Blagojevich's Magnificent Downfall

CHICAGO--Even those most cynical about politics here, who buy into the facile notion that nothing is legit, are moved to demurely ask, "Do you fu**ing believe this?"

Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich seems to have pulled his own Guantanamo; blindfolding himself to all playing out around him. As a result, we all have a graduate school primer on how so much of politics work, and an ultimate challenge facing Barack Obama.

Since 2004, there have been many reports about criminal investigations into the nitty gritty of the Illinois system, which one columnist sees as nefariously run by an interlocking group of private and public bigwigs he tags The Combine. They've focused on appointments to state boards, the seeking of contracts, lobbying fees and the steering of pension fund business, among other routine acts.

At the center are agencies that are both little known to the general public and critical to the mundane but high-stakes decisions of government most anywhere. They make decisions about whether a hospital can expand, who'll get lucrative bond business and on letting contracts for everything from highway concrete to toll road pizza parlors.

The governor, whose predecessor is doing time in what the country singers call the Crossbar Motel, knew full well that 13 people in and around state government have been indicted or convicted, and about how key fundraisers and even his own wife had been implicated (due to questions about real estate commissions she received from politically-connected clients). And, yet, he vented and bragged and plotted on his home telephone even after word got out that he was being secretly tape-recorded.

In so doing, he apparently forgot about the wondrous, ancillary benefits of public parks, expansive parking lots and dank alleys. Even in this age of declining personal privacy, they do afford the Tony Sopranos of the world a chance to discreetly transact their business.

But there was the governor on the phone, padding the coffers of Sprint or AT&T, while exhibiting a seemingly remarkable mix of recklessness, compulsiveness, vanity and hubris.

If Abe Lincoln wasn't necessarily rolling in his grave, as U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald suggested was the case with an image both vivid and banal, you can imagine the clicking of heels in at least the Chicago FBI office as they listened to audio far surpassing anything to be found on the financially beleaguered combine of Sirius and XM radio.

And, at the heart of it all, is money -- as is the case in about 49 other states, regardless of all the television chatter Tuesday about a peculiarly "Chicago" brand of corruption.

Whatever the sources of the governor's angst (perhaps significant legal fees from the tony law firm he's now ditched), the obsession with how to "monetize" his post-political life was as unabashed as his seeming desire to beat an imminent new state ethics law. The law would make the so-called pay-to-play schemes harder and limit political contributions by those doing state business.

What he reveals is a rather commonplace craving of a few too many in public life. They get to party with the high and mighty, even impact their lives, but never really feel part of the club, of the true propertied class. They sit in their executive offices, with so many nice perks but without the filthy lucre they see possessed by those of equal, maybe clearly inferior, acumen.

"Where's mine?" they say.

And that brings us to Obama.

By most accounts, the Obama-Blagojevich relationship is a cool one. And, for sure, one can imagine many in the Obama camp thumbing their noses at the governor and his somewhat craven, tacky ways; all of which give the aura of an early, too cute-by-half David Mamet hustler.

They are, after all, emblems of a new politics.

Sincerely wish them luck when they get to Washington and face the most potent force in the District of Columbia: the lobbyist- and lawyer-led status quo. It's an army enriched by generic PowerPoint presentations, Rolodexes of decades-old chums and quid-pro-quos, and many a late dinner in a Capital Grille corner booth.

And many of their names are probably to be found on the mile-long list of Obama contributors, part of that record-busting grand total of $750 million. They are nothing if not pragmatic.

And just like Rod Blagojevich knows that a vacant U.S. Senate seat is "a fucking valuable thing, you just don't give it away for nothing," these folks know the value of access, influence and changing -- or not changing -- laws and regulations. Obama will see many of their faces as he looks up from his TelePrompter at the Inauguration.

They are the many other reasons for Honest Abe to be rolling.

Comments

[strick9]

To quote Will Rodgers, "the only way to keep a politician honest, is to keep him out of office".

[omahkohkiaayo]

In my state, I will not name it, I have been in some etherial smoke-filled backrooms over some 40 years in the Democratic Party. The corruption I have seen with my own eyes--and tried to expose--would gag a maggot. We have trustee and regent positions in the community colleges and universities routinely filled with political hacks looking to embellish some pathetically empty resumes. We have state jobs routinely traded like baseball cards. We have nepotism, cronyism and outright extortion involved in many key appointments. Want to know who the most corrupt and useless in the history of the state are? Look at the names on the buildings, bridges and street signs.

