Monday, December 15, 2008

Pressure on Emanuel over Senate scandal


"Barack Obama's choice to be his White House chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, is coming under mounting pressure to make a full disclosure about his contacts with the disgraced governor of Illinois over the billowing Senate "seat for sale" scandal.

Federal investigators are looking into communication between Emanuel and Rod Blagojevich, the governor who was last week charged with trying to sell the Senate seat vacated by Obama to the highest bidder. Though Emanuel is understood not to be a target of the investigation, the disclosure that he was in contact with Blagojevich's office with regard to the seat has unleashed a storm of media interest that is awkward for the Obama team.....

There is nothing untoward about Emanuel having made clear Obama's opinions about the Senate appointment. What is proving difficult is the silence emanating from the Obama camp about the full nature of his contacts with the governor. Observers are puzzled by how long any response has taken, giving Republicans space to criticise Obama for failing to live up to his promise of open government......"

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