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Open thread
Tuesday, Oct 28, 2008 - Posted by Rich Miller * I am on an elections 2008 panel with Paul Green at the Union League Club this morning, so blog posts will be a bit late. In the meantime, I just wanted to warn you about today’s Sneedlling. Don’t get your hopes (or fears, as the case may be) up too high just yet…
The House votes have been “there” for a very long time. It’s all about the will and the opportunity. Staunch Blagojevich ally Emil Jones may be Senate President until January, and the Senate Dems have yet to pick a replacement. Unless there’s an indictment soon, I’m not sure at all that this will happen right away. Down the road? Perhaps. “Following the presidential election” could mean 2010. Or 2013, if he’s reelected. Anyway, try to keep your emotions intact. Thanks.
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- Gregor - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 7:36 am:
>>>”Or 2013, if he’s reelected.”
- Loop Lady - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 7:37 am:
This would be just a great start to the new year and a new era of government in IL…I hope it happens…
- Bill - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 7:47 am:
Bring it on, mushrooms!
- OneMan - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:00 am:
It’s Sneed, I am not holding my breath…
- Angry Chicagoan - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:02 am:
Please. I hope so. But how do we get past Emil Jones and Rickey Hendon? Especially before Jones’s departure and the new leadership elections?
I’m wondering if the fear of Blago doing something completely loopy on the looming US Senate appointment is focusing peoples’ minds?
- publius - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:14 am:
jones or his replacement are not important to impeachment. after the house votes impeachent, the senate holds a trial and the chief justice presides over the senate during the trial
- Fan of the Game - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:22 am:
===Anyway, try to keep your emotions intact.===
The operative word is try.
I hate to wish ill on anyone, but if the justification and votes are there, impeachment might be the right thing to do. It will be painful for the state, no matter how much one may dislike the governor. But in the long run, a state government without Rod Blagojevich is probably a better state government.
- wordslinger - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:24 am:
Back in the summer, I thought a post-election impeachment was probable. Now, I’m not so sure.
With the economy in the tank, some capital plan is probably the biggest priority. I’m not sure the public would have the patience for the distractions of impeachment if capital isn’t taken care of first.
I think with Emil gone, the Senate and the House will come to a working arrangement that makes the governor irrelevant for anything but a whipping boy.
- Captain Flume - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:26 am:
Impeachment is not conviction. And I don’t know the Senate would convict. And if it does not convict, sweet Maria, watch out! “It’s a long, long way to Tipperary.”
- phocion - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:30 am:
Sneed is always right - just like a broken clock always has the right time twice a day.
- Speaking At Will - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:36 am:
Really? Blago impeachment? What a shock! Been hearing this kind of stuff forever, its anyones guess when or if this will ever happen. If all there is to report is that “sneed hears a plan is afoot”……whatever.
- Levois - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:37 am:
I’m willing to bet after the election will be 2009 when Emil Jones finally retires from the state senate. Assuming impeachment procedures in Illinois isn’t much different than the feds, there’s a chance the governor won’t actually get convicted in the Senate and removed from office. OTOH, being impeached in the first place has to be such a black mark.
Just ask Bill Clinton, the second President to be impeached. It’s not good, IMHO.
- school is fun - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:44 am:
Can we start the impeachment of Obama?
- Just Asking - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:44 am:
Madigan needs to pick up a few seats to ensure a tax increase will pass. They get rid of Rod “No tax increase” Blagojevich and replace hime with Pat “Can’t sign the increase fast enough” Quinn so Daughter Madigan can have the fiscal mess cleaned up before she assumes the throne, I mean Governorship.
- Crimefighter - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:48 am:
If the votes are there, why wait anything past Emil’s departure?
- fedup dem - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:53 am:
I suspect impeachment action will be deferred until January, at which point the House members will graciously allow their new colleague Deborah Mell to have the honor of moving for an impeachment vote. However, they may well hold hearings to lay out the evidence against gov. sleazy that would be utilized in a Senate trial.
- Vote Quimby! - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 8:59 am:
Emil is irrelevant, right? Any impeachment proceedings will start in the House and won’t reach the Senate until well after January…
- zatoichi - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:00 am:
That is deep analysis by Sneed. Must have some very exclusive contacts within Illinois government to pull out this piece of explosive news.
Zat hears a plan is afoot to refill his gas tank following the presidential election next month. Word is the money is there. Stay tuned…. Makes as much sense.
- Lazy intern - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:01 am:
Could it be, that we are going to finally have a change in Illinois. Santa don’t fail me now.
