By Steve Rhodes
“For months, Attorney General Lisa Madigan and her father, House Speaker Michael Madigan, brushed aside the notion that it would be a conflict of interest if she served as governor while he continued to run the General Assembly,” the Tribune reports.
“But on Monday, she ended the rampant political speculation by announcing she’ll skip a run for governor and seek re-election, noting that her choice was largely due to the inherent conflict of concentrating too much power over state government in the hands of one family.
“I feel strongly that the state would not be well served by having a governor and speaker of the House from the same family and have never planned to run for governor if that would be the case,” Lisa Madigan said in a statement. “With Speaker Madigan planning to continue in office, I will not run for governor.”
If this is indeed the reason why Lisa Madigan bowed out, doesn’t that make Mike Madigan the Worst Father Ever? I mean, she’s clearly saying her dad wouldn’t step aside for her.
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See also: The Political Odds (Upended).
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So Lisa Madigan didn’t have any more luck negotiating with her father than any governor has.
— Beachwood Reporter (@BeachwoodReport) July 15, 2013
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State treasurer race just got crowded. #LisaMadiganDominoes
— Beachwood Reporter (@BeachwoodReport) July 15, 2013
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Lisa Madigan opts out of governor’s race so she can spend less time with her father.
— Beachwood Reporter (@BeachwoodReport) July 15, 2013
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Sheila Simon begs Pat Quinn to take her back. “I can change!” #LisaMadiganDominoes
— Beachwood Reporter (@BeachwoodReport) July 15, 2013
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Rod And Reel
“Lawyers for disgraced former Gov. Rod Blagojevich filed a long-awaited appeal of his conviction and 14-year sentence late Monday, arguing that U.S. District Judge James Zagel’s ‘one-sided evidentiary rulings’ favored prosecutors and that the stiff sentence he imposed was based on vague and speculative evidence,” the Tribune reports.
Wow, that’s weak.
“The 91-page appeal, filed about an hour before a midnight deadline set by the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, maintained that Zagel kept Blagojevich’s attorneys from rebutting cooperating government witnesses and pointing out potential biases in their testimony.”
Wow, that’s weak.
But here’s what really caught my eye:
Jurors were also wrongly instructed about bribery and fraud laws and how they pertained to “political deal-making,” the appeal argued.
The lower court “misled the jury by failing to explain the legal distinction between campaign contributions and bribes,” the lawyers wrote.
Anyone who could explain that would be the first.
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The Sun-Times has this nugget:
“Had Blagojevich ‘not sought a political benefit in return [for a U.S. Senate seat appointment], he would have done a disservice to all of his supporters,” Blagojevich’s attorneys wrote in their appeal.
Blagojevich’s responsibility was to act without regard to personal political benefit – and on behalf of the entire state, not just his supporters.
Unrealistic? Not any more so than doing 5 to 10 in the federal pen.
America 2013
My Brother Wears A Hoodie Every Day, So I Am Afraid.
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Church: It’s Safe To Kill Black People In Amerikkka.
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Juror B37 Confirms Worst Suspicions About The Zimmerman Jury: http://t.co/BhQfazd3SX
— Beachwood Reporter (@BeachwoodReport) July 16, 2013
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Juror B37 Found Confirmed Liar George Zimmerman More Credible Than Rachel Jeantel. You Decide: http://t.co/yIa4zWGPAD
— Beachwood Reporter (@BeachwoodReport) July 16, 2013
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Moneyball Report
BMO Harris Bank Not Impressed With Cubs, White Sox.
Cespedes Mocks Cubs On Way To Home Run Derby Title
Cubs cursed – with bad management.
Exclusive Preview: Hawk! The Story of Hawk
Bar none.
Tangled Up In Bridgeview
Dylan, Wilco, Richard Thompson, My Morning Jacket.
Twinkies For Bros
And Hands Off Our Hot Pockets! In The Random Food Report.
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The Beachwood Tip Line: Random.
Posted on July 16, 2013