Illinois

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Meet Blago's Unlikely Replacement
Meet Blago's Unlikely Replacement
Jan 30, 2009 11:37 AM CST

Meet Blago's Unlikely Replacement

Crusader Quinn promises to 'fumigate' state government

(Newser) - Rod Blagojevich never wanted Patrick Quinn as his running mate. Few Democrats would. Quinn is a notorious gadfly, who’s spent 40 years ruffling feathers with his populist crusades and citizens’ initiatives, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. He’s not planning on calming down as governor, either. “We can do...

Blago's Final Day: Dark Humor Amid the Gloom

Ex-gov finds lighter side as he exits

(Newser) - Rod Blagojevich—now the former governor of Illinois—spent his last day in office in characteristic fashion: a stew of gallows humor, bitter recrimination, and concern about how he looked (literally and figuratively). A New York Times reporter flew with him from Chicago to Springfield and back, as he lurched...

Blago Blasts Impeachment; Successor Seeks Prayers

(Newser) - Rod Blagojevich remained unapologetic after the Illinois Senate added him to the ranks of the unemployed today, MSNBC reports. "I'm obviously saddened and disappointed by what's happened, but not surprised," said the impeached governor. "It's a very dangerous precedent to set because a whole bunch of politicians...

Blago Ousted; Can't Hold Office Again

(Newser) - The Illinois Senate voted unanimously today to impeach Gov. Rod Blagojevich and remove him from office, the Chicago Tribune reports. Senators also barred him from holding any future office in the state. Blagojevich, accused of essentially putting a Senate seat up for sale, appeared before the body earlier in the...

Prosecutor: Blago Has No 'Right to Be Governor'

Rebuttal of governor's speech comes as impeachment trial nears conclusion

(Newser) - The Illinois House prosecutor gave a forceful rebuttal today to Rod Blagojevich’s closing speech, in the last act of the governor’s impeachment trial before the state Senate deliberates on his fate, the Chicago Tribune reports. “He doesn’t have a constitutional right to be governor,” David...

Blago to Senate: Tapes Show No Criminal Behavior

(Newser) - Rod Blagojevich gave a passionate defense of himself at his Illinois Senate impeachment trial today, saying he had done “absolutely nothing wrong,” and reiterating his grievances—that he wasn’t allowed to bring witnesses, and that there is no real evidence against him, save for the infamous wiretap...

Blago's a Clown, and That's Not Funny
 Blago's a Clown, 
 and That's Not Funny 
OPINION
Jan 29, 2009 9:16 AM CST

Blago's a Clown, and That's Not Funny

Blagojevich is not some kind of clown here to amuse you

(Newser) - These days, everyone seems to find Rod Blagojevich hilarious. Everyone, that is, except the state of Illinois, writes David Broder of the Washington Post. When Blagojevich went on TV instead of testifying at his impeachment hearing, there wasn’t a hint of outrage. The media “treated Blagojevich as if...

Blago Will Give Own Closing Argument at Impeachment

(Newser) - Rod Blagojevich will show up at his own impeachment trial after all. The Illinois governor will appear before the state Senate tomorrow, the Chicago Tribune reports. Blagojevich won't take questions but will deliver a closing argument on his own behalf. State senators could vote to remove him from office later...

Blago Tapes Captivate Senate
 Blago Tapes Captivate Senate 
Jan 27, 2009 6:29 PM CST

Blago Tapes Captivate Senate

(Newser) - Rod Blagojevich was hundreds of miles away, but his voice captivated the Illinois Senate today as impeachment prosecutors played FBI wiretaps of conversations in which he seems to demand campaign contributions in exchange for signing legislation. One person on the recordings assures Blagojevich that a horse-racing track owner "is...

FBI Agent Details Blago's Misdeeds in Trial's 2nd Day

Guv says he hasn't ruled out suing Senate

(Newser) - Prosecutors walked FBI agent Daniel Cain through the affidavit detailing wiretapped conversations of Rod Blagojevich in the second day of the Illinois Senate’s impeachment trial against the governor, the Chicago Tribune reports. Cain confirmed comments attributed to Blagojevich taken from wiretapped conversations, including the governor’s attempt to sell...

