Press Secretary Robert Gibbs is trying to knock down chatter that the Obama Administration offered ex-Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff a job so that he’d pass on challenging incumbent Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) in Colorado’s August 10 Democratic Senate primary.
Romanoff had already applied for a job through normal channels during the presidential transition, Gibbs said, when White House Deputy Chief of Staff Jim Messina called and emailed him last September to see if Romanoff was still interested in the job, or whether he was running for Senate.
“But Romanoff said that he was committed to the Senate race and no longer interested in working for the Administration, and that ended the discussion,” Gibbs said. “As Mr. Romanoff has stated, there was no offer of a job.”
This issue comes on the heels of a similar dust-up over a conversation former President Bill Clinton had with Rep. Joe Sestak (D-PA) about a possible role on a presidential advisory board for Sestak if he didn’t run for Senate. Sestak stayed in the race and beat Sen. Arlen Specter (D-PA) in last month’s primary.
Experts have told TPM that there’s no scandal surrounding the Sestak episode.
Here’s Gibbs’ statement.
Andrew Romanoff applied for a position at USAID during the Presidential transition. He filed this application through the Transition on-line process. After the new administration took office, he followed up by phone with White House personnel.
Jim Messina called and emailed Romanoff last September to see if he was still interested in a position at USAID, or if, as had been reported, he was running for the US Senate. Months earlier, the President had endorsed Senator Michael Bennet for the Colorado seat, and Messina wanted to determine if it was possible to avoid a costly battle between two supporters.
But Romanoff said that he was committed to the Senate race and no longer interested in working for the Administration, and that ended the discussion. As Mr. Romanoff has stated, there was no offer of a job.
Romanoff beat Bennet at the state party convention last month, though both will still appear on the primary ballot.
