GUILTY
Monday, Apr 17, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller CBS2 reports that both defendants, George Ryan and Larry Warner, are guilty on all counts. [I’ve reversed the order of the updates to put the most recent one at the top.] UPDATE 51: The final, final update (I hope). The Tribune’s editorial is already online. Through his actions and inactions, George Ryan essentially destroyed the Republican Party in Illinois. He also destroyed himself. UPDATE 50: OK, just one more. This post from another publication shows why predictions about this kind of stuff should be avoided by even the most astute observers (and they have some good ones over there): [The chance that] George Ryan is found guilty on all counts: 5 percent. The volume of counts is a prosecution strategy, yet some reporters have taken the bait. UPDATE 49: That’s it for me for today. If you find any other updates, put them in the comments section. UPDATE 48: IIS: ISU expert says Ryan verdict not likely to result in more ethics reform (listen here)… Also, Mike Lawrence reacts (listen here). UPDATE 47: Crain’s: Jurors also indicated that deliberations were still in a preliminary phase when U.S. District Court judge Rebecca Pallmeyer dismissed two of them several weeks ago. That could be crucial because defense attorneys are almost certain to claim on appeal that Ms. Pallmeyer should have declared a mistrial rather than replacing the two jurors. UPDATE 46: TIME Magazine: Now that the verdict on Ryan is in, it is sure to play a role in this year’s gubernatorial race. Current Gov. Rod Blagojevich will likely say it proves that the Democrats are the only party capable of protecting the integrity of state government. Meanwhile his opponent, state treasurer Judy Baar Topinka, will probably argue that Blagojevich, whose administration is also being probed, is definitely not the man for that job. “We’ll see the commercials very soon,” said Roosevelt University political scientist Paul Green. “Each will manipulate this for their own purposes.” Just as history shows so many Illinois politicians, like Ryan, have done with their own elected positions. UPDATE 45: Fritchey Calls for Immediate Passage of Ethics Bill In the hours following the guilty verdict in the corruption trial of former Governor George Ryan, State Representative John Fritchey (D-Chicago) is calling for the immediate passage of House Bill 4073, legislation that would significantly reduce the corrupting influence of campaign contributions on the awarding of State contracts, commonly referred to as the “pay-to-play†system. An initiative of State Comptroller Dan Hynes, Rep. Fritchey introduced the bill over a year ago with bipartisan support in both chambers of the General Assembly. UPDATE 44: Pat Collins: “Unless and until the state, city and county learn there are victims of corruption, there are tangible consequences of corruption, (and) unless and until people who vote understand that there are important consequences in their public officials’ acts of dishonesty, this system will not change.” UPDATE 43: Gov. Blagojevich has released another statement. This one is from the campaign. “The George Ryan convictions prove once more that a culture of corruption and mismanagement was tolerated during his Administration. It is further evidence that the old way of doing things cheated the people of Illinois. UPDATE 42: CBS2 has a lot of video links. UPDATE 41: Daily Herald: The specter of political lobbying followed Ryan even as he entered the federal building on the way to hear the verdict Monday. UPDATE 40: How do you think this impacts the fall campaign? UPDATE 39: From the Tribune: ![]() UPDATE 38: Tribune: House Republican leader Tom Cross, Oswego: “First of all, I think it’s a sad day for all of Illinois. It’s a huge black eye for our state, and it’s sad and disappointing.” UPDATE 37: No statement yet from Mayor Daley. Maybe nothing until tomorrow. UPDATE 36: NBC5 has a “brief list of notable Illinois politicians who have had run-ins with the law.” Use the comments to remind us of others. UPDATE 35: WBBM 780 reports that one heckler shouted, “Hey, George, enjoy your new address!” Ryan reportedly seemed confused at first, then stared back when he realized what the heckler meant. UPDATE 34: Whistleblower Tammy Raynor says she’s suprised by the verdict, according to 780. Didn’t expect guilty on all counts. Says she’s happy to be getting on with her life. UPDATE 33: Gov. Blagojevich was supposed to have a press conference at noon today, but he canceled it. UPDATE 32: CBS2’s feed is offline for now. Head to WBBM 780. UPDATE 31: CBS2: State politicians voiced their opinions today after former Gov. George Ryan was found guilty in his five-month corruption trial. UPDATE 