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* There are some big ommissions in this AP story about the governor’s fundraising…
Gov. Rod Blagojevich is rebuilding his prolific fundraising machine, but close in his rearview mirror are several prominent Democrats who could be eyeing a run for his office in 2010.
The AP notes that Blagojevich raised about $2 million during the last six months of 2007. What’s not mentioned, however, is that, on the whole, 2007 was by far the worst fundraising year the governor has had since before 2001, the year before his first run for office.
Blagojevich raised over $3 million in 2001, about a million more than he raised last year. He raised over a million in 2000, about half what he raised last year.
* And then there’s this…
Attorney General Lisa Madigan brought in $811,000 between July and December and has more than $2.1 million in the bank — slightly more than Blagojevich and much more than other recent gubernatorial hopefuls have had three years ahead of the next race.
Comptroller Dan Hynes was not far behind with $1.7 million. Even newcomer Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, who ran and won for the first time in 2006, brought in $516,000 and had more than $650,000 overall.
Actually, when you subtract out the million dollars or so in legal debt the governor is carrying on his books, Attorney General Madigan has twice the on-hand cash as Blagojevich does. Hynes’ available cash is about $700,000 more than the governor’s.
* Something else to consider: Almost half of every dollar raised by Blagojevich last year was eaten up by legal bills from Winston & Strawn. Half.
One of the theories I have about why the governor hid his mountain of legal debt is because he didn’t want his contributors to know what was going on.
During the first six months of last year, Blagojevich raised $379,000 - the majority of which was either refunds from his pollster and a charity and a loan repayment from his inaugural committee. He actually only pulled in $127,000 in “real” contributions.
We found out this week, however, that he racked up $555,000 in legal bills during that same period - far more than he raised and a lot more than he could pay, since he ended June with $289,000 in the bank.
That’s not something you want your contributors to know about. His big fundraiser was last fall, and it was a bust in comparison to previous years. It would’ve been much worse if those contributors knew that they were bailing his campaign out of a mountain of legal debt and that almost 50 cents on their dollar was going to Winston & Strawn.
* No wonder he doesn’t want to talk about any of this…
Gov. Rod Blagojevich refused to answer questions Wednesday on why his campaign fund has racked up more than $2 million in legal bills.
* And…
The governor kept silent when followed outside by reporters, offering only a shrug before entering a waiting SUV bound for the funeral of former Cook County President John Stroger.
* Meanwhile, it looks like the governor won’t be punished for hiding those legal bills from the public and from his potential financial backers…
Despite heavy criticism from a top watchdog group, Gov. Rod Blagojevich may not get questioned on his late disclosure of a half-million dollars in campaign legal bills.
“This is the sort of thing the (election) board does get casual about,” said David Morrison, deputy director of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform. “But it seems pretty clear the governor was not being completely forthright with his disclosure.” […]
Rupert Borgsmiller, campaign disclosure director for the Illinois State Board of Elections, says that at first blush it dosen’t appear Blagojevich’s campaign broke any rules by not including the $555,255 legal tab in finance records last year.
Because Blagojevich eventually amended the earlier report to reflect the debt, he said the campaign could be in the clear.
Obviously, we need a new law.
posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 9:28 am
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Maybe I’m playing armchair QB but he could have saved himself a lot of those legal bills by actually practicing what he preaches. He came in to shake things up and comparing or linking his Republican opponents to George Ryan. Here he is headed that way and has the debts to prove it!
Comment by Levois Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 9:38 am
And let’s not forget the other legal bills Blagojevich has incurred to go after state employees he wanted to fire. Those bills were paid with public funds and probably amount to over $1.5 million.
Comment by one of the 35 Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 9:41 am
I think what is most amazing about Lisa Madigan’s numbers is that she did this while Obama is running for President. Most of Illinois’ dem donors have been concentrating on that race and fundraising has been difficult for others. Impressive to say the least.
Comment by Anonymous Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 9:43 am
So I guess that we can count on minimal public exposure for the next few months as our Governor-in-hiding tries to avoid the press like the plague. Hopefully that will stop the Look-At-Me-I’m-Giving-Free-Transit-To-Seniors bandwagon tour.
Comment by BigDog Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 9:57 am
Sounds like Rod needs a legal defense fund. If he’s soliciting money for his legal defense he should make that clear to his supporters. Then they can decide if they want to contribute to the defense or the election. Seems like there should be some kind of a law on how that money is spent.
Comment by Anonymous Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:01 am
After reading this, the “press” is the least of the gov’s problems. If the legal bills keep accumulating faster than the contributions - which is a near certainty now that these stories are out - there won’t be much, if anything, in the kitty come 2010. And could W&S’s partners withstand another few million $ of “pro bono” work? Hmmm, which recent governorship does this remind us of?
