Subsequently commenter ttj on the post thread below said: To be clear, what the original report says is that Blagojevich was served subpoenas requesting information on contacts with these people. The Obama people have not yet been served subpoenas. Not yet...
I checked at Director Blue where I found the following: Update II: An eagle-eyed commenter points out that Blago's communications with Axelrod, Jarrett, et. al. were the subject of subpoenas, not the parties themselves. So noted and corrected.
I've changed both the title of the post and the text content which I've copied from Director Blue and reflects the correction he made.
My thanks to ttj for pointing out the error and my apologies to those of you who were misinformed.
John
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From Director Blue - - -
On Saturday morning, the list of subpoenas served by the U.S. Attorney's office in the Governor Rod Blagojevich case was made public. The list included one major surprise for the new administration.
A veritable "who's who" of Obama staffers, surrogates and affiliates were among those whose communications with Blago were served with subpoenas. Put simply, within one week of President Barack Obama's administration taking office, it is already under significant legal scrutiny that will -- at a minimum -- take precious time away from dealing with the country's monumental economic and foreign policy challenges.
And, once again, the mainstream media is AWOL, unwilling to report on this very newsworthy story.
Among those whose communications were served:
David Axelrod, Obama's "Karl Rove" and the biggest surprise on the list. Obama's team issued a report in December that said his staff had no "inappropriate contact" with Blago, so the inclusion of Axelrod is a bit of a shock.
Valerie Jarrett, Blago's "Senate Candidate 1", a real estate management executive and political hack of the first order. Her ties to failed and fraudulent real estate deals in Chicago were the subject of numerous investigations and should have instantly disqualified her for any public office.
Rahm Emanuel was already deeply involved in the case with some reports describing as many as 21 conversations with Blago's office during the period in question.
Tony Rezko, Obama's first advocate, fundraiser and adviser, was convicted last year on numerous charges related to kickbacks, and is now awaiting sentencing. Rezko is "cooperating with authorities, FBI Agent Daniel Cain said in an affidavit." ...
The rest of Director Blue's post is here.
Hat tip: Mike Williams
2 comments:
To be clear, what the original report says is that Blagojevich was served subpoenas requesting information on contacts with these people. The Obama people have not yet been served subpoenas. Not yet...
I've got some problems with US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald.
First, he ran his investigation of the Valerie Plame incident like a KGB operation. He was tasked with identifying who released the identity of Plame as a CIA employee. He knew within days of assuming his job that Richard Armitage was the leaker, but Fitzgerald continued to abuse people in the Bush White House people until he got "Scooter" Libby to remember some facts incorrectly. Then he prosecuted Libby for lying. Meanwhile
Armitage is free as a bird. There's more, but let's go on to Chicago.
As US Attorney for Northern Illinois, Fitzgerald is heading up the investigation of Blagojevich. He did a "showboat" arrest of the Governor, and then a few weeks later asked the judge for a ninety-day extension. If he had the goods on Blago to the point where he could make a highly-publicized arrest, why can't he take the case to court? IMHO the fault for the SNAFU over appointing Obama's successor is entirely on Fitzgerald for jumping the gun.
Having worked in Chicago for several years as a federal investigator, I can attest to the fact that an honest politician in Illinois is as rare as hen's teeth.
One question: how long has Fitzgerald been in Illinois? Is he doing the dirty work for the clique that wants Blago out of the picture? Until we see his cards, we don't know what kind of game Fitzgerald is playing.
Incidently, isn't it strange that the very same people who are so worried about the "constitutional rights" of the prisoners in Gitmo apparently are willing to hang Blago without a trial?
Tarheel Hawkeye
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