Jan 01 2009
Using Blago Bait to Reel in a Big Fish?
Something’s fishy. The Blagojevich “scandal” in Chicago is being touted as the mother of all political catches. Blago is one big fish, and US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald is reeling him in. He’s got the big one on the hook; or does he?
Govenor Blagojevich was awakened before sunrise on December 9th by phone call from Illinois Lieutenant Governor Pat Quinn, informing him that the FBI was at the family’s front door, waiting to arrest the Governor on federal corruption charges. The whole thing was done quietly, so as not to awaken the Blagojevich children or the media.
The feeding frenzy didn’t begin until US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald held a bizarre press conference, laying out his corruption case against the Governor like the buffet at a Friday night fish fry. When other attorneys questioned this tactic, their concerns were drowned out by the sound of a frenzied media feasting on the decadent scandal, finding the whole thing quite tasty. Of course, while all those media fish are feasting on Blago like mad piranhas are in one place at one time and thoroughly distracted, some smart predator might be able to swoop in and devour the lot of them. Is it possible that Blago isn’t the catch but the bait?
Think about it a second. When was the last time law enforcement triggered their own trap? If the Governor was trying to sell the seat and had a buyer, why not let the deal go down and then rush in with guns drawn? Isn’t that how it’s usually done? Take the case of the former Mayor of Washington DC, Marion Barry. The cops didn’t burst into the room when the Mayor and his pals were talking about smoking crack; they waited until they actually fired it up. Going in at the discussion stage wouldn’t have led to any charges, let alone an arrest. It’s just not how these things are done.
Something else is going on here. The US Attorney’s Office is obviously trolling for much bigger fish than Blagojevich. It should be interesting to see who takes the bait. I’m guessing it’s one giant lunker–one for the record books.
