White House: ‘No Improper Conduct’ in Sestak Job Offer

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http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?docid=news-000003674838&topic=Feature

White House: ‘No Improper Conduct’ in Sestak Job Offer
By John Stanton, CQ-Roll Call


White House Counsel Robery Bauer on Friday rejected claims that Pennsylvania Rep. Joe Sestak was offered a top administration job in return for dropping his Democratic primary challenge to Sen. Arlen Specter .

In a memo released by the White House, Bauer says his office has “concluded that allegations of improper conduct rest on factual errors and lack a basis in law,” and runs through the various potential positions that have been reported to have been offered to Sestak, who defeated Spcter for the Senate Democratic nomination earlier this month.

Although Bauer does acknowledge that — at the request of Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel — former President Bill Cinton did approach Sestak about being appointed to “a Presidential or other Senior Executive Branch Advisory Board,” the memo says no White House officials went to Sestak directly and any position would have been unpaid.

Bauer also shot down allegations Sestak was offered the secretary of the Navy job, calling it “false.”

snip//

Sestak issued his own statement Friday afternoon.

“Last summer, I received a phone call from President Clinton. During the course of the conversation, he expressed concern over my prospects if I were to enter the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate and the value of having me stay in the House of Representatives because of my military background,” the statement says. “He said that White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel had spoken with him about my being on a Presidential Board while remaining in the House of Representatives.

“I said no. I told President Clinton that my only consideration in getting into the Senate race or not was whether it was the right thing to do for Pennsylvania working families and not any offer. The former President said he knew I’d say that, and the conversation moved on to other subjects.”