Unsealed FBI Notes Show Obama, Emanuel Discussed Senate Seat Deal in 2008
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Sep 18
Unsealed FBI Notes Show Obama, Emanuel Discussed Senate Seat Deal in 2008
1 articles · Updated · Fox News · Sep 18
Summary
Partially redacted FBI interview notes, newly unsealed after years out of public view, say Barack Obama and Rahm Emanuel knew Lisa Madigan was being discussed with Rod Blagojevich’s office for the Senate seat Obama vacated.
The Emanuel notes say he, David Axelrod and Dick Durbin agreed on Dec. 8, 2008 that Madigan would be a good pick, and Emanuel then called Blagojevich chief of staff John Harris to press her merits.
The records also show Obama first wanted Valerie Jarrett for the seat before deciding she should join the White House, while Emanuel still preferred Jarrett take the Senate post.
Blagojevich, whose sentence Trump commuted in 2020 and pardoned in 2025, said the notes support his claim he was pursuing a Madigan appointment tied to backing for his health-care and budget agenda, not a broader 'crime spree.'
How might the trajectory of Illinois leadership have shifted if a prominent anti-corruption advocate had secured the controversial 2008 Senate appointment?
Why did it take over a decade for these crucial FBI documents to surface, and could they have changed the 2011 trial outcome?
Does the revelation of standard negotiations blur the line between routine government appointments and criminal conduct in historical legal cases?