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* As Michael Dobbs wrote about Sen. Hillary Clinton the other day…

She seems to assume that if she says something loudly enough, and repeats it often enough, it will become true.

* It finally hit me a while back that one reason I’ve been so circumspect about Sen. Clinton is that we’ve elected the same sort of person as governor right here in Illinois…

Gov. Rod Blagojevich says he is “filled with enthusiasm” about a reform measure sitting on his desk that would prevent state officials from taking campaign cash from most state contractors.

He’s filled with something, allright, but it ain’t enthusiasm.

* The governor even criticized the General Assembly for dithering on passing the bill…

“My only question is, what took them so long?”

Let that sink in for a minute.

The gall.

The ultimate freaking gall.

But you can bet he’ll keep repeating those lines over and over again, hoping somebody will finally believe him.

* Since Blagojevich’s fundraising has been tanking of late, he had to make sure the Senate put off passing the contractor contribution ban as long as possible. It wasn’t until Sen. Debbie Halvorson’s congressional campaign gave them no choice that they finally had to act this spring.

But, with a perfectly straight face he criticizes the General Assembly for stalling the bill and says he’s eager to improve it. Breathtaking.

* The governor continued…

It’s a step forward,” Blagojevich told reporters in Chicago Monday, when asked about the bill, which would prohibit campaign contributions from state contractors to the elected officials who hold their contracts. “I think we have an opportunity with that vehicle in my hands to really do sweeping things,” by adding new provisions to the bill.

* Those state contractors are his last real base of financial support…

Earlier this year, a Daily Herald investigation revealed that 73 percent of cash recently raised by Blagojevich came from those doing business with the state, lobbying the state or facing state regulation.

Blagojevich’s desperate need of campaign cash from those state contractors to pay his ever-mounting legal bills is the real reason behind his plan to slap the ethics bill with an amendatory veto.

* Thankfully, much like Sen. Clinton’s many strange concoctions, nobody with an honest bone in their body is buying into these gubernatorial fairy tales…

“He’s trying to stall and delay and keep this from becoming law,” said reform lobbyist David Morrison… “His motives are transparent here.”

* Why does he want to stall? Well, he has a fundraiser coming up in a couple of weeks. Perhaps he can even stall the bill indefinitely. That way the contractor money will keep rolling in so he can continue paying his criminal defense lawyers, at about 20 large a week. As the Tribune wrote of his excuses…

It’s transparently bogus.

Yep.

* But what great reform push by our unreform governor would be complete without an attack on the ethics bill’s House sponsor? Blagojevich took a whack at Rep. John Fritchey for doing some zoning work for a pawn shop. That legal work was translated into this Bosnian sniper fire event…

“[Fritchey] is currently a paid lobbyist for the payday loan industry.”

Yeah, OK. The last person to make that goofy charge was former Sen. Carol Ronen. Shortly afterwards, Ronen retired from state government with a $38,000 annual bump in her pension, courtesy of a two-month stint on the governor’s staff. How’s that for right back atcha, pal?

If you want a point by point refutation, head to Illinoize, where Fritchey cuts the guv a new one.

*** UPDATE *** Clintonian ’til the end. From the AP…

Hillary Rodham Clinton will concede Tuesday night that Barack Obama has the delegates to secure the Democratic nomination, campaign officials said, effectively ending her bid to be the nation’s first female president. […]

The former first lady will stop short of formally suspending or ending her race in her speech in New York City.

From Clinton’s campaign…

The AP story is incorrect. Senator Clinton will not concede the nomination this evening.

Except the AP didn’t report that she would concede the race.

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 8:39 am

Comments

Rich: As I’ve said before, Blagojevich is the personification of Orwellian 1984 “newspeak”. He thinks that because he is the Governor he can spin anything and everyone will believe him because he is big brother……I mean the governor.

Comment by One of the 35 Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 9:02 am
And he wonders why no one believes him and he can’t get anything done.

Governor, when you lie over and over again you slowly lose all of your credibility. Without credibility, you can’t accomplish anything.

You don’t have healthcare and we don’t have a capital bill, and it’s nobody’s fault but Rod’s.

Comment by Truth Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 9:23 am
The Governor’s groundless attacks on Fritchey are no surprise — we’ve been there before.

