Today ABC News's The Blotter Web site carries the story "Blagojevich On Trial: 'Give Us The F***ing Money.'" The article reports in part:
(Tony) Rezko is a central figure in the government's conspiracy case. His relationship with Obama was highlighted this week when Joseph Aramanda, the owner of a Chicago pizza business, took the stand to detail how Rezko arranged for him to receive a $250,000 "finder's fee" from a state teacher's pension system investment deal, and then instructed him to use the money to make a $10,000 contribution to Obama's presidential campaign. Prosecutors say that Aramanda never performed any work on the deal, and that most of the money was funneled to Rezko, who used it to pay off debts.
Aramanda may still be involved in pizza, but his primary gig now would appear to be the executive Federal position he currently holds. As noted in a Chicago Tribune piece earlier this week:
These days Joseph Aramanda manages a U.S. Census Bureau Chicago-area office and its 1,000 employees. But it was in a different capacity that he showed up for the government Tuesday at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse — witness in the corruption trial of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
Quite a coincidence, huh? Aramanda, testifying with an immunity deal after his $10,000 funny-money gift to The Anointed One, just happens to land a more than decent Federal job. How'd he get it? According to the Associated Press:
Aramanda now manages a local U.S. Census Bureau office in Palatine, which was opened last year for the 2010 U.S. Census count. He passed an FBI security check and the office has been successful in getting a high response rate, said Stanley Moore, a spokesman for the Census Bureau in Chicago.
"He has a good resume, that's how he got hired," Moore said. He added that Census officials were unaware that Aramanda was connected to the trial until Wednesday and that officials would investigate further.
Stanley Moore is much more than just an agency spokesman; he is a regional director and "the U.S. Census Bureau's longest continuous employee."
It'll be interesting to see how the Census Bureau's investigation turns out. In the meantime, ABC News - as well as many other media outlets - should accurately report on Aramanda's present job. It's newsworthy, don't you think?
