Now Lisa Madigan, Illinois' attorney general, and like the governor a Chicago Democrat, announced at a press conference a few minutes ago that she has filed a notion with the state Supreme Court that the Blagojevich should be declared "unfit" for office, and have the court appoint Lieutenant Governor Patrick Quinn acting governor.
During the press conference, Madigan told reporters, "It is the governor's duty to do what is the best for the people of Illinois, not himself."
Blagojevich has never governed that way.
Now Madigan says Blago is "a governor who is incapable of governing."
It will be interesting to see where this leads. State law allow the court to remove a sitting governor who is "unfit for office," but it's believed that the statute was written for instances when a governor suffers a major stroke, along the lines of what happened to President Woodrow Wilson in 1919, or when a governor is in a coma.
In the background is the move to get Lieutenant Governor Patrick Quinn into office as soon as possible so he can appoint a Senate successor to Barack Obama. A Democrat. Shortly after the scandal broke, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) called for the General Assembly to authorize a special election for the Senate Seat. Democratic Party leaders, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, don't want that. They know Illinois voters are angry, which puts what was viewed just a few days ago as a Democratic Senate seat until at least 2011 into jeopardy.
Technorati tags:
politics 
Illinois 
Democrats 
Chicago 
Illinois Politics 
legal 
Blagojevich 
Durbin 
Senate 
Harry Reid
2 comments:
John Ruberry for governor. (R)
Racoon stew, my favorite.
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