30: Archpundit: Patrick Collins is a star who may well be the next Patrick Fitzgerald. UPDATE 29: All parties waived jury hearing on forfeiture. Will be determined by the judge. UPDATE 28: Pat Collins: Winston & Strawn had more people assigned to this case than the feds did. UPDATE 27: AP photos. UPDATE 26: Crain’s: The investigation played a major role in the 2002 gubernatorial election, with Democrat Rod Blagojevich arguing it was time to end a Republican culture of sleaze and restore ethics to state government. UPDATE 25: Ryan’s full statement. UPDATE 24: Tribune flash media history of Ryan’s long saga. UPDATE 23: Tribune photos. UPDATE 22: One of the G-Men just said that until voters wake up to corruption nothing will change in Illinois. UPDATE 21: AP: Customers at a tavern in former Governor George Ryan’s hometown of Kankakee say they’re shocked that a federal jury in Chicago found Ryan guilty of all the charges against him today. UPDATE 20: The Daily Herald has a list of the charges online (pdf file). UPDATE 19: Patrick Fitzgerald: “Charges involved were very serious and the corrupt conduct was very disturbing.” UPDATE 18: CBS2: As the two men stood in the bathroom of the Dirksen Federal Building, former Gov. George Ryan told CBS 2’s Jon Duncanson what he’s really disappointed with is the media. UPDATE 17: “Not hard at all” to restart deliberations, juror says. UPDATE 16: Prosecutors about to speak. UPDATE 15: CBS2 has spoken to a juror who wished that Ryan had testified on his own behalf. He also reportedly said there was “no smoking gun,” no one thing that convicted Ryan. He added that he “did not buy” Dan Webb’s description of Ryan as a hands-off governor. UPDATE 14: Alternate juror says he wasn’t aware of Ryan’s work on capital punishment. UPDATE 13: Jury forewoman says no juror was holding out for an innocent verdict during deliberations. “Not that I recall.” UPDATE 12: Rev. Scott Willis: “Gratefully surprised by the verdict.” UPDATE 11: Topinka statement: “Today is a sad day for Illinois. This trial and subsequent verdict exposed abuses of power, ethical lapses, failures in judgment, and a pattern of corruption in Illinois government. UPDATE 10: AP: “I believe this decision today is not in accordance with the kind of public service that I provided to the people of Illinois over 40 years, and needless to say I am disappointed in the outcome,” Ryan said. “But I feel confident in our appeal, and there will be an appeal.” UPDATE 9: CBS2 reports that Ryan was met with hecklers when he left the building, with at least one person shouting, “You got what you deserved!” UPDATE 8: AP: “Ryan sat stone-faced as the verdict was read.” UPDATE 7: Jury is speaking now. UPDATE 6: People, I’ve had to delete several comments so far today and I don’t have time to babysit. From now on, if your comment is deleted you will automatically be placed in comment moderation for at least the rest of the day. Thanks. UPDATE 5: George Ryan: There will be an appeal. UPDATE 4: Dan Webb: “I’m very disappointed in the verdict… We’re going to begin immediately on post-trial motions… appeal…” much of the previous jury trouble is under seal, which will be lifted soon. UPDATE 3: George Ryan is expected to make a statement soon. UPDATE 2: Sentencing date August 4th. UPDATE:
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Verdict is in
Monday, Apr 17, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller CBS2: A verdict has been reached in the trial of George Ryan. The judge is expected to read the verdict shortly. Check that link for a live broadcast. Appears they’ve gone wall-to-wall.
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READER COMMENTS CLOSED FOR THE HOLIDAY
Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller Be back Monday or Tuesday. Enjoy this gorgeous weather. Or, if you just can’t pull yourself away from the computer screen, head to Illinoize and enjoy yourself there. UPDATE: My latest Sun-Times column is now online.
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The ads must be starting to work
Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller New SurveyUSA poll shows Gov. Blagojevich’s disapprovals are falling while his approvals are rising. Best numbers since the monthly tracker began in May of last year. He’s still -2, however. UPDATE: A commenter just pointed something out that could mean the poll is an outlier. I just looked through the various tracking graphs… and noticed something a little odd. The Governor is enjoying a fairly significant surge of support among Republicans (12 point jump from last month, as opposed to 0 points among Democrats and -1 point among independents) and conservatives (8 point jump, as opposed to 3 points among moderates and liberals).
