As his term in office nears its end, Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) hoped to invest time and energy talking to his aides about his future political ambitions. Right about now, however, the governor is probably investing invest time and energy talking to his lawyers.
A Virginia state delegate has confirmed that he’s been called to appear next month as a witness before a federal grand jury as part of an investigation related to Gov. Robert F. McDonnell.
Del. David Ramadan (R-Loudoun) declined to comment further, saying that the federal subpoena prohibits him from disclosing its details, which might reveal what authorities are seeking from the first-term legislator.
It’s not at all clear why Ramadan has been called — he attended the governor’s daughter’s wedding, with a gift, though that’s not legally problematic — but according to the Washington Post’s reporting, the fact that the state lawmaker was subpoenaed at all “is the first public indication of the impaneling of a grand jury to review evidence in the McDonnells’ case — a significant escalation in the investigation.”
At an event this afternoon, McDonnell was asked about the federal grand jury inquiry, at which point he was “hustled out” of a luncheon and “hurried into an elevator.” From the back of the Ritz-Carlton elevator, McDonnell said, “I really can’t… I really can’t talk about it.”
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."