Editorial: 'Pay to play' must end in Illinois now

Herald and Review, Decatur, IL

Published Thursday, February 28, 2008

So, now we know Public Official A is Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

Is anyone surprised?

It was revealed by a federal judge Monday that the governor is the public official who was tangled up in a case involving political corruption.

Let's be clear. At this point, the governor has not been indicted or accused of any wrongdoing.

According to federal prosecutors, Antoin "Tony" Rezko, one of the governor's key fundraisers, and millionaire attorney Stuart Levine worked together to receive a $2 million payoff or a $1.5 million campaign contribution from Chicago businessman and Hollywood producer Thomas Rosenberg. The federal judge overseeing Rezko's case, which goes to trial next week, said in court documents that money was to go to Blagojevich's campaign.

Several news organizations have long reported that Blagojevich was Public Official A, which the governor has repeatedly denied. A Blagojevich spokesman said Monday that the governor knew nothing about the conversation between Rezko and Rosenberg.

Levine already has pleaded guilty in the case and is expected to be a witness.

According to federal documents, Rosenberg refused to go along with the deal and even threatened to contact law enforcement authorities about the alleged payoff.

According to court papers, Rosenberg was seeking $220 million in business for an investment firm, Capri Capital, from the Illinois Teachers Retirement System. Capri Capital ultimately never made a contribution to the governor's campaign and is doing business with the state.

For many Illinois residents, this case has a similar feeling to the series of cases that eventually ended with former Gov. George Ryan serving a prison term.

It's important to remember, however, that federal prosecutors have not yet made the case before a jury. Rezko seems to be the key link in this case, and it will be noteworthy to see what happens during his federal trial.

In the meantime, this isn't good news for an embattled governor and continues to raise questions about his campaign fundraising methods.

There have been plenty of instances in which campaign contributions and state government contracts have been linked. It's hard to prove that there is a direct relationship, but the amount of this sort of activity makes one wonder.

One solution is a route state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias and state Comptroller Dan Hynes have taken. Their offices prohibit state contractors from making campaign donations and also bar campaign donors from becoming state contractors. Legislation that would require all state offices to follow those rules has been introduced but never approved.

Still, the governor could sign an executive order putting such a policy in place.

Illinois has long had a reputation as a "pay to play" state, and even though Blagojevich campaigned on a pledge to clean up government, his actions have not equaled his words.

It's embarrassing for the state's leader to be so closely linked to a political corruption scheme. The future will tell whether the rest of the story is even more damaging.

This editorial from the Herald & Review, Decatur, was distributed by McClatchy-Tribune News Service.