By a vote of 59-0, the Illinois Senate just convicted and removed Gov. Rod Blagojevich from office. Blagojevich is only the 8th governor in U.S. history to be impeached and removed from office. Lt. Gov. Patrick Quinn will replace the ousted governor.
I wish I could believe this marks the end of Blago’s stranglehold on U.S. media, but I suspect it just means another round of appearances, this time to protest his conviction.
In addition, the Illinois Senate voted a “political death sentence,” passing a motion prohibiting Blagojevich from ever again holding elective office in the state.
Looks like the Maytag man is no longer the loneliest man in the world.
He really is ridiculous, isn’t he?
[He’s like some absurd parody of a politician. And yet, he got elected. Scary.]
I really don’t understand how the laws in this country work. Blagojevich is a douchebag, but he has not been convicted of anything yet. Since when has a state legislature been granted the power to impeach an elected official on the ground that he is not likable enough. A recall or referendum would have been more democratic. What happens to power to the people! What happens to the right to a fair trial!
[The applicable laws, so far, have been those of the Illinois Legislature, per the Illinois state constitution. Impeachment, conviction, and removal from office is a political, not criminal, procedure. Blagojevich has yet to face his federal criminal trial, where, if found guilty of U.S. Justice Department charges against him, he could be sentenced to prison. The two procedures are entirely different (a difference Blago deliberately ignored as he went around complaining about his “unfair” treatment). Also, there’s always the possibility someone might sue him over some aspect of this, and then he could face a civil trial as well.
His removal from office was democratic because it was voted on by elected representatives of the people in accordance with the state’s constitution. (Also, the Illinois constitution may not have any provision for a recall or referendum.) In the U.S., we don’t have direct democracy, where the people vote on everything; we have representative democracy, where the people’s elected representatives conduct the people’s business. ]
Nah-nah-nah-na Nah-nah-nah-na – hey-heyyyyy GOODBYE! Good riddance, and please don’t let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya! 😉
[LOL. Hadn’t heard it said that way before!]
I guess this is why George Bush won the 2000 election even though he had less votes than Al Gore. Only in America.
[Ours is a rather antiquated system. I have long favored dropping the electoral college and going to a direct popular vote.]