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Oberweis’ downstate director discouraged by tactics
Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller From Bernie’s column: Sometimes, people who work on a campaign don’t like everything they see. ROB WINCHESTER of Springfield, who was downstate director for the JIM OBERWEIS gubernatorial campaign, is in that category.
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Daily Herald gets to the bottom of it
Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller As I told Capitol Fax readers today, Animal Farm has the answer to a burning question. And The Answer Is … The Daily Herald had a little more fun with the guv today. Rod Blagojevich says when he was a member of the Illinois House during the 1990s, he broke with Democratic leadership and helped Republicans with tax caps.
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Quote of the day
Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller Jim Muir: I found it amazing that Reardon said she sits across her desk from people that she knows are going to die and they know they are going to die before they can get any help. And that is happening right here in the Land of Lincoln. And all the while the beat goes on in Springfield. Go here to see what Jim was writing about. Very troubling indeed.
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Question of the day
Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller It’s not Friday, but I’m not working tomorrow so let’s make this a somewhat light-hearted QOTD. Which team ends up with the better record this year, White Sox, Cubs or Cardinals? Why? Place your bets, please.
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Under the bus
Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller Obama expresses reservations about Alexi. U.S. Sen. Barack Obama said Wednesday he is concerned by revelations that the bank owned by Illinois Democratic treasurer nominee Alexi Giannoulias’ family gave loans to a Chicago crime figure and said the candidate owes him and the public a full accounting. I’m wondering whether Obama does any TV ads for Alexi this fall. My experience dealing with Alexi’s campaign is that they just don’t take these questions seriously because they think, for whatever reason, that they aren’t legit. Well, they can’t ignore or dismiss the questions now.
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The “questions”
Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller Yesterday I told you about how the Blagojevich campaign irked reporters by handing out a list of “questions” for Judy Baar Topinka before her press conference. Here’s the sheet (click for larger image): ![]()
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Another Lane Evans open thread - UPDATED
Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller Hearing anything new? UPDATE: E-mail from a trusted RI County friend: John Gianulis went public with an endorsement of Phil Hare for Congress, followed an hour later by just about every Rock Island Countywide elected including County Clerk Dick Leibovitz, State’s Atty Jeff Terronez, Treasurer LuAnn Kerr, Auditor Diana Robinson and Regional Schools Sup’t Joe Vermeire. UPDATE 2: Here’s a press release (jpg file)
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The Meeks beat
Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller Sen. Meeks would like to take back that “Sears Tower” comment, according to Christianity Today: Meeks preached to his church on March 26 telling white churches to call him and tell him to run for governor.
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Big trouble for Dems in “blue” states
Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller Congressional Quarterly finds an interesting pattern out there. The ranks of Democratic governors who have the highest job approval ratings in polls — and who are strongly favored to win re-election this November — includes several who lead states that are among the “reddest,†meaning they favored President Bush for re-election in 2004 and often by wide margins. The National Journal has this: Their ‘02 victories crushed the GOP’s grip on midwest GOVs. Four years later, those Dem GOVs (MI’s Granholm , IL’s Blagojevich and WI’s Doyle) are fighting for their lives. Why??
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Morning shorts
Thursday, Apr 13, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller · Judge finds man not guilty but insane in shooting of Capitol security guard · Peotone airport ad campaign to target governor. More here. · Birth control emerges as hot issue in election year · Blagojevich signs legislation protecting condo owners’ religious rights · Pantagraph editor resigns to work for Texas newspaper · The perils of “working” the left blogosphere
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Boland tosses hat in ring
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller Worst kept secret this month. State Rep. Mike Boland announced Wednesday that he wants to replace Lane Evans in Congress. Now he just needs the support of hundreds of precinct committeemen from the sprawling congressional district. So, in other words, he’ll vote for the programs but won’t vote to pay for them.
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Backfire?
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller I don’t think the Statehouse reporters took kindly to this move by the governor’s campaign. The campaigns clearly were moving into a more intense stage, with Blagojevich’s campaign taking the unusual move of having someone videotape Topinka’s news conference and distribute suggested questions for reporters to ask.
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Quinn wants records released
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller ======================================== UPDATE: Topinka’s office claims they send the complete list to the governor’s office every month. ======================================== From the Blagojevich campaign: One day after Judy Baar Topinka said state government should be more open and transparent, Lt Governor Pat Quinn today called on Treasure Judy Baar Topinka to immediately release the list of banks that have state deposits.
