On Blagojevich

Okay, I admit it. I made a mistake, a huge mistake. I not only voted for Rod Blagojevich twice, but very publicly supported him here. (For a complete confession of my Blago blog sins, see links below.) The shady dealings in the governor's office started surfacing during his first term, but I mostly ignored them. Part of that was due to my cynical belief that it was just another case of business as usual in Illinois politics, but mostly because I believed in his progressive causes - universal health care, environmental protection, government-funded stem cell research, etc. I thought he was trying to do the right thing for the people of Illinois, and figured that if the price of that sort of progress was some political chicanery, then so be it.

But the red flags really went up this past summer, when the state government ground to a complete halt during a budget impasse, as Blago kept insisting that his social programs be passed even though the economic downturn meant there was no way to pay for them as long as he held fast to his campaign pledge of no personal income tax increases. While I admire him trying to keep his campaign promises, I admire even more a politician who can face political reality - there's no way his political initiatives would ever make it through the legislature without a major tax increase. But he arrogantly stuck to his guns, scrapping his early call for a huge business tax increase (which had absolutely no chance of ever passing) and feebly insisting that his programs could be paid for by expanding casino gambling in the state. He did all of this while showing absolutely no interest in negotiating with the legislature - it would be his way or no way at all. And "no way" is what it became. Today the state owes billions in Medicare and Medicaid payments to dozens of hospitals throughout the state, still has seriously unfunded the state employee pension plan, and needs even more billions in infrastructure spending, none of which it can possibly pay for. All of this showed me he was incapable of governing, and my support for him quickly faded.

And now it clearly appears that he wasn't at all interested in doing the right thing for the people of Illinois - he only wanted the right thing for himself. It's obvious that every state function under his control - filling a vacant U.S. Senate seat, awarding state contracts - was for sale to the highest bidder, with the proceeds and perks all going directly to him. All of which is appalling in itself, but even more appalling is the outrageous arrogance he has publicly displayed ever since his indictment, refusing to resign and saying he will be vindicated by the legal system. He keeps saying he wants what's best for the people of Illinois, even as he has made the state into a national laughingstock, brought the state government to a standstill, and even bogged down the U.S. Senate, where our elected representatives are supposed to be focused on getting us out of our economic morass but instead have to deal with the political circus of the Roland Burris appointment which Blago went right ahead and made, in defiance of both the Springfield legislature and the Democratic Party leadership in Washington.

Yes, Blago will have his day in court. But no matter whether he's guilty or not - and the feds' wiretaps seem almost inarguably damning - he has completely lost his ability to lead the state. And that, regardless of his legal guilt or innocence, means he should resign immediately - for the good of people of Illinois, whom he keeps insisting that he cares so much about. If he truly cares about us, he would leave office right now.


Blago Mea Culpa:
On drug reimportation
On requiring pharmacists to offer birth control
On state-funded stem-cell research
On children's health insurance
On environmental protection