* Carol Marin picks up on something that some of you noticed the other day…

What do Barack Obama, the legislative morass in Springfield, and a constitutional convention have in common? A lot, according to United Power for Action and Justice, a Chicago-based social action network of 300 religious, labor and civic organizations.

United Power’s Gregory Pierce fired off a letter to Sen. Obama Tuesday. The first paragraph says it all:

“Our nonpartisan organization . . . was surprised to learn that David Axelrod’s public relations firm has negotiated a contract of at least $2 million to lead a campaign against the state’s best chance for change in 20 years — the upcoming referendum on whether or not the citizens of Illinois should call a constitutional convention to deal with the mess in Springfield. While your campaign manager is heading a presidential effort whose slogan is “Change you can believe in,” his firm is running a local campaign whose slogan should read, “Change we must fear and undermine.”

Marin continues…

Whether you’re for it or agin’ it, the reality is that for the moment, a Con Con is a long shot because opponents have more money and clout.

But the one thing that gives United Power and other proponents a fighting chance is the spectacle we will witness today and tomorrow in the state capital. There, the pretense of lawmakers in a public discussion about Blagojevich’s budget and revenue proposals will be followed by members of the governor’s own party led by House Speaker Michael Madigan trouncing them. […]

Meanwhile, citizens, fed up with being bystanders in this car wreck of a government, are stuck with skyrocketing gas prices, a faltering economy and a growing fear for their and their children’s futures.

Amen, Carol. Amen.