Wow, that didn’t take long for old-school Chicago politics to reemmerge on the national political scene. Charges against Blagojevich include “conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and solicitation of bribery”.
Federal authorities arrested Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich Tuesday on charges that he brazenly conspired to sell or trade the Senate seat left vacant by President-elect Barack Obama to the highest bidder.
Blagojevich also was charged with illegally threatening to withhold state assistance to Tribune Co., the owner of the Chicago Tribune, in the sale of Wrigley Field, according to a federal criminal complaint. In return for state assistance, Blagojevich allegedly wanted members of the paper’s editorial board who had been critical of him fired.
A 76-page FBI affidavit said the 51-year-old Democratic governor was intercepted on court-authorized wiretaps over the last month conspiring to sell or trade the vacant Senate seat for personal benefits for himself and his wife, Patti.
Otherwise, Blagojevich considered appointing himself. The affidavit said that as late as Nov. 3, he told his deputy governor that if “they’re not going to offer me anything of value I might as well take it.”
“I’m going to keep this Senate option for me a real possibility, you know, and therefore I can drive a hard bargain,” Blagojevich allegedly said later that day, according to the affidavit, which also quoted him as saying in a remark punctuated by profanity that the seat was “a valuable thing — you just don’t give it away for nothing.”
The affidavit said Blagojevich also discussed getting a substantial salary for himself at a nonprofit foundation or an organization affiliated with labor unions.
It said Blagojevich also talked about getting his wife placed on corporate boards where she might get $150,000 a year in director’s fees.
He also allegedly discussed getting campaign funds for himself or possibly a post in the president’s cabinet or an ambassadorship once he left the governor’s office. He noted becoming a U.S. senator might remake his image for a possible presidential run in 2016, according to the affidavit. And he allegedly said a Senate seat would also provide him with corporate contacts if he needed a job and present an opportunity for his wife to work as a lobbyist.
“I want to make money,” the affidavit quotes him as saying in one conversation.
The affidavit said Blagojevich expressed frustration at being “stuck” as governor and that he would have access to greater resources if he were indicted while in the U.S. Senate than while sitting as governor.
U.S. Attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald said in a statement that “the breadth of corruption laid out in these charges is staggering.”
Read full Yahoo article on the arrest or Reuters article also detailing the charges
Filed under: Obama, Politics | Tagged: chicago politics, governor Blagojevich, illinois governor, obama's senate seat, Rod Blagojevich
how embarrassing. this state needs to completely change all elected officials. they all appear in some way or another to be crooks. the time has come for “the people” to govern and we can get rid of “career politicians”. then this country and state can move forward in rebuilding what we as voters have allowed our elected officials to do us. we as voters have the power to correct the major problems in federal/state/and local government. we did it to ourselves and now we need to “undo” what we did so that we can move on with running a government “of the people/by the people. i feel that until such a time that all of people that vote get their voice out there for government to hear we are just as much to blame as those we elect.
Absolutely agree with you. It’s amazing what we allow from some of our elected officials.
it’s crazy what Blagojevich has gotten away with already… he’s an international embarrassment