Illinois Gov. Blagojevich Arrested For Plans to Sell Obama Senate Seat
December 10th, 2008 | by admin |
Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was arrested early Tuesday morning on charges that he had conspired to profit from Barack Obama’s recent presidential election, among other charges. He’s being held in custody with his chief of staff, John Harris, who faces similar charges.
A news briefing held by U.S. Attorney General Patrick Fitzgerald and the FBI’s Robert Grant was held today at 12 pm EST to discuss their investigation and findings. Fitzgerald said today was “a sad day for Illinois government,” calling Blagojevich’s actions a “political corruption crime spree.”
According to Fitzgerald there have been investigations looking into “pay-to-play conduct and corruption” on Blagojevich’s part since as early as 2003, so it’s not likely that Blagojevich’s moves were made in response to the recession. Ironically, an Ethics in Government Act barring certain contributions from people doing business with the state of Illinois was set to go into effect as early as the first day of 2009. The impending measure seems to have had little effect in curtailing Blagojevich’s unethical, illegal ways.
After Fitzgerald and Grant were made privy to a series of pay-to-play schemes run by the Illinois democratic administration, they decided an investigation was necessary. Their findings have proven that Blagojevich’s deviances extend much farther than what they’d originally expected.
Federal prosecutors have said both Blagojevich and Harris had plans to essentially sell off Obama’s soon-to-be vacant senate seat. Fitzgerald noted that Blagojevich had, in presumed confidence, called the seat a “valuable thing. You don’t just give it away. …I’ve got this thing and it’s —-ing golden.”
According to Illinois State law, a vacancy left in the senate is to be filled at the discretion of the governor. Blagojevich’s mistake was that he thought he could turn a profit off the opportunity to appoint someone of choice to Obama’s senate seat, which the president-elect still had 2 years left to fill in his 6-year term. According to Fitzgerald, Blagojevich had plans to profit in multiple ways through the scam.
• Blagojevich intended to obtain for himself a substantial salary at either a non-profit foundation or an organization affiliated with labor unions.
• He then allegedly sought to place his wife in a paid position on a corporate board, a distinction that would earn her as much as $150,000 a year as a board director.
• Blagojevich also allegedly sought promises of campaign funds from potential suitors, a deal that would have included a significant portion of cash given to the Illinois governor up front.
• It’s reported that Blagojevich was also looking to get fitted for a Cabinet post or ambassadorship in the Obama administration.
In addition, the second-termed governor has been accused of withholding state assistance to the Tribune Company, the recently bankrupt organization that runs the Chicago Cubs in addition to the Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun and Los Angeles Times, in an effort to bring on the firing of a number of Chicago Tribune editorial board members who had publically expressed disapproval with Blagojevich. Allegedly, Blagojevich had refused to aid the Tribune Company in building a replacement for the iconic Wrigley Field if they didn’t fire the aforesaid editorial board members.
He’s also been accused of planning to pull $8 million in funding from the development of a children’s hospital after the hospital’s CEO neglected to give the governor’s campaign a $50,000 contribution.
Expect Illinois’ government to undergo a serious clean-up in the coming months after the headline grabbing scandal. The Midwestern state has a checkered history of political fraud, including the April 2006 conviction of former governor George Ryan on racketeering and fraud charges, and the FBI’s Grant has called Illinois “one hell of a competitor” for the distinction of being the most corrupt state in the United States. He’s indicated that Blagojevich’s Tuesday arrest should signify that “business as usual will no longer be tolerated” in the state of Illinois, adding that “selling your office for personal gain is a thing of the past.”
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One Response to “Illinois Gov. Blagojevich Arrested For Plans to Sell Obama Senate Seat”
By Sally G. on Dec 22, 2008 | Reply
Anybody actually believe Blagojevich here? http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/12/19/ST2008121902385.html
It’s hard to imagine that something laid out with such detail could actually be falsified. He should, for once, do what’s right and step down from his position as governor.