Blago, Bleeps, and—Lincoln?
Federal prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald may be right about a lot of things when it comes to former Illinois Gov. George Ryan's future cellmate—current Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich—but he got one thing very wrong at today's press conference.
In a nutshell, Governor Blagojevich is being charged with trying to squeeze the Chicago Tribune into firing editorialists who don't like him and trying to sell President-elect Barack Obama's vacant Senate seat to the highest bidder. After a few weeks of tapped phones and wired pals, Blago managed to give Fitzgerald lots and lots of incriminating comments, many of them laced with f-bombs, including one mother-f-bomb dropped on the name of one President-elect Barack Obama. Uh-oh.
The real dinger came during today's press conference, in which Mr. Fitzgerald offered a few examples from the 76-page indictment. Obama's Senate seat, Blago was recorded as saying, is "a bleeping valuable thing. You just don't give it away. ... I've got this thing and it's bleeping golden." Of course, after each quotation, Fitzgerald reminded everyone that Gov. Rod did not say "bleeping"—"that's a redaction."
At one point, Fitzgerald added, "The conduct would make Lincoln roll over in his grave."
Letting folks buy their way into power? Threatening newspapermen for writing things critical of the chief executive? Rod, you have a lot to learn from Honest Abe.
"If [Illinois] isn't the most corrupt state in the United States, it's certainly one hell of a competitor," said FBI Special Agent Robert Grant afterward. "Even the most cynical agents in our office were shocked."
It ain't called the Land of Lincoln for nothin'.
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Brother Aaron,
After your blasphemous assault on St. Abraham, perhaps you are the one who ought to beware the ubiquitous wire tap. Such a heretical statement will not go unnoticed by the Federal Church, and the Illini state seems replete with her ready inquisitors.
I wonder if future Illinois governors will put funding into improving the state's prisons - in full anticipation of future occupation.
Interesting blog entry pertaining to the real reason the governor was arrested. From Lew Rockwell's site.
http://www.lewrockwell.com/blog/lewrw/archives/024336.html
Oh, by the way, Im not a Libertarian, I just browse Lew Rockwell's site every once in a while for some thought provokers.
The old railroad lawyer was arguably more corrupt than Governor Blagojevich- and that's before Abraham Lincoln brought about the violent upheaval of the War Between the States. The good Governor Blagojevich will most probably get off by saying that he was just "venting" when he hinted at bribery- his bribery spiel was so blatant, not to say foul-mouthed, that no objective person could take it seriously, right? Isn't "venting" the Baby Boomer's excuse for boorish behavior.
Better than a pol for "The Obama Seat" that the Hawaiian Magician so aptly filled, maybe the best man for the job would be ex-Cubs Third Baseman, and future Hall-of-Famer Ron Santo. Not only was he more talented at something more worthwhile than Mr. Obama's chosen professions, Mr. Santo is honest to a fault. A Cubs announcer for about two decades, not only does he criticize poor play by the Cubs squad of multi-millionaires, Mr. Santo is honest about his collection of toupees. It works for me but would Ron Santo demean himself by consorting with Ted Kennedy, Tom Harkin, Arlen Specter, Barbara Boxer, Barbara Mikulski and the rest of the criminal gang on the Potomac? Probably not.
The governor's actions are surprising to me only in their brazenness. I've always assumed that most governors are looking for quid pro quos when they make such appointment decisions - they just have the good sense to do it with a wink and nod rather than virtually putting it up for auction.
I'm with you, Derek. Pat Hughes could be his press secretary, prompting him gently whenever color commentary is necessary. "Isn't that right, Ronny? . . . "
Speaking of Chicago sports icons, remember when Obama was first elected to the U.S. Senate? Back when Mr. Seven-of-Nine went down in flames, and before Ambassador Keyes rode in on his black horse, remember who was asked to stand for the GOP for Senate against the Barackattack? (Cue "The Super Bowl Shuffle.")
Mr. Wolf, the kids over at Free Republic are already pushing Mike Ditka for the US Senate. If the implausible happened and Coach Ditka became a senator, I wonder if John McCain would have the nerve to go off on one of his famed raging temper-tantrums at Mr. Ditka. Mike Ditka is not John Cornyn, Chuck Grassley or Pete Domenici and is not liable to take abuse from the man known to his Episcopalian High School classmates as "The Punk."
Blago for President in 2016? I think an insane asylum is a more appropriate place for Blago right now than Joliet
Dr. Anderson,
Former Gov. George Ryan is currently vacationing in Wisconsin, though his crimes were committed here.
I was 4x4ing through our winter storm on my way to pick up a side of beef this morning when I heard the "breaking news" about Blagojevich. I said out loud, "I'm thinking George Ryan's push for a pardon by Dubya is not looking so good now." No one answered, though.
