Keep An Eye On Blago

With the Justice Department lawyers confirming that Tony Rezko is cooperating with their ongoing investigation of political corruption in Illinois, the local media is fixated on what this means for Illinois Gov. Rod Blagoyevich, who they are certain will be indicted by U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald very soon. While the media brushes aside any concerns that Rezko may be talking to the feds about his dealings with Sen. Barack Obama, Gov. Blagoyevich is always quick to include Obama's name in any discussion about the peril he may be facing. Take his comments to reporters today as reported by the Sun-Times:

“Tony Rezko sent a letter to a judge. In that letter, he expressly states neither Sen. Obama nor I did anything wrong,” Blagojevich told reporters this morning.

“That letter is a pretty strong statement. It speaks for itself,” the governor said later.

And what about that letter Rezko wrote to U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve? Didn't he make this plea to her:

“They are pressuring me to tell them the 'wrong' things that I supposedly know about Gov. Blagojevich and Sen. Obama,” Rezko wrote in his letter to St. Eve. “I have never been party to any wrongdoing that involved the governor or the senator. I will never fabricate lies about anyone else for selfish purposes. I will take what comes my way, but I will never hurt innocent people.”

Did you read that? "They are pressuring me to tell them them the wrong things that I supposedly know about Gov. Blagoyevich and Sen. Obama." For some reason, the media pretends those words "and Sen. Obama" weren't a part of Rezko's letter to Judge St. Eve. So why does the governor always bring up Obama's name whenever he is asked about Rezko? The answer is obvious. If he's going down, he's taking Obama with him. He's broadcasting that as loudly as he can. Remember, this investigation got its start in large part because Blagoyevich's father-in-law, Chicago Alderman Dick Mell, blew the lid off his "Operation Board Games", pay-to-play scheme after he had a falling out with the governor. These snakes are selling out members of their own family. And now poor Dick Mell's daughter, Patti Blagoyevich, will have to explain to a grand jury how she earned that $45,000 real estate commission from Rezko. If Patrick Fitzgerald is calling witnesses before a grand jury to find out answers about who paid for the remodeling on Gov. Blagoyevich's Chicago home, do you actually think he's not going to be looking into Rezko's assistance in Obama's purchase of his South Side home?

Check out the video of his interview with reporters today on the Chicago Tribune's site. Ask yourself if you would want to trust your fate in the hands of Gov. Blagoyevich?