Tony Rezko's bi-partisan reach (and Abraham Lincoln)

There's much more to Tony Rezko than just Barack Obama. Rezko became Rezko (think of the guttural way Hillary Clinton uttered it, as if she was saying "Satan," during that CNN debate last month), once Rod "I will govern as a reformer" Blagojevich was sworn in as governor in 2003.

And there is more to Rezko than the Democratic Party, as the Chicago Tribune's John Kass explained yesterday.

There's a GOP angle. One prominent Republican is Robert Kjellander of Springfield, who is the vice chairman of the 2008 Republican National Convention.

From his column, free Chicago Tribune registration may be required to access the link.

Kjellander was the treasurer for the Republican National Committee until he was identified as "Individual K" in the federal indictments. He made $4.5 million in finder's fees on state pension fund deals through the Blagojevich administration—then was made national GOP treasurer. That nifty move, pocketing Democratic money while mouthing Rove's talking points, makes him a candidate for Illinois Combine poster boy.

But the real poster boy is Republican boss William "The Pope" Cellini—who started out in patronage, and has since made a fortune in state gaming, development and asphalt empires. Cellini and Kjellander backed Mitt Romney in Illinois, the same Romney who all but called for the ouster of the federal prosecutor investigating them.

Yes, it's true. And McCain wants to keep Fitzgerald on the job.

Now let's turn to Cellini, who like "KJ" Kjellander, is from Springfield.

From Kass again:

Though Cellini has not been charged, prosecutors insisted that he was a significant player in the case involved in extortion and kickbacks. They identified him in court documents as "Co-Schemer A" (that's A as in Alpha) and they knocked down the contention by Rezko's attorneys that since Cellini was not interviewed by investigators or charged, Cellini must be innocent of any crimes.

"As the court is aware," wrote prosecutors, "there are many other explanations that can account for the failure to charge or interview an individual other than innocence. Rezko's assumption to the contrary is unsupported by the evidence in the case."

That has to hurt.

But let me state clearly, neither Cellini or "KJ" have been charged with crimes.

More on Cellini, from Andrew Ferguson's Land of Lincoln: Adventures in Abe's America:

Within a decade Cellini had built a fortune by "turning state government into a cottage industry," as one Chicago newspaper put it. He started a construction firm that specialized in government subsidized housing for senior citizens and office buildings that could be leased back to the state.

More...

When the state legalized gambling on riverboats, it sold him the first license--an $85,000 investment that led to a company later valued at $500 million.

Cellini was also one of the investors in the star-crossed Abraham Lincoln Hotel in Springfield, which was built by loans subsidized by the state. The property never made money, and last year, and at least a decade late, began foreclosure proceedings on the hotel, which will probably conclude soon.

His wife is Julie Cellini, by all accounts a kind and gracious woman, and she was the catalyst in the creation of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. I was there last year, it's fabulous, but the project, which had been budgeted at $10 million, ended up costing at least $90 million.

Like any small city located near interstate highways, Springfield wants to be more than a potty-stop with a couple of half-hour attractions. "Heads on beds" is how a state tourism official phrased it in Ferguson's book. Of course, some of those beds can be found in the Abraham Lincoln Hotel.

And unlike Sioux City, Allentown, or even Lincoln, Nebraska, Springfield has Lincoln.

Back to the museum:

See that picture on top. The woman in the painting, which is from a mural portraying the celebration in Washington after the surrender of Robert E. Lee, is Julie Cellini.

Considering the direction Patrick Fitzgerald's corruption investigation might be heading, one exhibit could cause embarrassment for the museum, Ask Mr. Lincoln, presented by Julie and Bill Cellini.


The other picture is of the cornerstone of the Lincoln Museum. Looking for any opportunity to improve what was left of his reputation, then-governor George H. Ryan, who is now a federal inmate, hurriedly dedicated the building, which didn't open to the public until 2005.

Even Lincoln can't escape the sleaze of Illinois politics.

And thanks to Tony Rezko, we'll be hearing a lot more about it. But that's not a bad thing. As Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis phrased it many years ago, "Sunshine is the best disinfectant."

We need a lot of sunshine here.

And as for Kjellander, he needs to resign his position with the Republican National Convention.

Related posts:

President Obama, January, 2009: Who will he appoint as US Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois?
Book review: Andrew Ferguson's "Land of Lincoln: Adventures in Abe's America"
UPDATED: Ill. corruption watch: The gov's wife and Bill Cellini
Why Rezko is an issue for Obama
Illinois to foreclose on Abraham Lincoln Hotel
Thirty hours in Lincoln's Springfield, Illinois

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