Obama camp still has non-answer 'answers' on Blago, Jarrett

I don’t think Obama/staff are guilty of anying criminal, but …

Update, 8 p.m.: Per Josh Marshall at TPM, I went to Roland Martin’s blog about the Jarrett timeline.

Let's put it this way. Josh is seeing, because he’s seeking, exculpation of Obama’s apparent poor judgment or communication skills on the Jarrett part of the issue, and Martin as having high explanatory value here, because Josh wants to see that. Well, I don't think it's there.

And, Josh conveniently fails to note that Martin is ... basically an Obama surrogate, or close to it, himself.

So, move along, nothing new here.

Original post: So far, President-elect Barack Obama, and surrogates David Axelrod, have skilfully evaded answering the Politico’s question list about his background in the Blagojevich pay-to-play scandal.

Basically, Kenneth Vogel and Carrie Brown want to know:
• When Obama and Blago surrogates last spoke, as well as head-to-head contacts;
• Were any of these talks about Obama’s opening-up Senate seat;
• What’s up with “correcting” Axelrod, including why it took so long to do it;
• Did Fitz’s office or the FBI talk to you;
• When did you learn Blago was under investigation;
• Did you or your staff contact Fitz or the FBI if you had any reason to sense this was a pay-for-play push by Blago, especially re point No. 1.

I would add a couple of rhetorical questions of my own to which we may not get the answers, either:
• How much less cohesion is there in your inner circle than was portrayed in the campaign, given the number of statements Axelrod had had, not just to retract on his own account, but has had retracted for him?
• Why didn’t you say “Blago must resign” Tuesday rather than Wednesday?
• Do you have any info on any of the “six candidates”?
• Re Politico’s question No. 1, were any of these contacts before you decided to give Valerie Jarrett a White House job?
• Why is your staff letting Obamiacs censor Blago questions on your website, especially since appropriate questions, not just winger trolling are being removed?

That said, let me offer some tentative answers:
• Obama and Blago staffs talked until mid-November or so;
• Valerie Jarrett was offered the WH job AFTER Blago started pushing for “consideration”;
• In spite of this, nobody at Obama’s office (contrary to the early Rahm Emanuel rumor) contacted Fitz or FBI;
• Obama’s inner circle ISN”T that coherent, but Obama, yes, B.O. himself, ultimately, is determined to still be that tight-lipped with the press, or even the public, or your most loyal minions are.

Result? Contrary to MSLBs decrying the MSM for over-covering this issue, etc. you, President Obama, probably will get yourself a Whitewater-type “cloud” that is, as far as the handling of how things have unwound, that is and will be at least partially your own fault.

And, from Obama's Thursday presser through follow-ups later Thursday evening by the Ax and Rahmbo, we're STILL not getting answers

Obama says he has had no personal contacts with Blago since the election, claims his office was not involved with any deal-making, and that he’s still gathering details on who all from his staff had contacts with Blago’s staff.

Analysis?
• Statement No. 1 is a duh; I don’t think Obama is that dumb, and never have.
• Statement No. 2 says nothing; Blago’s “motherfucker” statement already attests to its veracity.
• Statement No. 3? The real question is, not what Obama knows about staff contacts, but what his “rounding up” means. Some sort of “massaging” will happen, as Obama wants to make sure he has tracked every comment down before making any further statement, so that there are no more forced retractions by Axelrod, etc.

Other than that, Statement No. 3, and the rest of Obama’s presser, did nothing to address the “timeline” questions vis-à-vis Jarrett’s appointment to WH staff, etc., what Obama knew a week or two ago about staff contacts, etc.

Obama may well answer these questions in the future. But, anybody who thinks he said anything new Thursday is guilty of wishful thinking.

Meanwhile, Ax gave a non-answer answer Thursday night to part of the Jarrett timeline question, saying she removed her name from consideration for the Senate seat without knowing anything about Blago’s scheming, BUT ….

Because Obama wanted her to work at the White House.

Still unanswered is why he would (suddenly?) want the person reportedly his favorite choice to replace him in the Senate to suddenly come work at the White House.

Simple, Ax said — Just.Another.Politician.™ wanted her at the Big House, not the Capitol, all along.

And, I’m sure Ax checked in with Obama transition staff before making these statements, so nobody will have to withdraw them for him later today. (Unless the Obama recollection of just where he wanted Jarrett when undergoes further, err, clarification.

And, Rahmbo channeled Sarah Palin using kids as human shields to duck answering questions about whether he’s the “Obama advisor” on one Blago tape.

And, Oops! On Jesse Jackson Jr. friends!

Dunno how much Jesse Jr. knew what his friends were doing, but if they were actually responding to Blago’s $1 million fundraising appeal:
• He needs to fire them and get some new friends;
• WE need to ask just how his friends heard about this and why they actually acted on it!

This also lends new intrigue into who was allegedly pressuring Blago NOT to name Jess Jr. to the seat.

Instead of Obama worrying about a tar baby, it may have been a representative of one of the other candidates.

As for Blago calling Obama a mofo, this isn’t something totally out of the blue; there’s some history behind it. The story underlines my subhead; I do not beleive Obama(land) is guilty of anything criminal.

BUT... the mishandling of talking about this issue grows by the day, mushrooming in the same soil environment in which mushrooms, well, mushroom.

What’s the old political saying?

“It’s the cover-up that gets you.”

Well, before the cover-up can come the appearance of impropriety, or of not shooting straight.

Obamaworld looks like it needs some target practice, at the least.


This just gets better by the day.

As Terrell Owens would say here in Dallas: “Getcha popcorn.”