Posted by Jim Lindgren:
What did Obama Actually Promise to Disclose?
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2008_12_07-2008_12_13.shtml#1229144175
Barack Obama's [1]promise to release a list of contacts �between the
transition office and the governor�s office� commits to far less than
people think. Indeed, it does not cover either of the two contacts
authorized by Rod Blagojevich that were mentioned in the government's
affidavit.
Nonetheless, the prevailing view is that, in his brief press
conference yesterday, Barack Obama may have promised[2] more than he
can deliver.
In trying to meet the first rule of Washington scandal-management �
get the facts out on your own terms, and fast � Obama may have
promised something he�ll later regret, one expert warned.
�What they�re doing is either setting themselves up for
inconsistencies, or creating a cache of evidence that otherwise
wouldn�t exist. It never helps when you dig up the dirt in your own
yard and you find stuff,� said Stan Brand, a top Washington defense
lawyer.
But, it�s important to parse [3]what Obama actually said and compare
it to what�s in the affidavit supporting the complaint.
I had no contact with the governor�s office. I did not speak to the
governor about these issues, that I know for certain. What I want
to do is to gather all the facts about any staff contacts that may
have taken place between the transition office and the governor�s
office, and we�ll have those in the next few days and we�ll present
them. But what I�m absolutely certain about is that our office had
no involvement in any deal-making around my Senate seat. That, I�m
absolutely certain of, and that would be a violation of everything
this campaign has been about. That�s not how we do business.
The complaint explicitly suggests [4]two requested contacts between
the Obama camp and the Governor�s camp:
1. Nov. 12: �109. On November 12, 2008, ROD BLAGOJEVICH spoke with
SEIU Official, who was in Washington, D.C. Prior intercepted phone
conversations indicate that approximately a week before this call,
ROD BLAGOJEVICH met with SEIU Official to discuss the vacant Senate
seat, and ROD BLAGOJEVICH understood that SEIU Official was an
emissary to discuss Senate Candidate 1�s interest in the Senate
seat. . . .
ROD BLAGOJEVICH said that �one thing I�d be interested in� is a
501(c)(4) organization. ROD BLAGOJEVICH explained the 501(c)(4)
idea to SEIU Official and said that the 501(c)(4) could help �our
new Senator [Senate Candidate 1].� SEIU Official agreed to �put
that flag up and see where it goes.�
110. On November 12, 2008, ROD BLAGOJEVICH talked with Advisor B.
ROD BLAGOJEVICH told Advisor B that he told SEIU Official, �I said
go back to [Senate Candidate 1], and, and say hey, look, if you
still want to be a Senator don�t rule this out and then broach the
idea of this 501(c)(4) with her.� . . .
2. Nov. 13: �ROD BLAGOJEVICH asked Advisor A to call Individual A
and have Individual A pitch the idea of the 501(c)(4) to
�[President-elect Advisor].� Advisor A said that, �while it�s not
said this is a play to put in play other things.� ROD BLAGOJEVICH
responded, �correct.��
The first contemplated contact is for the SEIU official (identified by
the New York Times as [5]Tom Balanoff) to contact Valerie Jarrett or
another Obama aide. According to the Times, SEIU officials recently
argued that �All the official did . . . was listen to Mr. Blagojevich
and his chief of staff and ferry some messages for them.� If the Times
is correct, then Balanoff did ferry messages from the Blagojevich camp
to the Obama camp, essentially as requested.
But this contact would not be covered by Obama�s promised disclosure
since it was not �between the transition office and the governor�s
office.� Remember that Obama does not count indirect contacts as
contacts, as his statement at his news conference makes clear.
Nor would the second contact be covered by Obama�s promise to
disclose. That was between �Individual A� and a �President-elect
Advisor,� not �between the transition office and the governor�s
office.�
So the affidavit alleges two times that Blagojevich asks someone to
convey his corrupt offer to the Obama camp. Neither was directly
�between the transition office and the governor�s office,� so neither
would be covered by Obama�s disclosure promise.
So what should we expect by way of disclosure from Obama?
Even though neither contact is covered by [6]">Obama�s disclosure
promise, I expect him to disclose both of them (assuming they
occurred). But beyond these two (which they can�t easily escape
revealing), I expect them to disclose only a fraction of the other
indirect contacts between the two camps. The more explicit the corrupt
offer, the more likely it was conveyed indirectly, rather than
directly.
The really interesting contact is the one that [7]probably happened on
Nov. 10, which likely caused the Obama camp to withdraw Jarrett�s name
within hours of their being tipped off to the shakedown attempt.
The other big thing missing from the Obama disclosure promise is a
commitment to reveal when he realized that he was being shaken down.
Circumstantial evidence points to Nov. 10 as the date for this, but
since Obama has denied any awareness of this, I don�t expect much from
the disclosure on this issue.
When the Obama camp releases its internal report, again it will be
important to read what it says -- and what it doesn�t say -- about the
comprehensiveness of the list of contacts.
References
1.
http://washingtonindependent.com/21871/obama-pledges-details-on-staff-meetings-with-governors-office
2. http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1208/16508.html
3.
http://washingtonindependent.com/21871/obama-pledges-details-on-staff-meetings-with-governors-office
4. http://volokh.com/posts/1228903890.shtml
5. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/12/us/politics/12union.html?_r=1
6. file://localhost/var/www/powerblogs/volokh/posts/<a%20href=
7. http://volokh.com/posts/1228903890.shtml
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