Hodge: I did nothing wrong
Thursday, Nov 12, 2009 - Posted by Rich Miller
* This is not what I’m hearing, but I should have more for subscribers soon…
Carolyn Brown Hodge said Wednesday that she resigned last month as deputy chief of staff to Gov. Pat Quinn to avoid any “cloud” over his administration, but she’s hopeful that an inspector general’s probe will clear her of any question of wrongdoing.
“Anybody that will talk to you will tell you that that I made a really concerted effort to keep politics out of my government job,” Hodge said in a telephone interview from her home in rural Paris, Ill.
Hodge’s seven years working for Quinn included being director of rural affairs in the lieutenant governor’s office and deputy chief of staff in the governor’s office.
The Chicago Sun-Times first reported that she quit her $119,158 job in the governor’s office late last month amid a probe of whether she had done political work on state time.
More…
Hodge says she sometimes used her state computer at night to check personal e-mail and may have responded to a political message.
- Holy Cow! - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 9:28 am:
Quinn had 1 political employee shakedown lobbyists for $$ in exchange for face time with the governor.
Quinn says Filan would leave state government then Quinn gives Filan a no-bid contract.
Now one of Quinn’s longest serving employees does this.
I’m calling it now: Quinn will win the election but his tenure is qoing to end like the previous 2.
- Will County Woman - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 9:33 am:
how did it come to light that brown-hodge may have been doing political work on state time/property?
was there a random audit of state computers, and hers raised flags?
who or what tipped off on brown-hodge?
- Small Town Liberal - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 9:38 am:
Holy Cow - I’ll take action on that, you willing to put your money where your mouth is?
- Captain Flume - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 9:45 am:
I trust that unsubstatiated speculations on Brown-Hodge, Bliefnick, and any others will be considered “rumors” and held for moderation.
- Cindy Lou - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 10:18 am:
–”Hodge says she sometimes used her state computer at night to check personal e-mail and may have responded to a political message”.–
In my humble opinion, why is she using state equipment to check personal interest items to begin with? Political message or not. Kinda like ‘I just swung by the mall on a personal interest errand in the state truck for just a minute’, doubt I’d get away with that.
- You're Kidding, Right? - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 10:21 am:
We’ve been through all this before….deny, deny, deny, cut a deal…..when the public sees smoke…there is fire.
- Leave a Light on George - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 11:11 am:
Ms. Hodge and the rest of you Quinnocrats I don’t care that you’ve done no wrong, question is what have you done that’s right?
- i'm just saying - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 11:30 am:
She’s making $119, 000 a year and can’t afford a laptop? A netbook costs what, $400?
And I’m not sure why she’s bragging that she didn’t ask for reimbursement for driving in from Paris to Springfield. When I drive downtown from the suburbs, I don’t get reimbursed — it’s considered my responsibility to get from home to work. If she didn’t like living so far from work, she could have done what the rest of us do and moved closer to her job.
She’s obviously unclear on some basic concepts. No great loss to the state.
- cassandra - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 1:04 pm:
Whatever. She quit. Now it’s time for her to get another job and move on, if she hasn’t already. I hope Quinn isn’t having any rescue fantasies that involve bringing her back when the attention dies down…to this job or a “soft landing.” It will also be interesting if she can get another (private or nonprofit) job at the same high pay and terrific benefits as the state of Illinois (that’s us taxpayers) provides for it’s employees. Many Americans returning to the work force after a forced hiatus in this Great Recession are finding that their new salaries are much, much lower.
- Holy Cow! - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 1:07 pm:
Quinn should hire her back on a no-bid contract at double the salary.
- perspective here - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 1:34 pm:
I know I will be attacked for saying it, but: government employees use govt email and equipment for personal stuff ALL THE TIME. And, anyone who works a lot deals mainly with one computer, and it is hard to blame them. If there is actually a lot more to this issue, then sorry, disregard these comments. And if something it is illegal, okay, it is illegal. BUT this is not the kind of “corruption” that I would spend my time going after. (On the other hand, we could save a lot of money in the budget if we forced everyone who does this to resign.)
- wordslinger - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 1:36 pm:
LOL. I read the headline and assumed it was about Orville Hodge. God, I’m old.
- Objective Dem - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 2:11 pm:
Is she any relation to Orville Hodge? It isn’t a real common last name.
- Cindy Lou - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 2:14 pm:
PH “I know I will be attacked for saying it, but: government employees use govt email and equipment for personal stuff ALL THE TIME”
Maybe in your ‘world’, not in mine, not attacking you, just saying. And you might be surprised to find it’s the little stuff they can zero in on when push comes to shove. What might be not right but accepted today, can turn around to haunt one at any time.
- Whatwhat - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 3:21 pm:
Like Quinn didn’t know his Deputy Chief of Staff was doing political work on state time? Please.
- quinn fan - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 4:07 pm:
she didn’t do anything wrong. just an attack by republicans..
- perspective here - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 4:47 pm:
Cindy Lou, and others, I ask this in complete seriousness: are you saying that govt employees send personal emails from other accounts, using other hardware? Without saying more about where I work, we don’t. And the people who email me don’t either–from all levels of govt. It is actually quite hard not to. (I know there are other potential charges for Hodge here, but I am sincerely confused about this.)
- carolyn - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 6:25 pm:
anyone who knows carolyn will understand that she does things right. i imagine that any allegation or action was unintentional.
- Hearing Voices - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 7:46 pm:
Checking personal email on state computer? CMS blocked access to all non-state email a couple of years ago. AOL, Yahoo, etc., all blocked. Maybe she was given special treatment as adep gov.
- Rambler - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 11:04 pm:
I check my personal e-mail 10 times a day from a state PC. Takes about 30-60 seconds each time. I don’t think I’m defrauding or cheating the State. If she was preparing campaign press releases or the like on her state PC then I can see that as problematic. But occasionally checking and responding to personal e-mails during the work day? Come on!
- Rambler - Thursday, Nov 12, 09 @ 11:05 pm:
BTW, I waited until tonight to post because that’s something I don’t think is appropriate from a state PC.