Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) helped a New York developer with legislation not long before he donated to her husband’s foundation, the New York Times reports. Robert Congel’s donation of $100,000 to Bill Clinton’s foundation came after Mrs. Clinton secured earmarks for $5 million worth of road construction serving one of Congel’s projects and an allowance to use tax-free bonds for the financing of this project. (New York Times)
Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) attempted to influence embattled Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D-IL) choice of Senate appointee soon before charges against Blagojevich became public. Reid tried to convince Blagojevich to not appoint Reps. Jesse Jackson Jr. and Danny Davis, as well as Emil Jones, president of the state senate - all of whom are black. Chicago Sun-Times sources say Sen. Reid found them to be insufficiently electable. (LA Times)
Senate Democrats plan to use Senate procedural rules to relegate Roland Burris, Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich’s Senate choice, to the status of Senator-elect. By asking for a review of his credentials, Senate Democrats will show that Burris does not have the signature of Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White, thus barring him from being granted voting and speaking privileges. (Associated Press)
Massachusetts state Rep. Salvatore DiMasi is expected to keep his position as speaker Wednesday when the house votes on its leadership, despite allegations against a close friend. Richard Vitale, an associate of the speaker, is set to be arraigned Monday for violations related to lobbying and campaign finance laws. Vitale denies acting as a lobbyist. (Associated Press)
A Muslim family was detained at a Washington D.C. airport on New Year’s Day on the suspicions of two teenage girls. The family, which has been issued a formal apology from Orlando-based AirTran Airways, was escorted off of a plane after being overheard discussing the plane’s safety. (LA Times)
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