An internal review prepared for President-elect Barack Obama says his incoming chief of staff had multiple conversations with Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich's office, but no one close to Obama suspected that the governor might be trying to sell Obama's Senate seat as prosecutors allege.
The report on inappropriate contacts between the Obama camp and the office of corrupt Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich has finally been released this afternoon at 4:30 PM ET.
Within the report prepared for Obama is an admission that Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel had multiple contacts with Blagojevich.
Fox News provides the details.
UPDATE: At first glance the report appears to contradict what the Obama camp and VP Joe Biden have been saying as late as this morning, that at the most Rahm Emanuel may have had one conversation with Blago, but not concerning the vacant Senate seat.
The Feds still have not released the content of surveillance tapes of some 21 different conversations Rahm had with Blagojevich.
UPDATE 2: The Washington Times has released its story on the report. More contradictory statements to the effect that Obama had no contact with the Governor at all and that Emanuel spoke with Blago only 3 or 4 times, including calls to Blago's staff. Still more questions raised concerning earlier reports from the Feds.
UPDATE 3: Fox News contributor Mary Katharine Ham provides insightful commentary at The Weekly Standard.
UPDATE 4: The report says that Obama authorized Rahm Emanuel to pass along to Governor Rod Blagojevich the names of persons Obama preferred for his vacant Senate seat. So, where the heck is Obama's supposed 'hands off' approach to filling the vacant seat???
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