Michael Madigan

(Newser) - Michael Madigan, former speaker of the Illinois House and for decades one of the nation’s most powerful legislators, was charged in a nearly $3 million racketeering and bribery scheme Wednesday, becoming the most prominent politician swept up in a federal investigation of entrenched government corruption in the state. Madigan,...

(Newser) - Rod Blagojevich’s memoir makes the case for his innocence with a lot of help from Shakespeare, the Chicago Tribune reports. While blaming his woes specifically on five enemies, he likens his plight to that of Othello and Lear. “You might as well throw in a little Richard the...

(Newser) - Ousted Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich considered nominating his rival's daughter to the US Senate in exchange for concessions on pet projects, the AP reports. Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, daughter of the state's powerful House Speaker Michael Madigan, was in contention for the spot, according to aides to Sen. Dick...