Big League Stew - MLB

Big League Stew

Tue Dec 09, 2008 11:31 am EST

Ill. Gov.'s arrest, old-school bribery charges entangle Cubs sale

By David Brown

The feds arrested Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich on Tuesday morning, allegedly for trying to sell the state's open U.S. Senate seat (Barack Obama doesn't need it anymore) and other crimes.

Further, the Chicago Tribune reports in an awkward pdf. file that Blago's rap sheet of allegedly "staggering" inappropriate actions are all over the Tribune Co.'s attempt to sell the Chicago Cubs.

In short, G-Men say that intercepted phone calls allegedly show that Illinois' embattled governor directed his chief of staff to tell interim Cubs owner Sam Zell that the state would not help him avoid $100 million in capital gains taxes unless he fired certain Tribune Co. board members who have been critical to Blagojevich in editorials in the Trib.

What kind of Cubs fan does Blagojevich think he is? Trying to extort from his own team (allegedly)!

Does this mean Zell, too, is in federal trouble somehow?

If so, how will this affect the Cubs sale?

And, most importantly, what about the Jake Peavy trade?

Note: Blagojevich is the second consecutive Illinois governor to have been arrested. If Blago is not convicted, his hair certainly will be.

digg delicious
more

26 Comments

Post a Comment
  1. Five_outs
    1. Posted by Five_outs Thu Sep 03, 2009 2:54 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    Makes me proud ti be from Chicago. At least we have the Hawks and SOX
  2. Sportsman34
    2. Posted by Sportsman34 Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:21 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    Nice
  3. danimal1172
    3. Posted by danimal1172 Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:35 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    No wonder our state is such a cluster#%$!. This guy has cost my business about $40,000 a year by his croodedness. What goes around comes around.
  4. danimal1172
    4. Posted by danimal1172 Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:35 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    sorry... crookedness
  5. Cubbies Guy
    5. Posted by Cubbies Guy Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:02 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    Why cant we just find a governer that will actually be a loyal and servent of the people! Seriously...I love Blago's hair style though..looks good!!!
  6. Five_outs
    6. Posted by Five_outs Thu Sep 03, 2009 2:54 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    Lock him up. Lock up Obama too.... save time
  7. willY Derail
    7. Posted by willY Derail Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:39 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    Cago----whaaaaaaaa!!!!
  8. Mr. F.
    8. Posted by Mr. F. Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:14 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    What do you expect from a Cubs fan??!
  9. Ricardo M
    9. Posted by Ricardo M Thu Sep 03, 2009 10:52 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    I don't get how Obama ties into this...
    is this going to start another curse to the Cubs that's what I want to know. HAha
  10. Greg P
    10. Posted by Greg P Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:38 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    4 of Illinois' past 8 governors have been indited.
  11. MichaelH
    11. Posted by MichaelH Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:41 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    In the interest of accuracy, Blago (as he is known in IL) tried to extort the Tribune into firing some editorial board folk for suggesting he be impeached. But his most "staggering" offense (aside from the hair and his love of Elvis) is that he tried to sell Obama's former senate seat to the highest bidder. Serious stuff.
  12. PeterN
    12. Posted by PeterN Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:07 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    The Blagosphere just got a lot smaller. It used to extend from the Governor's Mansion in Springfield to Wrigley. Soon it'll be circumscribed by the razorwire fence around the satellite prison camp for Illinois ex-governors outside the Federal Correctional Institution at Terre Haute, Indiana.
  13. Edub
    13. Posted by Edub Thu Sep 03, 2009 9:37 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    He was SCUM from day one...
    And Cago - "Lock him up. Lock up Obama too.... save time"
    Haha nice..
  14. KevinK
    14. Posted by KevinK Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:50 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    Blago is the biggest scum bag on the face of the earth and I thought this long before any of this came to light. I hope he takes it in the ass all of the time in his next term- which will be his prison term. What he has done to the people of the state of Illinois is absolutely despicable.
  15. Kewl_Prez
