Influence Alley

Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill., has been on a medical leave of absence since June 10, according to a statement his office released Monday.

The congressman "is being treated for exhaustion. He asks that you respect his family's privacy," reads the statement.

Jackson remains under a House Ethics Committee investigation for the alleged role he played in former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich's attempts to get campaign money in exchange for filling President Barack Obama's empty Senate seat. And Jackson's ex-fundraiser Raghuveer Nayak was arrested June 20 and charged with mail fraud, interstate travel in aid of racketeering and filing false income tax returns. To that, Jackson's attorneys, in a letter sworn by Jackson, "called Nayak 'incredibly misguided' and said [Jackson] is 'deeply disappointed in his former friend.'"

Despite being on leave, Jackson's offices remain open. On June 18, his office released a statement quoting the member criticizing House Republicans' legislative agenda as not being focused on job creation.