I have to give a speech in a few minutes, so you’ll just have to chew on this one post until I get back around 10 or so this morning.

The governor once again demonstrated his overriding concern for rooting out corruption in his administration yesterday.

Gov. Rod Blagojevich says new claims of political hiring and firing by his office are “absurd,” even though they come from one of his former agency directors. […]

“I have a one-word answer for you: absurd. Here’s another word: ridiculous, ludicrous,” he said after an appearance in Chicago.

Asked if that meant the claims were false, Blagojevich again called them “ridiculous” but refused to answer further questions.

The governor’s staff also demonstrated that they won’t tolerate corruption anywhere and immediately jumped to the defense of the whistleblower.

Late in the afternoon, administration officials attacked Crossland’s case.

“Since Gov. Blagojevich took office, the agency has terminated only three employees, and all three were not terminated for political reasons,” said Dave Blanchette, a Historic Preservation Agency spokesman.

“Here it is, two years after he left the agency, and we’re hearing these accusations for the first time,” Blagojevich spokeswoman Abby Ottenhoff said. “It just makes you wonder.”

The governor’s campaign also helpfully pointed out that the whistleblower had given $200 to Judy Baar Topinka’s campaign.