Obama Report Clears Staff In Blago Probe

Transition Office Report Confirms Rahm Emanuel Did Have Contacts With Ill. Gov, But Finds No Effort To Make A Deal

(CBS/AP)  Barack Obama and his aides did not try to cut any deals with Illinois' embattled governor, accused of trying to sell the president-elect's vacant Senate seat for cash or a lucrative job, according to an internal review released Tuesday.

Mr. Obama and two of his top aides also met last week with federal investigators building a corruption case against Gov. Rod Blagojevich, according to the report by White House attorney Greg Craig released Tuesday.

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Hotsheet Blog: A Closer Look At Emanuel's Contacts With Blagojevich's Office
Hotsheet Blog: A Look At Valerie Jarrett's role
Hotsheet Blog: Is Blagogate Over Now For Obama?

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The report, whose release was delayed from last week at the request of U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, supports Mr. Obama's insistence that there had been no inappropriate contact with the governor's office by Mr. Obama or his staff. Prosecutors had said Mr. Obama is not implicated in the case.

"We are satisfied there was nothing inappropriate that took place here, either in terms of conversations or communications or contacts, between transition officials and the governor's office," Craig said after releasing the report.

Mr. Obama's Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel was the only Obama transition team member who discussed the Senate appointment with Blagojevich, and those conversations were "totally appropriate and acceptable," Craig said Tuesday. No one on Mr. Obama's transition team discussed any deals or had any knowledge of deals, Craig's report found.

Sources have said Emanuel is not a target in the case.

So far, Obama's team has refused requests from the media to release emails or notes of contacts with Blagojevich's office, reports CBS News correspondent Ben Tracy.

In Hawaii, President-elect Obama did not make any public comments. Instead, he is attending a memorial service for his grandmother who died right before Election Day, Tracy reports.

Craig's report identified close Obama friend Eric Whitaker as someone approached by one of Blagojevich's top aides to learn "who, if anyone, had the authority to speak for the president-elect" about the Senate appointment.

The report says Mr. Obama told Whitaker "no one was authorized to speak for him" and that "he had no interest in dictating the result of the selection process."

Blagojevich attorney Edward M. Genson, who has said allegations that the governor was trying to sell or trade the Senate seat are built on nothing but talk, said Mr. Obama's report proves his point.

"I've said from the beginning that there was nothing inappropriate, and this just corroborates what I've said," Genson said.

Blagojevich was charged on Dec. 9 with plotting to use his governor's authority to appoint Mr. Obama's Senate replacement and make state appointments and contracts in exchange for cash and other favors. He has denied any criminal wrongdoing and has resisted multiple calls for his resignation, including one from Mr. Obama.

Craig's report states that Emanuel had "one or two telephone calls" with Blagojevich and four conversations with John Harris, the governor's chief of staff who later resigned after being charged in the federal case. Craig told reporters Emanuel said he couldn't be sure it was only one call.

"Mr. Harris did not make any effort to extract a personal benefit for the governor in any of these conversations," the report said. There was no discussion of a Cabinet position, creation of a nonprofit foundation for Blagojevich, a private sector position or of any other personal benefit for the governor, according to the report.

Emanuel left for a long-planned family vacation in Africa on Tuesday and was not available for comment.

The report was released in Washington while Mr. Obama was vacationing in Hawaii. The president-elect did not make himself available for questions.

The report said that earlier, Emanuel recommended longtime Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett for the Senate seat without Mr. Obama's knowledge, and Jarrett later accepted a job as a senior White House adviser.

The report is based on the Obama team investigating itself, and was conducted by interviewing staff and taking their answers about any contacts at their word. Gibbs said this was consistent with the charge given to Craig by the president-elect.

A transition official said Craig doesn't have the legal power to more thoroughly investigate and try to corroborate the accounts. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to more freely discuss the thinking behind the inquiry.

Meanwhile, federal prosecutors have asked the state committee studying Blagojevich's impeachment not to dig into criminal charges against the governor, warning that it could "significantly compromise" their investigation.

Members of the committee have promised to abide by any direction from prosecutors on what should be off limits, so the request from Fitzgerald means the panel won't question Blagojevich aides and campaign donors about possible crimes.

But the committee can still consider the fact that the Democratic governor has been charged with federal crimes. Members say they'll look at evidence outlined in the complaint against him - including wiretapped conversations on which he allegedly schemes to sell Mr. Obama's former seat.

The committee is supposed to recommend whether the full House should consider impeaching Blagojevich, and it has also reviewed allegations that he abused his power by defying legislative rulings, handing jobs to donors and ignoring procedures for awarding leases and contracts.

Blagojevich maintains he is innocent and will stay in office to fight the accusations.

Committee members have said that if they can't pursue the criminal charges, then their fact-gathering work is largely done. The panel will meet again next week so that Blagojevich's lawyer can respond to earlier witnesses.

