Last year I said the following, on this very program:
What is it with bribery and Illinois governors? Former Governor George Ryan was convicted of taking bribes. Now Governor Blagojevich is making bribes . . . to the entire legislature.
I was concerned with Blagojevich’s readiness to change his mind — flip flop — depending on getting a return. Blagojevich proved unrepentant. He knows how politics usually works.
Apparently logrolling and flip-flopping didn’t go far enough down the bribery road. So now, his task as Illinois state governor to appoint a successor to Barack Obama in the U.S. Senate has been just as straightforward as his other politic deals.
There’s talk of a million dollars being put “on the table” by people close to a “Candidate No. 5.” By the time this appears, you will probably know more about this than I do now, as I type these words. But any uncertainties I may have about this whole affair were not firmed up by the protests from Jesse Jackson, Jr., now confirmed as that notorious No. 5.
Jackson defended his honor, his staff’s honor, in no uncertain terms. “It’s impossible,” he says, that someone on his staff — or even on his behalf — has offered anything improper.
Until he said “impossible,” I gave him the benefit of the doubt. But, folks, we’ve learned from Governor Blagojevich himself how politics works. Bribery is the art of the possible.
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.
5 replies on “Candidate No. 5”
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I seriously doubt liberals will permit this, but, the only real solution to clearing up the character of whomever ends up in Obama’s former Senate seat, is to hold a “special election.” That way, it can be said without reservation that that person was put there “by the people.”
Now, that does not preclude typical election hyjinx where votes can be found days later in cars, warehouses, back rooms, the laundry or other strange locations. Nor does it mean some dead voters votes will not be counted or some felons votes will not be counted.
But at least the state could make an effort to appear neutral & trying to be fair about the whole thing.
Since this is Illinois politics, from what I have read & heard, that may not be possible under any circumstances, but at least it would give the appearance of a fair deal for the people!
Any “appointment” will be tainted by the back of the mind thought that someone paid someone else off, to get an all important Senate of the United States seat & all of the prestige & power that goes with it!
Regarding the race baiting son of the race baiting father, methinks he doth protest too much.
Originally, Senators were appointed and Representatives elected, tht is why the House of Reps is called the People’s House. then some liberal idiot decided it “wasn’t fair” (sound familiar?) that the people had no choice in the appointment of senators and the Constitutuioj was amended to provide for this. so now we have People like Dodd (a devoted Aryan-read “Nazi”) camping out in the senate forever. This, of course, is one of the best arguments for term limits extent. In the beginning of our Republic, there was no need for term limits in the Senate-it was self imposed by the long line of candidates awaitiing an appointment by their buddy the governor.’
The Senate has become the greatest road block to legislation in history until Nanvy the screech owl came to DC.
Looks like the Jacksons will be trying to stay around forever, like the Kennedys and the Clintons. Jesse has been over-shadowed by Obama — time to get the next generation into more power. The Dems will not want an election for the seat — with the universal disgust with Chicago politicians — a Republican might just be elected to Obama’s seat.