busy morning today, this blogovich thingy is getting more progressive coverage then libby did

Christy, good morning. How many of these people can give the defense, “it was just talk.” Do they actually have to make an “earnest payment” or something or is “just talk” evidence?

Depends on what they have in terms of evidence — and whether it was all coming from Blagojevich — or whether there were overt and concrete efforts to bring things to fruition on the other side of things.

Which state has more corrupt officials, Alaska or Illinois?

to insure Senate Candidate 5 kept his promise about raising money for ROD
BLAGOJEVICH. ________________Doesn’t the use of the pronoun HIS in reference to Candidiate 5 ,in the preceding statement, rule out Schakowsky,a woman?

Loiuisana has got them all beat….or so I’ve been told.

I really, really, really hope #5 isn’t Schakowsky. All of this serves as a giant wake-up call (bzzzzzzzzz) to pols everywhere. Hot new holiday gift item: butt covers.

In terms of how pronouns are used throughout the indictment, I think so, yes. Most likely, anyway.

forgive my progressive prejudices, but no effin’ way Congresswoman Schakowsky would make any such offer to the likes of Blago. plus the transcipt does say

Then the other guy would raise a million, if I made him (Senate Candidate 5) a Senator.”)

sadly, it could be Jackson or Guiterrez who has been the point guy for the protesters at Republic Windows and Doors. either way it would be Edwards redux for many of us

Does anyone know why Blago was so desperate for money? He sounds a little frantic about it

Well, well, well. Seems the FBI is checking out the story about funds being steered to our very own Normie Coleman. Story here.

Being blackmailed?

2 juicy o/t bits for the MN firedogs:

The St. Paul Pioneer Press reports that FBI investigators are looking into allegations that a longtime Norm Coleman associate, Nasser Kazeminy, tried to steer $100,000 to the senator via his wife’s employer

linky

and about 30 min ago, TPM was reporting: “Breaking, Missing, Uncounted ballots found”
but couldn’t get the link to work

your beverage of choice my dear ? lol

couldn’t help but wonder if the Blago’s wife angle might fire up those Special Agents jest a little more :D

Politico speculated that it was Jones. The feeling was that Jackson was not a fund raising machine although Jackson did come out and say he couldn’t comment on an ongoing investigation.

needed legal fee cash to defend against pending corruption charges ?

Josh Marshall points out that not only is Blago a lawyer, he is a former prosecutor. Which goes to Christy’s last post about being monumentally stupid. It burns.

HuffPo linking to St. Paul paper report that FBI is investigating Norm Coleman and his BFF Kazeminy. Can’t wait to read PW on this today.

The media has a real challenge here. will they keep stenoing RNC talking points trying to muddy up Obama on Blago?

Or will they cover the meta story. A major housecleaning is going on on both sides of the aisle. And it should.

Remember Johnny Rocco in Key Largo?

“I want more
yeah, that’s it, more”

RE: # of corrupt politicians? Total or per-capita? Fomer, “Come on, Baby do you want to go”!

and IIRC that the STrib was really hyping Normie and doing everything they could to hurt Franken. I wonder if they will bother to even print this story.

Think PW already has something up on Silo on this…

Illinois ethics laws change on Jan 1, I think it is. Blago had to grab the bucks beforehand. His veto of an ethics change was foiled…thanks to Obama, some say.

404 on the linky

Barbara and RevDeb

here is story on Missing Ballots I couldn’t find above

Thanks for all the answers. It doesn’t sound as if Blago just wanted to increase his war chest for the next election. It almost sounds as if the knee-breakers are after him - gambler?

it’s in my 13 above

1,852 DAYZ AND THE KILLIN’ GOEZ ON AND ON AND…

Citizen Hardin Smith and the Firepup Freedom Fighters:

First of all thanx for the continuing first reads and analysis…I have to say, quite reluctantly, that this circus is gunna suck up all the air from the political banquet room for some time so it’s VERY important that we get as much out in the open as possible as quickly as possible to minimize the shit tha’s gunna fall on Obama’s shoes as a result of it. As this draws all the attention, the final coup d’gras for unions and the economy is played out behind closed doors in the negotiations between the Democratic congressional leadership and the outgoin’ fascist hitman.

Do you think that Blago the Terrible is gunna be used ta take Jessie Jackson Junior down and send a warnin’ shot to other black aspirants to national power? I’m not cryin’ any tears for Jackson Jr. if he was stupid enough to play and offer ta pay but the damage this distraction could do to the new Democratic coalition could be disasterous.

