In today’s New York Times:

Federal regulators are investigating whether California violated securities laws and failed to provide adequate disclosure about its giant public pension fund, according to a person with knowledge of the investigation.

The Securities and Exchange Commission normally polices companies, but last year it brought its first enforcement action ever against a state, accusing New Jersey of securities fraud for misleading bond investors about the condition of its pension fund. The commission signaled, in its settlement with New Jersey, that it was going to look more broadly at the pension disclosures of states and cities.

The fund, the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, known as Calpers, lost about a quarter of its total investment portfolio during the financial crisis, leaving the state responsible for replacing billions of dollars each year and contributing to its huge deficit. The question is whether California adequately disclosed in the preceding years how risky the pension investments were and how much money it might need to cover any shortfall.

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The retrial of former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich has been delayed until April, which will put it after the February 22 mayoral election in which a certain White House former Chief of Staff will be running.

It’s almost certain that Blagojevich’s lawyers will seek to subpoena Rahm Emanuel or at the very least depose him over certain conversations involving the ”negotiations’ over the appointment to Barack Obama’s old senate seat, which the president was reportedly seeking for presidential adviser and long time Chicago crony Valerie Jarrett. Rahm was subpoenaed as a defense witnesses by the defense at Blago’s first trial, which ended in a hung jury, but he was never called.

Of course, by April both the midterms and the mayoral election will both be over, which ought to give a little relief to another prominent Democrat, Alexi Gianoullias whose family owned Broadway Bank was just closed by the Feds amid what can only be called massive ‘irregularities’. And who’s now running for the same senate seat in a hotly contested election.

The feds have Blagojevich’s ex-chief of staff John Harris on tape telling Blagojevich in November, 2008 right after the presidential election that “Alexi called me.” Harris told Blago that Giannoulias “wants to meet with me a few minutes this afternoon. He says it’s . . . I said what’s it about? He says the (Senate) seat, ‘but not for me, for someone else’.”

While Harris claims he never met with Giannoulias, who is a long time friend, fundraiser and supporter of Obama (and along with Obama, a mutual pal of convicted financier Tony Rezco) right after the phone call a meeting was set up between between Valerie Jarrett and Illinois labor leader and Blagojevich supporter and confidant Tom Balanoff, to discuss the vacant senate spot.

That could mean that Jarrett went to the White House afterwards – which would have meant getting Rahm Emanuel involved – and asked them to ‘bid’ for her if this is the way things went down.That could make for some interesting testimony if Emanuel is grilled by Blago’s lawyers this time around.Especially since the feds have Emanuel on tape in various conversations with Blagojevitch and Harris.

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From the Associated Press:

The FBI and the U.S. Labor Department are investigating prominent labor leader Andy Stern in their probe of corruption at the Service Employees International Union, according to two people who have been interviewed by federal agents.

The two organized labor officials met with federal agents this summer to answer questions about a six-figure book contract that Stern landed in 2006 and his role in approving money to pay the salary of an SEIU leader in California who allegedly performed no work.

Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the investigation. The FBI and the Labor Department’s office of inspector general declined to comment for the record.

The disclosure about the federal inquiry of Stern—who abruptly resigned as president of the 2.2-million member SEIU in April—comes just weeks ahead of contentious congressional elections in which the union is spending an estimated $44 million to support its favored Democratic candidates.

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