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Fitzgerald: You Can’t Have Witnesses, But You Can Have 4 Conversations

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I’m about to open Christmas presents, so I’ll have to put off any real comment on the news that Fitz is doing the legal work to release a very select group of intercepts to the Blagojevich impeachment committee. From his filing, it looks like he’s willing to release just four conversations.

After careful deliberation, the government applies for authorization to disclose a limited number of intercepted communications in redacted form. Although many relevant communications were intercepted, the government believes that, on balance, it is appropriate to seek the disclosure of four intercepted calls, in redacted form, to the Committee, and that disclosure of the calls by themselves would not interfere with the ongoing criminal investigation. These calls bear on a discrete episode of criminal conduct alleged in the complaint affidavit, specifically at Paragraph 68(e), and the calls are evidence of a criminal offense that the government was authorized to monitor under the wiretap order. Under separate cover and under seal, the government provides to this Court for its ex parte, in camera review, both a set of the full audio recordings of these four calls (Exhibit 3) and a set of proposed redacted recordings (Exhibit 4) omitting portions of the conversations not material to the episode described in Paragraph 68(e) of the complaint affidavit. 

It will not surprise you in the least that Paragraph 68(e) is one of the least sexy in the entire complaint.

Also during this call, ROD BLAGOJEVICH and Fundraiser A spoke about efforts to raise funds from two other individuals before the end of the year. Fundraiser A advised ROD BLAGOJEVICH that with respect to one of these individuals, Contributor 1, Lobbyist 1 had informed Fundraiser A that Contributor 1 was “good for it” but that Lobbyist 1 was “going to talk with you (ROD BLAGOJEVICH) about some sensitivities legislatively, tonight when he sees you, with regard to timing of all of this.” ROD BLAGOJEVICH asked, “Right, before the end of the year though, right?” Fundraiser A responded affirmatively. Later in the conversation, ROD BLAGOJEVICH stated that he knows Lobbyist 1 is “down there (Springfield, Illinois)” with Contributor 1 “pushing a bill.” In a series of calls since that time, it became clear that the bill Lobbyist 1 is interested in is in the Office of the Governor awaiting ROD BLAGOJEVICH’s signature. Read more →

The Squabble over Subpoenas in Springfield

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When Blagojevich’s lawyer threatened to subpoena Rahm Emanuel and Valerie Jarrett last week, it made a lot of sense. By causing the Obama team ongoing distraction, it would have allowed Blago to exact a price from Illinois Democrats aiming to oust him. And it would allow Blago’s lawyer, Edward Genson, to see some of the evidence not shown in Obama’s selective report last week (for example, the content of other conversations between Valerie Jarrett and Tom Balanoff, one of which may be referenced in the complaint yet unmentioned in the Obama report).

Sadly for Blago, though, he’s going to be unable to force Rahm and Jarrett to testify. Fitz sent the legislative committee a letter requesting that Rahm, Jarrett, Jesse Jackson Jr., and Nils Larsen (the Financial Advisor advising Sam Zell on the Wrigley Field stuff) not be subpoenaed.

You have inquired whether prospective testimony by Valerie Jarrett, Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr., Congressman Rahm Emanuel, and Nils Larsen before the Special Investigative Committee would interfere with the ongoing criminal investigation into the activities of Governor Rod Blagojevich and others. Our understanding is that counsel for Governor Blagojevich has asked the Committee to issue subpoenas requiring the testimony of those individuals on Monday, December 29, 2008.

Consistent with our letter of December 22, 2008, we believe that testimony before your Committee by any witness, including the four named above, concerning the subject matter of the ongoing criminal investigation, could significantly compromise that investigation. The impact of such testimony on the criminal investigation would be the same regardless of whether a witness is called by the Committee or by Governor Blagojevich. Accordingly, we ask that the Committee refrain from issuing subpoenas for testimony by those four individuals (or others) which would overlap with the subject matter of the pending criminal investigation.

The committee has made it clear it will comply with Fitz’s request. 

Now, I think it would be a mistake to read too much into Fitz’s request. After all, he’s unlikely to want to pick and choose (for example, if he said "you can subpoena JJJ but not Larsen"), as that selection, by itself, would signal which witnesses he wanted to withhold.  And Fitz is notoriously reluctant to show his cards before his time. 

