Cat's In The Cradle

Fathers and Cons.

File under: I swear to God, it's in the fucking water here.

From the Sun Times:

Is Ald. Isaac Carothers following his father's footsteps?

May 28, 2009

BY FRAN SPIELMAN City Hall Reporter

In the history of City Council corruption that has seen 30 aldermen convicted since 1972, there has never been a son who has followed his father to prison.

Ald. Isaac Carothers (29th) could be the first.

His father, former Ald. William Carothers (28th), went to prison in 1983 for extorting up to $32,500 in remodeling work for his ward office from the builders of Bethany Hospital.

Now, Ike Carothers stands accused of accepting $40,000 in home improvements, meals and sports tickets from a West Side developer in exchange for zoning changes that netted the developer millions.

...

Ike Carothers is an old-school politician who got his start in the Water Department and rose to become a deputy Streets and Sanitation commissioner before joining the City Council in 1999, where he emerged as Mayor Daley's most outspoken African-American supporter.

Ike Carothers coined the phrase "heavy-lifters" to describe aldermen with the guts to support Daley tax increases and used the phrase repeatedly to berate colleagues he viewed as political cowards.

The cheerleading speeches -- and Ike Carothers' role in running a West Side army of city workers who delivered the vote for the mayor's handpicked candidates -- endeared Carothers to Daley.

...

Four years ago, Ike Carothers' name surfaced in connection with the Hired Truck scandal. During the trial that culminated in the 2006 conviction of Daley's former patronage chief, Carothers' name also appeared on an notorious "clout list" as the sponsor of nearly 100 city job seekers.

...

In 1985, a federal judge ordered William Carothers to help pay $152,000 in damages for organizing from prison a campaign of physical violence and intimidation against a political opponent that involved Carothers' sons, who were both Cook County deputy sheriffs with access to guns.

At the time, U.S. District Judge Charles Kocoras said Issac Carothers appeared to be the ringleader and "organized their acts of intimidation" by force while the other son used his deputy's position to verbally threaten the plaintiffs. Isaac Carothers was ordered to pay $25,000 of the damages.

Sometimes mere prose just chokes and dies on the sheer behemothic, pan-generational bulk of the rot shot through Daley's Chicago.

And when that happens, we've got no choice but to sing, sing, sing.

And so, with apologies to Harry Chapin...

3...2..1...

Rat's In The Boodle

A child arrived just the other day,
Not on the clout list, but dat's ok,
But there were plans to hatch and bribes to pay,
He learned to cheat while I was away
He was scamming 'fore I knew it and as he grew
He'd say "I'm going to be like you Dad,
An Al-der-man just like you."

Chorus :
Another rat's in the boodle,
Just like Silver Shovel
Nobody'd believe dis shit
If you put it in a novel,
"When you gonna run son?" "I don't know when."
"We'll get together then,
We'll get you on da clout list then."

My son turned ten just the other night
Showed him how to rig a vote up good 'n tight.
Will you teach me good and bad?
I said, "Not today,
I got thumbs to bend." He said, "Dat's OK."
And he walked away, but his smile never dimmed
Said, "I'm going to be like him, yeah.
An Al-der-man just like him."

Chorus :
Another rat's in the boodle,
Just like Silver Shovel
Nobody'd believe dis shit
If you put it in a novel,
"When you gonna run son?" "I don't know when."
"We'll get together then,
We'll get you on da clout list then."

He got into office just the other day,
Another Daley-man, and I just had to say,
"Son, I'm proud of you, now about my bail..."
He shook his head (looks like I stay in jail)
"What I'd really like, dad, is your sucker list.
I'm in need of some ducats dat won't be missed."

Chorus :
Another rat's in the boodle,
Just like Silver Shovel
Nobody'd believe dis shit
If you put it in a novel,
"When you gonna run son?" "I don't know when."
"We'll get together then,
We'll get you on da clout list then."

I've since made parole, but now my son's been popped
I called him up to see how he copped
"I'd like to see you, if you don't mind."
He said, "Don't say nuthin weird 'cause they bugged this line.
Let's just say my new "job's" a hassle and da "kids" have da "flu"
But it's sure nice talking you Dad, it's been real nice talking to you."
And as I hung up the phone it occurred to me
He'd grown up just like me,
An Al-der-man just like me.

Chorus :
Another rat's in the boodle,
Just like Silver Shovel
Nobody'd believe dis shit
If you put it in a novel,
"When you gonna run son?" "I don't know when."
"We'll get together then,
We'll get you on da clout list then."