    15. Posted by Kewl_Prez Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:49 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    Evidently it is too much to ask for an elected official simply stay out of trouble. I say we throw the whole bunch of them out and start over.
  16. Alexandra S
    16. Posted by Alexandra S Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:23 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    why are we talking about obama? republicans- give it up, the election is over, face the facts and stop hating. and just imagine what's going thru that guys mind. gee, obama won, so i appoint his successor. who should I pick? oh no, the economy sucks. hey... what if i auction off a senate seat WHILE i'm under investigation! sounds good.
  17. KD
    17. Posted by KD Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:47 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    Wow, the White Sox have clean cut Obama, the president, and John Kass and the cubs have a bankrupt Tribune company and Blago who tried to extort his own team...that sucks!
  18. dansram
    18. Posted by dansram Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:35 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    The only thing about Blago I approved of was his Pro Cubs stance. Everything else I've been against. It is ridiculous that another one of our Governors could potentially go to jail. Last one was an ex-governor. Now a sitting governor. What's next, a governor-elect?
  19. dansram
    19. Posted by dansram Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:35 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    Just to remind Alexandra S, both Blago & Obama are Democrats. Well, that and they both call Chicago home. Fortunately, that is all they have in common.
  20. Joshy119
    20. Posted by Joshy119 Thu Sep 03, 2009 4:41 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    Hey dansram - they have much more than residing in Chicago and both being democrats - have you ever heard of Rezko? If not look him up. Keyword rezko - Obama and Blago into search
    "change" ha! Chicago and IL. has had Obama in a prominent position for 4 years just what has ge changed. It's a joke.
  21. Zeeshan M
    21. Posted by Zeeshan M Thu Sep 03, 2009 11:01 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    #14 - The Dude
    1.) Spelling and grammar. It obviates your idiocy.
    2.) There have been plenty of connections between Obama and the Illinois political machine. Sure, most of America chose to overlook Rezko, but it doesn't mean it never happened.
    3.) Stop insulting the mentally disabled. At least they don't make fallatic statements.
    4.) Right and left-wingedness has nothing to do with the issue. Obama is also a cog in the machine. Myself and most other Republicans would be outraged if McCain was involved in something similar.
    5.) You suffer from sore-winnerness(sic).
    6.) Switch right for left in the second to last sentence, and we have you. Doesn't that make you feel good about yourself?
    7.) Barack Obama isn't even president yet. All it takes is one misguided individual to make sure he won't be.(Which I sincerely hope does not happen. Obama is a lot more respectable that the windbag he chose as a running mate)
    8.) Ad Hominem.
    9.) Ad Hominem.
    10.) Ad Hominem.
  22. twink
    22. Posted by twink Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:57 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    To all u sox fans sayin what do u expect hes a cub fan!! U know who's going down next the most corrupt person in chicago. Wannabe mobster MAYOR DALEY a sox fan!!!!!!! sox suck
  23. Roger D
    23. Posted by Roger D Thu Sep 03, 2009 8:53 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    "God bless Barack Obama, the greatest president in the history of the United States of America."
    ...his accomplishments as president consist of what exactly??
  24. dansram
    24. Posted by dansram Thu Sep 03, 2009 3:35 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    Rezko owned a piece of vacant land next door to Obama and gave him a good deal on that vacant piece of land. So? Rezko is going to jail. Blago had close ties to Rezko-one of his major arm twisters (I mean, "campaign financer"). Although Rezko did donate to Obama, Obama has never shown he is crooked. Not only that, he did return all of Rezko's donations. So a Rezko link between Blago & Obama is circumstantial, at best.
  25. AA
    25. Posted by AA Thu Sep 03, 2009 7:59 pm EDT

    Report Abuse

    Now all you cub fans have Blago to add to the list of excuses as to why the cubs will choke yet AGAIN next season

Big League Stew

Add to My Yahoo! RSS

'Duk

Big League Stew is an MLB blog edited by Kevin Kaduk. Email him, and follow him on Twitter.

Contributors:
David Brown, Alex Remington, Steve Henson, Curtis Granderson, Jay Levin,

Teams

Customize to follow news and rumors on your favorite teams. [ Sign in ]

Related Photo Gallery

More MLB Photos »

Y! Sports Blogs

Big League Stew Recent Readers

(provided by MyBlogLog)