Governor: If he did it, 'I feel betrayed'

'This has nothing to do with how we conduct campaign'

The feds call it an indictment of a "pay-to-play scheme on steroids," but Gov. Blagojevich on Wednesday called the formal charges against top fund-raiser Tony Rezko "a clarifying document."

"You've got two guys trying to personally enrich themselves, and there's not even a suggestion that I had any knowledge whatsoever that they were doing that," Blagojevich said.

"This has nothing to do whatsoever with the things we do in government. . . . This has nothing to do with how we conduct our campaign."

The Northwest Side Democrat spoke with the Chicago Sun-Times six hours after the feds unsealed indictments against Rezko and political insider Stuart Levine.

The indictments allege that Rezko and Levine participated in a scheme to shake down investment firms for contributions to Blagojevich's campaign and kickbacks to themselves, but the governor repeatedly insisted it's really just about "a couple of guys . . . acting on their own."

Asked if he still considered Rezko a friend, Blagojevich said if the allegations are proven true, "then he's [Rezko] betrayed my friendship. And I feel betrayed. I feel sad. I feel let down, dismayed and disappointed."

No matter what Rezko's legal future, Blagojevich said he plans to donate to charity the approximately $70,000 in campaign cash and services that Rezko gave him directly.

But he deflected questions about whether the indictment of someone from his inner circle raises concerns that he himself is a target of the feds.

"First of all, Tony made some recommendations, Tony's been a friend, he's helped raise money, but Tony doesn't make decisions in the stuff that we do and never has," Blagojevich said.

The governor said he has not spoken with federal investigators since about two years ago, when the subject was different pay-to-play allegations made -- and later recanted -- by Blagojevich's father-in-law, Ald. Richard Mell (33rd).

But he confirmed that he did speak Wednesday with former Gov. Jim Thompson, but insisted it was not in Thompson's role as former head of the Winston & Strawn law firm.

"You know, it's nice to be able to call a former governor -- who's also a former prosecutor -- who can give you some insights on the interesting workings of human nature and how it operates in an environment like this," Blagojevich said.

"There's a certain loneliness to this job."

sfornek@suntimes.com