KEEP THE FAITH AND PASS THE AMMUNITION, THAT BASTARDS HAVEN’T GONE ANYWHERE YET!!

I am shocked — SHOCKED, I tell you — that there might be impropriety in the hallowed halls of MN government. Make mine a bloody mary, cbl2! bwahahahaha.

Now yer goin’ all logical on us. *G*

The Strib’s conduct has been disgracefully skewed to the point of distortion. It’s not the paper it once was. Just as Bush made the Presidency something unrecognizable to what it once was.

Don’t you mean more corrupt & stupid? Oh, wait, maybe not.

I’m putting my dollar On JJacksonJR. No reason. It’s just that I’ve never heard of the other ones. What a crapfest!

Jess Jackson, Jr.: can’t comment on ongoing investigations, hhhhmmm
Emil Jones: Emil doesn’t give people money, so probably not
Art Turner: I’m not sure he has any money to give
Luis Gutierrez: has his own little corruption investigation going (questionable real estate deals), so he could be in the game
Danny Davis: has stated pretty strongly that it’s not him
Jan Schakowsky: absolutely not

St. Paul PiPress on it. Minneapolis Strib (home of the execrable wingnut columnist Katherine Kersten): no word of it online yet. Strib is in a particularly sticky financial situation right now (note to newspapers: do not name your publication Tribune or Times), so might be loathe to irritate corporate advertisers. Funny, because the Strib used to be a genuinely liberal rag and the PiPress has long been known as a conservative’s newsprint go-to place.

WaPo leans toward Emil Jones. Archpundit leans toward Jackson. A number of candidates had knowlege of Blago’s “pay to play” Kingmaker plan. Someone must have ratted on Blago early in the game in order for the wiretaps to have been installed “legally”. Of course all wiretaps are legal now anyway, aren’t they?

Like Spitzer and Hookers, this kind of behavior is probably more common that we know. If Blogo were a Republican, he would now be pushing hard (the meme) that Blago should still retain his right to appoint the Senator. After all, there is no indictment. The MSM would now be happily parroting that meme with Rove talking points.

Instead, that play has been whistled dead. There will be an election and a stinking Republican has a good chance of getting the seat.

Time for Bill Clinton to move to Illinois?

Citizen barbara:

The former owner of the St.Paul Pioneer Press now owns the Strib and, though the St. Paul paper can not be called remotely “liberal”, it’s daily operations are bein’ run by what’s left of real professional journalists on that side a the river.

I think the wiretap and bug warrants were sought before the Senate seat crap began. My impression — just based on an initial read of the affidavit — was that the children’s hospital BS was the last straw, along with some other misconduct issues. I think the Senate stuff may have begun to bubble up around the same time, but it’s highly likely the wire and bugs were in place before then.

And I’d put money on the warrants and affidavits for said monitoring being done by the book by Fitz’ office and the FBI agents there. After all, they’d been at this in Chicago on the corruption beat for quite a while — must be like old hat at this point. *G*

Illinois is in good hands. Blago is going to work today. Of course he might be taking a lot of walks with companions outside of the building.

oh yes, I recall our Lovey Howell was Sr Mgr and Editor (and I use those terms loosely) for Pioneer Press

In the day, McClatchy owned the Strib. When they rode out of town, that seemed to mark the end of responsible journalism. Remember the floating feather in “Forrest Gump”? Star Tribune in disguise.

Rumor was the Strib was on the market and they were looking at Forum Communications of Fargo as a potential buyer. Forum says they’re not interested.

My money is on Gutierrez.

Which state has more corrupt officials, Alaska or Illinois?

Per capita, I think my state - Alaska - is in a league of its own.

I wonder what a Fitzy-type USAttorney would find on California’s governator?

Bet he’ll want to frisk al of them down before speaking with them. *G*

Twain @ 10
Blago is using his campaign chest to pay his substantial legal fees.

He is doing well enough with his own scams thank you, he does not need to go after the MN pot’o'gold

oh please, Texas Governor Brylcreem is reading the complaint as Enrichment for Dummies :D

If you count the moose it may well be a tie

*snerk” Brylcreem…bwahahahaha

Honey, ever since Sarah Palin hit the road, your are definitely in a league all your own. Sincere condolences!!

Yeah, but when it comes to bribes, I’m sure a little dab won’t do him.

The biddy dole is reading a tribute to herself on the Senate floor. Good efing dog!!!!!

I’d say Senate Candidate 5 is only in trouble if there’s independent evidence against him. Blago is going to have zero credibility as a witness.