What’s interesting here is that, in a subtle way, he’s throwing his ally Emil Jones under the bus. “The only question is, what took them so long?” The House passed the pay to play ban a long time; it languished in the Senate.

Let’s remember this quote when, on the last day possible, Blagojevich takes action on the bill — probably an amendatory veto that will cause further delays. Except that the question “what took you so long” will be rhetorical.

Comment by the Other Anonymous Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 9:23 am
He’s been saying what he WANTS people to think for 7 years now. The only difference I can see is he’s being called on it in the media. Remember the last resort of the guilty? DENY DENY DENY
Orwellian to the end.

Comment by Belle Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 9:25 am
Awesome post, Rich.

Comment by Ahem Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 9:25 am
It isn’t so just Sen. Clinton but both Clinton s. Our governor is the legacy that was left from the Clinton administration. The media thought it was so clever the way Bill Clinton could talk his way out of anything, the way we had to pars every word he uttered in a sentence to make sure there wasn’t something there that would come back to bite us in the - - -. Well now the country has a bunch on Clinton want-A-bes and our governor in one of them. This is what conservatives were screaming about all through the 90s.

Comment by ImTellenYou Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 9:33 am
Most elected officials are not normal.
A lot of them have backgrounds as lawyers.
Consequentially they are comfortable entertaining contrary points of view at the expense of any conscience they might have. They can easily suspend any beliefs or thoughts that might contradict any indisputable fact that confronts them.

They are perfectly comfortable being led by arguments they need to believe, even when those arguments are blatantly corrupted and false.

Instead of telling themselves that they really don’t know what the truth is, they leave it to juries, or to voter’s to decide what the truth is. And when those jurors and voters dismiss their arguments, they do not accept this dismissal. Instead they tell themselves that they simply failed to win their argument which salves their conscience further.

They do not apologize. Instead they tell onlookers that they feel sad that some have interpreted their statements or actions as offensive. This way they do not need to admit they were wrong, but that you were if you were offended.

When confronted by their own actions, they finger point to aides, predecessors in office, and events no one can control or predict. Instead of admiting their faults, they remind people that although they were elected to be held accountable for challenging responsibilities, they can’t really be accountable.

Politicians are often not interested in the hard work that elected office entails. If they look for an elected office that gives all the benefits of being the center of attention without any of the responsibilities of office, then they become senators and remain for life. At some point, they decide they should be president because most senators want to be top dog.

Blagojevich is the worse kind of leader. He is in an executive position within a government. He has to actually do a job and is actually held accountable for doing it. After years of playing as a representative in Washington and accomplishing the legislative feat of being re-elected and having a post office renamed, he was bored and wanted more attention.

Naturally this kind of guy is a terrible governor. He should have become a senator instead. So, if Obama is actually elected president in November, Blagojevich will have a chance to finally get his role in government by appointing himself as US Senator. He will find everything he wanted without any of the responsibilities. He will find all the attention he desires naturally without any of the accountability.

And then he will run for the White House.

Comment by VanillaMan Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 9:34 am
It’s a local version of the Big Lie…truly lousy
(as is lice/vermin) politicians count on two things over all else relative to citizens….stupidity/apathy and short memories. Unfortunately, the odds are usually in their favor with that composure.

Comment by You go Boy Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 9:42 am
I can’t figure the guy out — maybe he’s like Oakland: “There’s no there there.”

That would be okay, if he didn’t have such an important job. He’s not very interested or good at governing. He thinks he’s slick, but he’s slow and he oozes insincerity. He seems not to see it, perhaps because he’s surrounded by sycophants, Paco Rabanne jamokes and some good people who are in over their heads.

He’s a smooth-talking hustler from the neighborhood who won the first time through a lot of luck and Mell’s hard work. He had more luck and an obscene amount of money the second time. How he got the money will be his undoing.

I’m not sure he sees it coming. He should have stayed in Congress. Too bad.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 9:44 am
I belive Blago thinks he can create his own reality - he’s more like Bush,but without a Rove to fabricate his reality,than like Hillary Clinton.But reality is about to catch up with the Governor.

The Clintons, both of them, have always been habitual liars. Blago’s less dangerous because he’s not as smart as the Clintons - he’s not even as smart as Dubya.

