Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was taken into custody earlier this morning .

Not sure what this is about ;but best guess is that it has something to do with the ongoing and expanding Tony Rezko investigation. Supposedly there may be something criminally wrong with how Blagojevich is conducting the search for a replacement to fill the Senate Seat President -elect Obama is vacating .


Federal authorities got approval from a judge before the November general election to secretly record the governor, sources told the Tribune, and among their concerns was whether the selection process might be tainted. That possibility has become a focus in an intensifying investigation that has included recordings of the governor and the cooperation of one of his closest friends.

Rod Blagojevich, Illinois governor -- chicagotribune.com (http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-rod-blagojevich-1209,0,7997804.story)

Tony Rezko is doing his best attempt to reduce his charges by cooperating with authorities The Guv is going down . The question is : Will he take President-elect Obama with him ?

Edits :

He supposedly is taped saying that (the Senate Seat)' is 'A fu**ing valuable thing, you just don't give it away for nothing'

The Chicago Trib. Has a timeline of the ongoing investigation of the Guv.
INVESTIGATION TIMELINE -- chicagotribune.com (http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-investigation-timeline-1208,0,2680294.story)

This new development is going to prove rather dramatic if the Governor decides to "sing" like a canary to save his posterior.

Sounds like a hell of a guy. Drives a hard bargain (http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/posted/archive/2008/12/09/the-shakedown-juicy-bits-from-the-blagojevich-indictment.aspx), too:


“Later on November 3, 2008, ROD BLAGOJEVICH spoke with Advisor A. By this time, media reports indicated that Senate Candidate 1, an advisor to the Presidentelect, was interested in the Senate seat if it became vacant, and was likely to be supported by the President-elect. During the call, ROD BLAGOJEVICH stated, “unless I get something real good for [Senate Candidate 1], sh*t, I’ll just send myself, you know what I’m saying.” ROD BLAGOJEVICH later stated, “I’m going to keep this Senate option for me a real possibility, you know, and therefore I can drive a hard bargain. You hear what I’m saying. And if I don’t get what I want and I’m not satisfied with it, then I’ll just take the Senate seat myself.”

He allegedly also spoke of bargaining with Obama for something sweet:


various federal governmental positions that ROD BLAGOJEVICH would trade the Senate seat for, ROD BLAGOJEVICH asked about “the private sector” and whether the President-elect could “put something together there. . . .Something big.”

Obama and Biden are in Chicago to meet with The Goracle today. I wonder if he had any talks planned with the good governor while he was in town.

And by the way, "Cold Cash" Jefferson got booted by the voters over the weekend, too. Yep, got to bury that "Republican culture of corruption." :D

I have mixed feelings about Joseph Cao .It's good that cold cash Jefferson was booted ,and Cao is a pro-lifer.. But he doesn't appear to have any other strong positions except that he is an open border advocate.

I wonder how long it will be for Obama to throw Blagojevich under the bus. This could be like the Clintoons where there is carnage all around them (like former Arkansas Guv. Jim Guy Tucker and the McDougals) but it never quites reaches them .

But once again a Republican makes diversity history, Cao is the first Vietnamese-American elected to Congress.

Have you noticed when a Democrat gets busted it's always time to play "Guess that party (http://www.mererhetoric.com/archives/11275172.html)" in the media coverage?

Yes if he was Republican it would've read :
Illinois Republican Governor Rod Blagojevich or Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich (R)

Republicans are doing well in the diversity dept in Louisianna .

As I read it ;Cao is a recent convert to the Republican ranks ;only registering when he decided to run. I will give him the benefit of the doubt for now but my enthusiasm is tempered by other Republicans like " Arnold " and Mike Bloomberg who govern like Dems.

Illinois Governor Suspends Business With Bank Of America (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/12/08/illinois-governer-suspend_n_149272.html)

Deleted reply .

Edit :

Magprob I like the comments you added to the link on the thread on the Politics Board.

There was also talk today of Gov. B threatening The Tribune Company. Apparently, there was some kind of offer to help them with their financial problems (they filed for bankruptcy yesterday) if they fired editors and columnists who had criticized them. Don't know all the details - anyone? But he sounds like a piece of work! The amazing thing is that we are still surprised by the level of corruption in government.

The amazing thing is that we are still surprised by the level of corruption in government.

Now that's a stretch!:rolleyes:

Obama's Chickens... coming home to roost.
Washington Times - Complaint hits Rezko land deal (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/oct/18/whistleblower-hits-obama-friends-appraisal/)

Alexrod "misspoke" about Bammy having spoken to the Gov about his vacant seat. Sure, he misspoke. What a misnomer. Almost like Clinton not having sex... This is really going to heat up very quickly and hopefully have some blowback on Bammy.

It took about 24 hours for Obama to throw him under the bus (http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/12/10/obama_blagojevich_should_resig.html). Longer than it took him to throw Axelrod under the bus... or at least say he "misspoke" when Obama contradicted Axelrod (http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/12/questions-arise.html) who said last month, "I know he's talked to the governor and there are a whole range of names many of which have surfaced, and I think he has a fondness for a lot of them." As seems to be a habit, Obama's story is developing.