@4 Derek
Blago the Hairdo is in fact only guilty of bad judgement, the crime of choice for drunks, gropers, and bribe-takers. He will be sentenced to 100 lashes with a wet noodle, and be declared a very naughty boy.
If Blago resigns, then the Quixotic Pat Quinn, a Democrat who has written for Chronicles, becomes governor and gets the chance to try out his schemes for cleaning out the Lincolnian stables.
If you don't mind me asking and getting the thread a bit off track here, I would be interested to know what Mr. Quinn wrote for Chronicles.
Actually, former Illinois Governor Ryan is no longer in the Retirement Suite for Illinois Governors in the penitentiary in Oxford, Wisconsin. Since Mr. Ryan is over 70 years of age he has been transferred to a cell in Indiana. So, there is plenty of room up north for Governor Blago. I will never forgive Pat Quinn for advocating the stupid step of getting rid of the 3 member state House districts. Much of the problems engendered by the current paralysis of our state government would have been avoided if that had not been done. It strengthened party politics, and somewhat mitigated the current domination of the entire state by Chicago Democrats. I had an e-mail from one of my students lamenting that this arrest took place right after the end of the semester, as they really wanted to discuss it in class. One nice thing about teaching local and state politics and government in Illinois is that there is never any shortage of discussion topics in current events.
If Blagojevich represents the political milieu out of which BO emerges, it's a very good sign. It means that our new President will be practicing good old honest Chicago graft, of the sort that we all know and understand. He won't be pushing ideologically radical things.
I like graft. It's a plain and straightforward traditional sin, like lust. It's much preferable to ideological hubris.
When Ditka came to the Saints he said, "First we're going to learn how to run the ball, then we're going to learn how to throw it." Nothing was ever learned except how Ditka could make himself richer by his reputation. No New Orleans Saints fan has anything but contempt for Ditka.
@14 "I like graft. It’s a plain and straightforward traditional sin, like lust. It’s much preferable to ideological hubris."
I agree. The days of old Chicago politics and Huey Long's Louisiana look like a golden age compared to today's liberal idealists and "compassionate conservatives." I'm less concerned with selling Senate seats than I am with Obama's plans for "fairness" legislation, a domestic paramilitary force, massive tax and spend increases, and no discernable difference from the Zionist foreign policy of G.W. Bush. Is there any reason to believe that buying/selling political office is worse (or different) than elections? I'm not asking that question sarcastically either.
Though maybe the Kingfish is a bad example. He seems to have had plenty ideological hubris.
The Guv could have auctioned the senate seat on ebay and the media could have gotten a little more mileage out of it. I'm only half kidding here.
Rule of thumb: Always be leery of "reformist" politicians. The "reforms" often involve re-directing the graft from the other guy into the reformer's own pocket. It reminds me of what my old uncle said years ago. He told me he was thinking of running for Congress. I asked him if he were going to clean up the corruption in Washington: "Nope. Gonna get my share."
Here's a reform idea for Illinois: restrict the electorate to those confined in prison. This will add "transparency" to the political process and, frankly, I am not so sure the results would be any worse.
Although Governor Blagojevich's dealmaking is more brazen than most, when it gets down to it what is the difference between Blago and the retired Senator representing Archer-Daniels Midland, the Honorable Robert Dole? The Honorable Robert Byrd has pimped for West Virginia for decades. The Honorable Ted Stevens and the honorable Don Young have shaken down the federal government for decades for pork for the ruggedly independent populace of Alaska. In a bipartisan vein, the Honorable Lyndon Johnson (RIP), Texas Democrat, the Honorable Tom DeLay, Texas Republican, and the Honorable Bill Nelson, Florida Democrat, have successfully pimped for the space pork agency called NASA. And the Road Lobby is served by over 500 grafters in Congress, bringing to Americans by-pass roads circling such metropolises as Salisbury, MD, Elizabeth City, NC, New Bern, NC and Jacksonville, NC(where, humorously, the six mile by-pass has three different names covering two mile intervals- the MIA/POW freeway; the Ronald Reagan freeway; and the Coretta and Dr. Rev. St. Martin Luther King freeway).
As an aside, if Pat Quinn is to be governor of Illinois and that he has a past relationship with CHRONICLES, might there be a chance that Thomas Fleming might be named Senator as long as Dr. Felming sits as a Democrat? He certainly supports Barack Obama on the Iraq War. And he could rival Senator Mel Martinez in speaking a foreign language on the Senate floor. Senator Thomas Fleming could speak Greek and Latin to that esteemed body. That would be fun.
Seeing "Senator Fleming" speak Latin and Greek to that august body would indeed be fun. If he did this in the 1820's many of his fellow senators would understand. If he did it now they would probably call for an exorcism.
