Rahm Emanuel Avoids Reporters' Blagojevich Questions

President-elect Barack Obama's chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, refused to take questions from reporters this morning about whether he was the Obama "advisor" named in the criminal complaint against Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

The complaint states Blagojevich wanted a promise of a high-level appointment or some other reward for Blagojevich in exchange for Blagojevich naming Obama's friend Valerie Jarrett to replace him in the U.S. Senate.

Emanuel was uncharacteristically absent from Obama's news conference this morning. He was spotted two hours later in the lobby of Chicago's City Hall. He was there to listen to his two children performing in a concert with their school, Anshe Emet.

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[Madampotential]

I think Emmanuel was the whistleblower. He should have a press conference to discuss it all for transparency. The Obama people are clearly clean and refused to play according to the most importance person in all of this ... Fitzgerald. It soulds like they did the right thing by going to the authorities and should be proud of the person who did it.

I hope they have a press conference and answer every single question until there are no more questions. They have Fitzgerald on their side so they must be clean and he must have all the info he needs from them... they just need to provide it to the rest of us in the next few days. Good practice for Obama's communications team. They need to be wuicker with how they handle these situations even if it is a non story like this one.

[Madampotential]

Also, reporters should not stalk politicians when they are with their babies. That is disgusting on the part of the Sun Times. Just wait until he is alone or with other adults.

[VirginiaScott]

I think he was too, but as the investigation is still ongoing, he simply cannot say anything that would hinder it. I would imagine that when it is concluded, they will hold a press conference, but until this thing is wrapped up, somebody needs to put these ambulance chaser reporters on a choke chain. They are not reporting "news", they're fueling all sorts of conspiracy theory speculation from the nutcases.

[Kartoffel]

Wiretaps show that no later than Nov. 11 somebody from the Obama camp discussed the senate seat and a bribe was solicited, but apparently not reported to law enforcement. WHO was the person that Blago talked to? We still don't have a name. If it was Emanuel then he's got real problems.

[PTTY]

Who in the Vice President's gave out Valerie Plame's name? Who lied about a War that has cost over 4 thousand American lives as well as Iraqi lives?

What about the bankruptcy of America? Who is the blame for the last eight years and billions of dollars being spent on a corrupt war?

[VirginiaScott]

Wiretaps show on Nov 11th someone from the Obama camp chatted with Blago about the seat and was offered a bribe, but not APPARENTLY reported...

Does it occur to you that perhaps that individual could have already been working WITH the Feds???

[bronzy]

He should have told the w e a s e l s to suck his d**k! gosh! do these people know that there is a time and place for everything?

[SPQR1052]

I am sure that a long "voluntary" queue has already formed for that ... (Just saying.)

Leave the guy alone, he's OUTSTANDING.