Yup, change is coming... Chicago style politics??


Rod tried to have unfavorable Chicago Tribune editorialists fired.

Can you imagine if W tried to get unfavorable newspaper editors fired? [ that would be a heck of a lot of editors :) ]





g&p

Harry Reid wants Blogo to resign . Not because of any wrong doing per se . But he is aware that there is a chance albeit unlikely that the Dems could lose the seat. So he wants Blogo to step down so Lt. Gov Pat Quinn can make the choice emphasizes that such a route "would be the most expeditious way for a new Senator to be chosen and seated"

Why is time of the essence? With the Minnesota Senate seat either lost or in flux, without the Illinois seat, Democrats would be at 57 seats in the Senate. That's still a lopsided majority, but the vacancy would make it more difficult to thwart Republican filibusters on legislation that Democrats want to ram through during Obama's first 100 days in office.

Sen D*cky Turbin bucked that trend yesterday by calling for a special election .

This is just the logical extension of machine politics and patronage. What is the difference between this and Joe Kennedy buying JFK his first Congressional seat ?



1960 JFK wanted his Senate seat to go to the swimmer(Teddy Kennedy) . But Teddy was too young for the position. So he arranged with the Guv of Mass. To fill the seat with his good buddy Ben Smith, a Harvard roommate and the mayor of Gloucester, Mass.
Now JFK and the Guv Foster Furcolo were political rivals .Furcolo wasn't entusiastic in doing JFK's bidding .But Kennedy sat the Guv down and negotiated... an "extremely frank give-and-take" according to Teddy Kennedy biographer Burton Hersh.

Earlier it was revealed that Joe Biden's vacant seat will be filled by his Senate Chief of Staff Ted Kaufman. Not accusing anything here ;but one does have to wonder what quid pro quo went into that deal .I am pretty sure Biden wants his son Beau Biden to inherit the seat as soon as it becomes available after he returns from his tour in Iraq .

The thing is ; we know OB1 has met with Guv Blogo... we have the pictures to prove it. If Obama doesn't come clean this will dog him throughout his Presidency ;just like Whitewater did to the Clintoons

We do know that apparently Rezko is singing and I'm sure that has a number of politicians sweating. I'm anxious to see how this plays out.

Dirty Harry Reid wants Blago to step aside immediately before the Illinois legislature has a chance to call a special election and have Quinn make the appointment. All with the best intentions mind you, because that "would be the most expeditious way for a new Senator to be chosen and seated in a manner that would earn the confidence of the people of Illinois and all Americans.”

As opposed to an election by the people whose trust has been so egregiously betrayed of course.

Harry (body odor) Reid is getting nervous about that super majority stuff. I personally don't think he has much to worry about. 1/2 of the gang of 14 were Republicans.

The thing is ; we know OB1 has met with Guv Blogo ...we have the pictures to prove it. If Obama doesn't come clean this will dog him throughout his Presidency ;just like Whitewater did to the Clintoons

The FBI claims that they have proof Obama was not involved. Do you think they are lying to protect him?

We do know that apparently Rezko is singing and I'm sure that has a number of politicians sweating. I'm anxious to see how this plays out.

Dirty Harry Reid wants Blago to step aside immediately before the Illinois legislature has a chance to call a special election and have Quinn make the appointment. All with the best intentions mind you, because that "would be the most expeditious way for a new Senator to be chosen and seated in a manner that would earn the confidence of the people of Illinois and all Americans.”

As opposed to an election by the people whose trust has been so egregiously betrayed of course.

Just the fact that these seats are appointed breeds corruption. If a senate seat is vacated, why would there not be a new election? It makes no sense.

New York is going to have a circus as well for Hilary's seat. So far the front runners are Andrew Cuomo, his ex-wife's cousin Carolyn Kennedy and Fran "The Nanny" Drescher!

Just the fact that these seats are appointed breeds corruption. If a senate seat is vacated, why would there not be a new election? It makes no sense.

New York is going to have a circus as well for Hilary's seat. So far the front runners are Andrew Cuomo, his ex-wife's cousin Carolyn Kennedy and Fran "The Nanny" Drescher!

At least Fran has the accent for it... and she still looks pretty hot. :)

At least Fran has the accent for it...and she still looks pretty hot. :)


Amen to that. All in favor of Franny the Nanny say I.

The FBI claims that they have proof Obama was not involved. Do you think they are lying to protect him?

That is parsing . Just listening the Blogo's rants makes it clear that discussions between the Obama camp and Blogo happened at some level . Blogo did not like the deal ;thus the diatribe.

Now if it turns out that ,as David Schyster of MSNBC reported , that the Obama camp nixed the idea of a deal and that Rhambo informed the authorities... then that should be made public also . Why is Obama parsing his words so carefully in public if he doesn't have to ?