Comment by Captain America Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 9:59 am
VanillaMan, the only questions I would pose to your above post are has a sitting Senator ever been indicted by the Federal Prosicutor or will Blago make history by being a sitting Governor being indicted?

Comment by Dan S, a voter and Cubs Fan Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 10:12 am
But that approach works: Rod told us over + over that Judy was corrupt, incompetent and would be same or worse as corrupt Ryan. They heard it enough early on as well as over + over again. They all bought it.

Comment by North of I-80 Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 10:18 am
Dan S.

Sen. Harrison Williams, D-NJ. Indicted 1980, convicted 1981, Abscam.

Comment by wordslinger Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 10:20 am
I don’t believe Blago lives in his own little world. I do think he believes himself entitled to do whatever he wants, be it election to an office, a policy initiative or a fundraiser with state contractors. If the system were different, he would still try and circumvent the way of doing business, and he wouldn’t be smart enough to accomplish much if that were the case. Our “wild west” way of politics in Illinois allows him to act how he wants and get away with it. Until he is defeated in a contested race, resigns or is indicted, he will continue to do as he pleases and hire people who will only do what he wants.

I don’t care much about lying in politics. I have more of a problem with underhandedness and corruption. I think there is a difference, but when you combine those two traits, you get the mess of someone like Hillary Clinton - a person who gets a kick out of bending the truth and trying to use her name and power to make others miserable.

Comment by Team Sleep Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 10:20 am
===And then he will run for the White House.===

VanillaMan, perhaps you should share those hallucinogens. But only on the weekend. I obviously couldn’t handle taking them while I’m supposed to be working. lol

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 10:25 am
lol

Comment by Kevin Fanning Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 10:29 am
Blagojevich is typicaly thought of as an Elvis impersonator.

I’ve come to think of him more as the Wizard in the ‘Wizard of Oz’.

“I am the great and mighty Oz!!!!!!”. Then the short, little, ineffective and scared guy comes out from behind the curtain.

Comment by trafficmatt Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 10:36 am
Rich perhaps Vmans ‘medications’ might help us all make sense to this..

20G a week to the attorneys… Wow…

Perhaps for the next fundraiser they should have some new donation levels.

Co-Defendant
Individual A
Co-Conspiritor

Comment by OneMan Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 10:45 am
What’s a gov to do ? Looks like Patti and Rod may have to get second jobs to pay the lawyers.

Comment by Maggie Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 11:14 am
Hillary is denies the AP story. WLS radio.

Comment by Maggie Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 11:19 am
Maggie, she denied a story that never existed.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 11:21 am
Poor patti. She is a piker next to Patrick O’Connor’s wife in terms of real estate commissions

Comment by Truthful James Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 11:24 am
Patti needs to worry about her own legal bills before she worries about Rod’s.

Comment by Anonymous Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 11:29 am
Mell has millions. But they burned those ties.

Comment by Maggie Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 11:53 am
Blagojevich is through as governor. But he still has his dreams. So instead of using the governorship of Illinois as a stepping stone to the White House, he can use the US Senate as a stepping stone. If Obama is elected, Rod Blagojevich can appoint himself the remainder of the term. He can watch Quinn and the Illinois Democrats suffer under the fiscal damage while he would be in Washington. By 2010, Blagojevich would run for re-election using part of the funds he has collected for his “third term”, and have access to funds via his senate connections and federal laws.

He starts fresh. Look at Durbin and Obama. Blagojevich could play Illinois senator with some success - enough to get re-elected in 2010. You take Blagojevich out of the governor’s office and put him in Washington and his political situation changes dramatically in his favor.

He still has his dreams. Look - if Kucinich could run for president after being the worst US mayor of the 1970s, Blagojevich has a shot too.

If Obama is elected, Rod Blagojevich will take his senate seat as the lifeline he needs to keep his White House dream alive.

Comment by VanillaMan Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 11:53 am
===If Obama is elected, Rod Blagojevich will take his senate seat as the lifeline he needs to keep his White House dream alive.===

VM, considering your track record with predictions, are you certain that you want to burn this particular one into our collective memory with umpteen repetitions?

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 12:00 pm
He still has his dreams. Look - if Kucinich could run for president after being the worst US mayor of the 1970s, Blagojevich has a shot too.

