Jesse Jackson Jr’s Dad Gets a Lawyer, Too

In news that is very ominous for Candidate 5 and his family, Jesse Jackson Jr is not the only one who has lawyered up since Blago’s arrest on Tuesday. Jesse Jackson Sr has done so too (h/t nextstopchicago and choochmac).

Also, the congressman’s father, Jesse Jackson Sr., has retained legal council following the Blagojevich arrest. 

Given the fact that Blago claimed last week that he was first approached by an emissary of JJJ with a monetary deal for the senate seat before the election, and given the high likelihood that the Feds taped the meeting between JJJ and Blago on Monday, I’d say the Reverend’s lawyering up is very ominous indeed.

Update: There are three (maybe just two, given Blago’s ramblings) people named in the complaint with ties to JJJ:

Associate of SC 5: Approached Blago with a “pay to play” offer
Emissary: The one who delivered the Associate’s message (may be Associate, may not be)
Individual D: Blago tried to get campaign donations from him in the last several days, Blago believes D is close to JJJ

Obviously, Jesse Jackson Sr couldn’t be Individual D (since there’s no question they’re close). Which suggests if he’s named in the complaint, he’s Associate or Emissary. Of course, it’s perfectly likely that JJ Sr had contacts with Blago not mentioned on the tapes–which may well be perfectly innocent–but that he has retained counsel as a precautionary measure before he goes to Fitz to reveal those contacts.

Update: I’ve changed the title of this. A couple of readers suggested I was using the term improperly. I think the usage in the blogosphere is somewhat different, but I recognize that their point about general usage is fair. So I’m changing it to make sure I make it clear that we have every reason to believe that Jesse Sr. is willing to cooperate with federal investigators.