Gov. Rod Blagojevich and his chief
of staff, John Harris, were arrested by FBI agents on federal corruption
charges Tuesday morning.
Blagojevich and Harris were arrested simultaneously at their homes at
about 6:15 a.m., according to Frank Bochte of the FBI. Both were awakened
in their residences and transported to FBI headquarters in Chicago.
In one charge related to the appointment of a senator to replace Barack
Obama, prosecutors allege that Blagojevich sought appointment for himseld
as Secretary of Health and Human Services in the new Obama administration,
or a lucrative job with a union, in exchange for appointing a
union-preferred candidate.
Another charge alleges Blagojevich and Harris conspired to demand the
firing of Chicago Tribune editorial board members responsible for
editorials critical of him in exchange for state help with the sale of
Wrigley Field, the Chicago Cubs baseball stadium owned by Tribune Co.
Blagojevich and Harris, along with others, obtained and sought to gain
financial benefits for the governor, members of his family and his
campaign fund in exchange for appointments to state boards and
commissions, state jobs and state contracts, according to the charges.
"The breadth of corruption laid out in these charges is staggering," U.S.
Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald said in a statement.
"They allege that Blagojevich put a 'for sale' sign on the naming of a
United States senator; involved himself personally in pay-to-play schemes
with the urgency of a salesman meeting his annual sales target; and
corruptly used his office in an effort to trample editorial voices of
criticism."
Blagojevich is scheduled to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Nan Nolan
later today, according to Randall Samborn of the U.S. attorney's office.
Click here for the latest updates from the Breaking News Center
A three-year federal corruption investigation of pay-to-play politics in
Gov.
Rod Blagojevich's administration has expanded to include his impending
selection of a new U.S. senator to succeed President-elect Barack Obama,
the Tribune has learned.
Federal authorities got approval from a judge before the November general
election to secretly record the governor, sources told the Tribune, and
among their concerns was whether the selection process might be tainted.
That possibility has become a focus in an intensifying investigation that
has included recordings of the governor and the cooperation of one of his
closest friends.
The governor has not been accused of any wrongdoing. The specific contents
of the recent recordings have not been disclosed. Blagojevich has said the
appointment of a Senate successor, which is his choice alone, could come
in a matter of weeks.
Speaking to reporters Monday for the first time since the Tribune revealed
federal investigators had recorded him and others as part of their
corruption probe, Blagojevich said his discussions were "always lawful."
He also defended close confidant John Wyma, whose cooperation with federal
agents helped lead to the recordings, as "an honest person who's conducted
himself in an honest way."
"I should say if anybody wants to tape my conversations, go right ahead,
feel free to do it," he said. "I appreciate anybody who wants to tape me
openly and notoriously, and those who feel like they want to sneakily, and
wear taping devices, I would remind them that it kind of smells like Nixon
and Watergate."
Unlike the recordings that the federal government has of Blagojevich, the
tapes that led to
President Richard Nixon's 1974 resignation over the burglary of
Democratic offices at the Watergate complex and the ensuing coverup were
made by Nixon himself.
Regardless of "whether you tape me privately or publicly, I can tell you
that whatever I say is always lawful and the things I'm interested in are
always lawful," Blagojevich said. "And if there are any things out there
like that, what you'll hear is a governor who tirelessly and endlessly
figures out ways to help average, ordinary working people."
Blagojevich's comments came amid increasing concern by Democrats that the
governor's pending appointment of a Senate successor may become
politically tainted as a result of the investigations surrounding his
administration. Federal investigators have been looking into allegations
of corruption regarding state jobs, appointments and contracts in
connection with Blagojevich's prolific fundraising.
Blagojevich has not been charged with any wrongdoing and contended that if
federal investigators are?s "going to those lengths and extents [of
obtaining recordings], if in fact that's true, that would suggest all the
past has been pretty good."
"I don't believe there's any cloud that hangs over me. I think there's
nothing but sunshine hanging over me," the governor said.
Blagojevich made the remarks at a Monday morning visit to laid-off workers
staging a sit-in at the Republic Windows & Doors plant on Goose Island.
Later Monday, he met for 90 minutes with Rep.
Jesse Jackson Jr., the South Side and southwest suburban congressman
who has been the most visibly active campaigner for the appointment to
replace Obama. Jackson, who was among the last high-profile Senate
successor candidates to speak with Blagojevich, has had disagreements with
the governor and is not close to him.
Blagojevich issued a strong defense of Wyma and accused the Tribune of
publishing misinformation and possibly defamatory material.
"To begin with, they didn't get it right," he said. "John Wyma's lawyer
put out a statement. The Tribune was wrong and very well may have defamed
him."
But the statement from Wyma's lawyer did not directly address the Tribune
story and instead appeared directed at media outlets and others who
reported Wyma wore a wire.
The Tribune noted that Wyma's cooperation with federal investigators
helped lead to recordings of Blagojevich but did not report that he wore a
wire.
Wyma's lawyer also did not respond to the Tribune's report that Wyma was
cooperating with investigators. "John Wyma is a friend of mine, he was my
chief of staff, and I'm sure whatever he does, he does ethically and
follows the rules," the governor said.
Blagojevich said he would not remove Wyma from his inner circle of
advisers. He also told the Tribune that Wyma was not involved in the
deliberations over an Obama successor. "No, I consider him a friend. and I
don't consider him as anything but a friend. And to someone who, as I've
known him, always has been an honest person who's conducted himself in an
honest way," Blagojevich said of Wyma. "That's the John Wyma I know and
it's the John Wyma that [Obama's incoming chief of staff,
Rep.] Rahm Emanuel knows and a lot of other people know."
Blagojevich said he had last spoken to Wyma the day before Thanksgiving,
when he offered holiday wishes and "talked a little bit about the plight
of the
Detroit Lions. He's from Michigan."
And the governor indicated he was not concerned about Wyma cooperating
with federal investigators. "Look, I believe everybody should just tell
the truth and pursue the truth and be truthful and then you do that and
everything's fine," he said.
Tribune reporter John Chase contributed to this report.
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