Colorado Democratic Candidate Admits White House Job Offer to Quit Race

The back-room deals -- former President Bill Clinton led the Pennsylvania effort and White House deputy chief of staff Jim Messina worked with former Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff -- called into question Obama's repeated promises to run an open government. Romanoff said in a statement Wednesday night that he was contacted by Messina last fall and told that the White House would support Bennet in the primary. When he said he would seek the nomination anyway, Messina "suggested three positions that might be available to me were I not pursuing the Senate race," Romanoff said. "He added that he could not guarantee my appointment to any of these positions." Romanoff added: "At no time was I promised a job, nor did I request Mr. Messina's assistance in obtaining one." Earlier Wednesday, a White House official insisted nothing inappropriate or illegal took place but didn't provide the details Romanoff offered in his statement and a copy of an e-mail he had received from Messina. "Mr. Romanoff was recommended to the White House from Democrats in Colorado for a position in the administration," White House deputy press secretary Bill Burton said. "There were some initial conversations with him, but no job was ever offered." Yet even the appearance of trading taxpayer-funded jobs to ease an ally's political path left questions for an administration that was the most transparent in history. Messina, a tough-minded veteran of Senate politics and one of the president's best ...

View Count: 0 Date: June 4, 2010