Congress: Durbin spoke with Blago
Posted: Tuesday, June 02, 2009 9:17 AM by Mark Murray
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Congress
Roll Call: “Durbin spokesman Joe Shoemaker said the phone call between his boss and the former governor did occur but said the context of the AP story was seriously flawed,” Roll Call reports. “Rather than a single 10-minute phone call between Durbin and Blagojevich that was strictly about Madigan, as the AP story suggested, Shoemaker said the conversation lasted about 15 minutes and involved a discussion about some 20 possible replacements to the seat. Blagojevich asked Durbin his opinion of the potential Senate appointments, and Durbin delivered a very brief response.”
As we reminded folks when this Blago story broke late last year, it shouldn’t be surprising that top Illinois leaders would be talking to Blagojevich about replacing Obama’s Senate seat.
The Washington Post tees up today’s confirmation hearing for Lt. Gen. Stanley McChrystal, Obama’s choice to command U.S. troops in Afghanistan, saying he will answer questions “about the future -- including his plans for reshaping U.S. military efforts in Afghanistan -- and a past marked by both acclaim and controversy… During his confirmation hearings for his current position, lawmakers probed McChrystal's knowledge of alleged abuse of detainees by Special Operations task force members at a secret facility in Iraq known as Camp Nama and at other locations.”
And the TARP congressional oversight panel will be holding an oversight hearing of the auto bailout. “I am pleased that the Congressional Oversight Panel will hold this important oversight hearing in July,” said GOP Rep. Jeb Hensarling, the lone congressional member of the panel. “While I opposed giving TARP money to the automakers, taxpayers deserve transparency and need to know that their tax dollars are being spent fairly and to promote financial stability.”
