Isn't Magic also involved in the payday loan or rent-to-own scam industry? There's some genuine sleaziness behind his smiles and incomprehensible grasp of the English language.
A week before the February city election, Mayor Rahm Emanuel stood alongside Earvin "Magic" Johnson and his billionaire business partner to announce their $10 million donation for a summer jobs program in the city's toughest neighborhoods.
The event with the NBA Hall of Famer was orchestrated by the mayor's office and aimed to smooth a rough spot in his first term resume — the notion that he had not done enough to reduce crime and increase opportunity in predominantly AfricanAmerican neighborhoods.
But that's not all Johnson and his partner did to help Emanuel. Four days after the news conference, the week old company Johnson formed with partner Mark Walter to fund the jobs program donated $100,000 to Emanuel's campaign. Last week, with Emanuel still locked in a tough runoff battle for a second term, the company gave Emanuel $150,000.
And at the same time, the Emanuel administration has been good for Johnson. Last year, the Emanuel appointed Chicago Board of Education awarded one of Johnson's companies — SodexoMAGIC — an $80 million contract to provide custodial and facilities management for Chicago Public Schools facilities.
Four years ago, Emanuel came into office promising to end the "insiders game" that benefits only the wellconnected. But the "Magic" Johnson relationship is just the latest example of a hallmark of Emanuel's governing style — his deep reliance on political cash from business interests who can count on City Hall or the mayor himself to help them.