[roscoe2400-2009]

Sweet! I investigate my self, and declare my self inocent of all charges. Feliz Natal!

[miamiderick]

This is good stuff. Now Rod Blagojevich can investigate himself and find that he is innocent as well.

[betraid]

So Obama investigates himself and finds himself innocent. The more some things change, the more they stay the same.

[chitownfire1]

Chi, my party is moderate Democrat. I''''m registered Democrat but considering registering as a Independent or Republican in January. My party is not out of step.



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Posted by keystonebull

No matter what you call yourself or think you are your comments suggest you are a Republican.
You and your party are very much out of step with America. Your Republican president has some of the lowest approval ratings ever for any president. Your party is nearly all white in a country thats very diverse. Your party wants to inject religion in politics, and exclude Americans that arent exactly like them. Your party will only include americans that are the same race and have the same religion beliefs or live in a certain region. Or as Sarah Palin would put it, the best parts of America. I know you and your irk think that thats what America is all about, so I hate to break the news to you, pal, but your party just doesnt reflect America....

[chitownfire1]

Bush wasn''''t that bad till the democrats took over everything in 2006. That is the biggest mistake we have made and that is giving democrats control of congress. He happened to be in office when we were attacked and everyone was for the war and voted for it and Bush was popular. Then it went sour and the libs got sour on Bush. It wasn''''t his fault.


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Posted by keystonebull

Excuses Excuses Excuses...You got more EXCUSES than a Republican going to jail!!! When youre the president the buck stops in your office...if things were going great, are you trying to telling me that Bush wouldnt take credit for it??? Answer: Of course he would!!!

Being a leader is not just standing up victoriously when things go good, but also it meanings having the courage and honor to take responsibility when things go bad.....

[chitownfire1]

Yoiu libs will be the minority in four to six years. The only reason you won this year was because of the economy and cowards that wanted to end the war before they had to go in. This country will always be mostly conservatives. Libs usually serve 4 years then Conservatives 8 to 12 years. Now come back to Clinton, he was more conservative than a liberal. Obama is just like Jimmy Carter.


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Posted by keystonebull

Please keep thinking that your way of thinking isnt ridiculous and Democrats will have a easy time delivering another demoralizing defeat to Republicans in 4 years. You and your party are out of step with America. The days of the ALL WHITE political party is over. Republicans need to find ways of becoming more inclusive and stop being so exclusive....

[chitownfire1]

Time will prove Bush to be a great President just like time proved Truman was a great President. Now you liberals just wanted to cause trouble in Florida 8 years ago. It was done right but it hurt the liberals so much that tried to steal it. Just didn''''t work. They are now trying to steal the Senate seat in MN.


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Posted by keystonebull

Truman...HA HA HA!!!! Bush isnt fit to shine Trumans boots!!!

Your reliance on time as the one agent that will polish Bushes reputation is indicative of your hopes that people will forget how bad of a president he was. Republicans did the same thing for Reagan. Why not say youre going to Reaganize Bush after peoples memories start to fade.

Its crazy to push the notion that we should wait 10 to 20 years later to identify whether the president was a good president or not. Bush was the worst president ever, and that something we should never forget.....

[chitownfire1]

No you didn''''t make me puke, I have seen thousands of you. Have to admit that most of the ones that actually
did some fighting on the lines share my point of view more than they do yours. Also Chi, you know that is so.


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Posted by keystonebull

Democrats fighting on the front lines??? You mean like:

John F. Kennedy, Jack Murtha, Jim Webb, Bob Kerrey, Patrick Murphy, John Kerry, Wesley Clark, Gray Davis, Leonard Boswell, "Pete" Peterson, Max Cleland, Bill McBride, Fritz Hollings, Charles Rangel...you know what I mean....

[chitownfire1]

I''''m wondering if there was this much calamity when Bush took office in ''''01. Considering the mess we had down in FL, I can''''t imagine it was civil back then either. Do you imagine or remember if Bush was judged as harshly before he even set foot in office?



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Posted by LwyrsGnsMuny

Well, I know you didnt direct this question to me, but I am going to tell you what I recall.

President Bush did face a divided country after the Florida Recount and Supreme Court deal. Democrats were raging mad that it appeared that the election had been stolen from them. Bush was judged harshly before he got in office. But Bush was given a second chance as Americans almost unanimously stood behind their president after 9/11. He later showed his true colors and became one of the most unpopular president in modern U.S. history.

[chitownfire1]

Just been wondering. You don''''t talk like most of the men that I know that served. Have to admit, most of the ones I know best served 20 or more years, but I talk daily with guys that have been to Iraq and Afganistan and they speak my kind of language.


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Posted by keystonebull

Yeah, as shocking as it may seem, liberals love America just as much as you do. Even more shocking, liberals serve in the military too. Just imagine, you red-blooded military men were unknowingly sharing the showers and mess halls with LIBERALS!!!! I hope I didnt make you PUKE!!!