* Greg Hinz has a reminder for those of you who feel sorry for Rod Blagojevich…

It now has been a few years since the Blagojevich tempest first arose. So let me provide a little bit of a reminder of what he did that was clearly illegal, clearly unethical or just damned stupid.

Start with shaking down a children’s hospital executive for a campaign contribution in exchange for a state grant. That was one of the guilty counts.

Or repeatedly lying to federal agents. That was another, the same type of offense alleged against various associates of President Donald Trump. […]

Or the Tribune story about how 75 percent of those who contributed at least $25,000 to the then-governor’s campaign war chest received something of value from his government: an appointment, a contract, a favorable policy decision, whatever. […]

As U.S. District Court Judge James Zagel said in sentencing Blagojevich to 14 years, the ex-governor “wasn’t marched along this (corruption) path by his staff. He marched them.”

Also, don’t forget that Blagojevich’s first trial ended with a hung jury on all but one count. Charges were then dismissed against his brother Rob. The former governor could’ve tried to cut a deal, but he defiantly refused to even consider it. So there he sits.