Josh Cooney @ 15
"Is there any reason to believe that buying/selling political office is worse (or different) than elections?"
In a radically capitalist society such as we have, EVERYTHING is for sale. When money is your god, it becomes as all-consuming as Moloch.
Another angle of the Blagojevich scandal is the lovely Mrs. Patricia Blagojevich and the torrent of foul language that flowed so easily from her mouth. Ava Gardner might have blushed at Mrs. B's gutter tongue. In the new feminist world, women can curse with the boys, women can drink with the boys, women can fight in the military with the boys, women can engage in sexual promiscuity as much as the boys and, as I've been told by Washington Redskins fans who delight in tailgate parties, women are as much at ease as the boys in urinating in public. Some would call this progressive.
Blago should be shut away for the rest of his life and never allowed human contact just for his audacity in wearing that rancid pelt over his skull that looks like a Comanche scalp lifted from a chancre-encrusted cranium.
Though I would hate to see him lower his standards enough to become a senator, the thought of Dr. Fleming in Congress is quite enticing. I might even be forced to buy a television set just to watch him on CSPAN.
If Roman Empire was sold to the highest bidder, why not sell a Senate seat? Nothing new under the sun!
Correction to #19 above. Rather than confine the electorate to those in prison, restrict eligibility for office to those persons confined to prisons. That will save the Illinois taxpayers the cost of investigations, indictments, trials, etc. as the candidates will already be in jail.
Isn't it great! Go back and watch Godfather II when Michael Corleone is in front of a senate committee--Coppala's take on our political class is masterful. Hey Blago is better than the do gooders!
Who would you take Carmine de Sapio or Ed Koch?
I have to say the idea of the FBI arresting a Governor is disturbing. As despicable as most of them are these days we can't expect the feds to be any better and it is a very bad precedent, as I don't think anyone has noticed.
I agree, Dr Wilson. I thought about it but didn't mention it. Why should the feds be watching state officers of any rank? It invites direct control.
@30 Dr Wilson
Who else could do it? The governor has authority over the Illinois State Police, he probably appoineted its head honcho, so that scenario is unlikely. A Cook County cop would not truly have the authority unless he could prove the crime took place in his jurisdiction, and think about it, Cook County! Why would a prosecutor there even waste time pursuing a conviction?
The only option (which I'm not against) is a citizen militia arrest, trial and sentencing. Any action taken by said group against a Democrat governor would surely be reported by the guttersnipe press as a lynch-mob action and compared to the activities of the Invisible Empire.
The Senate seat belongs to the people of Illinois, not to the general government of the United States. The Governor is elected by the people of Illinois, not by a aggregate of Americans. The governor can be impeached by the legislature of the state and placed on trial thereby. Some say at this juncture, "The system is too corrupt." My answer is, "Yes." However, let the people of Illinois tend to their own souls and the order of their own house. The general government, the corruption not withstanding, should not have been involved in this matter.
I also do not place any stock in the "highmindedness" of federal attorneys. Most of them simply follow orders and are working their way up the chain of power; too many of them would send their own grandmothers to prison if they could "make a case" and a name from having made it.
Well said, Mr Peters.
Who is to watch the general government that watches the states? The UN or international agencies? Who watches them? And if this be the case, why should an agency based in Geneva, or The Hague, or New York, be concerned with corruption in Illinois? Why then should an agency based in a swampy, broken off piece of Maryland be concerned with corruption in Illinois?
Mr. Wilson @ 34
Well said, too, very well said. I particularly like the part "...an agency based in a swampy, broken off piece of Maryland...." The air there is indeed mal, not so much from the swamp itself, the vapors of which being a part of the natural order of things, but from the moral corruption of our overseers who have ensconced themselves there.
@33 Robert Peters
You're quite right. I had completely forgotten about that option. Do you believe the State of Illinois' legislature has the right of nullifying the Feds' meddling and take back matters into their own hands? Or will Blago's barrister be man enough to consider that option. My guess is they'll cop some sort of plea by having the governor plead guilty to committing mopery with intent to commit impure thoughts.
Stay tuned.
The state motto of Illinois, created when it was first settled by Virginians and Kentuckians, is "States Rights and Union"
I correct myself, it is "State SOVEREIGNTY and National Union"
When "Fast Eddie" Edwards was sent to federal prison, there were two camps: that of his family, friends and cronies who continue to beg for his release, and that of those who loathed him and thought to understand that justice had finally been done.
I belong to neither camp. Edwards was a man of no recognizable integrity. He was and remains, therefore, for me in res familiaris and res publica a man most unworthy of consideration. Had he been thrown out of office by the legislature of Louisiana or were he sitting in a state prison for his crimes, I would say, based on what I think to know, that justice had been done. But that he sits in a federal prison means for me that the unjust have met the unjust, although Edwards was not serving as governor when convicted.