US Atty Fitz on PEBO: ‘We Make No Allegations that He’s Aware of Anything’
EmailABC News’ Sunlen Miller reports:
U.S. Attorney Patrick "The Untouchable" Fitzgerald was pressed numerous times today at his Chicago news conference about President-elect Obama’s awareness of Blagojevich’s actions.
“I’m not going to speak for what the President elect was aware of," he said. "We make no allegations that he’s aware of anything and that’s as simply as I can put it."
Later when asked if Obama had been briefed on this case, Fitzgerald again answered, “I’m not going to down anything that’s not on the complaint… I have enough trouble speaking for myself, I’m never going to go try to speak in the voice of a President or a President-elect so I simply pointed out that if you look at the complaint there’s no allegation that the President-elect, there’s no reference in the complaint to any conversations involving the President-elect or indicating that the President –elect was aware of it and that’s all I can say.”
Were any phone calls to the President-elect or any members of the Obama transition team intercepted?
“You can read the complaint. I’m not going to sit here with a 76 page complaint and parse though it – that’s all we’re alleging. And I’m not going to start saying ‘did anyone ever talk to anyone?’ You can read what we allege in the complaint. It’s pretty detailed. Look in the 76 pages. And if you don’t see it, it’s not there.”
– Sunlen Miller
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Doesn’t matter to the right winger.
All that counts is guilt by association.
Of course when you point out the Republican party is full of corruption and perverts, they get quiet.
Posted by: Ryan C | December 9, 2008, 2:00 pm 2:00 pm
Poor Illinois. And to top it off, their top corruption fight was recently promoted to the Presidency.
Posted by: Mesquito | December 9, 2008, 2:06 pm 2:06 pm
I agree with RYAN C The right wingers will still say obama is Involed, But start bringing up things the Republicans have done or is doing and the righties scatter away!
Posted by: ANGIE | December 9, 2008, 2:14 pm 2:14 pm
The media needs to be careful about trying to infer or falsely link Obama to this. This election was decided by the public as a mandate for credibility and facts! Please wait on you stories and publishing the so-called “questions” that you toss out media for people to read. Please report facts not assumptions. This can have consequences that would not be good for the country if we revisit the culture/guilt by association wars in the election. The economy is more important! I already see it happening on this blog and others starting up again!
Posted by: Rob | December 9, 2008, 2:15 pm 2:15 pm
The media needs to be careful about trying to infer or falsely link Obama to this.
Give me a break. Democrats have made a cottage industry of vilifying even the most trivial when it comes to guilt by association and corruption. They chose the culture of corruption mantra, live by the sword – die by the sword.
Posted by: Timber | December 9, 2008, 2:24 pm 2:24 pm
“Democrats have made a cottage industry of vilifying even the most trivial when it comes to guilt by association and corruption. ”
Yes remember during the campaign when it was about about Rev Wright and Bill Ayers and their connection to McCain…..oh wait a minute.
Posted by: Ryan C | December 9, 2008, 2:28 pm 2:28 pm
Now being reported that Durbin (D-IL) is calling for a special election to fill the open Senate seat.
Also called it a sad day for his state.
Posted by: Ryan C | December 9, 2008, 2:30 pm 2:30 pm
Now I wouldn’t call Spitzer or McGreevey perverts would you?
Posted by: cardinal | December 9, 2008, 2:32 pm 2:32 pm
Jack Connaty, of Chicago’s Fox affiliate, reported this morning:
We did receive a tip this morning that perhaps all of this came together so quickly because the Governor may have reached out to Rahm Emanuel, the president-elect’s chief of staff, in attempting to leverage filling the Senate seat. And it may have been Rahm Emanuel who tipped the scale and made this move as quickly as it did
Posted by: Thinking | December 9, 2008, 2:33 pm 2:33 pm
Timber… The GOP says they are Christians well the Bible says vengeance is God’s not mans to have. Guilt by association for any man or woman is wrong. Jesus walked with sinners. Do you equate him to the sins they committed? (None of that I’m equating Obama to Jesus crap either.) You know the point I am making. The right wing needs to deal with their anger constructively. This is why they lost the election. Anger and hate does not cut it anymore. Time to let go. The media must be responsible and report facts. The American people are losing their homes and jobs. We don’t need the bread and circus anymore!
