CE Week #15: “Illinois governor arrested in Obama successor probe”
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CHICAGO — Federal authorities arrested Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich today 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.”
“They allege that Blagojevich put a for sale sign on the naming of a United States senator,” Fitzgerald said.”
Among those being considered for the post include U.S. Reps. Danny Davis and Jesse Jackson Jr.
Blagojevich also was charged with using his authority as governor in an attempt to squeeze out campaign contributions.
His chief of staff, John Harris, also was arrested.
Corruption in the Blagojevich administration has been the focus of a federal investigation involving an alleged $7 million scheme aimed at squeezing kickbacks out of companies seeking business from the state. Federal prosecutors have acknowledged they’re also investigating “serious allegations of endemic hiring fraud” under Blagojevich.
Political fundraiser Antoin “Tony” Rezko who raised money for the campaigns of both Blagojevich and Obama is awaiting sentencing after being convicted of fraud and other charges. Blagojevich’s chief fundraiser, Christopher G. Kelly, is due to stand trial early next year on charges of obstructing the Internal Revenue Service.
According to today’s complaint, Blagojevich schemed with Rezko, millionaire-fundraiser turned federal witness Stuart Levine and others to get financial benefits for himself and his campaign committee.
Federal prosecutors said Blagojevich and the chairman of his campaign committee have been speeding up corrupt fundraising activities in the last month to get as much money as possible before the end of the year when a new law would curtail his ability to raise contributions from companies with state contracts worth more than $50,000.
According to the affidavit, agents learned Blagojevich was seeking $2.5 million in campaign contributions by the end of the year, with a large part allegedly to come from companies and individuals who have gotten state contracts or appointments.
Blagojevich took the chief executive’s office in 2003 as a reformer promising to clean up former Gov. George Ryan’s mess.
Ryan, a Republican, is serving a 6-year prison sentence after being convicted on racketeering and fraud charges. A decade-long investigation began with the sale of driver’s licenses for bribes and led to the conviction of dozens of people who worked for Ryan when he was secretary of state and governor.
FBI spokesman Frank Bochte said federal agents arrested the governor and Harris simultaneously at their homes at 6:15 a.m. and took them to the Chicago FBI headquarters.
Bochte said he did not know if either man was handcuffed or if the governor’s family was their North Side home at the time of his arrest. He did say Blagojevich and Harris both were given time to get dressed before being taken to the headquarters.
He also did not have any details about Blagojevich’s arrest, only that he was cooperative with federal agents.
“It was a very calm setting,” he said.
The governor was to appear later today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Nan Nolan to answer the charges. The time was not immediately set.
I am glad that officials were able to catch this governor “conspiring to sell or trade the vacant Senate seat for personal benefits for himself and his wife, Patti.” He certainly is not the kind of person I would like to be selecting a Senator or possibly taking over himself. A Senate seat is certainly “ ‘ a valuable thing — you just don’t give it away for nothing.’ ” You give it away to a person that is qualified for the job and will effectively represent the constituents within the state, not for personal gain. I think it is amazing that they have conversations cited within the affidavit as it means that other were aware of the governor’s intent. The governor is corrupt, and anyone who attempted to “buy” the Senate seat is also corrupt. “According to the affidavit, agents learned Blagojevich was seeking $2.5 million in campaign contributions by the end of the year, with a large part allegedly to come from companies and individuals who have gotten state contracts or appointments.” Blagojevich is clearly corrupt, and I hope he will be removed from his post and that all of his appointments and state contracts will be investigated for legitimacy.
Connection: Patronage. The Senate was endorsing the use of patronage, when a promotion, contract, or job is for political reasons rather than merit or competence alone. Political parties, in the late 19th century, sold jobs to the person willing to pay the most which parallels the governor’s intent.
Umm, wow. I never knew that political corruption still existed on this scale. I truly believed that America was past all of this. And I also believed that criminals were getting smarter. Well, I was proven wrong on both accounts. I cannot believe that he thought that he could get away with this, the guy succeeded a governor that had been convicted on charges of corruption. THE GUY BEFORE YOU GOT CAUGHT!!! THEY ARE GOING TO BE WATCHING YOU! And to be so brazenly arrogant about it is just asking to get arrested. The things he said would probably sound arrogant of this was the norm, not just when it is a rare occurrence. I doubt that Obama will get any charges filed against him, but I know that he is going to get some heat. He took a lot about the supposed relationship to a terrorist, if it is a known fact that someone in his cabinet knew about this then he is going to catch some flak for this. The only thing that is not known is how much or who is going to burn for this.
Patronage: Well, this is patronage, but not something that most people would endorse. It is fine giving your nephew a job, but you should not sell it to the highest bidder. The job is for their betterment, and in this case for the betterment of the society, and attempting to receive benefits for it is just wrong.
I think that one of the main reasons that this issue should worry the public is not that he ended up getting caught, but how many other public officials are most likely out there doing the same if not worse things, and getting away with it. Obviously there was some suspicion about the Illinois governor or else he wouldn’t have been being wiretapped for the month leading up to his arrest, but what about the other governors, senators, and representatives out there selling favors and jobs to the highest bidder. I think that a smart move by Obama once he gets into office would be to create a special committee which could investigate the morality and actions of our government, though I am sure there probably are already a lot of these out there. I also think it is interesting how closely this issue is connected to the president-elect. I wonder how his transition into power will be affected by the scandal, if it will give the people more confidence that he would not be involved in something like what the governor did or if it will cause the people to condemn him for not turning the man in when his employees supposedly knew about it.
