Blago Denied Lottery Post to Jackson's Wife

Congressman says he wouldn't give $25K to campaign
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 16, 2008 5:57 PM CST
Blago Denied Lottery Post to Jackson's Wife
Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill., smiles as he returns to his office in the Rayburn House Office Building, on Capitol Hill.   (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Jesse Jackson Jr. may be "Senate Candidate No. 5" in the Blagojevich scandal, but he's been cooperating with feds investigating the governor since at least last summer, reports ABC7 in Chicago. Jackson told investigators that Blagojevich refused to appoint Jackson's wife as the state's lottery director in 2003 because the congressman wouldn't give him a $25,000 campaign contribution.

"He has shared information with federal prosecutors about public corruption during the past several years, including information about Blagojevich and others," a spokesman for Jackson told AP. The congressman came under scrutiny when Blagojevich said in taped conversations that the "No. 5" candidate had offered to raise $1.5 million for the governor in exchange for the seat. (More Rod Blagojevich stories.)

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