Also note Fitz’s wording. This was misrepresented in some of the coverage of this, suggesting that Fitz had asked the committee not to subpoena those "mentioned" in the complaint; Read more →

Shorter Blagojevich:

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"If I have to face impeachment, then the self-imagined future Speaker of the House ought to be forced to testify, too."

In a dramatic development in the ongoing impeachment proceedings, lawyers for Gov. Rod Blagojevich want two key aides to President-elect Barack Obama and U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. to testify before the House impeachment committee.

Sources tell CBS 2 that a letter sent by Blagojevich’s lawyers  to committee chairman, State Rep. Barbara Currie, asks that the committee subpoena Obama’s chief of staff Rahm Emanuel, senior adviser Valerie Jarrett and Jackson.

This is a smart move by Blago. Obama has already signaled he wants to protect Jarrett and Rahm (more on this in upcoming posts). So why not make Obama as uncomfortable as possible? (I intend to start counting the number of unintended consequences from Obama’s crappy treatment of yesterday’s report; count this as number one.)

Furthermore, this will expose a good deal of Fitz’s case. Not that Obama or Jarrett or JJJ himself (as opposed to his associates) are key players in Fitz’s case. But this gives Blago an opportunity to play to the press’ shiny object to distract attention from the wholesale sale of government that is the core of Fitz’s case.

Blagojevich Report Timeline

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Here are the Obama related dates pertaining to Rod Blagojevich–taken from the report on contacts with Blago and the complaint.

October 31: Blago approached by "emissary" from Jesse Jackson Jr about Senate seat

November 3: Blago spoke with Deputy Governor A and Advisor A about Senate seat; mentions Jarrett

November 4: Obama elected President; Deputy Governor A suggests Blago put a list of things he might ask for in exchange for the Senate seat; Blago also speaks with John Harris about the seat

November 5: Blago and Deputy Governor A talk about possibility of HHS appointment for Senate seat; Blago and Harris talk about a foundation appointment; (approximately) Blago talks to Tom Balanoff (SEIU) and "understood that [Balanoff] was an emissary to discuss [Jarrett]’s interest in the Senate seat"

November 6: Rahm Emanuel accepts Chief of Staff position; Blago gives a leak to Michael Sneed designed "to send a message to the [Obama] people" that Madigan might get the Senate seat over Jarrett

November 6-8: Louanner Peters called Eric Whitaker to ask who spoke for Obama regarding his preferences for his replacement; Obama told Whitaker no one had that authority, which Whitaker "relayed" this to Peters

November 6-8: Rahm has "one or two" conversations with Blago, about his own seat, as well as Senate seat; Rahm has four conversations with John Harris about the Senate seat

November 7: Blago tells Advisor A he’s willing to "trade" the Senate seat for Secretary of HHS; Blago discusses HHS with Harris and Advisor B and talks about 3-way deal with SEIU; Tom Balanoff (local SEIU head) tells Valerie Jarrett that Blago asked whether he might be named HHS; in the same conversation, Balanoff told Jarrett he had talked to Blago about Jarrett for the Senate seat; Balanoff mentioned that Blago had also mentioned Madigan

November 9: Valerie Jarrett withdraws from consideration; Obama talks about Senate candidates with Rahm, with the understanding he would pass on those candidates

November 10: Long conference call about the seat, including discussions about a non-profit in exchange for the seat; Blago admits he’s not going to get HHS; Blago plants leak with Sneed about Jesse Jackson Jr.

November 11: Blago complains that, "they’re not willing to give me anything except appreciation"

November 12: Blago notes that CNN has reported Jarrett is uninterested in Senate seat; Blago talks to Balanoff, probes about whether Jarrett is interested in Senate seat and proposes 401c4; Balanoff says he will "“put that flag up and see where it goes"

November 13: Blago says he wants to be able to call Rahm and say, "this has nothing to do with anything else we’re working on but the Governor wants to put together a 501(c)(4)" and that when Rahm "asks me for the Fifth CD thing I want it to be in his head"; Blago then asks Advisor A to have Individual A (believed to be John Wyma, who is cooperating with Fitzgerald) propose the 501c4 to Rahm; Advisor A says, "while it’s not said this is a play to put in play other things" and Blago agrees

