House committee begins Blagojevich impeachment exploration
SPRINGFIELD -- An Illinois House panel today began its ramp-up toward the possible impeachment of Gov. Blagojevich with an opening request for help from Chicago's top federal prosecutor and a complaint from a Blagojevich lawyer who said the governor's rights are being violated by the fast-moving process.
(Brian Jackson/Sun-Times)
DEMOCRATS:
House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie (D-Chicago)
Rep. Edward Acevedo (D-Chicago)
Rep. Monique Davis (D-Chicago)
Rep. Mary Flowers (D-Chicago)
Rep. Jack Franks (D-Woodstock)
Rep. John Fritchey (D-Chicago)
Rep. Julie Hamos (D-Evanston)
Rep. Gary Hannig (D-Litchfield)
Rep. Connie Howard (D-Chicago)
Rep. Lou Lang (D-Skokie)
Rep. Frank Mautino (D-Spring Valley)
Rep. Art Turner (D-Chicago)
REPUBLICANS
Rep. Jim Durkin (R-Western Springs), minority spokesperson
Rep. Suzie Bassi (R-Palatine)
Rep. Patti Bellock (R-Hinsdale)
Rep. Bill Black (R-Danville)
Rep. Mike Bost (R-Murphysboro)
Rep. Roger Eddy (R-Hutsonville)
Rep. Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet)
Rep. Jim Sacia (R-Pecatonica)
Rep. Jil Tracy (R-Mt. Sterling)
The Democratic co-chair of the House Special Investigative Committee, Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie, said U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald had been consulted Monday about making available to the panel witnesses and other evidence from his probe of the governor and administration.
Currie said it was not clear to what extent Chicago's top federal prosecutor would cooperate but that he would consider the unprecedented legislative request.
"The United States attorney said he would not be able to say yes or no off the cuff but rather that he'd appreciate if we could write him a letter detailing what kind of investigation we might want to pursue on our own," she said.
The 21-member panel will focus Wednesday on the 76-page criminal complaint against Blagojevich that Fitzgerald made public last week and previous federal plea agreements with convicted Blagojevich donors Ali Ata and Joseph Cari -- a first step in what Currie promised would be a deliberative process.
"Let us remember that we're not Alice in Wonderland. We're not the Red Queen. We do not sentence first and then do the verdict," she said.
"Frontier justice will not prevail in this proceeding. A rush to judgment does not serve the people of the state well."
Currie said, pending Fitzgerald's approval, the committee might call as witnesses Ata, who admitted giving the governor $25,000 in exchange for a high-paying state post; former Deputy Gov. Robert Greenlee, who allegedly participated in discussions with Blagojevich regarding plans to appoint a successor to President-elect Obama; and former Blagojevich chief of staff John Harris, who resigned after being charged last week with the governor for allegedly scheming to sell the Obama's old Senate seat to the highest political bidder.
No one from the governor's office identified themselves as being in attendance today, but Currie said Blagojevich defense lawyer Edward Genson intends to be present for Wednesday's committee hearing.
Another Blagojevich lawyer, Sheldon Sorosky, criticized the fast-moving impeachment process and, in particular, a Monday invitation from the committee for the governor to attend today's hearing.
"In House Speaker Madigan's press release regarding the Special Committee, he stressed that it was imperative that due process not be sacrificed for expediency's sake,' The Special Committee is failing to follow the speaker's directive," Sorosky wrote to Madigan's chief legal counsel, David Ellis.
"By giving the governor and his counsel such short notice to be present before the Special Committee, the governor's right to due process is being violated. Speaker Madigan's demand' not to allow passion and anger to overtake fidelity to the constitution and rule of law' are being made empty words' in light of lack of reasonable notice," Sorosky said in a letter released by the House impeachment panel.
In the Senate, lawmakers there began gearing up for Blagojevich's possible impeachment. The legislative chamber voted 56-0 to form a special committee to establish rules governing the process should the House approve articles of impeachment.
Incoming Senate President John Cullerton (D-Chicago) said the nine-member panel would delve into the burden of proof necessary to convict Blagojevich in an impeachment trial because the state Constitution does not clearly spell out what constitutes an impeachable offense.
"The Constitution doesn't give us much direction other than to say we should do justice under the law,'" Cullerton said.
As the governor's possible impeachment effectively sucked the oxygen out of the Statehouse today, Republicans railed about the quiet death of a plan to set up a special election to choose a replacement for Obama.
Obama himself, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn, Madigan and retiring Senate President Emil Jones all called for a special election immediately after Blagojevich's arrest. But party leaders quietly began backing off that idea amid concerns that Republicans could be in a strong position to capture the seat because of immense voter discontent with Blagojevich.
"Whoever gets appointed will wear the stench of this scandal for the next two years and beyond," said incoming Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno (R-Lemont). "The only thing we can do to move our state forward is to have a special election, and we've just been deprived of that."
With the status of the Senate seat up in the air, Blagojevich or Lt.
Gov. Pat Quinn -- if the governor resigns -- could appoint a successor and keep the seat in Democratic hands.
Jones, who has clashed bitterly with Quinn over utility rate-freeze legislation and a failed constitutional amendment allowing for the recall of corrupt officeholders, moved today to push a bill that would strip the governor of the appointment power and give that authority to Secretary of State Jesse White.
"He's the only out there who has indicated he doesn't want to be governor so get a neutral more or less. That's the only reason," Jones said, when asked about the motivation behind that idea, which could resurface when the Senate returns to Springfield in Springfield.
Jones denied that the idea, which he said could surface as legislation when the Senate returns to Springfield next month, was a shot at his enemy, Quinn.
"No, no, that has nothing to do with it," Jones said before adding a dig at the Sun-Times, which has endorsed another political enemy, U.S. Rep.
Jesse Jackson Jr., for the vacant Senate post. "Maybe let the Sun-Times.
They want to pick everyone."
The state Constitution lays out a format for the Legislature to remove statewide officeholders and judges but doesn't provide any road map on what exactly is an impeachable offense.
THE PROCESS: The House has sole power to determine if there is cause for impeachment. A majority of House members -- 60 of the 118 members -- must agree to impeach. That's similar to a criminal indictment: It sets out charges but isn't a conviction. Then, the Senate holds a trial presided over by the Illinois Supreme Court's chief justice. Two-thirds of the Senate -- 40 senators -- must agree to convict.
THE CONSEQUENCES: An officeholder convicted of one or more "articles of impeachment" is removed from office and disqualified to hold any other public office in the state.
STANDARDS TO IMPEACH: The Illinois Constitution is vague on this. It says the House must determine "cause for impeachment" but doesn't define what constitutes such cause. For the Senate to convict, senators must "do justice according to law." In contrast, Congress can remove the president, vice president and "all civil officers" for "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors."
OTHER BURDENS OF PROOF: In civil courts, plaintiffs suing another party must prove their case by a "preponderance of evidence." In criminal trials, prosecutors must prove guilt "beyond a reasonable doubt."
SOURCES: Illinois Constitution; U.S. Constitution; Legislative Research Unit