Rahm wiretapped 21 times

This
story
has
legs

 

It looks to me like Obama/Emanuel would prefer a rubber stamp type person put in the seat than someone who might vote for their agenda only 95% of the time.

 

Emanuel talked directly to gov: source

http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/blagojevich/1337789,CST-NWS-rahm18good.article#

Emanuel talked directly to gov: source

DEEPER ROLE? | Pushed Jarrett for Senate seat

December 18, 2008

<!-- Article By Line --> BY NATASHA KORECKI Federal Courts Reporter nkorecki@suntimes.com

<!-- Article's First Paragraph --> <!-- BlogBurst ContentStart --> President-elect Barack Obama's incoming chief of staff Rahm Emanuel had a deeper involvement in pressing for a U.S. Senate seat appointment than previously reported, the Sun-Times has learned. Emanuel had direct discussions about the seat with Gov. Blagojevich, who is is accused of trying to auction it to the highest bidder.

Emanuel talked with the governor in the days following the Nov. 4 election and pressed early on for the appointment of Valerie Jarrett to the post, sources with knowledge of the conversations told the Sun-Times. There was no indication from sources that Emanuel brokered a deal, however.

A source with the Obama camp strongly denied Emanuel spoke with the governor directly about the seat, saying Emanuel only spoke with Blagojevich once recently to say he was taking the chief of staff post.

But sources with knowledge of the investigation said Blagojevich told his aides about the calls with Emanuel and sometimes gave them directions afterward. Sources said that early on, Emanuel pushed for the appointment of Jarrett to the governor and his staff and asked that it be done by a certain date.

At least some of the conversations between Emanuel and Blagojevich were likely caught on tape, sources said.

After Jarrett took herself out of the running in mid-November, Emanuel submitted a list of suitable names to the governor's camp that didn't include her name.

Emanuel, who has refused to comment on the issue, is not accused of wrongdoing.

In portions of conversations released in a criminal complaint against Blagojevich, he can be heard complaining that Obama wouldn't give anything in return for a Jarrett appointment.

 

In the above... I bolded the boldfaced lie, of course. And the italicized bit indicates that Rahm likely knew that Blogajevich was expecting some sort of bribe. In 21 phone calls, it surely came up once

 

http://blogs.abcnews.com/george/2008/12/exclusive-obama.html

Exclusive: Obama's Blago Report: Only One Rahm Call to Governor

December 21, 2008 9:26 AM

<!-- Jennifer Parker
--> Sources tell me that the Obama team's review of contacts with Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich will show that Rahm Emanuel had only one phone conversation with Blagojevich.

The contact, described as a "pro-forma" courtesy call, came as Emanuel was named Chief of Staff for Obama. Most of the discussion concerned Emanuel's Congressional seat (which had previously been held by Blagojevich), with only a "passing reference" to the Senate vacancy, according to these sources. No deal for the Senate vacancy was discussed.

Speculation in Washington and Chicago has been swirling for a week now over what the Obama team’s report would find. Until now, the contents of that report have been kept sealed, at the request of the U.S. Attorney’s office. Last Wednesday, Obama said he found it “a little bit frustrating” that the report had not yet been released.

The sources add that the report will show Emanuel also had four phone calls with Blagojevich Chief of Staff John Harris. During those conversations, the Senate seat was discussed. The pros and cons of various candidates were reviewed, and the sources say that Emanuel repeatedly reminded Harris that Blagojevich should focus on the message the pick would send about the governor and his administration.

Sources also confirm that Emanuel made the case for picking Obama confidante Valerie Jarrett during at least one of the conversations. In the course of that conversation, Harris asked if in return for picking Jarrett, "all we get is appreciation, right?" "Right," Emanuel responded.

 

Someone's going to have egg on their face if it was 21 times, as earlier reported.

This also confirms that the Obama people knew the governor was soliciting bribes.

 

I made the prediction that Rahm was the first to be thrown under the bus, and before the inauguration - a while ago.

 

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2008/12/biden-no-inappropriate-contact-with-blagojevich.html

Report: No 'quid pro quo' on Obama seat

WASHINGTON - A report issued by Barack Obama's transition concluded that the president-elect had no contact with Gov. Rod Blagojevich or his office and no one acting on Obama's behalf was involved in any "quid pro quo" arrangement the governor allegedly sought for filling the vacant Senate seat with a candidate of Obama's choosing.

The report was put together by attorney Greg Craig following Blagojevich's arrest for allegedly engaging in a scheme to sell the vacant U.S. Senate seat, as well as other state appointments and services.

Craig said Obama, his chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, and his adviser, Valerie Jarrett, all submitted to interviews with U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald last week. Craig said neither Jarrett nor David Axelrod, another senior adviser, had any contact with Blagojevich or his office. The report did say that Dr. Eric Whitaker, a close friend of Obama's and a former Blagojevich cabinet member, was approached "by a member of the Governor's circle," deputy Gov. Louanner Peters, for information.

Obama has portrayed himself as taking a hands-off approach to the governor's decision about who to appoint to his Senate seat. In fact, the report noted that he was very much interested in who would succeed him in the Senate.

Once Jarrett said she was not interested in becoming a senator, Obama asked Emanuel to tell the governor that he would support Rep. Jan Schakowsky, Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr., Ill. Comptroller Dan Hynes and Illinois Veterans Affairs Director Tammy Duckworth. Later, Attorney General Lisa Madigan and Cheryl Jackson, a former Blagojevich spokeswoman who heads the Chicago Urban League, were added to the list.

Vice President-elect Joe Biden said earlier Tuesday that the report would show "no inappropriate contact" between Barack Obama's presidential transition team and Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

"I don't think there is anything to exonerate," Biden told reporters following an economic briefing. He said the report will show "there has been no inappropriate contact between any member of the Obama staff or transition team with Blagojevich."

Obama, who is vacationing in Hawaii, told his staff to review all internal contacts with Blagojevich and his staff.

Obama has said he was eager to release the report, but was asked not to do so by federal prosecutors.

"It's a little bit frustrating," he said last week. "There's been a lot of speculation in the press that I would love to correct immediately...By next week you guys will have the answers to all your questions."

Still, because the report did not include actual transcripts of what was said, questions may linger.

Obama ordered up the report earlier this month after the arrest of Blagojevich and the governor's then-chief of staff, John Harris, on charges that they had tried to barter the Senate seat for the governor's financial gain. Illinois law grants the governor sole power to fill a Senate vacancy.
On Dec. 15, Obama said the report was complete and had found no "inappropriate" contact between his aides and the Blagojevich camp. He said then that its release was being delayed until this week at the request of U.S. Atty. Patrick Fitzgerald.

When asked about the Senate seat shortly after the election, Obama suggested that he would be taking a hands-off approach. "There's going to be a lot of good choices out there, but it is the governor's decision to make, not mine," he said on Nov. 7.

Since then, the president-elect has declined to comment on whether there is any inconsistency with that statement and a recent Chicago Tribune report that suggested Obama's incoming chief of staff had presented a list of acceptable candidates to the Blagojevich administration.

"It would be inappropriate for me to comment, because the ... story that you just talked about in your own paper, I haven't confirmed that it was accurate, and I don't want to get into the details at this point," he said on Dec. 16.

 

So, seems like no story here.... or am I missing something?

barfo