[November 13 is the last reference to negotiations with Obama’s team in the complaint]

December 4: Blago talks about reaching out to JJJ’s people about him rising in consideration, partly because they would raise funds

December 5:  Trib reveals Blago has been wiretapped; Blago tries to pull back discussions related to JJJ

December 6: Fundraiser for JJJ hosted by JJJ’s emissary; some participants believe the fundraiser pertains to the Senate seat

December 7: Fitz gets arrest warrant for Blago

December 8: JJJ and Blago meet about the Senate seat

December 9: Blago arrested; Obama team learns of it from public reports

December 11: Obama team begins to conduct inquiry into contacts with Blago; Read more →

The Blagojevich Contacts: Only 5-6 Contacts with Rahm on the Senate Seat, But the Report Does Not Cover Rahm’s Seat

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The Obama team has released its report of contacts between the Transition Team and Governor Blagojevich.

With regards to the question of whether or not anyone in Obama’s team talked with Blago about Obama’s replacement, the contacts are innocuous: the only Transition Team member who had any contacts was Rahm, who had "one or two" with Blago and four with John Harris. (According to Greg Craig, Rahm can’t remember whether it was one or two contacts with Blago.)

But curiously, the Obama team very narrowly crafted the question to cover only conversations about Obama’s replacement!!

I arranged for transition staff to provide accounts of any contacts that you or they may have had with Governor Blagojevich or his office in which the subject of your successor came up.

This, even though one of Blago’s conversations references "the 5th CD thing," suggesting an imminent conversation between Blago and Rahm about the special election to replace Rahm, White House Counsel to-be Greg Craig didn’t ask about such conversations.

In addition, on a conference call about the report, Craig stated that he hadn’t known about the Fox report that Rahm had tipped Fitzgerald off to Blago conversations; that seems like a worthwhile question to ask Rahm, don’t you think?

I will try to get some clarification on whether Craig even asked Rahm whether he had talked to Blago about his own replacement; but in the meantime, you can rest assured that Obama was not chumming it up with Blago directly.

Clarification:

As WO and MD point out, Rahm’s House seat does come up:

Soon after he decided to accept the President-Elect’s offer to serve as Chief of Staff in the White House, Mr. Emanuel placed a call to the Governor to give him a heads up that he was taking the Chief of Staff’s position in the White House, and to advise him that he would be resigning his seat in the House of Representatives. They spoke about Mr. Emanuel’s House seat, when he would be resigning and potential candidates to replace him.

My complaint about this report is that it is either amateur in its execution or deliberate in its narrowness, but they apparently never asked Rahm, "How many conversations did you have with Blago and Co about your OWN seat, in addition to the 5-6 that pertained to the Senate seat?" Read more →

Rahm and “that 5th CD Thing”

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At his shiny new shack out back of the Big Orange Satan, Kagro X links to this article describing how Rahm is uninvolved (publicly at least) in the fight to replace him.

Rahm Emanuel’s role in attempting to influence Gov. Blagojevich’s choice of a U.S. Senate replacement for President-elect Barack Obama could impact the heated race to fill another important vacancy: Emanuel’s own seat in Congress.

Ald. Pat O’Connor (40th), Mayor Daley’s unofficial City Council floor leader, had hoped to emerge from the crowded field of candidates in the 5th Congressional District by winning Daley’s support and by persuading Emanuel to use his formidable powers of persuasion to clear the field.

But now that the Chicago Sun-Times has lifted the veil on Emanuel’s efforts to persuade Blagojevich to appoint Obama family friend Valerie Jarrett to the U.S. Senate, Emanuel has — as one veteran ward boss put it — "gone underground."

The new White House chief of staff is reluctant to get involved in the 5th District race, which has attracted more than two dozen candidates.

Of course, the Sun-Times presents this as a reaction to the news that Rahm was involved in discussions over Obama’s seat.

But I would suggest that it’s one more piece of evidence that suggests Rahm was involved in discussions–real or imagined–over his own seat.

