White House Used Bill Clinton to Ask Sestak to Drop Out of Race

President Obama's chief of staff used former President Bill Clinton as an intermediary to see if Representative Joe Sestak would drop out of a Senate primary if given a prominent, but unpaid, advisory position, people briefed on the matter said Friday.

Rahm Emanuel, the White House chief of staff, asked Mr.Clinton to explore the possibilities last summer, according to the briefed individuals, who insisted on anonymity to discuss the politically charged situation.

Mr. Sestak said no and went on to win last week's Pennsylvania Democratic primary against Senator Arlen Specter.

More: http://news.yahoo.com/s/cq/20100528/pl_cq_politics/politics3675199



Obama in Windy City as charges of 'Chicago-style' politics step up

story by The Hill
written by Sam Youngman - 05/29/10 06:00 AM ET

President Barack Obama returned to Chicago this week, but Republicans repeatedly accusing him of bringing "Chicago-style" politics to the White House say Obama has no reason to be homesick.

Now that the White House has admitted that Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel used former President Bill Clinton to try to persuade Rep. Joe Sestak (D) not to run in the Pennsylvania Senate primary, Republicans have more ammunition with which to accuse Obama of abandoning change for politics as usual.

More: http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/100589-obama-back-in-windy-city-as-charges-of-chicago-style-politics-step-up