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« serious overreaction | Main | "The Friendless Ninth Circuit" »

Gov. Blagojevich arrested

Posted by David Hardy · 9 December 2008 07:40 AM

Anti-gun IL governor Blagojevich was was arrested this morning on federal corruption and bribery charges. Investigation also involves his choice of pres-elect Obama's replacement in the Senate.

UPDATE: USA Today says that his chief of staff, John Harris, was also arrested. Charges involve soliciting bribes in exchange for the Senate appointment, and threatening to withhold State money from the firm that owns the Chicago Tribune, unless the Tribune fired editors who'd criticized him. It adds that he took office on a pledge to clean up after the former governor, who is serving time for corruption.

ANOTHER UPDATE: Rick Moran reports that the Senate deal was that he'd appoint someone to the seat in exchange for either a lucrative job, or appointment to a cabinet post in the new Administration. He says the evidence reveals

"a man either so corrupt that he saw little downside to his actions or, sadly and perhaps more likely, that the years of investigations had taken a toll on his mental well-being and he had lost touch with reality. With federal investigators swarming about him and his cronies, he came up with the idea to sell Obama’s Senate seat? And the scheme to exchange favors with campaign contributors? And to seek a cabinet posting — with federal investigators ready to indict him? How could he have possibly thought he could get away with all of it?"

Hat tips to readers Carl in Chicago and Jack Anderson...

BTW, blogging will be slow today. Recovering from some "medical issues."

· Politics

29 Comments | Leave a comment

Peter | December 9, 2008 8:46 AM | Reply

I am shocked, shocked to find corruption in Chicago politics!

bill-tb | December 9, 2008 9:03 AM | Reply

Hey, got to make money these days any way you can. Does anyone think that the exact same bidding war is ongoing in NY and Conn?

Chuck | December 9, 2008 9:23 AM | Reply

This man certainly does not like the 2A.

By stifling the Trib, it is now clear that he doesn’t like 1A

I bet he now likes 4, 5, 6, and 8

AvgJoe | December 9, 2008 9:35 AM | Reply

This would be kind of funny but the sad truth is he got busted doing what many others are already doing to one degree or another.
Being things like this don't happen by mistake. I wonder what the real reason is that he's arrested.
David, get better and remember grape juicy has twice the bug killers and body healers as OJ.

tom gunn | December 9, 2008 9:51 AM | Reply

Now if they could get Daley and Bloomberg.

Get well! Not another scorpion bite I hope.

Carl in Chicago | December 9, 2008 10:54 AM | Reply

Perhaps senator Richard Durbin can request to have his pending sentence commuted?

That would be about par for the course around here.

Have we lost our faith in government yet?

News Review | December 9, 2008 11:02 AM | Reply

We must wait first for the final results of the investigation and the outcome of the case as against Gov. Blagojevich before coming up with the conclusion as regards his guilt.

Wolfwood | December 9, 2008 11:49 AM | Reply

News Review, I'm pretty sure the Bill of Rights hasn't been incorporated as regards to Illinois. At least, that's the impression one gets.

Emil | December 9, 2008 11:51 AM | Reply

Has anything really changed in Chicago politics since Al Capone knocked Mayor Joseph Z. Klenha down the City Hall steps?

I am sure Mayor Daley is just shocked and surprised!

WP Zeller | December 9, 2008 12:34 PM | Reply

If Blagojevich is indeed removed from the Governor's mansion (which he's virtually never inhabited anyway- he Gulfstreams down to Springfield for a day visit every now and then), for gun-rights people, his obvious replacement, Pat Quinn, will be unfortunately every bit as bad.
Quinn is another Chicago hack with a slightly-cleaner reputation, but he has been vociferously anti-gun since day one.
Just to reminisce, Blagojevich was an old-timer alderman's son-in-law who was installed in the Illinois House, campaigning on a platform almost exclusively devoted to gun control. Being photogenic, and seeming well-spoken, he followed the familar Daley Machine path to higher office. He was often mentioned as a Presidential candidate someday, too, as such other illustrious Daley products like Carol Moseley Braun and yes, Barack Obama.
Next Illinois governor: Lisa Madigan, momentarily the State Attorney General, and daughter of long-time Illinois Senate president Tom Madigan.
The next Machine spew, and also being mentioned for US president, Madigan the junior is a cold, efficient Machine operative and will be along shortly after the Obama era passes.

Bill | December 9, 2008 12:38 PM | Reply

The best part is the stuff the FBI apparently has him on tape saying. Pretty damning stuff.

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2008/1209081rod1.html

475okh | December 9, 2008 12:47 PM | Reply

The real question????? Will he be the husband or wife when he is behind bars?????? Good ridence!

Jim K | December 9, 2008 1:39 PM | Reply

It would make an interesting study to find out what ratio of anti gun politicans are felons versus pro gun politicians that are felons. It would seem in a brief look that the anti gun politicans are on the high side of this ratio.