After all, aside from calling the Special Election, Blago is not involved in this election: Richard Daley is the kingmaker here, not Blago. So why would Rahm’s involvement in discussions about the Senate seat prevent him from getting involved in discussions about his own seat?

As I’ve discussed, there’s evidence that Rahm and Blago (or Rahm and Blago’s flunkies) talked about more than the Senate seat.  The only mention of Rahm in the complaint, after all, includes this passage:

On November 13, 2008, ROD BLAGOJEVICH talked with JOHN HARRIS. ROD BLAGOJEVICH said he wanted to be able to call “[President-elect Advisor]” and tell President-elect Advisor that “this has nothing to do with anything else we’re working on but the Governor wants to put together a 501(c)(4)” and “can you guys help him. . . raise 10, 15 million.” ROD BLAGOJEVICH said he wanted “[President-elect Advisor] to get the word today,” and that when “he asks me for the Fifth CD thing I want it to be in his head.” Read more →

Blagojevich Presser Live-Blog

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Watching MSNBC leading up to the Blago presser. Blago has announced he is not going to take questions. Go figure.

Blago’s lawyer has already suggested that the wiretaps that caught him trying to sell Obama’s Senate seat were illegal. Expect some righteous outrage over that–though I think that’s a ploy to try to get the affidavit that justified those wiretaps, which would, in turn, reveal more about the people cooperation with Fitz.

Not guilty of any criminal wrong-doing. I will fight (repeated a bunch of times). I have done nothing wrong. And I’m not going to quit a job people hired to do bc of false accusations and political lynch mob. 

Not going to talk about case in 30-second sound bites. Dying to show you how innocent I am. I intend to answer them in appropriate forum, court of law. Absolutely certain that I will be vindicated. 

Kipling? He’s quoting Kipling?

Most powerful ally there is, and it’s the truth. I have the personal knowledge I have not done anything wrong. Please reserve judgment. Afford me same rights that you and your children have: presumption of innocence.

One last thing: to all of those who have expressed support, thank you for your prayers and good wishes. Patti and I cannot express how grateful we are. 

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays.

Well, that was short.

Criminalizing Politics? Or Reading a Complaint?

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The cries that Fitz is criminalizing politics are getting almost as shrill as the insinuations that Obama must be hiding something because he agreed to hold off on releasing the summary of communications with Blago’s folks. There’s the NYT, relying on "some lawyers" that just happen to be just two lawyers that have scrapped with Fitz in the past (Bob Bennett, who represented Judy, and Michael Monico, who represented one of Blago’s fundraisers).

But now some lawyers are beginning to suggest that the juiciest part of the case against Mr. Blagojevich, the part involving the Senate seat, may be less than airtight. There is no evidence, at least none that has been disclosed, that the governor actually received anything of value — and the Senate appointment has yet to be made.

And then there’s that legendary dealmaker, Willie Brown.

But if his bargaining over the Senate seat was for political gain, not financial benefit, then he ought to hold tight.

That said, I can’t help but take stories like this personally. Any politician’s downfall reflects on every other politician. It demeans your history, your record. People look at you and figure, yeah, you just didn’t get caught.

Yet these cries rely on two things: an exclusive focus on the Senate seat allegations at the expense of the other allegations, and a neglect of the actual details of the complaint  (to be fair, the NYT’s Johnston admits he’s focusing on just the "juiciest part" of the complaint, though even there, he doesn’t consider how that "juiciest part" plays into the two charges in the complaint). 

So here’s what the actual complaint says, to a non-lawyer.

First, there are two charges. Neither relies entirely on the Senate seat part of the complaint. I’ll deal with the charges in reverse order.

Charge Two: The Wrigley Field Deal

The second charge, which relies entirely on the Wrigley Field part of the complaint, charges:

Beginning no later than November 2008 to the present, in Cook County, in the Northern District of Illinois, defendants ROD R. BLAGOJEVICH and JOHN HARRIS, being agents of the State of Illinois, a State government which during a one-year period, beginning January 1, 2008 and continuing to the present, received federal benefits in excess of $10,000, corruptly solicited and demanded a thing of value, namely, the firing of certain Chicago Tribune editorial members responsible for widely-circulated editorials critical of ROD R. BLAGOJEVICH, Read more →

Jesse Jackson Jr’s Cooperation with Fitz

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Multiple stories–explicitly sourced to Jesse Jackson Jr’s allies–report that Jesse Jackson started cooperating with Fitz as least as early as earlier this year. Here are some data points on JJJ’s cooperation and other involvement.