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Gone
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller The House just adjourned until next week. No budget meeting today. The House will return Tuesday and Wednesday next week, and Tuesday and Wednesday the following week. The Senate, of course, is gone for the next two weeks.
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JBT joins chorus of questioners
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller From Topinka’s campaign: GOP nominee for Governor Judy Baar Topinka today called on Gov. Rod Blagojevich to answer a simple question he has been ducking for more than a week — “Governor, how many days have you been in Springfield since you announced your budget on Feb. 15th?†As I said in this morning’s Capitol Fax, since so many regular session days were canceled there is no additional overtime cost to taxpayers right now.
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Protected: SUBSCRIBERS ONLY - Evans; Guv; DHS; DCFS (use all caps in password)
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller
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Question of the day
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller Do you think Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s quick decision to investigate those anonymouse House Republican robocalls was the right thing to do? Should she have allowed the State Board of Elections to handle the issue first? Do you think the Repulicans will try to put AG Madigan in the middle of every little political spat from now on in order to even the score against the Democrats? Does this expose her to charges that she favors her father’s House Democratic organization? Explain. UPDATE: The Post-Dispatch has a story today.
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Overtime and guv’s chutzpah prompts media backlash
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller Best story of the bunch. Facing criticism that he’s not at the Capitol enough to be effective and instead spends his time campaigning, Gov. Rod Blagojevich dismissed it all as “baloney.†[Emphasis added.] The Tribune has more. Gov. Rod Blagojevich blamed Republican legislative leaders, who have been shut out of budget negotiations, for slowing down the legislative session Tuesday, even though he and fellow Democrats are in charge. And the Sun-Times has Emil Jones’ reaction. “We’re moving slowly,” Jones said after four hours of closed-door budget talks ended. Also, let’s avoid a debate in comments over what constitutes an “overtime” session. The session was scheduled to conclude April 7th. Period. Any session days after that is an overtime session. Those who are claiming in comments that overtime doesn’t begin until the end of May are just goofy and, more importantly, wrong. UPDATE: You’re not gonna believe this (OK, you might) but somebody in the governor’s budget office just tried to make this same lame argument that we’re not in overtime until June 1. These people are obviously not reality based.
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Tribune blasts Alexi
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller I agree with every single word in this Tribune editorial about Democratic treasurer nominee Alexi Giannoulias. Giannoulias has been nothing but puzzling when he has been questioned about his ties to Michael Giorango, a convicted bookmaker and prostitution ring promoter. […] And the Tribune comes up with some good questions. Has the 30-year-old candidate for treasurer ever really been more than a junior officer at the family bank? If he had the authority his title implies, how can he claim he didn’t know about this bank business? Giannoulias has touted his banking experience as qualifying him for the treasurer’s job. He even said after the election that his experience is what got him the nomination, not the support from Barack Obama. Well, it’s time for some answers.
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Mistrial ahead?
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller UPDATE: You can find the WLS transcript here. Oy. A Chicago radio station has been hit with a federal subpoena in the latest twist involving jurors in the corruption trial of former Gov. George Ryan.
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Rev. Meeks meets with Cardinal George
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller I’m glad to see that the media is finally starting to realize that Meeks is not just bluffing here. There’s more going on than the political cynics have believed. State Sen. James Meeks recently met with Cardinal Francis George about Meeks’ possible third-party run for governor — the strongest indication yet the Baptist minister is serious about the idea and intends to use his conservative beliefs to attract voters. Take it from someone who has spent a lot of time with Meeks in the past few weeks, the guy is serious. Will he run? I don’t know. But he is a lot further along in his plans than most people realize.
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Morning shorts
Wednesday, Apr 12, 2006 - Posted by Rich Miller · Audit: Budget office fails to seek competitive contracts · “After months of balking, tollway officials backed off controversial I-PASS rule changes Tuesday that lawmakers and watchdog groups said were too broad and too harsh.” · Capitol Fax readers heard about this possibility days ago: State panel rejects ban on school junk food · Cunningham narrow winner in appellate race · Bibo: Few spaces for mentally ill inmates · Brown: Why does City Hall audit only go after little guys? · Luciano: Legislators’ wallets are fat enough · Advocates say power plants are making fish poisonous · Parrillo defies Ibendahl, blogs about smelt fishing. · Tuition going up
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