Business As Usual

The governor of Illinois has been arrested. Corruption is a way of life in Illinois politics, but this is breathtaking:

On the issue of the U.S. Senate selection, federal prosecutors alleged Blagojevich sought appointment as secretary of Health and Human Services in the new Obama administration, or a lucrative job with a union in exchange for appointing a union-preferred candidate.

Blagojevich and Harris conspired to demand the firing of Chicago Tribune editorial board members responsible for editorials critical of Blagojevich in exchange for state help with the sale of Wrigley Field, the Chicago Cubs baseball stadium owned by Tribune Co.

Blagojevich and Harris, along with others, obtained and sought to gain financial benefits for the governor, members of his family, and his campaign fund in exchange for appointments to state boards and commissions, state jobs, and state contracts.

“The breadth of corruption laid out in these charges is staggering,” U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald said in a statement.

“They allege that Blagojevich put a ‘for sale’ sign on the naming of a United States senator; involved himself personally in pay-to-play schemes with the urgency of a salesman meeting his annual sales target, and corruptly used his office in an effort to trample editorial voices of criticism.”

This guy knew he was under investigation and still had the brass to try and sell the senate appointment to replace Barack Obama.

This is one reason I distrusted Obama - you don't survive in Illinois politics without owing a lot of favors to guys just like Blagojevich.