Comment by Six Degrees of Separation Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:06 am
he relied heavily on that big war chest to take on JBT. A portion of that came from core dem contributors. With Lisa madigan lookng to be a challenger to him, he may find a lot of his core is not there. Add to that the loss of the funny money from pay to play fundraising and he may not have much to fend off a fight.
But he lives in denial; he will think he can raise lots of cash and win the nomination. I would not want to be around him when the bubble bursts.
Comment by Ghost Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:07 am
If he’s soliciting money for his legal defense he should make that clear to his supporters. Then they can decide if they want to contribute to the defense or the election. Seems like there should be some kind of a law on how that money is spent.
I disagree. Caveat emptor - let the buyer beware, and do their due diligence…or not.
Comment by Six Degrees of Separation Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:08 am
Six, “buyers” can’t be aware if he’s hiding the information from them.
Comment by Rich Miller Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:24 am
if he uses the fund to pay for his own legal defense or that of his friends does it then become personal income and taxable?
Comment by winston Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:30 am
Why is it that campaign funds can be used for legal bills in the first place? Legal defense funds should be completely separate from campaign funds.
Comment by kimsch Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:47 am
I’m pretty sure his campaign fund is being investigated, so it’s legit.
Comment by Rich Miller Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:48 am
Do you think the fact that Rod has screwed everyone who has ever tried to help him may be affecting his fundraising abilities a little bit?
Comment by Bill Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:48 am
LOL. Bill? Is that really you?
Comment by Rich Miller Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:48 am
Yeah its me. Even I get rodomized once in a while.
Comment by Bill Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:50 am
I do not believe that the legal fees paid by the governor’s campaign fund are all for present legal expenditures. It is possible that W&S is using an advance payment retainer for anticipated expenditures by the Governor once federal criminal charges are issued. This way, W&S does not get stuck with a second costly pro bono law suit known as “United States v. George Ryan.”
Comment by Jake From Elwood Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:50 am
Bill, thanks for your candid and honest opinion.
Comment by Little Egypt Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:58 am
Since many people who contribute to campaigns, especially large contributors, want something, one wonders who these continuing contributors might be. Do their contributions include wannabee contractors or wannabee repeat contractors who figure he’s got three more years
and they want onto the continuing state contract and state job gravy train for as long as possible. After all, they can get the contribution back by upping the price of the contract.
One doubts that many current contributors are indivduals who want to demonstrate support for Blago and his vision and leadership for Illinois.
So, they want something.
A current contributor list will be interesting to study.
Comment by Anonymous Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 11:14 am
If W&S is forward billing to “get the money” before Fitz declares the fund a RICO org. I would expect they have crossed a line and become complicit in the RICO activities. This could disqualify them from representing blags et al. That may well be their desired outcome! Get the cash and do no work - The Chicago and Illinois Way!
Comment by A Citizen Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 11:18 am
Whatever happened to the $15.5 million he had in his fund? He couldn’t have used all that money to defeat Judy. Also, who in their right mind would want to contribute to him now, knowing the feds will be sniffing around like a dog in a meat market?
Comment by The Mad Hatter Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 11:20 am
Anonymous 11:14, I saw on another post where Donald Trump (!)donated $2,000 to Friends of Blago recently. Of course that’s just chump change to him, but still, it makes me wonder what he wants?
Comment by Bookworm Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 11:41 am
“Rodomized?” Bill, you never cease to amaze me…
Comment by Arthur Andersen Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 12:01 pm
I don’t think Trump’s donation is because of what he wants, I think it’s because of what he got in exchange for his River North development.
Comment by dc Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 12:44 pm
Good point, Anonymous. At this juncture, only the stunningly brazen, desperate for state contracts, or supremely idiotic would even consider injecting cash into Blago’s war chest.
Although, if I’m a business owner that’s been crushed by the credit crunch/economy/housing meltdown, I may take a flier on helping to right the ship when it would appear eveyone else is fleeing - the idea being that Blago would “reward” me handsomely if and when he escapes from under Fitzgerald’s claws.
Comment by The Doc Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 12:48 pm
It is hard to send money to a guy who has the feds watching what you send him. It is hard to send money to a guy who is spending it on his legal battles, instead of his campaign.
Fund raising is palpable when a candidate ensures that your money is going towards the goals you share. It isn’t when you see that the candidate isn’t interested in any other goal than themselves.
Comment by VanillaMan Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 12:50 pm
Great analysis Rich!!
Comment by Bud Man Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 12:58 pm
Anon 9:43 - It’s not just Lisa’s numbers that are impressive - Hynes’ and Alexi’s are too. The three of them together basically raised 2.7 million in the first years of their new terms, when they’re not technically running for anything, and when there are plenty of other contested elections to get behind.
I think this all begs the question of how soon someone has to start running for governor.
