I Ask Again: Did Burris' Lobbying Partner Help Patti Blagojevich Land a Job?

Twice in early January-- see here and here-- I wrote about what, exactly, our now entrenched Senator Roland Burris did for former Gov. Rod Blagojevich to win the jackpot of being appointed to Barack Obama's vacant U.S. Senate seat.

I suggested that one of the favors Burris might have proffered to Blagojevich was the important one of helping his wife, Patti, land a full-time job. That position, as development director of the Chicago Christian Industrial League (CCIL), for which she held no apparent experience, was worth $80,000 to $100,000. (After the arrest of her husband last December, Patti and the CCIL parted company.)

Burris' partner in the lobbying firm Burris & Lebed Consulting, LLC --which reportedly reaped nearly $300,000 in state business under the Blagojevich administration--was Fred Lebed, who served on the CCIL's Board of Directors and also on Blagojevich's transition team.

On their firm's website Burris and Lebed used to boast that, "their vast network of relationships are unmatched and stretch within every corner of Illinois and many of the major metropolitan areas in the country."

The website also claimed that, "Burris & Lebed Consulting represents numerous clients in front of the Chicago City Council, Cook County Board of Commissioners, suburban local governments, other governmental units across Illinois, Illinois General Assembly, the Governor's Office and other local elected and appointed officials."

The Feds did not indict Patti Thursday, although that does not mean she won't be indicted later.

And there is much in the 75-page indictment about Patti's significant real estate fees--allegedly more than $150,000 and $54,396 from the infamous Tony Rezko, now imprisoned and cooperating with the feds --the latter at least for no or little apparent work. David Kidwell and John Chase report in the Chicago Tribune that while Patti was not indicted, the feds "say she took thousands in payoffs for real estate work she never did." The Tribune reporters also note attempts to push Patti into jobs as a securities dealer and when those didn't materialize, her husband directing his chief of staff, John Harris, now reportedly cooperating with the feds, to withhold work for the firms that would not hire Patti.

I looked for mention in the morning news reports of how Patti might have landed that cushy job at the financially struggling CCIL. She snagged the job at about the time the feds had begun to scrutinize her real estate dealings and she needed work in a completely different field.

There was no mention of this lucky break for the former first family of Illinois in the rush of reporting about the indictment. Roland Burris, for all of his fuzzy, goofy performances since landing Obama's seat, had it figured exactly right. The spotlight would shift and new headlines would push him off the stage and who would care about apparent ties among CCIL, a nonprofit that helps the homeless, and Patti, Rod and Burris' partner, Fred Lebed.

Comments

[jrysk]

Carol, you're missing the real story. The real story is that the Planning Board charges which were in the December 2008 complaint, have been DROPPED from the superseding indictment. Why?

Some people think Fitz is whitewashing Obama. I think the Planning Board crimes will be central in an upcoming complaint against Obama. Anyone can go on the internet and read all about how Obama carried the Planning Board legislation in 2003 so Rezko could retain control of the board, and they can read a detailed list of the kickbacks he got for doing so.

Here is an email I sent to a WSJ reporter in response to a query. You should also ask Fitz's office why the Planning Board charges were dropped. Get with it!

Hi Doug, I certainly can point out to you where the planning board crimes are discussed in the December 2008 complaint: pages 19-23. There is something very dodgy going on. I reproduce the exact paragraphs below, and I also attach the complaint (which is available, as is the superseding indictment, on the website of the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois). It was as a result of these Mercy Hospital conspiracies that Obama had to manage legislation regarding the planning board, such that Rezko would retain control over it. Obama did exactly as he was told--as Evelyn has recounted in very great detail--and the resulting legislation allowed Rezko to retain control over the planning board. Obama got kickbacks.