Results tagged “rodblagojevich”

On the surface, Columbia College instructor and journalist Joe Laiacona's challenge of incumbent State Rep. Deb Mell in the 40th District's Democratic primary in Feb. doesn't seem so unusual beyond the fact that it will be the most high-profile battle between two openly gay contenders in Illinois political history. But Laiacona's decade-plus stint writing a leather/BDSM column certainly ups that ante.

Lon Monk, former chief of staff for ex-governor Rod Blagojevich, reached a plea agreement with federal prosecutors which saw him plead guilty today and promise to testify against Blago at the ex-gov's trial next year. Monk pleaded guilty to just one charge involving a shake down of race track owner Johnny Johnston for a $100,000 campaign contribution in exchange for favorable horse racing legislation. As part of the agreement, Monk would face up to two years in prison.

The Sun-Times is reporting that the next stop in Rod Blagojevich's Tour of No Shame is an appearance on "Celebrity Apprentice." That's right. The orbit of the disgraced governor who allegedly tried sell a Senate seat to the highest bidder and dared the FBI to tape him doing so will intersect with that of the businessman who never found a product he couldn't tarnish by attaching his name to it. Dali couldn't have painted something so surreal.

Hey, speaking of Blago...

Former governor Rod Blagojevich - he of the hubris that knows no bounds - is the subject of a profile in this week's New Yorker. If you still somehow have the patience or stomach for anything about the guy, check it out here.

Ever wanted to own a chair that asshat former governor Rod Blagojevich sat in? Yeah, us neither. But now you can, courtesy of this unusual auction on eBay. Blago's not the only one to have sat in the chair, which comes from the set of Jimmy Kimmel Live. Others who have placed their behind in that seat include Mel Gibson, Paris Hilton, the Fox(x) triplets (Megan, Matthew, and Jamie), and [swoon] Anne Hathaway. But our boy Blago is (inexplicably) the headliner on the chair, which is currently at a bid of $4,650.00. Kimmel made the proposal to Blago on the air last week and Blago seemed all for it as long as the proceeds were used to hire people who didn't have jobs. Such an altruist.

Inside, Rod Blagojevich might be all torn up about the death of Christopher Kelly. If we were willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, we'd say he's still making sense of it on the inside, which is why his mouth keeps vomiting out the same old "woe is me not my fault" song and dance on the outside. But we know better than to do that by now, don't we?

Rod "The Gift To Comedy Writers That Keeps On Giving" Blagojevich might be getting passé to you, me, and everyone else in town. However, the slightly-more-detached writers of the Daily Show rolled out their newest segment last night, documenting his Quest for Rock Bottom. Grab your shovels, kids - we're lookin' for bedrock! (Hey - remember when they only made fun of him a little bit on the Daily Show?)

The internet got just a little more cluttered over the past few days as your former Governor and ours went online with GovernorRod.com (alas, hotrod.com and rockinrod.com was taken). Presumably created to help hype Rod's radio excursions as well as upcoming book publicity, the site is rife with double-entendres like "Have Rod at your next event!" and "Rod in the news."

Frankly, we’re sick of hearing about the economy. And when the new show at Second City e.t.c. opened singing, “The economy blows,” we settled in ready to tally the number of times the actors poked fun at the economic down turn. Thankfully, we didn’t get very far.

If you haven't gotten your fill of Rod Blagojevich over the last nine months, than you're crazy. Also, you'll have the chance to listen to The Hair blabber on and on courtesy of WLS-AM 890, who have signed the former governor to host a talk show the next two Sundays. Airing from noon until 2 p.m. this Sunday and next Sunday, we assume Blagojevich will talk mostly about himself and how he's innocent and how he was railroaded. In other Blago news, it looks like his campaign office on the North Side has officially been shuttered, according to WBEZ, and the space will soon be up for rent. Well, once the landlord makes sure all the FBI's bugs are gone.

