Now that the drama over who would be New York's replacement for Hillary Clinton in the US Senate is done (and the governor is in major damage control mode), the scene shifts back to Illinois. Gov. Rod Blagojevich, apparently on the advice of a PR firm, has gone on a media offensive.
His impeachment trial set to start today, Blago is either acting crazy, or crazy like a fox. After appearing on several Chicago area radio stations, he's now going national. Rather than present a defense to those who will judge him, he's going on, among others "The Today Show", "Good Morning America", "Larry King Live", and "The View".
We now know this is a guy not prone to understatement, and utterly without shame. On "The Today Show", Blagojevich actually said that when he was arrested he thought about Nelson Mandela, Dr. Martin Luther King, and Mohandas Gandhi.
True, all of them did time, but none were ever accused of threatening to withhold children's healthcare funding unless they got campaign donations from a hospital executive. Allegedly, that is.
The particulars of the case have been examined, publicized, and exposed. One would think an honorable politician would step aside temporarily, even as he or she maintained their innocence. Not Blagojevich. He said again over the weekend he's going nowhere. Interestingly, there remain questions about whether prosecutors have enough to convict him on the main charge, trying to sell Barack Obama's old Senate seat to the highest bidder.
That will be for a jury to decide. In the meantime, the current governor of Illinois has carved a fascinating niche for himself in the annals of American politics. He is, however, not unique. If you don't believe me, get ahold of Mark Grossman's "Political Corruption in America", an A to Z overview of the depths those we elect will go to amass power and money.
The Illinois State Senate will no doubt vote to remove impeach Rod Blagojevich, and remove him from office. The only question remaining is whether the process will remove the taint this man has brought to the highest office in his state.
Will Rod Blagojevich's removal from office clean up Illinois politics? You tell me.
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