Posted by: Rob | December 9, 2008, 2:34 pm 2:34 pm
“Now I wouldn’t call Spitzer or McGreevey perverts would you?”
McGreevy? Not at all.
Spitzer paid for sex, so yes I would call him a pervert.
Larry Craig sought anonymous bathroom sex so yes I would call him a pervert.
Mark Foley hit on young Senate pages, so yes I would call him a pervert.
Posted by: Ryan C | December 9, 2008, 2:36 pm 2:36 pm
I think when one pays for sex it is indeed perverted!
Posted by: cardinal | December 9, 2008, 2:38 pm 2:38 pm
It does not matter, EVERYBODY is guilty of GREED, which is the root of all EVIL!!!
Posted by: sisterdearest09 | December 9, 2008, 2:48 pm 2:48 pm
I really think new ‘stories’ like this are a silly waste of time. It would make more sense to actually read the report and report on the details within.
Posted by: Lydia | December 9, 2008, 2:54 pm 2:54 pm
Lydia, the Washington Post has the Complaint on their front page, so you can read it there
Posted by: InstantGratification | December 9, 2008, 3:03 pm 3:03 pm
getting close Obama…..getting close, your friends are worried lmao
Posted by: obusha 09 | December 9, 2008, 3:04 pm 3:04 pm
lets not leave out Jefferson of La. and Maloney of FL. democrats “culture of corruption”
Posted by: obusha 09 | December 9, 2008, 3:06 pm 3:06 pm
oh and how about the Detroit Mayor lmao culture of corruption
Posted by: obusha 09 | December 9, 2008, 3:07 pm 3:07 pm
How is it some of you are crediting O with breaking this story??????? Blago has been under investigation for a long time, they didn’t just magically start investigating him when O became Pres elect…get over yourselves.
Posted by: samhiguchi | December 9, 2008, 3:10 pm 3:10 pm
OBUSHA
What about Mccain, Palin,Stevens,Bush,Rumsfeld,Rove,Cheny,And pretty much the whole Bush Administration! CORRUPT CORRUPT AND MORE CORRUPT!
Posted by: ANGIE | December 9, 2008, 3:11 pm 3:11 pm
“How is it some of you are crediting O with breaking this story??????? Blago has been under investigation for a long time, they didn’t just magically start investigating him when O became Pres elect”
Yes Blago has been under investogation for quite some time.
But it is being reported by the local Fox affiliate that Rahm tipped Feds off to this particular scandal.
Posted by: Ryan C | December 9, 2008, 3:15 pm 3:15 pm
we need a strong ethics package if democrats are gonna stay in power for the next 2 years. corruption and unethical behavior have derailed democrats in 2 of the largest states, namely Illinois and New York. Rangel is freakin’ screwing us over and this dude from louisiana just freakin’ lost. Just when i was starting to think the cynicism of the watergate era might recede a little bit and make space for hope, then we have this lunatic. I do think though that every tragedy presents opportunities, and a strong, stringent ethics legislation should be crafted, one that’s not watered down like the latest version but actually gets us something. giving up on politics for the millions of us who’ve learned to care for the past 2 years actually might be the greatest danger to obama, even though he has the most sterling of records in terms of honesty and honor. This blago thing is just an indictment of politics. and he better do something if he wants to keep the voice of the special interest groups in washington drowned out by the voice of the people.
Posted by: lupercal | December 9, 2008, 4:12 pm 4:12 pm
Double standard here. If we were talking about a Republican, there would be accusations with ties to President Bush. But, we’re talking about a Democrat, so they stand alone with no ties made to any other Democrat. Who are you Democrats going to blame for everything once President Bush is out of office? You can’t continue blaming him for the next four years; wait a minute, yes you can, you’re idiots who can take responsibility for your own actions and always want to blame someone else.
