The reasons
why House Speaker Michael Madigan's campaign staff produced a memo for
candidates about how best to call for the impeachment of Gov. Rod Blagojevich
are pretty sound. The execution,
however, left something to be desired.
Emily
McAsey is the House Democrats' candidate against state Rep. Brent Hassert
(R-Romeoville). Hassert has
refused to publicly criticize Gov. Rod Blagojevich in the past several weeks. He spoke against a proposal to recall
the governor, and he has slammed Speaker Madigan for allowing his own dislike
of Blagojevich to derail the massive $34 billion capital construction plan.
Hassert's
exurban district leans slightly Republican, and Blagojevich isn't exactly the
most popular politician in those parts.
Actually, the governor is probably horribly unpopular in just about
every district where Madigan is attempting to unseat Republican
incumbents.
Just about
every House Republican incumbent has gone on record demanding that Madigan put
his personal differences aside and allow the governor to oversee a $34 billion
capital spending plan, which, by the way is funding by a lease of the state
Lottery and a new casino for Chicago.
So, Madigan
has decided to position the Republicans between his own candidates and the
embattled Blagojevich. If the
Republicans think Blagojevich is OK, then Madigan will tie the governor around
their necks. And, several days
ago, right on cue, candidate McAsey called for impeachment proceedings to begin
against Blagojevich.
One of the
biggest reasons why Republicans suffered so much in the wake of George Ryan's
humiliation was that they never really abandoned the man. Sticking by him was probably the
honorable thing to do, and he was certainly a legislators' governor. But the public loathed him, and the
Republicans have paid a high price for their loyalty.
The same
fate is befalling the national Republicans over their refusal to abandon
President George W. Bush, the most unpopular president in recorded polling
history.
So, it
makes perfect political sense for the Democratic speaker and state party
chairman to dump on the Democratic governor. The more the public believes that Blagojevich is an
unfortunate abnormality and not the party's standard-bearer, the less impact
his troubles may have on Democratic candidates this fall.
The House
Republicans say Madigan is dreaming and point to his co-chairmanship of
Blagojevich's campaign committee when Tony Rezko was indicted. But the Republicans have put themselves
in a bizarre position of defending yet another embattled, unpopular
governor. And the weirdest part is
that this time they're defending a Democrat.
The
Democrats' impeachment talking points memo itself, however, is a bloody
mess.
If the
House Democrats had simply focused on a handful of valid reasons for
impeachment and the constitutional and political mechanics of how it might take
place, it would've been a much stronger document. Instead, much of the memo reads like an excruciatingly long list
of "Things that Rod did to make Mikey mad."
An addendum
entitled "Blagojevich's Misdeeds and Malfeasance from High to Low (A Far
from Complete List)" includes items like "Gross Receipts Tax,"
and "Having no involvement with the mass transit issue, until springing
seniors ride-free at the last second," and on and on. It was all pretty silly.
Five pages
are devoted to a "Questions and Answers" section designed to help the
candidates with queries from reporters and opponents.
"So,
neither Madigan nor his staff has had any involvement with you or preparing you
to make this announcement?" was one question.
The
suggested answer has already been pounced upon by Republicans and the
governor's allies alike as a blatant encouragement to lie: "I've
researched the issue on my own and after careful consideration believed that
now is the right time to do it."
As a
result, it might be just a little more difficult to use the impeachment issue
as a bludgeon against Rep. Hassert and other Republicans. The Repubs can just
claim that the Democratic candidates are simply parroting the Madigan
line.
But the
Madigan impeachment memo includes a suggested answer for that charge as well:
"This has nothing to do with Mike Madigan. I'm doing this because, after
carefully considering the facts and thinking about what is in the best
interests of the state, I am convinced that it is the best course and now is an
appropriate time. As far as I now,
the Speaker has been resistant to the idea of impeachment."
Rich Miller
also publishes Capitol Fax, a daily political newsletter, and
thecapitolfaxblog.com.