Today's column in the Washington Compost by Obama Supporter Eugene Robinson states my position well.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/11/AR2008121102953.html


He delivers an expletive-laden tirade against Obama, according to the court papers, because he believes Obama wants him to give the job to a specific candidate "for nothing." This actually makes the president-elect and his team look good -- but also raises a host of questions that need to be answered.
Obama has denied speaking to Blagojevich about the Senate seat. But Obama's initial statement seemed crafted to avoid the question of whether his aides had been in touch with the governor's office. He said at a news conference yesterday that he was certain his people "had no involvement with any dealmaking," and he added that his staff was still "gathering facts" about possible contacts.
But all this seems awfully coy. It's obvious that the president-elect would have an interest in who was appointed to the Senate from his home state -- for good reason. For that matter, it would be unusual if the president-elect didn't have a preferred candidate. The normal thing would be for Obama's staff to talk to Blagojevich's staff -- and, unless prosecutors have asked him not to, I don't understand why Obama hasn't stated this simple fact.
Blagojevich thought, according to the affidavit, that Obama wanted the Senate seat to go to someone identified only as "Senate Candidate 1" -- believed to be Valerie Jarrett, a prominent Chicago businesswoman who is one of Obama's closest supporters. On the evening of Nov. 10, Democratic sources abruptly cut off speculation about Jarrett and the Senate seat by leaking word that she would become a White House adviser.
That happens to be the same day that the FBI overheard Blagojevich, in a two-hour conference call with his wife and advisers in Illinois and Washington, talking in detail about the various candidates and what he wanted in return from appointing any of them. That raises the question of what the Obama team knew about the investigation and when....


None of this is likely to hurt Obama in any material way or even dim the glow of his victory and upcoming inauguration. But maybe it can be a lesson. Real "change" would be throwing away the playbook and getting all the facts out now, rather than later.



Just the fact that these seats are appointed breeds corruption. If a senate seat is vacated, why would there not be a new election? It makes no sense.

New York is going to have a circus as well for Hilary's seat. So far the front runners are Andrew Cuomo, his ex-wife's cousin Carolyn Kennedy and Fran "The Nanny" Drescher!

Another case where the question begs answering ;what is Uncle Fat Teddy (the swimmer ) doing to advance his niece's case for the job ? After the Dems made such a big issue of Sarah Palin's qualifications it is comical to advance Carolyn Kennedy . Yes Fran Drescher is equally qualified as CK .

Since NY Senate Seats are often held by less than qualified people (apologies to Daniel Patrick Moynahan ) and carpetbaggers from Mass.and Arkansas ;I suppose it is a debatable point about what is proper qualifications for the job ?

Yep, Obama is parsing his words very carefully. I don't believe anyone would think it unusual for him to have discussions about the seat so yes, why isn't he coming right out and saying so?

As for CK, Froma Harrop notes (http://www.creators.com/opinion/froma-harrop.html?columnsName=fha) "her government service starts and ends at raising private money for the New York City schools." Add Uncle Ted's remarks that she's backed by "the Kennedy family's extensive fundraising network," and her qualifications appear to be money and fame - the latter of which is why feminists have backtracked on their support for Carolyn Maloney. "You're talking to someone who thinks Ted Kennedy is the most effective senator there," said Eleanor Smeal.

I suppose if Caroline wants the job it's hers according to the NY Times, "Some influential Democrats have privately suggested that given the buzz set off by Ms. Kennedy's emergence, the governor would have little choice but to appoint her if she decided she truly wanted the job."

Perhaps Blago's troubles will change that. Nah.

Again... what is the quid pro quo ? David Patterson is the product of the corrupt Harlem machine (see Charles Rangel for illustration) .

And no ;I'm not saying that because of his roots he is necessarily corrupt himself .Harry Truman emerged from a similar political machine and became a reform crusader . Still ;Patterson walks on thin ice when he takes advice from the swimmer. If he were to ask me for advice I would tell him that no one in NY is better suited to the job than Congressman Peter King. But he won't ask me.

After the Dems made such a big issue of Sarah Palin's qualifications it is comical to advance Carolyn Kennedy . Yes Fran Drescher is equally qualified as CK .



Kennedy is qualified because she is a Kennedy ;) as well as a lawyer.

The Nanny? If she gets the seat, maybe in 2 years she will have enough experience to run for POTUS in 2012 :D







g&p

Update :

Princess Caroline bowed out under still reasons unclear.

However ; Governor Patterson stumbled onto perhaps the best candidate . He named Democrat moderate Congresswomen Kirsten Gillibrand to replace Evita.

Gillibrand is a Blue Dog democrat who has a 100% rating from the National Rifle Association. She supports hunter's rights, voted for extending funding for the war in Iraq, supported the Bush tax cuts and best of all... voted against the Wall Streat bailout!! She comes from a conservative Republican hunting family, and her father has strong ties to the New York GOP. My kind of DEM!

This could be good strategery on Patterson's part. There is an opening for Republicans like Pete King or Rudi to pick off this seat in 2 years. But they would be less inclined if a Conservative Dem holds it.

Of course the moonbats in NY are howling..

The early reports are that Caroline Kennedy paid a house keeper off the books. When are these "politicians" going to learn?

The successions of the Obama and Evita seats ;along with the continuing melodrama in Minnesota is worthy of an Academy Award. This further illustrates the folly that the Connecticut Compromise has become. I think it was Princess Caroline's relationship with Pinch Sulzberger that did her in .lol