Who rushed the Blago arrest?

According tot the Wall Street Journal, the timing of Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s arrest wasn’t the choice of Patrick Fitzgerald. In fact, Fitzgerald would have preferred to get Blagojevich with an actual crime rather than a conspiracy charge. But the timing of the arrest was determined by the Chcago Tribune;

At Fitzgerald’s request, the paper had been holding back a story since October detailing how a confidante of Blagojevich was cooperating with his office.

Gerould Kern, the Tribune’s editor, said in a statement last week that these requests are granted in what he called isolated instances. “In each case, we strive to make the right decision as reporters and as citizens,” he said.

But editors decided to publish the story on Friday, Dec. 5, ending the Tribune’s own cooperation deal with the prosecutor.

[…]

Friday, Dec. 5, it all came crashing down for the FBI agents underneath the headphones.

The Tribune’s front page screamed: “Feds taped Blagojevich; TRIBUNE EXCLUSIVE: Adviser cooperated with corruption probe, sources say.”

Blagojevich read the same headline. “Undo” that “thing,” the governor allegedly told his brother, according to the FBI. And just like that, the meeting was off, only one day after it had been put back into play.

There appear to have been fears in Fitzgerald’s office that those caught on tape might now seek to “undo” other “things.” Hours were logged over the weekend. Paperwork was pounded out. And before sunrise Tuesday, Blagojevich and his chief of staff were arrested simultaneously. At that same moment, FBI agents also knocked on the doors of witnesses. These were just a few of the people agents wanted to interview before cellphones started ringing across the city and others who had been caught on tape had a chance to get their stories straight.

Had it not been for the Tribune’s Dec. 5 story, the meeting Blagojevich’s brother was arranging might have proceeded.

And who knows who else would have been scooped up. The WSJ also reports in another article, that Rahm Emanuel was the liason between the Governor’s office and the Obama team;

Mr. Emanuel didn’t talk to Mr. Blagojevich directly about the matter, by phone or in person, according to people familiar with the matter. He spoke by phone with aides to the governor, those people say.

Neither Mr. Emanuel nor representatives of the transition team would comment for this article.

The Chicago Tribune reported Saturday that Mr. Emanuel relayed to Mr. Blagojevich’s team a list of candidates who would be acceptable to the Obama camp, and that these conversations were captured on a tape possessed by U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald. There is no evidence that this was part of a deal or quid pro quo.

That explains why, as Michelle Malkin reported last week, Emanuel was “beet red” and “pissed” when he was questioned by the media about his involvement.

The Washington Times is reporting that their digging into Blago’s campaign records show lots of pay for play;

Nearly half of the $664,000 Mr. Blagojevich’s campaign fund collected from corporations and organizations in just the first six months of 2008 came from groups with lucrative state contracts.

The state´s lax campaign contribution laws – possibly the least restrictive in the country – led to a culture that revolved around collecting campaign money and one that has tarred many of Illinois’ politicians.

[…]

Companies with hefty donations to Mr. Blagojevich´s campaign fund appear to have benefited in the form of lucrative state contracts.

I’m sure sifting through of this crap will keep lawyers and forensic accountants busy for decades.

Category: Politics