The folks at ComEd were so eager to suck up to Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan that they even allegedly fixed their internship program to give priority to kids from his 13th Ward.
Must have been nice for kids from the 13th Ward, who I don’t begrudge the opportunity, but it’s difficult to imagine the sense of entitlement behind such a demand.
It’s that sense of entitlement that lurks behind all the charges contained in Wednesday’s late-breaking indictment of four people accused of conspiring to corruptly influence Madigan to benefit the electric utility.
* While reading the indictments yesterday after also reading ComEd’s very similar deferred prosecution agreement earlier this year, I couldn’t help but think that ComEd and Exelon executives should’ve behaved more like the young manager of a new chain coffee shop in the Soprano’s neighborhood when Patsy and Burt walked in. Language alert for those of you who still actually work at an office these days…
Patsy [peering at name badge] Manager Adare. Welcome to the neighborhood. [shakes hands] We’re from the North Ward Merchants Protective Cooperative.
Manager: I’m kinda busy. Are you guys looking for a donation?
Burt: Let him finish.
Patsy: You may have noticed, not to denigrate anyone, but this is a transitional neighborhood; I mean, demographically speaking, you still have a lot of marginal types.
Burt: And we merchants have found that you really should have some round-the-clock security here.
Manager: Isn’t that what the police are for?
Patsy: They do their best but they got their hands full. Your weekly dues to us will give you all the supplemental safety net you’ll ever need.
Manager: I can’t authorize anything like that. It would have to go through Corporate in Seattle.
Patsy: We Merchants prefer to deal on a personal, one-on-one basis.
Manager: I don’t have any discretionary funds. It’s gotta go through Corporate.
Burt: How do you think Corporate would feel if, for the sake of argument, somebody threw a brick though that window?
Manager: They’ve got like 10,000 stores in North America. I don’t think they’d feel anything.
Patsy: [menacingly] What if, God forbid, it wasn’t just vandalism. What if an employee – even the manager, say – was assaulted?
Manager: Look, every last f___ing coffee bean is in the computer and has to be accounted for. If the numbers don’t add up, I’ll be gone and somebody else will be here
Patsy: [giving up, walks back outside with Burt in disgust and laments] It’s over for the little guy.
* Roundup…
* Madigan confidant and ex-ComEd CEO charged with bribery in lobbying scheme: Federal prosecutors marched deeper into House Speaker Michael Madigan’s inner circle Wednesday, charging longtime confidant Michael McClain and ex-ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore in a bribery scheme designed to curry favor with the powerful Southwest Side Democrat.
* Key Madigan Ally, ComEd Lobbyists And Official Indicted In Federal Bribery Scheme: The fifty-page indictment spans nine years of alleged wrongdoing by ComEd’s four representatives, shedding new light on actions first alleged in a deferred prosecution agreement against ComEd itself filed in July. Under the agreement, ComEd’s prosecution will be delayed for three years as the company cooperates in the investigation, and must pay a $200 million fine.
* Madigan confidant, three others indicted in ComEd bribery scheme allegedly aimed at influencing speaker: The indictment alleged that beginning in 2011, the defendants “arranged for various associates” of Madigan — including his political allies and campaign workers — to “obtain jobs, contracts, and monetary payments” from ComEd even in instances where they did little or no actual work. Madigan is referred to in the charges only as Public Official A.
* Indictments Hit Speaker Madigan’s Inner Circle, Former ComEd CEO: McClain purportedly served as both a go-between and a conductor who guided Prammagiore and Hooker to hire individuals and interns connected to the speaker, while Doherty used his lobbying firm to funnel money to Madigan allies even though they performed little or no work.
* Mike Madigan confidant and ex-ComEd CEO charged with bribery in lobbying scheme: In a statement, ComEd spokesperson Paul Elsberg said: “ComEd has already moved aggressively to implement comprehensive ethics and compliance reforms, and we’re committed to earning back the trust of the communities we’re privileged to serve. However, we’re not able to comment on specific matters related to these former ComEd executives or beyond what is in the statement of facts in ComEd’s deferred prosecution agreement.”
