Blagojevich Scandal An Early Test For Obama Team

nytimes.com:

WASHINGTON -- When Representative Jan Schakowsky, an Illinois Democrat, began exploring whether she might fill Barack Obama's seat in the United States Senate, she called Rahm Emanuel. They served in the House together and, more important, he had just become chief of staff to the newly elected president.

But Mr. Emanuel was uncharacteristically circumspect. If Mr. Obama had a favorite, Mr. Emanuel was not saying. And to Ms. Schakowsky, he seemed wary about Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich, who would be making the appointment. "Rahm always has good intelligence," she recalled. "In this case, he really didn't. It was not clear to him what the governor was going to do, or at least he didn't share it with me."

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