With the same likely results.

Comment by Six Degrees of Separation Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 12:09 pm
A comment on the Clinton(s) thing:

Politically speaking, this needle-threading exercise presents the worst of both worlds. She’s set to concede the delegates, but not the nomination. She’ll have her staff stand-down, but continue bashing Barack all the way to the convention unless he selects her for VP. The reason she’s been pressured to drop-out (and the point of doing so) is to end the intraparty division and focus on McCain. This does neither.

For Hillary, this pivotal election is still all about Hillary.

Comment by David Starrett Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 12:47 pm
I thought the Democrats wanted all votes to count? What about Florida and Michigan? What has Obama really won? The “superdelegates” aren’t going to ANYONE until they make it official at the convention. Their “pledged” support means nothing right now. Yay Hillary! You go girl!!

Comment by Retired in FL Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 1:55 pm
Retired in FL, was that supposed to be ironic? lol

I only ask because I can see where you’re posting from, and it ain’t Florida.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 2:00 pm
Ummmm, typo?

Comment by Retired in IL Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 2:21 pm
U sure you’re retired?

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 2:23 pm
Is this Rich Miller or Patrick Fitzgerald?

Comment by Goofing off at work in IL Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 2:26 pm
LOL. No, it’s VanillaMan. Aren’t you paying attention?

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 2:26 pm
The AP is reporting that Hillary Clinton told a group of NY lawmakers that she would be open to running as VP.
Fat chance, Hill!

Comment by Bill Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 2:41 pm
It doesnt really matter when the bill was passed this session or when Blago signs it - the bill isn’t effective until January 1, 2009, so he has plenty of time to rack in the cash to help with legal bills surrounding his indictment. Opps, did I say that?

Comment by stop drinking the cool aid Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 3:06 pm
Any chance Hillary won’t say the word “uncle” until she sees how Obama’s “pledges” stand up to a Rezko verdict?

Comment by countryboy Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 3:55 pm
Obama was barely mentioned at the trial.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 3:58 pm
Absolutely awesome to listen to all of you acknowledge that the GOP was right about the Clintons. And you re-elected Bill AFTER you knew what he was all about.
Course you re-elected Blago too.
Why don’t you ever stop and think about why it is you have to hide your real beliefs and run candidate after candidate that you know is dishonest and nasty?

Comment by Apologies Anyone? Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 4:14 pm
AA, does that mean you’re gonna listen to the Democrats in the wake of W’s administration? Just askin.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 4:16 pm
Its become clear to me that Rodo is a pathological liar. My own opinion is that he cannot tell truth from fiction. And that is not a good quality in a chief executive.

Comment by familar with the situation Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 5:05 pm
the reason why many Clinton supporters are reluctant to
support Obama is the tone reflected by you in this
post, Rich. she’s losing and you find it appropriate
to pile on. that’s just not nice. and, yes, women
who support her are taking particular offense to
this attitude. you won. to put it in words you
seem to like….get over it.

Comment by Amy Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 6:30 pm
Rich, you beat me to the punch with that 4:16 post. This AA has had that card played on him more times than he can count.

As far as Blago and the bill, my take was that he was trying to wait out the trial. Could be wrong.

Anyone attending that fundraiser should be on the lookout for bartenders or waitresses with earpieces or little mikes falling out of their sleeves. You’ll know the karma is very bad if Stu Levine is there as a barback.

Comment by Arthur Andersen (The Real AA) Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 6:43 pm
===she’s losing and you find it appropriate
to pile on.===

She’s losing? Not according to her.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 10:55 pm
Just to add to my above comment a little bit, I am not in the business of caring how my opinion impacts your presidential vote, amy.

That ain’t my job.

If you think that I should back away from mentioning that your darling candidate has no concept of reality (she can’t even accept that she’s been defeated, as you clearly can) so that you’ll feel more comfortable voting for someone else, then you have little concept of what I’m here for.

I don’t exist for Obama or, for that matter, you.

And, just a bit of advice, if you’re gonna base your voting decision on what other people say or write about your candidate, then you really need to get yourself a reality check as well. It’s a truly pathetic position.

Comment by Rich Miller Tuesday, Jun 3, 08 @ 11:29 pm