Posted on 01/06/2009 11:10:58 PM PST by malkee
WASHINGTON (CNN) – A top Republican in the Senate is turning up the pressure on Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid to be more transparent about his involvement in selecting a replacement for President-elect Barack Obama’s empty Senate seat.
The process for replacing Obama took an unexpected turn when U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald revealed that Fitzgerald’s longstanding investigation of Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich included an alleged plan to award an appointment to Obama’s seat to someone willing to reward Blagojevich with political favors in return.
Against the wishes of Sen. Reid and the rest of the Senate Democratic Caucus, Blagojevich recently named Roland Burris to fill the seat. Senate Democrats refused Tuesday to seat Burris even though the Blagojevich pick traveled to Washington in an effort to be sworn in with the rest of the 111th Congress.
In a recent interview, Reid said he had one conversation with Blagojevich about replacing Obama but denied a Chicago Sun-Times report that he told Blagojevich not to appoint any of three prominent African-American politicians in Illinois out of concern that any of the three would not be able to win re-election to the Senate in 2010.
In the interview, Reid stopped just short of saying the scandal-ridden governor or those close to him were lying about the conversation concerning Obama’s seat. The Nevada Democrat stuck with his version of the conversation even when reminded by NBC’s David Gregory that the phone call might have been recorded as part of wiretapping of Blagojevich being conducted during Fitzgerald’s investigation.
(Excerpt) Read more at politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com ...
Senator Cornyn was previously Texas Attorny General. He can smell a rat and won’t let go of this.
hope so
We will see.
We will see.
Cornyn is starting to impress me. Does anyone think he might harbor Presidential aspirations?
This is the beginning of the unraveling of the Democratic Party. Even if Obama wins reelection, which is possible considering the extremely bad state of the economy currently (the economy has nowhere to go but up ... regardless of what the Fed says), The Republicans will retake Congress by no later than 2014.
He’ll have a target-rich environment when all those appointments come up for confirmation. I surely hope he and the other republicans left hold some of those appointees accountable for what they’ve already done to the nation.
I was wondering the same thing.
I was his county re-elect chair ... was in the past for one who went on to the WH.
No, there’s a lot of downside yet in the economy before there’s “nowhere to go but up”.
I disagree with the nowhere but up. I really do not believe we have reached bottom yet.
Cornyn has always impressed me. He would make an excellent president. If you ever have time, you should watch him in action on the floor of the Senate on CSPAN. He would have made a great Supreme too, but his spin of steel is needed now more than ever in the Senate.
Am proud he is my Senator.
Reminds me, I have to send him another check....
This is the beginning of the unraveling of the Democratic Party
And just think, Obama hasn't even been sworn in yet. Let's see how much more damage can(will) be done in the next 13 days.
God Bless John Cornyn. He is one of only half a dozen or so Conservatives left in the Senate.
Good to see a Republican on offense!
Mr. Fitzgerald’s main talent is creating long-term investigations that are absolutely unnecessary, in order to maintain his employment. He knew from the get-go that he should close the Plame investigation, because he knew Dick Armitage spilled the beans.
He will delay releasing the tapes as long as possible, especially since they cannot lead to a conviction of Blago (read Cheney) but he can entrap somebody for “perjury” (read Libby) in the extended process where people forget what they said six months ago and trip up.
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