But this is not about political party; they are both rotten and full of themselves. It is about the kinds of creatures who seek power over others. These types, typically posturing narcissists and megalomaniacs, look for some forms of immortality with their names on bridges and buildings, pictures on walls and all sorts of BS awards they give each other. At my institution we have pictures of all the presidents from the past even though several of them were fired and driven out under disgrace--only to go to other institutions and repeat their same stuff. They even try to control how they will be seen by future historians--trying to control history and how they are viewed in it--if at all--itself.

[bodo]

How is it possible that a punk who even looks like a hood can get to be Governor of Illinois? Probably by using the same intimidation and extortion tactics with which he tried to sell the senate seat. Will he now join his predecessor in prison? If I were Blago, just to be on the safe side, I would quickly get rid of his Mamie Eisenhower hairdo first, before they get around to auction off his own seat in prison.

[zaz33]

There are too many stories about this Blago guy.

Imagine if all politicians had their phones tapped by the FBI.

I don't even want to go there.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

Blagojevich may seem unusually brazen to politicians in other States. But he was aware of something that they were not. And it is something that the media is not focusing upon.

Blagojevich knew that from the time that Elliot Ness and his Untouchables finished their particular assignment and left Chicago, the Chicago politicians have had a continuing reputation for corruption - from top to bottom. He knew that the corruption didn't just start and end with those who have hiring or contracting authority within a Forest Preserve agency, a toll road agency, or even Chicago's City Hall.

He knew that the corruption is so vast and deep that he is just one player. He knew that although Patrick Fitzgerald and his uncorruptible team are on the job, they are dealing with a target rich environment. He also knew that many years have gone by with business-as-usual and that Fitzgerald and his team had not, until now, arrested him.

He also knew something more. Since the MSM never seems to focus upon the corruption within the offices of the federal government located in Illinois, those that are only exposed to the reports within the MSM may mistakenly believe that there is no corruption at that level.

A few years ago, we even had a federal judge arrested, convicted, and sent to prison. Those who are appointed to the federal bench in Illinois descend from the sky like angels. They fight their way up through the Chicago political system.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

Correction: one word was omitted. Those who are appointed to the federal bench in Illinois DON'T descend from the sky like angels.

[Libarchist]

In other words, the politicians are generally crooks.

[Aesthete]

The outrageous and sad case of Blagojevitch has brought back to my mind an image from childhood. I grew up in downstate Illinois almost within a stone's throw from the Illinois State Penetentiary. The bus carrying inmates to and from this facility passed by our home daily. I remember watching as the motorcade carrying the state auditor, convicted of embezzlement, passed by our home. Instead of taking the bus, this white-color criminal was transported to prison in a limosine accompanied by an escort of motorcycle cops.

[Kassandra]

Could be much more corrupt than New Mexico, where the antelopes and the Mexican Mafia play.

did I mention there's an Illegal alien meth lab which uses an easement on my property and the cops aren't interested?

[kassandrasduplex]

Gee an awful lot of cover age going to this. So much for progressive liberal media. Did they cover Abramoff this heavily?

[Kassandra]

They just want our humility.......or something.­..........­...

[isthatso]

Palin/Blago 2012!

[MarkInEugene]

oh...shhhh­hhhhhhh...­.don't give them any ideas! Before you know it we'll be seeing bumper stickers!

The way this country has voted...it just might fly!

[billbb]

That'd work... One out of office and the other in prison. Finally, a really representative Republican ticket.

[deminmo]

Wouldn't it be great to be a fly on the wall of every state
governor? Maybe Governor Blagojevich is not the brightest
of them, since he is on tape, but how many more have been
power-brokering?
I wonder if there is even a snowballs chance that Obama
could get corruption out of Washington politics, when the
real cancer may be growing lower down the food chain.

[Stephen C. Rose - Huffpost Blogger]

http://stephencrose.wordpress.com/2008/12/11/blogo-should-appoint-diane-nash-today/

There is something Blago could do to help us and himself. See the idea above.

[carlosa]

if this hasn't been said and it hasn't on main stream media is that this corruption seems to be more than about money but about male power. it seems like most if not all of these politicians and corporate heads are white males. it does speak to this definition and use of power within a white male framework does it not

[dianhow]

I agree..The male ego with it's bravado & over abundance of testerone , does get us into loads
of trouble. Some exceptions do apply of course. Wonder what a women would do differently..
I'd like to see that in the near future...we almost got there. Better luck next time..

[realistic2008]

Ooops, sorry for my grammar, please read HAS done and ignore have done

[realistic2008]

After what Bush have done and we have done nothing about it, why I am not surprised every politician feels they can also get away with "murder" literally.