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... down Pennsylvania Avenue.
But if I had to guess, he will call a special session (ha-ha, even though the GA is already in session!), probably to deal with universal health care.
It solves everything... But Burris is out of a job.
1) Deploy the National Guard to provide health care in poor neighborhoods
2) Send a host of state workers on a one week unpaid 'vacation'
3) Use the National Guard to deal with the foreclosure crisis
4) Kino
5) Announce a deal to lease the Lottery/Toll Roads/State Capitol/Manson/fairgrounds/His hair
Ugh.
This won't happen next week but I can see him appointing himself. He resigns which stops the impeachment and he keeps a goverment salary until he his convicted.
Most likely candidates for this dubious honor are the amendments to the Smoke Free Illinois Act to provide for due process and other stuff, and the bill to restore funding for SOS, AG, etc.
If he vetoes or AV's either one of these, nothing can be done about it since the 95th GA is no longer around to override him.
Blagojevich could use the occasion to lambast the moral inadequacies of Richard M. Daley, Dick Devine, Lisa Madigan and past U.S. Attorneys for lacking the moral courage to do the right thing.
He could also attack the media for blowing up allegations of favor trading into impeachable offense when no major figures (besides Burge) have ever been held accountable for their malfeasance, misfeasance and nonfeasance in the matter of torture by rogue police officers.
Here's a draft for Blagojevich's press conference.
"Politicians trade favors. I am accused of trading favors in a way that is unseemly and according to my detractors, illegal.
"But Richard Daley, Dick Devine and many public officials, including past U.S. Attorneys, have turned a blind eye to torture. They knew it happened and prosecuted the victims--all Black men--while protecting the perpetrators.
"The Chicago media, which has castigated me, has only focused on the small fish, a police commander who committed and ordered torture. Why are the editorial boards able to muster so much outrage over foul language and trading favors and so little outrage when 25 Black men--25 men who are in all likelihood innocent of the crimes for which they were convicted--spent a total of 500 years in the Illinois prison system b/c politicians like Dick Devine and Lisa Madigan fought against releasing these men who were tortured.
"Why is it the media ignores or downplays torture? Is it too boring to connect the dots? Or are these self-righteous editorial boards afraid of challenging Mayor Daley? Or is it that the victims were too poor or too Black?"
1. resign
2. special session the day before or after the inaug
3. Announce he's running for the 5th CD seat
4. Announce the annulment of his marriage
5. Call out the national guard to shelter the homeless from the bitter cold
6. File his objection to illinois' impeachment clause in federal court
7. File new rulemaking and hold a splashy press conference to prevent home foreclosures
8. Go joggin in Obama's neighborhood
9. Give out a "Governor's Hometown" award to cities in each of the 59 senators district
10. Hold a press conference demanding George Ryan NOT be granted clemency
lol
I'm for that war. Always have been.
Lots of Cards fans are Sox fans, too. Let's invade the north side together, rather than war with each other.
The idea is to annex the St. Louis stadia, the casinos, etc. into Illinois. So, your beloved team would then be put on the public dole like mine (and like the Cub folks want). lol
1. Resign
2. Get a hair cut
3. Reopen the parks
4. Sell of his Cubs stuff on ebay and become a Mets fan.
5. Plead guilty
6. Just go away.
As he might (so eloquently?!?) put it “I’ve got this thing and it’s f***ing golden, and, uh, uh, I’m just not giving it up for f***in’ nothing. I’m not gonna do it.â€
Announce that he's getting a sex change and marrying Ozzie Guillen.
Word is Blagoof was scratched from all event lists a la the Illinois Society
Next his routine will include an effort to burn Down Obama's Hyde Park crib
If he's to have any hope of the feds showing him any mercy at all, he has to resign before the trial gets under way.
Some argue that if he resigns, it looks like an admission of wrongdoing and would hurt his chances of acquittal in the criminal trial. I don't think that's necessariliy the case.
