This morning’s Chicago Sun-Times blasts Rod Blagojevich’s appointment of Roland Burris as Barack Obama’s replacement for the US Senate.
At a news conference on Tuesday, Blagojevich insisted he was making the appointment solely for the benefit of the people of Illinois, who should not be deprived of a sitting senator another day.
And, he said, the law requires it of him.
All of which would be true.
In normal times.
From a governor with credibility.
None of which is remotely true in Illinois, the Land of Lincoln, which is quickly becoming la-la land.
And the Sun-Times pulls no punches it pointing to the self-interest factors of the Burris appointment:
We don’t know why Blagojevich chose Burris, who as Illinois comptroller was the first African American elected to statewide office.
A hardened cynic might suspect that Blagojevich, in making the Burris appointment, is thinking not of the people of Illinois, but of the 12 jurors who will sit in judgment of him at a criminal trial.
And recognized as the leading voice in the Chicago media in dealing with Illinois corruption is John Kass.
Of course, Tuesday’s fiasco could have been avoided. Democrats in the state legislature could have stripped Blagojevich of his appointment powers and imposed a special election. Obama also could have demanded it. But as he has done so often in his career, Obama avoided a confrontation and looked the other way.
Democrats tried to finesse this, and they allowed Blagojevich the opening he needed, to hold that news conference and defy everybody. And so I’m forced to tip my hat to Gov. Dead Meat on this one, for sheer brazenness.
Small wonder Obama takes no questions from Chicago reporters.
Posted under Uncategorized
This post was written by bobsikes on December 31, 2008
