Web Site, That Of Robert Blackwell Jr., A Chicago Businessman." (Michael Luo and Christopher Drew, "Obama and McCain Lag in Naming 'Bundlers' Who Rake In Campaign Cash," The New York Times, 7/11/08)

"Mr. Blackwell's Name Was Taken Off The List In Late April After The Los Angeles Times Revealed That He Had Paid Mr. Obama An $8,000-A-Month Retainer For Legal Advice For A Technology Company He Owned And That Mr. Obama Had Written A Letter On Mr. Blackwell's Behalf So Another Company He Owned Could Get A State Grant." (Michael Luo and Christopher Drew, "Obama and McCain Lag in Naming 'Bundlers' Who Rake In Campaign Cash," The New York Times, 7/11/08)

  • "The Obama Campaign Said They Removed Mr. Blackwell's Name After Learning That He Had Not Met The $50,000 Threshold." (Michael Luo and Christopher Drew, "Obama and McCain Lag in Naming 'Bundlers' Who Rake In Campaign Cash," The New York Times, 7/11/08)
My Donations and Bundling for Barack

Robert Blackwell Jr. Has Donated A Total Of $21,700 To Obama's Federal Campaigns. (The Center For Responsive Politics Web site, www.opensecrets.org, Accessed 4/27/08)

What Barack Says About Me

"Obama Called Blackwell Jr. Part Of 'A New Breed Of Black Entrepreneur.'" (Raoul V. Mowatt, "Sport Of Table Tennis Gets A Local Spin," Chicago Tribune, 1/1/03)

  • "'He's Extremely Good At Coming Up With Moneymaking Ideas And Implementing Them,' Obama Said. 'He Sees The Enormous Market For Table Tennis Outside America's Borders, And He Thinks If He Can Position Himself As The Nike Of Table Tennis In The U.S., That Will Enable Him To Leverage Enormous Business Outside The U.S. As Well.'" (Raoul V. Mowatt, "Sport Of Table Tennis Gets A Local Spin," Chicago Tribune, 1/1/03)