Is Blagojevich next target?
GETTING CLOSE | Sources say feds already poring over administration
Gov. Blagojevich has repeatedly denied knowing of crooked schemes that were revealed in Tony Rezko's trial, but Wednesday's conviction moves an ongoing federal probe right onto the governor's doorstep.
Sources told the Sun-Times that, as part of two separate federal investigations of Blagojevich's administration -- one looking into state hiring, the other into "pay-to-play" politics -- investigators have:
(Sun-Times file)
• • Subpoenaed Gov. Blagojevich's campaign fund.
• • Scrutinized his campaign contributions.
• • Looked into real-estate transactions connected to the governor's wife, Patti Blagojevich.
• • Interviewed witnesses in other cases about their conversations with the governor. Among them: Ali Ata, who said in his plea deal that the governor knew he was getting a job after donating $60,000 to his campaign fund.
• • Used a "mole" to get information from business people about contributions to the governor's campaign.
Blagojevich's name came up again and again in the Rezko trial. And, for weeks, the governor has dodged questions from reporters about how much sway Rezko held in his administration, saying it wouldn't be appropriate for him to comment on an ongoing case.
Wednesday night, with the case finally over and Rezko convicted on 16 of 24 counts, Blagojevich called a news conference at which he read a brief statement in which he expressed sympathy for Rezko's family. Then, Blagojevich walked off, ignoring questions about whether he has any knowledge that he might be a target of federal authorities.
"I have a $2 billion dollar budget deficit on my desk," the governor said as he left. "I have to get back to work on it."
Among the most potentially troubling issues for the governor from the trial:
• • The prosecution's star witness, Stuart Levine, testified that Blagojevich told him, "Stick with us, and you'll make lots of money," as they traveled on a private jet from New York to Chicago. Levine said he believed Blagojevich meant Levine would make money in Blagojevich's administration -- if he gave to his campaign fund.
• • Two former Blagojevich staffers -- including his chief legal counsel -- testified that Rezko and fellow former Blagojevich adviser/fund-raiser Chris Kelly were part of strategy sessions attended by the governor's inner circle.
• • Ata, whom Blagojevich appointed head of the Illinois Finance Authority, testified that he delivered a $25,000 check to the governor at Rezko's office. The governor later thanked Ata for a subsequent $25,000 donation, according to Ata, who told jurors: "He understood I was considering a position with the new administration. [He] said that it better be a job where I could make some money."
• • Ata also testified he gave Rezko $25,000 in cash to pay contractors to avert an impending construction lien on Blagojevich's Northwest Side home.
• • Republican power broker William Cellini is heard on a secretly made recording telling Rezko's codefendant Stuart Levine that Rezko consulted with the governor on how to handle a failing plot to shake down a businessman, Hollywood movie producer Tom Rosenberg, for a $1.5 million campaign contribution. Cellini uses the term "the big guy" when referring to Blagojevich. Rezko was found "not guilty" on charges related to Rosenberg. Insiders close to the governor pointed to that as a bit of good news for Blagojevich.
Contributing: Chris Fusco, Dave McKinney