Ousted Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich claims in a new book that White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel wanted his help in arranging to leave the Obama administration after two years and reclaim his seat in Congress.
Ousted Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich claims in a new book that White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel wanted his help in arranging to leave the Obama administration after two years and reclaim his seat in Congress. Blagojevich writes in his soon-to-be-released book, "The Governor," that Emanuel talked with him about whether it was possible to appoint a "placeholder" to the seat so he could eventually get it back and continue his efforts to become speaker some day. Blagojevich also claims that he did want something in exchange for appointing President Barack Obama’s replacement in the Senate. The Chicago Democrat says he’d launched a plan to appoint Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan to the Senate seat because he hoped to cut a deal on some pet projects with her father, powerful Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan. ______ Copyright 2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.