Blago Book: Senate Deal 'Routine' Politics

And he might move to New York, where no one has told him to 'F off' yet

(NEWSER) - When it comes to political memoirs, Rod Blagojevich’s The Governor: Finally, the Truth Behind the Political Scandal That Continues to Rock the Nation “is surely unsurpassed” in the areas of “febrile self-defensiveness and look-over-there deflections and deceptions,” writes David Remnick for the New Yorker. “No sun can melt Blago’s coif, which descends like a silken espresso curtain and then swerves suddenly to the side, revealing a gaze most innocent.” More»

(NEWSER) - The people of Illinois have voted in a Chicago Tribune contest to name Rod Blagojevich’s upcoming memoir, and the winner is: Rod and the Giant Impeach. “I thought of the impeachment of the governor, and about my childhood,” the winner said of his inspiration, which scored him a 3-pound beef tongue. Runners-up: From Hair to Profanity; They Paid Me a [Bleeping] Bucket of Cash to Write This [Bleeping] Book; and God is My Comb Pilot. More»

(NEWSER) - Harry Reid called Rod Blagojevich after the election, but before the governor’s arrest, to discourage him from appointing unelectable candidates to Barack Obama’s Senate seat, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. The Senate majority leader sought to put the kibosh on Reps. Jesse Jackson Jr. and Danny Davis, along with State Senate President Emil Jones. Reid suggested state AG Lisa Madigan or Illinois' veterans affairs chief Tammy Duckworth. More»

Reflexively distancing himself from Illinois mess has made him look needlessly sketchy

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama looks to have done nothing wrong in his (however limited) dealings with Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, but the president-elect seemed bent on proving otherwise, Joe Conason writes on Salon. Obama’s “unnecessary mistakes” in handling the scandal “risked creating public suspicion where there need be none,” since federal authorities—and even Blagojevich himself—back Obama’s story. More»

Ill. AG says state won't pay for governor's impeachment defense

(NEWSER) - Rod Blagojevich’s lawyer said today federal wiretaps of the Illinois governor’s phones had been “illegally obtained,” and should be excluded from his impeachment proceedings, the AP reports. Furthermore, Ed Genson told the panel of state lawmakers considering the action, the criminal case against Blagojevich shouldn’t be considered at all. More»