Sort of OT: There was a bit of talk yesterday about why Fitz indicted when he did. Fitz usually waits until the last possible minute to nail people. In this case, it should be obvious why he moved when he did, but nobody’s come out and said it, so let’s get it out there: Fitz really had to indict before Blago filled the Senate seat. If he had waited until afterwards, then whoever got the seat would have been hopelessly tainted, even if they weren’t involved in this scandal.

Wow, I’m sure that comes off as totally sincere and humble.

O.o

She actually visited the state capital for the first time since July, yesterday, for the executive mansion’s open house. Back to Wasilla, though, today.

Woooo — hard worker, that one. Rope line, flip the Christmas lights on, and outta town…

Having a hard time remembering the time-line of all this but when he started his money collecting did he know that he was going to need a lot for legal defense? He seemed to be inviting them to listen to his phone calls etc. Didn’t think he was doing anything illegal - strange man.

Very good point on the taint for anyone appointed. I agree.

Liddy = hubris

Does Alaska still want her? When’s she up for re-election? Will she run for Senate to up the ante on visibility (sorta like Britney Spears singing the National Anthem at the Super Bowl)?

My impression — just based on an initial read of the affidavit — was that the children’s hospital BS was the last straw, along with some other misconduct issues. I think the Senate stuff may have begun to bubble up around the same time, but it’s highly likely the wire and bugs were in place before then.

Concur on both points.
Childrens Memorial is a regional pediatric trauma center and saves lives daily.
It may not get the national play, but I cannot picture a jury listening to the tapes yielding a Not Guilty verdict.
Nothing resonates in the Ryan case so much as the illegally licensed truck driver’s negligence causing the death of a family.

Britney Spears is singing the national anthem at the super bowl? Uh. Mah. Gawd.

Twain @ 47

According to Chicago reporter on WJ this morning, Blago’s been under investigation for years and his legal bills are substantial.

Make that Twain @ 59

So sorry. I was being snarky. I keep forgetting the /s thingie. But wouldn’t that be the ultimate in crass self-promotion? Wait, wait! Does Sarah Palin sing??

OT
Members of the House are pretending to do TARP oversight on cspan. Grand standing spanking of Kash n Karry going on.

If that’s the final straw it takes to get her outta our state, let her spew her lies. Thank doG! It’ll be the last we see of her.

She played the flute in the Miss Alaska pageant, I believe…there’s a YouTube of it out there somewhere.

Alaska still wants her, but not by the margin that existed before she became a star. She will not run for Lisa Murkowski’s senate seat in 2010, but will probably run for second term. She already has “visibility,” and then some. What would benefit her more would be experience.

I expect her popularity will diminish over the course of the upcoming legislative session, as the state faces a large deficit in FY 2010, vs a large surplus in 2008 and about draw in 2009.

Started listening about 10:15 in and at that point in time, it was a forkin’ food fight between the D’s and R’s. A pox on all their houses!

If oil prices stay around $50/bbl, what will happen, when, to dividend payments to Alaskans?

This Alaskan does not want her - gawd.

The pressure on dividend payments, for next year’s payout, at least, is coming more from the fund being an investment fund. It lost over 25% of its value in the late summer and autumn. The state was shoving oil revenues into its coffers up through September. We’ve seen payouts diminish heavily before, but the payout is averaged over a five-year curve, to keep the PFD checks from fluctuating too much.

So are you Alaskan’s saying you really want to export your toxic waste? /s

ot - kashkari is testifying now about what a swell job he’s doing with the tarp part of the wall street bailout.

hey the financial system did not collapse - yes that is his evidence of success.

WEll, if that’ enough to launch criminal charges against Candidate 5, then consider how Sam Zell may be feeling, since there was a similar give and take over the firing of McCormick in return for the $100 million loan from IFA.

Does anyone know why Blago was so desperate for money? He sounds a little frantic about it

Reading the criminal complaint as literature, I thought that Blagojevich came across as very isolated. He seemed both very domineering and abusive of his power and at the same time very insecure. He was a wheelerdealer no longer able to make a deal, but like an addict kept trying. He was also someone whose world was closing in on him. It may be hard for the rest of us to understand but he saw being Governor of Illinois as a deadendjob. He had two years left to his term and that was it. He couldn’t find a bridge to anywhere. He had effectively burned them all in the capricious roughshod way he had run politics in Illinois. He had alienated everyone except a small closed group of advisers and henchmen. He had no way to continue his career. He was damaged goods. So while Democrats did well in 2008, it didn’t help him. So he was desperately trying to find a way forward with lots of bravado and even more fear. Maybe he thought he could outlast Fitzgerald. But if he left the governorship as is, he would only have the retirement funds that afforded him and those could be taken away from him with a conviction. And then he would have nothing. And much as he was in denial about it, I think he felt that keenly. That for me was his problem. He had no future, and his past was catching up with him.