    

It's been an eventful end of the week for the Blagojevich family. First, Patti returned from the wilds of Costa Rica after being voted off the reality show I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here. Husband Rod, daughters Amy and Annie, and sister State Rep. Deb Mell were at O'Hare to greet Patti upon her return. When asked about the experience, Patti said, "It was nice to go down there and meet people that didn't have an agenda with me, that became my friends and it helped restore my faith in people." Rod added, "She's a heckuva lot more popular [than him]."

Christopher Kelly, former fundraiser for ex-governor Rod Blagojevich, will be sentenced today on the first series of charges he's already pleaded guilty to, with two more sets of charges he's already pleaded not-guilty to. Today, Kelly will be sentenced for using work funds to pay off gambling debts and pay for his house and for personal expenses. He's still to face charges related to a roofing deal at O'Hare and racketeering charges with Blago. Federal prosecutors have been hoping they would get cooperation from Kelly in their case against Blago but that has yet to be the case. Estimates for Kelly's sentence on the charges he will be sentence for today range from about three to four years in prison [Fox 32]

In all his free time between appearing on talk shows and sending his wife to Costa Rica, Blago has been brushing up on his Shakespeare. And he’ll show off his newest skill set at Navy Pier this Saturday in the Second City musical under his name. Although he will not star as himself in Rod Blagojevich Superstar, he will participate in an improv set fueled by audience suggestions for his wife’s escape from the jungle. (And you thought his appearance on Letterman was bad.) He’ll also announce the show’s extension at Chicago Shakes.

Today the Associated Press is reporting that a few weeks before his arrest, then-governor Rod Blagojevich considered giving the then-vacant U.S. Senate seat to Attorney General Lisa Madigan "in return for concessions on his pet projects." The information came from two aides to U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin speaking on the condition of anonymity.

It seems former governor Rod Blagojevich's federal trial might get underway come April 2010. At a status hearing this morning, U.S. District Judge James Zagel said he prefers for the trial to start by next April and by July 2010 at the latest. Zagel also floated the idea of an anonymous jury. Blagojevich defense attorney Sam Adam Jr. said, "If that's what the judge orders I'll be ready."

• Juan Rivera was found guilty for a third time in the 1992 rape and murder of Holly Staker despite the fact DNA evidence did not match Rivera.
• Always one with the classy wisecracks, upon being led - shackled - into court today, Drew Peterson told reporters, "Look at this bling...Three squares a day and this spiffy outfit. How can I complain?’’ Peterson's arraignment was set for Monday, May 18.
• Lawyers representing ex-governor Rod Blagojevich have agreed to take the reduced, court-appointed fee of $110 an hour.

For two hours this morning on WLS 890 AM*, it was wall-to-wall Rod Blagojevich as he sat his impeached ass in the host's chair normally filled by Don Wade & Roma. Acting as fill-in talk show host for the vacationing morning duo, the former Governor and current presumable Mr. Mom held court over the 50k watt blowtorch that is the WLS radio signal.

Former Disgraced ex-governor Rod Blagojevich is taking his talk to the people and will be guest-hosting a show tomorrow morning on WLS 890 AM. Seriously, raise your hand if you didn't see this one coming. Blago will be filling in on the "Don Wade & Roma Morning Show," which airs from 7 a.m. until 9 a.m. as its two hosts are off this week. WLS program director Bob Shomper calls it a one-time deal. The station offered Blago his own weekend show earlier this year in exchange for his resignation; he declined. [WLS 890]

The tenacious folks at the Sun-Times have uncovered another shady connection between embattled Senator Roland Burris and his appointer, former governor Rod Blagojevich. The Bright One obtained a fund-raising document from three weeks before Blago appointed Burris to fill Pres. Obama's vacant U.S. Senate seat.

On the heels of yesterday's revelation that Gov. Quinn plans to propose an income tax hike of upwards of 50 percent comes news that the state budget gap is much larger than had been previously reported: $11.5 billion. According to Crain's Greg Hinz, Quinn's chief of staff Jerry Stermer referred to the deficit as "an unprecedented tsunami of red ink." Hinz continues:

So now that former governor Rod Blagojevich has a book deal, what will the cover look like? Here's our guess.

