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| September 24, 2008 6:30 AM
Founding Brothers
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So on August 11, the same day I first contacted UIC, Rolling (perhaps after being tipped off by an as-yet-unknown UIC contact) offered the university a highly questionable set of legal claims, which not only served to block my access to the CAC records but also began to build a case for a complete withdrawal of the records from university control. And now, as a result of my recent FOIA request, we know that on August 12, Rolling made a second important move. Avoiding a QuestionAt 9:07 A.M. on the day after I first contacted UIC library in search of the CAC records, Rolling e-mailed Warren Chapman and Anne Hallett, who, along with Bill Ayers, founded CAC. ( Warren Chapman is now UIC vice chancellor for external affairs, and this UIC connection explains how my FOIA request was able to capture Rolling’s e-mail.) I present the text of Rolling’s message, headed, “New York Times story: CAC,” in its entirety here: Anne and Warren:
I gave your contact info to Sam Dillon, Education Reporter for the NYTimes who is doing a story on McCain vs. Obama’s education platform (McCain has a one-pager; Obama has a 17 page, 10-point platform). Dillon was sent to me from the Obama campaign to discuss Barack’s role in the Annenberg Challenge. – I have spent at least 4 hours in interviews with Sam Dillon who is trying to understand everything he can about the Challenge to see where Barack’s experience with it influenced his education reform views or where Barack had influence on education policy and/or practice during those years. Sam is pretty thorough in his questions and one question or response leads to many other things he is interested in learning about the Challenge. – The Challenge is just one phase of Barack’s ‘education interests’ that Dillon is exploring. He’s also trying to learn about Barack’s community organizing days and how education reform was part of them.
Sam would like to talk with either or both of your to understand how the “ad hoc group” you two and Bill Ayers lead [sic], aarived [sic] at the structure of the founding board and the Collaborative. He is trying to understand how Barack got “picked” for the CAC board, by whom, why, etc. – I have avoided that question head-on though I believe Barack was Debbie Leff’s/Joyce nomination.
I think the article will be friendly and is truly looking to see the influences on or by Barack re: education/school reform in Chicago, ete. [sic]
Let me know if you talk to Dillon?
All the best.
Ken
The day after he blocked my access to the CAC records, Rolling wrote an early morning letter to Ayers’s CAC co-founders, directing them to a New York Times reporter he believed to be friendly. Rolling’s message included what appear to be subtle instructions on how to handle the matter of Obama’s choice to be head of CAC. This suggests that Rolling was trying to preemptively shape the public story of Obama, Ayers, and CAC, before I or others could investigate the issue.
The most interesting part of the letter is Rolling’s admission that in the face of a reporter’s interest in the question of who picked Obama to head the CAC board, he (Rolling) “avoided that question head-on.” Why should Rolling avoid the question of who chose Obama for the CAC board, especially with a reporter he deems friendly? Could Rolling have something to hide? And by making the point, is Rolling subtly suggesting to Chapman and Hallett that they, too, should avoid the question of who picked Obama to head CAC?
Right after Rolling confessed to avoiding the issue of who chose Obama for the CAC board, he said, “I believe Barack was Debbie Leff’s/Joyce nomination.” That is what the Obama campaign has said in response to my own inquiries. But if Joyce Foundation president Deborah Leff was responsible for elevating Obama to the chairmanship of CAC, why “avoid the question head-on?” Why not just tell the reporter about Leff? Rolling’s behavior strongly suggests that, whatever Leff’s role in Obama’s hiring, it is far from the whole story. Rolling appears to be supplying Chapman and Hallett with the Leff answer as the best available option if the question of Obama’s appointment becomes unavoidable. But Rolling’s underlying message seems to be to avoid the issue of who chose Obama altogether, if possible.
Once you see that Rolling is avoiding the issue of who appointed Obama as CAC head, the rest of the letter reads like a anxious warning. When Rolling says that, “Sam is pretty thorough in his questions and one question or response leads to many other things,” he appears to be warning Chapman and Hallett about the can of worms they could be getting into when questioned by this reporter, if they’re not careful. In context, Rolling’s request to be informed if Chapman or Hallett do talk to the reporter comes off as eagerness to control a dangerous story, and perhaps to get information about what’s happening to the Obama campaign. (Recall that the Obama campaign first sent the New York Times reporter to Rolling.)
Questions to Press
While Rolling’s letter raises more questions than answers, it seems clear that we’re not being told the whole truth about who chose Obama to lead the Chicago Annenberg Challenge. In particular, the Obama campaign’s claim that Deborah Leff and Patricia Graham may have put forward Obama’s nomination can no longer be taken as the last word on the subject. The Rolling letter strongly suggests that Obama and his allies are not being fully forthcoming on this issue, quite possibly in an attempt to disguise the fact the Bill Ayers had a substantial role in elevating Barack Obama to the chairmanship of the Chicago Annenberg Challenge. More generally, in the immediate wake of my attempt to gain access to the CAC records, Rolling appears to have been maneuvering, both to block my access, and to make sure that the full story of who chose Obama as CAC head would not come out.
Given the Rolling letter, here are some questions that need to be asked:
1. Why did Ken Rolling contact UIC on August 11, 2008? Was he tipped off to my inquiry on the same day by someone at UIC? If so, who?
2. Was Ken Rolling in touch with anyone in the Obama campaign on August 11, or shortly thereafter. Has Rolling been in touch with Bill Ayers since August 11? Has the Obama campaign been in touch with any of the CAC founders, Chapman, Hallett, or Ayers, since August 11? In other words, has the Obama campaign been working through Rolling or the other CAC founders, including Ayers, to help manage this story?
3. What is the full story of Obama’s elevation to the chairmanship of CAC, and what role did Bill Ayers play in the choice of Obama?
4. Did Obama and Ayers know one another prior to their time at CAC?
The Obama campaign’s initial response to this issue notwithstanding, the question of how a young and inexperienced lawyer like Obama was chosen to head a foundation created by Bill Ayers in 1995 is still very much open. Ken Rolling, Warren Chapman, Anne Hallett, and indeed, Barack Obama and Bill Ayers must now provide some answers.
— Stanley Kurtz is a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center.
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