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Tri-Staters, since we've had a trifecta of gubernatorial resignations (Rowland, McGreevey and Spitzer), it sort of feels good to know that other states' governors suck too, right? Intensely disliked Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich (D) was taken into custody by the feds this morning at his Chicago home; his spokesman initially told a reporter, "Haven't heard anything -- you are first to call." While Blago has been the subject of a three-year corruption investigation, the Chicago Tribune reports the probe has "expanded to include his impending selection of a new U.S. senator to succeed President-elect Barack Obama." More fun: Blago also was angling to be named Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Obama administration AND wanted to get members of the Trib's editorial board fired for, uh, editorials critical of his administration. Troopergate almost seems quaint now!
Illinois Governor Taken Into Federal Custody
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no mention of his party affiliation? hmmm... must be a Dem!
So who's going to be the first right-wing commentator to try to tar Obama with this?
(I can say "tar" can't I? Is that an unacceptable term to use about Obama?)
Tgirl--you're right, I added party affiliation.
FWIW, the governor before Blago was Republican George Ryan... who also left office due to a corruption scandal and is currently in federal prison. "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely," no?
Spreading the wealth. Why should the East Coast have all the fun?
...that's the Chicago way.
Its not the fault of Dems or Reps but of Illinois. The politics in the state, and the city of Chicago in particular, may be the most corrupt in the US. For Obama to say he comes from that political cesspool does him more harm than good.
A Dem from Chicago corrupt, go figure.
All of Illinois must be heaving a sigh of relief about his pending removal: they don't have to try to pronounce that name anymore.
Note that the prosecutor in this case is Patrick Fitzgerald, of Valerie Plame fame.
I blame his toupée!
This is the first case of corruption linked to Obama. Wow.
A corrupt politician you say?!?
I'm shocked, dismayed and bewildered.
since no one has typed it yet..
"Welcome to Barack Hussein Obama's America"
muhahaha
Ah Chicago and Illinois, you make New Jersey look like a good government society and Albany look like a grade school class president election.
As much as various factions would love it to be so, this isn't linked to Obama in any meaningful way. He is only tangentially related as the former holder of the Senate seat.
Furthermore, Obama is much closer to the Rezko case than this.
I wonder: Is it SOP to Wiretap the Gov of Illinois??
UNITY UP THE RIVER
If Blagojevich is convicted,
He'd be the second who fell
And might be right at home in sharing
Gov.Ryan's cell.
Being the governor of Illinois
Confers luxury perks
Yet somehow seems to be attracting
Bipartisan jerks.
I guess you can say that the Blagojevich's "chicken" has "come home to roost".
Just like in a lot of states, voters in Illinois are getting EXACTLY what they deserve or want.
Maybe, now they can be serious about who they vote into office, and rather than coveting corruption, voters can pay attention to seekers of elective office who SHUN corruption! OsiSpeaks.com
Spitzer Face!! He's making the Spitzer Face!!!
[19] haha you nailed it
I've been laughing at this putz all morning, and that was before I saw his felonious wig.
Obama handed this guy his 15 minutes with the chance to name his replacement in the Senate and he screwed it up. He could have turned this into a high-profile, pseudo reality show that he was hosting that made him more famous that person he picks. He could have been on all three cable channels chatting away about his decision.
Dick.
I assume Blago will be resigning soon (today?).
If he picked someone to Obama's liking, Blago could have counted on a cushy ambassadorship in a warm climate. He got greedy instead.
As a visiting Chicagoista, I think it's funny to see Gotham act all superior to Chicago and Illinois just because our scandals don't involve $5,000 hookers.
I find it equally funny that we elected Blagojevich largely because his opponent, former state treasurer under the equally corrupt George Ryan, was prone to saying things like "chickens have come home to roost." Thanks, KYJuris!
Democrats will protect this a-hole.
I've been saying it all along: Americans are as corrupt and incompetent as anything Nicaragua has to offer.