He apparently told Fitz earlier this year that in 2003, Blago conditioned a position for JJJ’s wife on a $25,000 donation.

Jackson has been in regular contact with the feds and has told the government that in 2003 Blagojevich denied the congressman’s wife Sandi an appointment as Illinois lottery director because Jackson would not donate $25,000 to the governor’s campaign fund.

Also earlier this year, JJJ told Fitz that he refused to accept Tony Rezko’s condition that the state would support a third airport only if JJJ agreed to let Blago approve the airport board.

The meeting in June of 2006 at a Gold Coast hotel included Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. and Blagojevich fundraiser Antoin "Tony" Rezko.

The topic was a proposed third airport at Peotone, Jackson’s pet project which needed more state money. Rezko allegedly demanded that the governor be given control of the airport’s board. Jackson refused and state support for the project stopped.

Fitz’s folks called JJJ last Monday night to give him a head’s up that they were arresting Blago and that a reference to him would show up in the complaint. 

Reportedly, last week, both JJJ and his father (who appears not to have been mentioned in the complaint) both retained lawyers.

Also last week, JJJ issued a narrow denial: denying any involvement in pay-to-play, while not denying someone may have made an offer to Blago in his name without his knowledge or support.

I want to make this fact plain: I reject and denounce pay-to- play politics and have no involvement whatsoever in any wrongdoing. I did not initiate or authorize anyone, at any time, to promise anything to Governor Blagojevich on my behalf.

I never sent a message or an emissary to the governor to make an offer, to plead my case, or to propose a deal about a U.S. Senate seat, period.

Also in his denial, JJJ described his sister’s support for what he has done. And in an previously unremarked reference, he described being proud of Illinois in the last 2.5 years.

This morning, I got a text message from my little sister, who told me that she was proud of me. She was proud of what I’ve done for this nation.

Read more →

Rahm’s 21 Conversations with Blagojevich and Friends?

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I’ve been boring you all by repeatedly pointing to this passage in the complaint against Blago:

This affidavit does not include all calls dealing with the corrupt efforts of ROD BLAGOJEVICH, JOHN HARRIS, and others to misuse the power of ROD BLAGOJEVICH to appoint a United States Senator for the personal gain of ROD BLAGOJEVICH and his family, nor does this affidavit set forth other calls where ROD BLAGOJEVICH and others discussed a possible appointment to the Senate seat based on considerations other than financial gain for ROD BLAGOJEVICH and his family, discussions which took place with greater frequency after efforts to arrange for a private job for ROD BLAGOJEVICH in exchange for appointing a particular candidate to the open Senate seat did not meet with success. [my emphasis]

I have even suggested that, given the narrative Fitz constructs, it is quite likely that those discussions–which took place with greater frequency after Obama told Blago they’d only give "appreciation" and not a high paying job–took place between Rahm Emanuel and Blago’s folks.

Well, who knows who is using Michael Sneed as a mouthpiece this time … but my speculation that Rahm was involved in those "greater frequency" calls seems to be on the right track.

Sneed hears rumbles President-elect Barack Obama’s chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, is reportedly on 21 different taped conversations by the feds — dealing with his boss’ vacant Senate seat! 

A lot of chit-chat?

Hot air?

Or trouble?

Given the seemingly Rahm-generated leaks so far, it seems we can count on two conversations around November 1 (delivering the list of acceptable candidates, thereby setting Blago off to write a list of things to demand in return), several conversations around November 10 (telling Blago that the only thing he’d get would be appreciation), and then a conversation after Blago planned to start trading around Rahm’s House seat on November 13. 

That is, we can account for about 7 conversations between the complaint and the seeming pre-emptive leaking out of Rahm’s camp. 

Which would seem to leave phone calls with "greater frequency" in the days after November 13, when Blago kept scrambling for something of value from the President-elect. But note, if I’m right that these conversations are about something of non-monetary value, then they may get even more interesting as we go forward.