Posted by: 2WayT | December 9, 2008, 4:30 pm 4:30 pm
Let’s wait and see if the feds ever let anyone know what’s on the recording the FBI made of a secret meeting with Obama, Rod Blagojevich, and Tony “the fixer” Rezko. (Rezko, Obama’s main money man, is now in jail and singing to the feds.) The threesome met in private at Rezko’s Elston Avenue office in Chicago; the FBI recorded it secretly. Why would a U.S. Senator meet secretly with two people who everyone in Illinois knew were being investigated by the feds?
Will Blagojevich spill his guts and implicate Obama if it means a lighter jail sentence? We shall see…
Posted by: Colony14Author | December 9, 2008, 5:08 pm 5:08 pm
Rahm Emanauel tipped off no one. Don’t buy that phoney “white knight” story.
Blagojevich’s phone calls have been tapped by the FBI for ages. The feds have been after Blago since 2003, as pretty much everyone in Illinois knows. Illinoisans were amazed when Obama endorsed Blago for re-election in 2006, because we all knew he was a crook. Yet Obama stood up for him! That’s what you have to do when someone has “the goods” on you. (Obama also endorsed the totally unqualified Alexi Giannoulias for State Treasurer in 2006, when everyone knew his family’s bank was mob-connected.)
Posted by: Colony14Author | December 9, 2008, 5:15 pm 5:15 pm
“Rahm Emanauel tipped off no one. Don’t buy that phoney “white knight” story.”
That story was offered up by FoxNews.
Posted by: Ryan C | December 9, 2008, 6:21 pm 6:21 pm
This guilt by association stuff has got to end. I know it won’t, but I would like to see the right wingers use a little common sense here. Don’t jump to conclusions. Wait until the dust settles and the investigation is done. Fitsgerald is a pretty stand up guy. [He's also Republican]. If he says he makes no allegations that Obama knew anything then that is what he means.
Posted by: ModDem | December 9, 2008, 8:58 pm 8:58 pm
Posted by: Colony14Author
‘That’s what you have to do when someone has “the goods” on you. ‘
sorta like Bush pardoning Scooter Libby….
Pat Fitz’ would like a 2nd crack at Cheney..
Posted by: Blue | December 10, 2008, 2:44 am 2:44 am
From a legal perspective,
the 76-page complaint has
nothing in it that says
Blago actually took any
money from anybody. Or
broke any law.
He may have talked about
making money off his
gubernatorial power to
name a replacement candidate
for BO’s senate seat. But
he did not actually take
any bribe.
While he should resign or be
impeached, there does not
appear to be a legal case
of any sort against him beyond
taped conversations that
took place between him and
his advisors.
The FBI has not proven that
illegal deeds were committed
by the Illinois governor.
You cannot be prosecuted
for vulgar talk or for saying
you’ll do this or that when
the reality is that you did
not actually go on to commit
anything prohibited by law.
Posted by: anon | December 10, 2008, 3:22 am 3:22 am
Anon–solicitation of bribery is a crime, and it is the crime he is charged with. They have him on tape soliciting the bribe, and that’s a crime whether or not he actually got the goods he was after.
Posted by: JV | December 10, 2008, 1:30 pm 1:30 pm
Why are so many trying to defend Obama? All the democrats are running for fear of being linked to the Governor and Obama. I hope that anyone associated with the governor goes to jail,even if Obama is one of them. Justice is for all not a few with deep pockets. All of the people of IL. should keep open mind and not say things that may put water on your face. Merry Christmas
Posted by: Lawrence | December 10, 2008, 2:20 pm 2:20 pm
Hey Lawrence,
Nobody is backing away from Obama.
You should really turn off Fox for a few hours.
Posted by: Emanuel | December 10, 2008, 5:24 pm 5:24 pm
lupercal?? When did Illinois and New York become 2 of the largest states in the union??
Posted by: ??? | December 10, 2008, 5:26 pm 5:26 pm