Comment by Bill S. Preston, Esq. Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 1:04 pm
Winston allows the fund to owe huge amounts after collecting similar huge amounts for state paid legal work. Maybe some of the bills relate to wifey who we keep hearing is a businesswoman having no relationship to hubbys role as governor. The fund raises big bucks from many of the largest firms and those $’s are ultimately going to Winston. Does anyone know if the Winston debt is immune from any freeze that might result from a future indictment of the fund?
Comment by what a mess Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 1:43 pm
what a mess -
any indictment of the campaign fund would freeze all assetts in the fund at that time. The same thing happened to Ryan and allowed the levy to break.
When the campaign fund gets indicted, all of the staffers who have been appearing in front of the grand jury will have to start paying their own attorney fees out of their own pockets.
The feds will demand these witnesses show up day after day, sitting in the lobby waiting to be called, and alas, they never get called. All of the while, the witness is paying $300 an hour for his/her attorney to sit in the waiting room, and racks up a small mountain of personal legal bills. Faced with $15,000 - $20,000 in legal fees, they will decide Rod’s not worth it, and they’ll sing like birds because they know the feds will make their lives a living hell if they don’t.
The one thing I see in those legal bills is that the feds are doing the same thing right now, only they are bleeding the campaign fund instead of people’s personal accounts. It would be fun to FOIA personnel records (if that’s possible) for top Balgo aides and see how many days some of these people have to take off to attend grand jury proceedings. This guy and anyone who has conspired with him are toast!
Comment by Bud Man Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 2:41 pm
Why is Blagojevich permitted to get away with all this? Anyone out there know?
Blagojevich never ceases to amaze (negatively) me.
Comment by Dumb Questions Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 5:20 pm
Where in the H is Tusk and Monk? guv really needs them now. Talk about rats deserting the stinking ship, wow, were they psychic or what?
Comment by A Citizen Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 8:19 pm
Bud Man, most folks would say that timesheets, you know the ones that “Rod’s Ethics Act” mandates, are payroll or accounting records and as such be subject to FOIA. Not these yahoos. They call them personnel records exempt from FOIA. There’s another court case waiting to be lost.
Hey Little E, How ya doin?
A, remember, folks always said that “Munsk” were the brains of that operation; that must have extended to knowing when to Scooby-Doo outta dere.
Comment by Arthur Andersen Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:26 pm
-AA-
We seem to agree. “Munsk” at least are not named, “yet”, in any legal actions e.g. subpoenas . . . as far as we know. guv must be one lonely guy! I almost feel sorry for him . . . nawwww!
Comment by A Citizen Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:31 pm
You old guys are up late!
Comment by Bill Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 10:52 pm
AA, things are looking up from where I sit. Rod’s history and that makes for a great new year. Who takes his place at this point doesn’t really matter - just that we get rid of him. Rod does have a very interesting rest of his second term left, wouldn’t you say? I’d love to be a fly on the wall in the Blago house and see what life is really like these days for him and Mrs. I’m betting it’s not very comfortable. A hockey game here, a Hannah Montana concert there. Hey, the guy needs big distractions at this point in his life because I think Bud Man has hit the nail on the head. Fitzgerald is coming in a BIG way for Blago, much much bigger than he ever could have come after Ryan. And I can’t think of one single person who deserves it more, can you?
And yes Bill, we’re up late. Don’t believe that old folks go to bed with the chickens. What’s hysterical is that often we can’t sleep so we sit here and see how late you are up.
Comment by Little Egypt Thursday, Jan 24, 08 @ 11:27 pm
A Citizen, I don’t feel sorry for him, but I do feel sorry for his kids who are going to be caught in the middle of this, especially if (as some predict) BOTH their parents get in legal trouble.
I did used to feel sorry for his wife in one respect: I know what it’s like to be caught between a husband and a father who can’t stand one another (but things are much better nowadays.)
Comment by Anonymous Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 6:06 am
i understand using the fund to pay legal bills, but if they’re used to defend anyone else (not the fund) doesn’t that become taxable?
Comment by strawn Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 6:46 am
June 12, 2006
Veteran state workers claim clout cost them their jobs. They say they were fired because of politics and now they’re suing.
For weeks we have been hearing about the so-called “clout lists” kept by governor Rod Blagojevich. Hundreds of names of his friends, contributors and cronies who were said to be given special consideration for state jobs.
The ABC7 I-Team sat down with some former state workers who say they were terminated from their tollway jobs to make room for the politically well endowed.
They were career state employees…on the job for up to 25 years… at the Illinois Toll Highway Authority…an agency that is supposed to operate independent of the governor and the state general assembly. But in a round robin discussion, they told the I-Team that their longevity, seniority and overall job performance meant nothing once Rod Blagojevich was elected governor in 2002.
Comment by We're still here! Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 7:47 am
Sympathy card coming up! Whoa’s Rod.
Comment by Disgusted Taxpayer Friday, Jan 25, 08 @ 8:29 am