The swirl of controversy around Senator Burris gets worse and worse each day. Today's development? The Sun-Times is reporting this morning that Roland W. Burris II, son of Senator Roland Burris, landed a job with the Blagojevich administration last fall, all in spite of some financial troubles for Roland II. Just weeks before, the IRS hit Roland II with a tax lien of over $34,000 and shortly thereafter a mortgage company foreclosed on his South Side home. While officials say there was nothing illegal about Roland II's hiring, it does raise more questions about the relationship between Blago and Sen. Burris prior to the appointment.

"It's sickening. Short of Roland Burris resigning or resolving this issue — if he can, and I don't know if he can — I don't know what will stop it. I'm tired of this Blagojevich burlesque that's been going on for so long. The people of our state should be spared this." -- U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin

Less than a month since being sworn in as Governor, Pat Quinn is already surprising people with his pick of Jack Lavin as his Chief Operating Officer. While described as a personal friend of Quinn, Lavin also has an extensive past with both former governor Rod Blagojevich and convicted Blago fund-raiser Tony Rezko. Lavin previously served as Blagojevich's director of the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. That was, of course, after working for Rezko as a COO and receiving $12,000 from Rezko when he mulled over a run for public office. Lavin previously worked with Quinn when Quinn was state treasurer in the early '90's. Quinn defended Lavin in an interview before he became governor, saying, "I don't think there has ever been an iota of information that he did anything improper." State Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno said of the pick, "Certainly he comes with some baggage that we have to be very sensitive about at this moment in our state's history, but personally I want to work with everyone right now to make sure we get through the very serious problems we're facing. I can only hope the governor has fully vetted his association and knows full well that they won't in any way, shape or form interfere."

The feds have hit Patti Blagojevich with a subpoena that has many wondering if she'll be joining her husband in receiving a grand jury indictment this spring. Lady Blago reportedly complied with the subpoena, handing over any and all notes relating to over 40 individuals relating things ranging from her husband's fund-raising to her own real estate deals. Speaking to the Sun-Times, her attorney Raymond Pijon said he hopes the feds "consider the 'family structure' as they weigh that decision."

And here we thought the Saga of The Lord's Senator™ was all played out. But yesterday came the revelation that then-Governor Rod Blagojevich's brother had asked Roland Burris for a campaign contribution. The incident occurred prior to Blagojevich's appointment of Burris to replace Barack Obama in the U.S. Senate, but Burris failed to mention the incident while testifying under oath to the state house committee investigating Blagojevich for impeachment. And now that Burris has changed his story (again), he finds himself facing calls for a perjury investigation against him.

In an announcement that probably surprises no one, new U.S. Senator Roland Burris has admitted that then-Governor Rod Blagojevich's brother hit him up for a $10,000 donation to Blago's campaign fund. Burris insists that the request came before his controversial Senate appointment and that he didn't make the contribution. Still, it was an instance that Burris apparently forgot to mention when he was questioned - under oath - by a state house committee investigating the impeachment of the then-governor.

Oh, Blago. When will you ever learn? People try their best to give you opportunities in the wake of your absolute asshattery and yet you insist on making yourself look like an even bigger doucherocket than we thought. Our pal Eric Zorn was listening in to Blago's appearance this morning on WLS and found some of what Blago had to say eyebrow-raising. It seems Blago has decided to go all Blair Waldorf on Springfield, spreading everyone's dirty laundry. Here are some of the more choice excerpts.

Now that he's been removed from office, won't be receiving any unemployment benefits, needs a new lawyer, and may not be able to land a book deal, the time has come for former governor Rod Blagojevich to figure out what the next step in his career will be. Fortunately for him, Joliet's minor league baseball team, the Jackhammers, have offered Blago a steal of a deal to play ball for them. Blago would be considered a "rookie" on the team's roster and thus receive a rookie's salary, but, hey, better than what he's making now.