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By Lynn Sweet Washington Bureau Chief December 14, 2014 7:04PM

From Left, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder participate in a 'Building Community Trust' roundtable discussion with police and community leaders Friday, Dec. 12, 2014, in Chicago. Holder says the nation is facing "critical times" when it comes to the lack of trust that exists between some communities and law enforcement, and that the solution is confronting the issue and both sides need to understand each other. The meeting is part of an effort launched by President Barack Obama after clashes between protesters and police in Ferguson, Missouri.(AP Photo/M. Spencer Green)

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Updated: December 15, 2014 2:12AM

Federal investigators who pursued fraud charges against a Chicago couple were not biased against African-Americans, Attorney General Eric Holder told me Friday as he for the first time addressed allegations made last week by President Barack Obamas friend Eric Whitaker.

I have no evidence that theres a basis to that claim, Holder told me.

Whitakers claim of racial bias was jarring as I read the stories from my colleague Chris Fusco, who covered the federal case involving Whitaker in Springfield about no-bid contracts and schemes to siphon state money for personal use. Whitaker was not accused of any wrongdoing but figured as a witness in the case against Leon Dingle Jr., 77, and Dingles wife, Karin Dingle, 75.

Whitaker was taking aim at a Justice Department led for the first time by an African-American Holder in the administration of his pal, the first African-American president.

Whitaker and his wife, Cheryl, are not only friends of Obama and first lady Michelle, but they also know Holder and his wife, Sharon Malone.

Holder and the Whitakers were among the guests at Michelle Obamas 50th birthday party at the White House in January. And in June 2012, along with the first couple, they were all at the wedding of the daughter of White House Senior Adviser Valerie Jarrett, in the yard of Jarretts mothers Kenwood home.

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Holder: race wasn't a factor in case involving Obama's pal