BLAGOJEVICH IMPEACHMENT BEGINS
It’s safe to say that Rod Blagojevich’s days as Illinois’ Governor are numbered. The Illinois House of Representatives launched its first-ever impeachment probe of a governor yesterday with a unanimous vote of 113-0 to establish the Special Investigative Committee to investigate a host of allegations leveled against the Governor.
The members of the committee include: Chairperson Barbara Flynn Currie (D-Chicago), Republican Spokesperson Jim Durkin (R-Countryside), Ed Acevedo (D-Chicago), Suzanne Bassi (R-Palatine), Patti Bellock (R-Hinsdale), Bill Black (R-Danville), Mike Bost (R-Carbondale), Monique Davis (D-Chicago), Roger Eddy (R-Hutsonville), Mary Flowers (D-Chicago), Jack Franks (D-Woodstock), John Fritchey (D-Chicago), Julie Hamos (D-Evanston), Gary Hannig (D-Litchfield), Connie Howard (D-Chicago), Lou Lang (D-Skokie), Frank Mautino (D-Spring Valley), Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet), Jim Sacia (R-Pecatonica), Jil Tracy (R-Mt. Sterling), and Art Turner (D-Chicago). Justice Alan Grieman will serve as special counsel to the Speaker for these impeachment proceedings.
This committee will meet everyday except holidays in Room 114 of the State Capitol in Springfield. This committee will have the power to issue subpoenas and compel witnesses to testify. The panel also will seek information from the U.S. attorney's office as well as information gained from other parts of the federal investigation, such as information arising from the conviction of top Blagojevich adviser and fundraiser Tony Rezko. This committee promises weeks of hearings detailing Gov. Rod Blagojevich's alleged abuse of power, from enacting massive programs without legislative approval to seeking to sell the U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama.
If the newly formed panel recommends impeachment, the House will vote on its findings. If Blagojevich is impeached by the House, the matter would then go to the Senate, which acts as jury. The chief Justice of the Illinois Supreme Court would preside over the chamber, acting as a judge.
In one indication of how long the impeachment process may take, Speaker Madigan claims that rules will be written to allow the panel's work to continue through the inauguration of the next General Assembly January 14. At the same time, retiring Senate President Emil Jones (D-Chicago) and his successor, Senator John Cullerton (D-Chicago), were working on drawing up rules for conducting an impeachment trial.
If Blagojevich is forced from office or if the governor decides to resign, Lt. Governor Pat Quinn would become the state's new chief executive. House Speaker Michael Madigan has already promised that nothing short of a full-blown resignation by Governor Blagojevich could halt this impeachment process.
Special U.S. Senate Election Move Stalls
The stated purpose - in fact the entire reason - for convening an emergency legislative session this week was to strip Blagojevich of his U.S. Senate appointment powers and establish a special election for Obama’s vacant seat. Over the last week, however, it became clear that such an election, while costing the state close to $50 million in scare resources, could also produce a new Republican U.S. Senator from Illinois. The very real prospect of losing this seat to the GOP has many Democrats in the state and elsewhere backtracking on their original statement of a special election. As such, no legislation to create a special election or to strip Blagojevich of his appointment powers moved forward this week and may never move forward.
That means Blagojevich still has the power to name Obama's successor, even though the U.S. Senate has already stated that they would not seat a Blagojevich appointee. A Quinn appointee, however, is a different story.
CICI will keep you abreast of these impeachment proceedings and the situation with a special election as it further develops. | 