Tom Bri | December 9, 2008 2:05 PM | Reply

Par for the course in Illinois. Just one of many Illinois governors to be arrested over the years.

But I will bet he has some others sweating. No one can come up out of Chicago politics and be clean. Daley and even Obama have to be worried.

Kristopher | December 9, 2008 2:15 PM | Reply

Stomach flu that has been going 'round?

Poshboy | December 9, 2008 3:17 PM | Reply

The "Curse of the Gunnies" strikes again! :^)

All this could not have happened to a more deserving "fellow" like Blagojevich. Hope he gets sent away somewhere dark for a long, long, LONG time.

Score one for the FBI. I bet all this stuff came out now instead of April or May '09 because we and the present Administration all knew once AG Holder took office, all this would have... convienently...disappeared.

Jim | December 9, 2008 4:36 PM | Reply

So, all we had to do to get better gun laws in IL was pay a bribe? Wouldn't that have been a lot easier - and more successful - than all this lobbying and writing letters and so on?

CDR D | December 9, 2008 4:57 PM | Reply

>>>The real question????? Will he be the husband or wife when he is behind bars??????

Heh. I was thinking the same thing.

Wouldn't it be sweet if Blojobovich (sp) ended up in a cell with an OJ clone who is given a daily dose of v****a in his chow?

Robert | December 9, 2008 5:08 PM | Reply

Turns out I've got the appointment of Obama's Senate seat in hand. Will trade for 1903 NRA Sporter in shootable condition.

thirdpower | December 9, 2008 6:52 PM | Reply

Here's a link to the indictment:

http://daysofourtrailers.blogspot.com/2008/12/blagos-going-down.html

Chris | December 9, 2008 7:52 PM | Reply

The Judge ordered him to give up his passport and his FOID card. Another asshat thinking he's better than his subjects. I'll lay money he carried concealed too.

Andy Freeman | December 9, 2008 7:55 PM | Reply

> We must wait first for the final results of the investigation and the outcome of the case as against Gov. Blagojevich before coming up with the conclusion as regards his guilt.

No we don't, just as we're free to conclude that Capone was a murderous thug even though he was never convicted as such.

However, I'll predict that the Gov won't do time on this. Guilty as sin and free as a bird is the Chicago way.

WP Zeller | December 9, 2008 8:17 PM | Reply

I must submit that Blagojevich will do the time. Don't underestimate how badly he's offended (and I'm using polite language, there) the Machine types.
They dislike attention, and Hot Rod has them swimming in it.
Besides that, Blagojevich's ineptitude and inability to comprehend even basic political niceties have already corroded whatever support he might have had.
Be assured, all the boss cares about now is how much more damage their Downstate loon will do.

avgJoe | December 9, 2008 10:32 PM | Reply

I get now! Hillary and her Don are taking him out by shutting off his Chicago power base. He's been blackmailed into picking "her" buddies because he's not legally born here and it's all a power play. Bush's DOJ is in on it. OK, I'm an idiot so what do I know.

david | December 10, 2008 7:14 AM | Reply

I remember well when that POS was a vocal anti-gunner in the US House. Good riddance to a bad man.

WP Zeller | December 10, 2008 8:19 AM | Reply

And please refer back to the note that the Feds forced Blagojevich to surrender his Firearms Owners Identification card.
Blagojevich, one of the most anti-gun politicians in Illinois, whose legislative career consisted primarily of anti-gun proposals, had an FOID?

(For out-of-staters, a Firearm Owners Identification card is a state-issued, well, something, without which a person may not even handle any firearm or ammunition. Not even touch. It's issued by the Illinois State Police, which has control over the information it holds, and the non-judicial revocation of the card.
It serves as a possession permit. The program was put into place during the late '60s gun-control wave as a pre-confiscation device, to make it easier to locate gunowners.)

CDR D | December 10, 2008 4:23 PM | Reply

I hope your medical issues have been favorably resolved, Counselor.

As for Blagojevich, my paper (SF Comical) had a photo of him accompanying their article on his arrest. I had never seen a photo of him before, and did not know what he looked like. He sure is a "pretty boy". I assumed he'd look like some union thug, you know, Rod Steiger in "On the Waterfront", or maybe something like the current governor of Pennsylvania.

Wow. Could be some tough nights ahead in the Federal Penitentiary for that pretty boy, assuming he doesn't get a stacked jury in Chicago, or clemency from the White House for keeping his mouth shut.

The Mechanic | December 11, 2008 1:23 PM | Reply

@ Carl in Chicago: Faith in government, that's a good one!

475okh | December 12, 2008 8:32 AM | Reply

Please take pitty on poor Rod as he is innocent until proven guilty. But in the meantime help him out by sending donations, for his impending incarseration, to [email protected]

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