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Blagojevich's Realtor Wife and Lobbyist Tipper
Saturday, December 13th, 2008
Robert Wechsler
I was in Chicago for the Council on Governmental Ethics Laws annual
conference for a week, which
is why I haven't been blogging lately. I was there when Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich was arrested, so the arrest and the tales of
selling a Senate seat and blackmailing the Chicago Tribune are old news now. But there are
a couple of interesting facts about the situation which have been
largely ignored.
Most instructive is the fact that the governor's wife had a successful real estate business based, it appears, on business from Tony Rezko, later convicted on political corruption charges, and on those seeking her husband's support when he ran for governor. According to the Chicago Tribune:
After the election and the loss of Rezko as a client, her business suffered and she sought other pursuits.
There is no better way to allow political supporters to get around gift provisions and campaign finance limitations than to have a spouse who's a realtor. It's easy for supporters to give the spouse business, or get their business associates to do this. It's no accident that many local government politicians have spouses who are realtors. This should always be suspect, and such spouse-realtors should be asked to disclose all of their clients and to refuse to do work for those doing business with the local government.
An interesting fact about this scandal is that it was, of all people, a lobbyist who went to the Feds back in October and clued them in on the governor's attempts to get those doing business with the state to give him large campaign contributions before the law changed on January 1, according to an article in the New York Times. According to an old article in the Chicago Tribune, this wasn't any ordinary lobbyist, but a former chief of staff of Gov. Blagojevich when he was in Congress, and the political director of his gubernatorial campaign. Unless the lobbyist was trying to protect himself, a tip from such an inside source must be almost unprecedented. Government ethics enforcement would be far easier with the cooperation of such people.
Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics
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Most instructive is the fact that the governor's wife had a successful real estate business based, it appears, on business from Tony Rezko, later convicted on political corruption charges, and on those seeking her husband's support when he ran for governor. According to the Chicago Tribune:
A Tribune investigation revealed she
earned more than $700,000 in commissions on other deals after her
husband began raising money in 2000 for his first gubernatorial
campaign. Of those commissions, the Tribune found more than
three-quarters came from clients with connections.
After the election and the loss of Rezko as a client, her business suffered and she sought other pursuits.
There is no better way to allow political supporters to get around gift provisions and campaign finance limitations than to have a spouse who's a realtor. It's easy for supporters to give the spouse business, or get their business associates to do this. It's no accident that many local government politicians have spouses who are realtors. This should always be suspect, and such spouse-realtors should be asked to disclose all of their clients and to refuse to do work for those doing business with the local government.
An interesting fact about this scandal is that it was, of all people, a lobbyist who went to the Feds back in October and clued them in on the governor's attempts to get those doing business with the state to give him large campaign contributions before the law changed on January 1, according to an article in the New York Times. According to an old article in the Chicago Tribune, this wasn't any ordinary lobbyist, but a former chief of staff of Gov. Blagojevich when he was in Congress, and the political director of his gubernatorial campaign. Unless the lobbyist was trying to protect himself, a tip from such an inside source must be almost unprecedented. Government ethics enforcement would be far easier with the cooperation of such people.
Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics
---
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Comments
Chase Z (not verified) says:
Fri, 2008-12-19 00:49
Permalink
You would probably think that drunken politicians, on the job, willing to miss their next payday, would only be found in movies and fictional books. Looks like Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich may have proven us wrong. Although he may have seen his last payday in office, he isn’t the only politician accused of being under the influence while on the clock. The Australian parliament is considering measures that would make current members and future members take a breathalyzer test while in session so that they don’t drink and legislate. A member of one of the leading parties in Australia’s parliament had to resign his post after he allegedly roughed up a female colleague after a Christmas party where he had become intoxicated. Other officials in Australia have also been ousted out of their public offices for drinking related offenses. The public seems to be open-minded about the idea. For instance, public transportation operators think that those who create the laws that govern should do so soberly, in the same way as the way they operate trains and buses soberly for public safety. Politicians worldwide have enjoyed a few rounds from time to time and most of them responsibly. Even still, this should be handled with extreme care.
Robert Wechsler says:
Sat, 2008-12-20 08:02
Permalink
Unfortunately, in the U.S. legislative immunity pursuant to the Speech or Debate Clause of the U.S. Constitution would make any regulation of legislators' sobriety, at least on the job, unconstitutional.
Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics