Blago pal and fundraiser Chris Kelly dead--aspirin overdose

What a painful way to go. In what appears to be a suicide, Christopher Kelly, a top fundraiser and friend of disgraced former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, is dead.

Law enforcement sources Kelly died of an aspirin overdose. Which probably means his stomach bled a great deal, causing acute pain. And that's not all, according to the Chicago Sun-Times:

Chicago police are investigating Kelly's death. A source familiar with the investigation told the Chicago Sun-Times that Kelly, who is married, called a woman identified as his "girlfriend" and told her that he took some pills and was going to kill himself.

The woman picked up Kelly near 170th and Cicero in Country Club Hills, where Kelly reportedly vomited. Police were taking samples of the vomit and searching for evidence, the source said.

The girlfriend then drove Kelly to Oak Forest Hospital, dropped him off and called police to report she did so, the source said.

Through his publicist, Blago released this statement:

I am deeply saddened to hear that Chris has died. My heart goes out to his wife Carmen, his three daughters Grace, Jacqueline and Claire and his entire family. They are in our prayers.

Kelly pleaded guilty to taking part in a kickback scheme on Wednesday, he had previously done the same in regards to a tax evasion case. The Burr Ridge businessman was to surrender to authorities on September 18.

The hair-brained one and his wife are in New York promoting his book. But this sad ending reminds me of another book.

Nick Carraway, the narrator of "The Great Gatsby," said this about the Buchanans:

They were careless people, Tom and Daisy--they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made...

The same comparison has been made about the Clintons.

Sadly, there are many Tom and Daisys out there.

Technorati tags: Blagojevich Illinois Politics corruption Illinois Democrats chicago law legal crime cronyism books great gatsby suicide