- Cassandra - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:03 am:
But without an indictment, what, precisely, would he be impeached for? Ethics? The state’s legislators have been taking advantage of Illinois’ penchant for corruption via “campaign contributions,” rampant patronage and nepotism, and various squiffy grants to the faithful. So far, if he’s corrupt, so are they. Sweeping those funds instead of raising taxes? Come on. Where is he supposed to get the money? And the expansion of
health insurance? Does Illinois really want to be the state that impeached a guv for trying to expand health insurance to the state’s beleagured
middle class, including its one million uninsured adults.
I suspect that this is all about raising our taxes. Madigan would like to get that done before
his daughter takes office so she comes in to a ton
of extra money to throw around courtesy of the state’s struggling middle class. And it won’t be thrown back to that middle class either. It’ll be
patronage and no-bid contracts on steroids. Whatever Democrat takes office.
- GOP'er - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:04 am:
Sounds like the Democrats trying to get ahead of the corruption issue for 2010. Mike Madigan’s not stupid enough to get tagged with the legacy of Blago, like the mopey Republicans did with George Ryan. They’re still blaming their awful performance on George, 6 yrs after the guy’s been out of office.
Just wait, it will be the hapless Tom Cross and his handful of surviving GOP caucus members who stand with the Gov., that is if Tom Cross is himself still around after this election.
- Quotient - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:10 am:
If Obama is in the White House, the only thing obstructing the agenda of the powers-that-be is Blago.
They will get rid of him in a heartbeat. Then we can truly look forward to no oppositionist rule in Illinois.
- Wumpus - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:15 am:
Will they impeach a senator (if Obama wins)? If he wins, RB will appoint himself and leave the mess to be cleaned up by his co-chefs in this mess.
If not, maybe he will appoint Bill to Senate. Hopefully, all this will be moot as Obama won’t win and Blago wil be indicted
- Plutocrat03 - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:16 am:
Be still my beating heart…..
- GoBearsss - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:18 am:
Sounds like a Jack Franks stunt
- The 'Broken Heart' of Rogers Park - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:19 am:
You know the governor doesn’t worry about these things. He’s too busy doing the people’s work.
- Yellow Dog Democrat - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:19 am:
One has to wonder whether the prospects of Blagojevich hand-picking the next U.S. Senator creates a sense of urgency for lawmakers. I don’t know if impeachment hearings and a trial could happen in 8 weeks though.
- Sal Says - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:21 am:
Hope springs eternal ?
- Vote Quimby! - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:31 am:
==Does Illinois really want to be the state that impeached a guv for trying to expand health insurance==
When his efforts result in pharmacies left paying the cost with no legal way to pay them? Yep, you bet I want that!
- wordslinger - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 9:39 am:
Yellow Dog, I suspect that if Obama wins, he will resign immediately so an appointment can be made quickly to give the incoming senator from Illinois a leg up on seniority before new senators are sworn in January.
Seriously, this could happen as early as next week with an Obama victory. That is, if Blago plays ball, and Obama gives a hoot about anything going on in Illinois once he grabs the brass ring.
- KenoMan - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 10:36 am:
13%: Approval Rating
100%: Chance of ending up in prison.
- pyramid scheme - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 11:01 am:
Maybe the impeachment is would just be the result of the bad economy. It’s an unrequited love thing.
- Secret Square - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 11:08 am:
We wouldn’t be impeaching the gov for “expanding health insurance,” we’d be impeaching him for attempting to expand health insurance without legislative authorization, without any visible means to pay for it and with no accountability as to how the monies were spent (HFS claims they can’t release any records of this).
- Carl Nyberg - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 11:28 am:
When do we reach the point where it is irresponsible not to impeach Blagojevich?
It seems like there’s significant circumstantial evidence that Blagojevich fundraising involved illegal quid pro quo.
Blagojevich has become less effective because of the legal issues surrounding him (and unfortunately his wife).
There is a remedy for this situation under the Illinois Constitution. Is the Illinois House negligent to not impeach Blagojevich.
And if the Senate doesn’t vote to convict then perhaps Blagojevich will recover some credibility.
But just waiting seems to be irresponsible at this point.
- One of the 35 - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 11:58 am:
If they vote to impeach, could the Governor still then appoint himself to the Senate seat to avoid trial?
- Joe Schmoe - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 12:09 pm:
Can he play video games in prison?
- Little Egypt - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 12:54 pm:
Impeachment will begin in 2013 because the President of the Committee to Re-elect Elvis, that would be Bill, believes he will not only run for re-election but will win.
- anon - Tuesday, Oct 28, 08 @ 1:17 pm:
I thought that Fitzgerald was rumored to be handing down indictments or deals shortly after the election to both Patty and the Guv. Thus rendering an impeachment an unnecessary formality.