More Corrupt Than Most of Them

Like lots of people, I am absolutely outraged by the conduct of the governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich. His audacity in thinking that he could blatantly use his position to make money, get editorial writers fired, and sell a Senate seat is beyond belief. Even FBI agents, who have seen all kinds of corruption, were shocked. It looks like he'll get impeached, and I assume he'll go to jail (although you never know), so at least he'll get his just desserts. I'm so mad, I'll omit the comment about corrupt Democrats that I might normally make now :) I don't care what party this guy is in (but neither does the media).

As far as the Senate seat is concerned, is anybody surprised that Jesse Jackson, Jr is thought to have submitted a bid to buy the seat? Like scumbag father, like scumbag son.

The Illinois governor was also delusional. Apart from thinking he could get away with all this, he thought about appointing himself to the Senate seat, in order to "try to remake his image for a possible 2016 run for the presidency." That this guy, who everyone except himself knew was already in legal trouble before the latest news, thought he had any chance at the presidency is unbelievable. I realize a lot of politicians get drunk on the idea they might get elected President, even though there's no chance of that happening (see John Edwards or Joe Biden), but was Blagojevich serious?

I had read that this scandal might hurt Chicago's bid for the 2016 Olympics. However, today's stories say that won't happen, according to IOC members. After the Salt Lake City Olympic debacle, Chicago should be eliminated from the running, considering not only Blagojevich's actions, but the fact that Illinois as a whole is corrupt on a level similar to Louisiana. Of course, knowing how corrupt the IOC is, this scandal probably increases Chicago's chances.