If he resigned next week or on Inauguration Day, he could portray it as making a noble sacrifice for the good of the state, so that Illinois will be in a position to deal with the bad economy and claim whatever federal aid the incoming presidential administration can provide without the cloud of his impeachment hanging overhead, etc. etc.
A resignation on Inauguration Day itself would also give him one last chance to stick it to Obama by stealing the spotlight from him, as I am sure he believes Obama did to HIS presidential aspirations.
Although I'm not betting the farm on this, I do believe it's a possibility.
SNL or Leno would be good too, although he should drag his kids out with him instead of trying to hide behind others' kids.
As far as guessing what Rod will do next is like predicting the Cubs 09 season, who knows...
Now, trying to bribe for or buy parts of Missouri might be possible. Maybe Blago should sell parts of Illinois to pay for his child healthcare programs? There's gotta be a good 30-40 border counties Blago and the Chicago Dems have no use for anyway.
Now your left with a Governor who has been impeached, who is now in rehab and because of HIPAA cannot be prosecuted in the Senate and cannot be removed from his job because of "Health" reasons.
Front page of every paper in the country!!
6:15:47 AM: Hears knock on front door. Assumes fetal postition fearing the worse.
6:16:18 AM: Patty opens the door. It was the paperboy. Rod goes back to sleep.
8:15:07 AM: Rod comes down for breakfast and gets agitated that he is not front page news. Uses several expletives on the phone arranging an 11 AM press conference.
10:59:47 AM: Rod has a hair out of place. Press conference delayed an additional ten minutes.
11:10:07 AM (CST): President calls on "an end to corruption throughout the land" and re-appoints Patrick Fitzgerald during his inaugrial address.
11:47:14 AM: By ten minutes, I meant Blago time which means presser won't start until 2ish.
12:07:52 PM: Rod has a craving for Portillo's, heads to lunch, but notices three black SUVs behind his car.
12:18:23 PM: Rod re-assumes the fetal position when Fitzgerald and seventeen FBI agents enter Portillos. Patty pays for their lunch.
Such as "I sing of Olaf, glad and big":
"I will not kiss your [bleep]ing flag"???
It's my understanding the Senate will actually vote on two questions: whether to remove him as governor AND whether to disqualify him from holding any other public office. If he resigned and took the MWRD position, the first question would be moot, but what about the second?
Could he call a Special Session on Inaugeration Day? That would be funny, and kinda serve them right for partrying with Obama instead of taking care of Illinois.
He will claim the same thing about the Illinois state constitution and go all Dean Wormer on the Illinois Senate and revoke their charter.
(Spitzer - hookers + hair) + Senate seat + (Other appointments x $25,000) = Blago
So this begs the question, what will he do just before the most important vote concerning his life occurs (that is of course excluding those 12 jurors he will be facing in 2 years)?
My answer is that he is going to do as much damage to his enemies as possible. The leaking of the Jack Franks job request info is the tip of the iceberg. If a senator asked for a job for a relative, the media will here about it. If a married senator has a springfield girlfriend, his wife will here about it. If they ever cheated on their taxes, he'll call up the Revenue department.
My point is, what is the big bang going to be? He is going to terrorize these senators until it becomes clear they still will vote to convict AND then what?
My answer is that whatever is the worst damage a governor can afflict on the state and its elected officials is the path this man will take.
A bang not a whimper folks.
Rich, you have any insights?
Erects statue of Elvis on Statehouse lawn.
*He won't resign, as he is convinced he "did nothing wrong" (Perhaps an echo of Nixon?, but definitely a narcisisst's view)
*He will do something to grab headlines, but it won't be anything altruistic, rather something that fits his personality, ie "what's f%^&ing in it for me?"
*It will probably be something ineffective, since his lawyers bailed and he has no one with any "sense" to advise him, but himself.
*I predict he will "temporarily" step aside, so as to keep his salary, while the criminal trial proceeds. This guarantees his income until the criminal trial is over, which will take years.
The Senate trial will almost undoubtedly continue, so he'll be removed from office anyway.
(Don't know it? Shame on you!)