Comedian? Poet? Vampire? Anything but Governor

(Newser) - Rod Blagojevich probably didn’t help his case with his whirlwind media tour yesterday, “but he just might establish himself as an unofficial poet laureate of the criminal justice system,” Dana Milbank writes in the Washington Post. Blago quoted Tennyson and Kipling all day, proclaimed his innocence, compared...

Day 1 of Blago Trial Wraps Up
 Day 1 of 
 Blago Trial 
 Wraps Up 
UPDATED
Jan 26, 2009 8:06 PM CST

Day 1 of Blago Trial Wraps Up

(Newser) - The first day of Rod Blagojevich’s impeachment trial in the Illinois Senate has ended after testimony from only one witness, the Chicago Tribune reports. Former federal prosecutor John Scully described how agents built a criminal case against the governor, approving wiretaps and bugs after a rigorous vetting process. “...

Oprah: 'I Could Be Senator, I'm Just Not Interested'

Winfrey 'amused' that Blago considered her

(Newser) - Oprah was “amused” by the news that Rod Blagojevich had considered naming her to Obama’s Senate seat—but would not have been interested, ABC News reports. “Absolutely not,” Winfrey said in an interview this morning, citing the demands of managing her media empire. “I think...

Illinois Senate Convenes Blago Impeachment Trial

(Newser) - The Illinois Senate has convened a historic impeachment trial that will determine whether Gov. Rod Blagojevich is removed from office, the AP reports. Chief Justice Thomas Fitzgerald began the trial today by reminding senators that they face "a solemn and serious business." They will consider charges that the...

Blago Wanted Oprah for Senate
 Blago Wanted Oprah for Senate 
Jan 26, 2009 9:02 AM CST

Blago Wanted Oprah for Senate

Kicks off media blitz as his impeachment trial begins in Illinois

(Newser) - Rod Blagojevich considered handing Barack Obama’s Senate seat to Oprah Winfrey, he told Good Morning America today in an appearance made while boycotting his impeachment trial, which starts today. "She seemed to be someone who had helped Barack Obama in a significant way to become president," Blagojevich...

Now Blago's Comparing Himself to King

Blagojevich sees himself as a martyr as impeachment trial begins

(Newser) - Embattled Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich considers himself in the same company as Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King, and Mahatma Gandhi, reports the Chicago Tribune. With his impeachment trial in the Illinois state Senate set to begin today, Blagojevich, accused of plotting to sell President Obama's Senate seat, is amping up...

Blago Hires Drew Peterson's PR Firm, Plans Media Blitz

(Newser) - This may not come as a big surprise, but you haven't heard the last of Rod Blagojevich. The soon-to-be-impeached Illinois governor has hired the same PR firm that represents none other than suspected wife-killer Drew Peterson, the Chicago Tribune reports. Tomorrow—the same day his Senate trial begins—Blagojevich plans...

Ahead of Trial, Blago Paints Himself as Victim

(Newser) - Rod Blagojevich addressed his public again today, warning the citizens of Illinois that if he goes down they are all in danger, the Chicago Tribune reports. Blago likened his Senate impeachment trial, which he will boycott when it starts Monday, to a “hanging” and “a gross violation of...

Blagojevich: Arrest Was My Family's Pearl Harbor

Impeached governor plans to fight to the end, but won't appear at Senate trial

(Newser) - Say this for Rod Blagojevich: He doesn’t embarrass easily. In an interview yesterday with the AP, he compared his arrest to Pearl Harbor: “Dec. 9 to my family, to us, to me, is what Pearl Harbor Day was to the United States. It was a complete surprise, completely...

Impeachment Is 'Sham': Blago

Illinois governor says his attorneys are being denied due process

(Newser) - Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich says he is being denied due process and accused the Illinois legislature of trying to “thwart the will of the people” by impeaching him, the Chicago Tribune reports. Blagojevich added that he wants to call White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel to testify on...

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