Fitz said yesterday that he pushed the indictment so that the public would know, to put sunshine on the backdrop of the Senate appointment.

It could be that the punishment for “just talking”/conspiracy would be notsomcuh, but if there is evidence on the Children’s Hospital shakedown or similar, then it could be tougher. Or that is what I think.

Clearly, Blago had and has issues, and for a guy who promised to “clean up” the ethics, he did not walk that walk.

But on this talk, he surely talked himself into the perp walk.

Kash was paraphasing his remarks to the National Press Club. He is just going to lie his head off. Without any evidence and, in fact, with all of the evidence to the contrary, he is going to assert that the rogram is going well and that the financial situation is improving, even though as I just said there is no evidence that the money he is slinging around in such a sloppy and non-transparent way is having any effect at all in easing credit. None.

Thanks, Hugh. He is, if nothing else, a puzzle.

yep. question i have is what is congress going to do about it? at least kucinich and issa did a pretty decent job of showing him up as incompetent jackass.

She played the flute very badly. Mrs BC (a pretty good flutist) couldn’t bear to listen to much more than the first phrase. I thought she did better than the band that was backing her, but that’s really damning with faint praise.

And the Texas Governor is Rick “Goodhair” Perry, or Gov Goodhair for short. He was named by Molly and I think it ought to stick for as long as Goodhair is in politics.

Maxine Waters taking the hide off Kash but Kash keeps going back to his rote script. Stability of system, worse if we hadn’t done the TARP, and never answered why he wouldn’t back Bair’s FDIC plan to help homeowners.

Waters: You gave BofA $15 billion. Did you call them about the situation about the Door company in Chicago? No, it would not be appropriate to discuss specifics. Why the hell not? No he hasn’t been in contact.

… Alaska - … a league of its own.

catch Sarah Palin starring in the local repertory production of “Sell-Ma and Le Weasel”

I am another flutist, and frankly, I was too afraid to watch the video of her. In some areas, I am spineless.
One time at band camp…yes, I went to band camp as an instructor when my daughter who also plays the flute, went in high school.
Oh, those flute jokes.

Maxine is hot, hot, hot. Another good pol from CA.

Kash says that big or small pricing was identical. I don’t think so. It was done at par and par for each institution would be different and have different risk.

Question: Did you ask what the banks would do with the money you gave them.

Short answer: No.

Kash keeps mentioning healthy banks but never defines what this means.

So are they lending?

We are working with regulators to monitor that. It will take a while. blah, blah, blah.

Again shorter answer: I have no evidence that it is working at all.

et tu, Flutist? :~)

Cash & Carry reminds me to the many witnesses we saw when thugs controlled the committees….say lots while saying nothing. :-(

ooh - that’s a keeper.

What are the banks doing with the money? Buying the smaller banks which rec’d no money, paying executive salaries, buying hookers and blow. Lending? Are you kidding? In this environment? /s

Dadaro, the other guy on the panel, it isn’t micromanaging to ask what the banks are doing with the money.

Aggressivly pursuing self-interest; the same as any private institution would in absence of any obligation or directive.

Cash & carry keeps talking about working w/ the oversight committee. Earlier he stated that they weren’t functioning for a while and that they finally met with them on Nov. 21. Has anything been done since their initial meeting? Baffle them w/ bs.

hee hee hee
c’est moi, c’est moi!

Question: Is Goldman Sachs running the country?

Short answer: Yes.

Kash lied about the exposure of Citi. He said it is responsible for the first $40 billion in losses. But it is $29 billion and the government is on the hook for 90% of the remaining $277 billion or $249.3 billion.

Frank: Long winded goes over same turf of: will you monitor if banks are relending?

Kash: Oh sure.

Frank: blah, blah, blah.

Dadaro: We need to see the specifics (and obviously haven’t seen them)

Frank: Considering giving the other $350 billion.

That was a wasted 10 minutes.

thanks for the liveblogging. just got back from the vets and missed a bunch.

yeah, i was totally struck by the controlled fury in fitz’ voice when he talked about the children’s hospital scam.

message: you do NOT screw with sick children.