Is Blago Going to Quit?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/14/AR2008121400567.html

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Scandal-plagued Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich could announce on Monday that he will leave office, the state's top legal officer said on Sunday.

Blagojevich was arrested last week on charges of swapping political favors for cash, including an attempt to sell the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Barack Obama following his November presidential election victory.

"We have heard that there is a possibility that tomorrow he will make an announcement where he will step aside," Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan told NBC's "Meet the Press."

"I don't know if that means he will resign or take another option that is provided under the Illinois constitution where he can voluntarily recognize that there is a serious impediment to his ability to carry out his duties, and therefore temporarily remove himself," she said.

The sooner Blago quits, the better it will be for everyone involved. I know there is a tradition that a person is innocent until proven guilty but let's look at the main issue here: His ability to run the state of Illinois while fighting some serious criminal charges. Even if he is innocent of everything, he will need to devote serious time to finding a lawyer (or lawyers) who are willing to try to save him from the fate of his three predecessors (who all ended up in the slammer) as well as devoting a lot of time in the courtroom--time that will be spent away from running state affairs and doing everything that is required of being state governor. I think the people of Illinois will be better served if they find a new person who can devote 100 percent of his/her time to running that state.

Besides, I don't think he'll be missed all that much.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g4Fdhtf22pl-vbyh4azYCqkQuC-QD952LGQ00

Throughout his two terms as governor, the Chicago Democrat has run roughshod over those who disagree with him — accusing lawmakers of spending like drunken sailors and calling the State Board of Education a Soviet-style bureaucracy.
State Sen. Mike Jacobs, a fellow Democrat from East Moline, once emerged in a rage from Blagojevich's office, telling reporters the two nearly came to blows when Blagojevich shouted obscenities at him, balled up his fist, threatened to punish a university in Jacobs' district and threatened to ruin his career for not supporting a health care plan.

Jacobs wasn't surprised to learn that federal wiretaps caught Blagojevich openly discussing potentially illegal behavior even though the governor knew he was under investigation.

"It just suggests to me that he was a very narcissistic individual," Jacobs said. "He doesn't have enough sense to walk away. I think he thinks that he's innocent and he's going to beat this thing."

The attitude of righteousness has kept Blagojevich going through political clashes, corruption scandals, family feuds and plummeting job-approval ratings. It also has contributed to those problems, with Blagojevich rushing forward without building support for his ideas or considering other views.

"I think he liked the fight. I think he enjoyed the battle, so it was good to have an enemy," said Illinois House Republican Leader Tom Cross.

Blagojevich, 52, entered the governor's office in 2003 promising to shake things up.

He was the first Democrat to win the office since 1972. A young showman replacing a gray and grumpy incumbent who wound up in prison, Blagojevich promised to clean up government and end backroom deals.

He made no secret of his interest in someday becoming president.

But once in office, Blagojevich quickly began alienating people.

He sent a "cease and desist" letter to his own father-in-law, a Chicago alderman who had included the governor's name on his stationery. After other clashes — including public allegations by his father-in-law that Blagojevich had traded state appointments for campaign donations — the two men stopped speaking entirely.

Blagojevich offended many Illinoisans by refusing to move to the Executive Mansion in Springfield, choosing to live in Chicago instead. He even canceled the tradition of letting children trick-or-treat at the mansion.

Visits to the Capitol itself have been rare and usually brief. During one busy session, he used the state plane to fly to Springfield every morning and home again every night, at a total cost to taxpayers of nearly $100,000.

He has often ordered legislators to meet in special session day after day without any clear purpose, disrupting their private lives while he stayed home.

Most famously, he enjoyed a Chicago Blackhawks hockey game while legislators voted on a transportation measure he wanted badly. The measure failed.

Eventually, legislators decided to ignore the governor and pass a version of the transportation bill over his objections. Blagojevich was forced to capitulate, but he declared victory after sticking in a provision giving free public-transit rides to senior citizens.

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On health care, he was able to make government insurance available to every child in Illinois who needs it. But an effort to provide access to health care for everyone was soundly rejected, despite his attempt to claim the moral high ground.

"It will be Armageddon, but we are on the side of the Lord and we will prevail," he said.

Blagojevich then tried to launch part of the program without legislative approval, angering lawmakers and triggering a long court battle.

Even before Blagojevich was arrested, his public approval had melted away, hitting just 13 percent in one recent poll.

"Rod Blagojevich had a chance to be one of the great governors in America. He had a chance to be a hero," said state Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie. "This is truly a guy who has stuck it to himself."