Later this afternoon, Barack Obama's office will release its report on his staff's contacts with disgraced Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. Then they will all skip town.

They're releasing the report on the internal investigation late in the afternoon on December 23, when only orphans and undocumented workers and drug addicts are still paying attention to the news instead of huddling by the fire surrounded by loved ones, imbibing massive, controversy-numbing quantities of mulled wine. (Also people are stuck at the airport. The holidays!)

Also Barack Obama is in Hawaii, not answering questions and attempting to get reporters drunk. And once the report drops incoming Chief-of-Staff Rahm Emanuel, who talked with Blago and John Harris about the Senate appointment, will be in Africa.

This is a serious attempt at burying a report (oh of course Pat Fitzgerald didn't want them to release it last week, right, we understand) considering that it's an internal report that will make sure to point out that no one did anything even vaguely improper.

"I don't think there is anything to exonerate," Biden said, when asked by reporters about the report following an economic briefing. He said the report will show "there has been no inappropriate contact between any member of the Obama staff or transition team with Blagojevich."

So once its released, the few of you paying attention to the media reaction will see and hear this:

  • The report confirms what we all knew, that Obama's team didn't really do anything wrong.
  • OMG this story is so politically damaging because we keep talking about it!
  • Obama did nothing wrong but why did he wait to release this report on Christmas when no one would read it? Because he is afraid people will insinuate that he did something wrong, as we are doing now?
  • This obv doesn't mean anything until Pat Fitzgerald releases more transcripts.
  • Holiday airport traffic! Whoa! It's crazy out there! Happy Holidays!