Now and then some national columnist flies through Chicago on their way to the West Coast to sample a bit of the local "flavor" and to mix in some non-Beltway stories into their repertoire. Last Sunday George Will brought us his view from 50,000 feet, and the resulting fluff piece on Governor Milorad "Rod" Blagojevich has been causing buzz among Illinois politicos ever since. more ›

For the same reasons as just about everyone else who writes about Chicago politics, Chicagoist loves Dominic Longo. He just can't resist the spotlight, and he doesn't seem to have a sense of how the outside world views him. more ›

Governor Milorad "Rod" Blagojevich doesn't talk to Dominic Longo. Longo doesn't talk much to John "Quarters" Boyle these days. Quarters isn't saying if he's friends with Michael J. Acosta (seen at right). Acosta won't talk about Nick "The Stick" LoCoco. And The Stick isn't talking at all, because he died in a horseriding accident last December. more ›

In a strange new twist of the Mell-Blago Saga, Capital Fax has been doggedly reporting the unravelling relationship between Gov. Rod Blagojevich and Mell captain, Dominic Longo. Longo, once convicted of voter fraud, and now the head of Alderman Dick Mell's patronage organization, The Coalition for Better Government, has recently sent the Governor (who's real first name is apparently "Milorad") a cease and desist letter for defamation, claiming that the Governor should stop saying he... more ›