Connection: This could possibly be connected to special committees because it was probably a special committee that was organized to stake out Blagojevich and find out what he was up to because there were suspicions about him. Also, this could be connected to our discussion in class today about the governor and why what he did was wrong.
So yeah I think that he was a smart guy. If he had played his cards right then he probably could have gotten away with it. It was a smart plan, if no one pays you then might as well pick your self. Which was one thing that I didn’t know that the governor could do. I knew that he or she had to fill the vacant spot but I didn’t think that they could appoint themselves. And I’d say that he would be getting a bad deal. Though it is corruption, one million dollars for a Senate spot probably isn’t really that much in today’s society. I mean think about it. The government is now spending by the hundred billions and we are 11 trillion dollars in debt. We’re screwed. But I do think that he should be indicted because it was a major crime. Which brings me to another idea. How come it is a crime? A Senate seat is a Senate seat and anyone that is in it could be just like the other candidates. So what about personal gain, it’s about the greater good right? I also disagree with any thoughts that this might be connected to the Obama support team because though they had a person for the job they denied his request for the money.
Connection: Political Machines – Back in the good old days when corruption wreaked the city, money was, and still is “the mother’s milk of politics”. Money ruled the playing field and people were brought in without the proper reasons just like the offering of the position for money.
Wake up, Illinois! Corruption is a BAD thing! My goodness, this guy brings new meaning to political stupidity and justifies several political cynics. I never would have imagined that a politician would be this dumb about anything. Your phone conversations are recorded, and you call people about this? It people like Blagojevich that give politicians a bad name. When are they going to learn? And this guy got into office promising to clean up after George Ryan, who is in jail for corruption charges! Well, I suppose he might have cleaned up Ryan’s mess, but only, I suppose, to make room for his. What really makes me groan in disbelief is how open he is about it. He says (not in the article, but this quote is on the news) “This thing is golden; I’m not giving it up for nothing”. Okay, Blagojevich; if you are going to be corrupt, don’t be so obvious. How is he even going to argue this one? Evidence of his guilt is everywhere! He as good as said “I’m corrupt, so what are you going to give me for the Senate seat?” When someone breaks public trust like this, it just really makes me mad. But the worst part is how brazenly he does it, while breaking his election promise simultaneously. The scary thing is, we can’t even refer to him as the corrupt Illinois governor: four of the last eight, including this idiot, are in jail for corruption. Hopefully, the next governor will actually learn something from this whole affair. But there is a silver lining; we no longer need to worry about pronouncing his name. We can now use his prison number.
Connection: Patronage. Blagojevich was going to give political power to the person who was going to give him the most. This is reminiscent of the days of the political machine and open corruption that followed the Civil War and during the Harding Administration.
This guy makes me want to laugh. I always find it funny when people think that in this day and age they can get away with blatant unlawful behavior. Did Blagojevich honestly think he could talk so openly about bribery and corruption without getting in trouble? It also brings us back to what we were discussing in class. This was President- elects Senate seat. It raises questions as to who in his administration was involved with this. I am not pointing fingers at him but someone a part of his staff had to be a part of this or did not report it. It really brings to light the corruption that many politicians are getting so good at hiding. I wish our government could be devoid of corruption but that will never happen. I hope and pray that this will make Americans in Chicago reevaluate their political system and try to reform it to be in accordance with the rest of our nation. (Just a side note: This guy is Russian and Democrat= a recipe for corruption?)
Connection: The McCain- Feingold campaign finance reform bill does not even begin to cover this. This guy, with the unpronounceable name, was not only using “patronage” to get money but was also threatening to take the seat himself if he didn’t get enough for it. That is bribery and blackmail and patronage all combined in one!
In Response to Erik Layton:
For some reason, I’m not as surprised at this as you are. Four out of the last eight Illinois governors, including Blagojevich are in jail for corruption. It would seem strange to be really surprised by this guy when it seems to be the norm in the Land of Lincoln. Although I do agree, how stupid can one guy get? “THE GUY BEFORE YOU GOT CAUGHT!!! THEY ARE GOING TO BE WATCHING YOU!” This sums it up very nicely Erik. You would think that because the guy before you got caught you would be more careful but noooo, Blagojevich decides to openly try to profit from the open senate seat. This is a story that just might make it into worlds dumbest criminals.
I also agree with you when you say Obama is going to get some flak for this. Apparently, someone on his transition team knew that the governor was trying to sell the seat but didn’t turn him in. It is not a good thing if the President-elects transition team is already marred by scandal although I don’t think it will be a huge blow. I think this is another chance for Obama to show us that he is a good leader and do this by showing us that he can calmly and easily handle this scandal. However, This could take away from working on economic plans or spending plans, but one things for sure he can’t let this fester or it will come back to bite him.
In Response to Austin:
I disagree with you when you said that you don’t think this scandal will be connected to Obama or his support team. First of all, I think that politically, you are correct. The Obama transition team will most likely find a way out of this, and I’m sure they will effectively spin most of the accusations against them. So, in that respect, Obama and his team will escape any indictment, and this will not have any impact on how they lead our country. However, in terms of how the American public sees things, I think this scandal will be connected with Obama. I’m just going to go out on a limb here, and say that American’s love controversy. People will use this as an argument against Obama, even if the scandal turns out to not have any connection with his team at all.
So, to regain the American people’s faith and trust, I think Obama and his team should create their own committee to investigate this scandal. Then, the public will see that Obama wants solve the crime just as much as everyone else does. Until this issue is completely uncovered and solved, Obama will have a hard time regaining the support he has lost due to being connected wit this scandal.